Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? The First Reading from the Prophet Ezekiel deals with a perennial issue that has plagued the history of humanity’s relationship with God: the perceived fairness/unfairness of God in punishing wrong doing (or rather, the perception that God lets evil doers go unpunished even as he watches from the sidelines as the innocent undergo suffering). Ezekiel, tasked with encouraging and giving hope to his kinsfolk languishing in exile, must have found himself in a rather difficult position as he tried to preach about God’s fidelity to a generation that had been born in exile. To this generation, the only question they wanted answered was why they had to be punished for the sins committed by their ancestors. Why was God being unfair to them? Why was the Lord permitting the innocent to suffer? In the Lord’s defense, the prophet assures his kinsfolk that they were not being punished for the sins of their ancestors. The Lord never allows the innocent to suffer or die on account of another’s wrong doing. Sons were to no longer die because of the sins of their fathers or fathers for the sins of their sons. Both lives are equally important to the Lord. A virtuous individual was to live because of his/her virtue, while a wicked person was to die because of his/her wickedness (cf. Ezekiel 18:20).  
However, as we read in the passage, the issue was not only about the punishment of the innocent. It might have been that the Lord’s unfairness was also felt in the treatment of an individual who had lived an entire life in virtue but who was then tempted to commit a sin vis-à-vis a one who had been wicked his/her entire life and then decided to repent. Shouldn’t previous virtuous deeds be considered when rendering judgment? Shouldn’t a virtuous individual who has committed a sin be ‘saved’ or at least rendered a ‘fair’ judgment on account of his previous virtuous life? Shouldn’t his/her past righteous deeds count for something? While such was the logical expectation of the people, this is not how it works when it comes to our life with God. God's dealing with us cannot be analyzed using our human standards of fairness/justice. Far from what our human understanding of justice would require, God doesn’t deal with us according to how our actions deserve (cf. Psalm 103:10). Instead of pointing fingers at God, the Lord reminds us through the prophet, we should look at our own treatment of God. For until we look at our own treatment of God (how we relate to God), we will never be able to understand God’s just treatment of us. The parable of the two sons about which we hear in the Gospel Reading makes this very clear.
According to the parable, a father asked his two sons to run an errand for him. While the first son initially responded in the negative, he later on changed his mind and did as his father had wanted. The second son who had initially responded in the affirmative ended up not doing what his father had wanted. And although from our point of view it would be safe to say that the two sons were both guilty of some offence (the first one for saying NO to his father, the second one for not honoring his YES), it was the second son whose sin was punishable. It is true the first son is not an ideal son himself, but he seems to have realized that he had sinned when he said NO to his father. To make up for his sin, he went ahead and did what his father had wanted him to do. The same cannot be said of the second son. His major sin lay, not in his failure to do what his father had wanted, but rather in his failure to honor his YES. He had given his word to his father and the two had entered into a relationship. He was bound by the terms of the relationship to uphold his YES. 
When it comes to our relationship with God, one is expected to honor the terms of the relationship. God never forces us to enter into a relationship with him. However, once we decide to make a pact with God, we are expected to honor our end of the contract to the very end. The pact that we enter into with God concerns living a virtuous life even as we shun evil. An individual who has made a pact with God and is leading a virtuous life is held to a higher standard than a wicked one because of the covenant with God that he/she represents. A virtuous person agrees to ‘represent’ God and is regarded as a beacon of light/goodness/hope in the community in which God has inserted him/her. He/she becomes a reference point in people’s search for God/goodness. Consequently, when a righteous man/woman commits iniquity, he/she brings down not only him/herself but also God whom he/she represents. This is what leads to his/her death.