Ezekiel 18:2

What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, literally, "upon the land of Israel," in the sense of something that is harmful and wrong, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge? This proverbial saying in the land of Judah reflected the self-righteousness of its inhabitants, for they meant to say that the sins of their fathers, of which they considered themselves innocent, were unjustly visited upon them. It is the tendency of natural man to place the blame for his troubles upon others; but although others may be guilty, yet it is the nature of true contrition to disregard the transgressions of every one else and to see nothing but one's own guilt and proneness to punishment. For that reason this false understanding of Exodus 20:5 was combated also by Jeremiah 31:29; Jeremiah 32:18. The sins of the fathers are visited upon the children only in the case of those who hate Him, who follow their fathers in the enmity against the Lord.