יחזקאל, פרק י״ח, פסוק י״ג

A person's spiritual destiny is ultimately determined by their own choices, regardless of their family background. When a wicked son is born to a righteous father, the son cannot rely on his father's good deeds to shield him from the consequences of his own actions. The principle of personal responsibility stands absolute.

Among the corrupt actions defining this destructive path is the exploitation of others through financial loans. This includes charging explicit, fixed interest as well as engaging in more subtle, indirect forms of taking financial advantage of a borrower [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. It might be natural to wonder if such a person could somehow be spared and allowed to live due to his father's righteousness. However, this is a rhetorical impossibility. Because the son has committed terrible acts and possesses no personal merit of his own to defend him, his father's virtue offers no protection, and he will face the full severity of justice.

The resulting punishment is absolute and spans two distinct realms. In this physical world, he is subject to the harshest penalties from an earthly court, as his path of sin involves severe offenses like idolatry and forbidden relationships [מלבי״ם]. The consequences then follow him into the World to Come, where he will be denied eternal spiritual life. The burden of this fate rests entirely on his own shoulders. He bears the exclusive guilt for his actions, having brought spiritual and physical ruin upon himself through his own deliberate choices [מלבי״ם, מצודת דוד].