Ezekiel 33:21
And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is smitten. And it came to pass in the twelfth year of our captivity, in the tenth month, in the fifth day of the month, that one that had escaped out of Jerusalem came unto me, saying, The city is smitten.
The chapter in which the fugitive's announcement that the city has fallen is recorded sets forth the principle of personal responsibility under God's government. Each soul is held accountable for his own obedience, and no man can obey in the place of another. The failure or neglect of others to do their duty provides no excuse for withholding one's own service. Every individual must therefore meet his own obligation to God regardless of what those around him do or leave undone.