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Ezekiel 15

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The Uselessness of the Vine 1–5

1
And the word of Jehovah came unto 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? ​
3
Shall wood be taken thereof to make any work? or will men take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon? ​
4
Behold, 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?
5
Behold, 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! ​

Jerusalem Fit Only for Fire 6–8

6
Therefore 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. ​
7
And 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. ​
8
And I will make the land desolate, because they have committed a trespass, saith the Lord Jehovah. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Ezekiel 15

Verse 2

the vine tree — Gephen is the grape vine, set beside ets, 'tree' or 'wood', the forest timber it is compared with. The vine is the LORD's figure for Israel: 'Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt' (Ps 80:8), 'a noble vine, wholly a right seed' (Jer 2:21), yet 'an empty vine' (Hos 10:1). Its worth lies in its fruit.

Verse 3

a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon — The 'pin' is yathed, a peg, the word for the tabernacle's pins (Ex 27:19) and the 'nail in a sure place' on which 'all vessels' were hung (Isa 22:23–24). Vine wood is too slight for even that humblest use of timber, and the question expects the answer no.

Verse 5

when it was whole — Tamim, entire, the word for the 'without blemish' lamb of Ex 12:5. The reasoning runs from the lesser to the greater: if the vine was good for no 'work' (melakah, the word repeated through vv.3–5) while whole, 'how much less' after the fire has devoured it.

Verse 6

so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem — The comparison is made plain by one verb, nathan, 'give': the vine tree is 'given to the fire for fuel', and so are the city's inhabitants. 'Fuel' (okelah) is literally food for the flame. Christ uses the same picture of branches that bear nothing: 'men gather them, and cast them into the fire' (John 15:6).

Verse 7

I will set my face against them — The expression is the LORD's own in the law, 'I will even set my face against that soul' (Lev 17:10). 'One fire, and another fire' describes people who come out of one calamity only to be overtaken by the next, and the verse ends with the purpose of it, 'ye shall know that I am the LORD'.

Verse 8

committed a trespass — Ma'al is a breach of faith, the word for sin 'in the holy things of the LORD' (Lev 5:15). The land becomes shemamah, desolate, as the result. Chronicles records the same verb and noun of Judah's last days: 'transgressed very much after all the abominations of the heathen' (2 Chr 36:14).