Ezekiel — Chapter 15
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1Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,
2“Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any other branch among the trees in the forest?
3Can wood be taken from it to make something useful? Or can one make from it a peg on which to hang utensils?
4No, it is cast into the fire for fuel. The fire devours both ends, and the middle is charred. Can it be useful for anything?
5Even when it was whole, it could not be made useful. How much less can it ever be useful when the fire has consumed it and charred it!
6Therefore this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I will give up the people of Jerusalem.
7And I will set My face against them. Though they may have escaped the fire, yet another fire will consume them. And when I set My face against them, you will know that I am the LORD.
8Thus I will make the land desolate, because they have acted unfaithfully,’ declares the Lord GOD.”
1And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
2Son of man, What is the vine tree more than any tree, or than a branch which is among the trees of the forest?
3Shall wood be taken thereof to do any work? or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon?
4Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire devoureth both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned. Is it meet for any work?
5Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less shall it be meet yet for any work, when the fire hath devoured it, and it is burned?
6Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7And I will set my face against them; they shall go out from one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set my face against them.
8And I will make the land desolate, because they have committed a trespass, saith the Lord GOD.
1And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
2Son of man, what is the vine-tree more than any tree, the vine-branch which is among the trees of the forest?
3Shall wood be taken thereof to make any work? or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon?
4Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire hath devoured both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned: is it profitable for any work?
5Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less, when the fire hath devoured it, and it is burned, shall it yet be meet for any work!
6Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: As the vine-tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7And I will set my face against them; they shall go forth from the fire, but the fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah, when I set my face against them.
8And I will make the land desolate, because they have committed a trespass, saith the Lord Jehovah.
1The Lord’s message came to me:
2“Son of man, of all the woody branches among the trees of the forest, what happens to the wood of the vine?
3Can wood be taken from it to make anything useful? Or can anyone make a peg from it to hang things on?
4No! It is thrown in the fire for fuel; when the fire has burned up both ends of it and it is charred in the middle, will it be useful for anything?
5Indeed! If it was not made into anything useful when it was whole, how much less can it be made into anything when the fire has burned it up and it is charred?
6“Therefore, this is what the Sovereign Lord says: Like the wood of the vine is among the trees of the forest that I have provided as fuel for the fire—so I will provide the residents of Jerusalem as fuel.
7I will set my face against them—although they have escaped from the fire, the fire will still consume them! Then you will know that I am the Lord, when I set my face against them.
8I will make the land desolate because they have acted unfaithfully, declares the Sovereign Lord.”
1Yahweh’s word came to me, saying,
2“Son of man, what is the vine tree more than any tree, the vine-branch which is among the trees of the forest?
3Will wood be taken of it to make anything? Will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel on it?
4Behold, it is cast into the fire for fuel; the fire has devoured both its ends, and the middle of it is burned. Is it profitable for any work?
5Behold, when it was whole, it was suitable for no work. How much less, when the fire has devoured it, and it has been burned, will it yet be suitable for any work?”
6Therefore thus says the Lord Yahweh: “As the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so I will give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7I will set my face against them. They will go out from the fire, but the fire will devour them. Then you will know that I am Yahweh, when I set my face against them.
8I will make the land desolate, because they have committed a trespass,” says the Lord Yahweh.
Summary
God gives Ezekiel a brief parable about the wood of a grapevine, asking whether it is more useful than any other wood — unfit even for a peg to hang something on, and good for nothing but fuel (vv. 1-5). Since a vine's only value is its fruit, a vine that fails to produce fruit has no worth at all. Jerusalem, God says, is like that useless vine wood: having failed to bear fruit for Him, she is fit only to be consumed by fire (vv. 6-8).
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
- Jerusalem (v.6): Capital of Judah; the holy city where the Temple stood.
Places on this map
- JerusalemJerusalemA hill town about 2,500 feet up in the central spine of Judah, roughly 35 miles inland from the Mediterranean and 15 miles west of the Jordan. It sits on no trade route and has no river, which is why it mattered as a fortress and a sanctuary rather than as a market. Wikipedia
Towns sit on their excavated or traditional site. Regions, rivers and seas are ringed rather than dotted, because for those a single point is only an anchor. Coastlines from Natural Earth.
Commentary
- Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown (1871): blueletterbible.org A critical and explanatory commentary on the whole Bible, more concise than Matthew Henry and closer to the Hebrew and Greek, with attention to historical and geographical detail. Public domain.
- Matthew Henry's Exposition (1710): blueletterbible.org A devotional verse-by-verse commentary in the Puritan tradition, still among the most widely read three centuries on. Public domain.
Videos
Articles
- GotQuestions.org: gotquestions.org On the whole book: an overview of the book of Ezekiel -- who wrote it, when, why, and how it fits the rest of Scripture.
Links open on the publisher's own site. Nothing here is reproduced on this page.
Reflection
- No Special Value Apart From Fruit (v.2) — Ezekiel asks what makes vine wood better than any other branch in the forest, and the implied answer is nothing — its only purpose is the fruit it bears. What do you point to as your value before God: fruit you're actually bearing, or just your position or history?
- Fit Only for the Fire (v.4) — Vine wood that isn't bearing fruit isn't just less useful than other wood, it's fit for nothing but fuel, already being consumed at both ends. Is there an area of your life that's become fruitless and is quietly being burned up while you assume it's fine?
- Jerusalem Given as Fuel (v.7) — God sets His face against the city precisely because, like the vine wood, she has stopped producing what she was made for. What would it look like for you to take seriously that your purpose, not just your identity, is what God is watching?