Eze 18:2 What mean ye, that ye use this proverb concerning the land of Israel, saying, The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge?
Eze 18:3 As I live, saith the Lord GOD, ye shall not have occasion any more to use this proverb in Israel.
Eze 18:4 Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.
The people were using an old “saying” or proverb as an excuse for their condition.
Basically blaming their current condition on the sins of their fathers and “excusing” their own behavior.
As long as they use this excuse they are denying the delivering power of God in their lives.