And they shall bear their punishment—the punishment of the prophet and the punishment of the inquirer shall be alike: God will punish both the false prophets and the idol worshipers who consult them in exactly the same way. The one group is not more guilty of sin than the other. Punishment renders the same Hebrew word (ʿawon) as “iniquity” in verse 3 (see the comments on 4.4). Here it means “punishment [for sin]” or “guilt [felt as a result of sin].” New Century Version provides a good model for this verse, saying “The prophet will be as guilty as the one who asks him for help; both will be responsible for their guilt.” Another possible model is:

• Both the false prophets and those who consult them will get the same punishment.

Quoted with permission from Gross, Carl & Stine, Philip C. A Handbook on Ezekiel. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .