Ezekiel 14:16
Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate. Though these three men were in it, as I live, saith the Lord GOD, they shall deliver neither sons nor daughters; they only shall be delivered, but the land shall be desolate.
The three men named are Noah, Daniel, and Job. Even if they were present in a land under judgment, they would deliver neither sons nor daughters but only themselves. Their deliverance of only their own souls would be by their own righteousness. That righteousness by which they deliver only themselves is the imputed righteousness of Christ.
The verse teaches that each person must answer and stand individually before God, with no human help or mediation. Another person's faith cannot secure salvation, so each person must seek pardoning grace for himself. No one can save another soul, not even by giving his own life for him. Life or death stands before each person for him to choose for himself.
The verse applies to a coming time of anguish and trouble when each soul must stand for itself. It will be fulfilled in the soon-coming time of trouble such as never was, after the angels now restraining the four winds until the servants of God are sealed are told to loose them and a scene of strife beyond description begins. That ordeal will be greater than anticipation and beyond any vivid presentation, and it requires an experience that many are too indolent to obtain.