以西結書 15

1 耶和華的話臨到我說：

A message from the Lord came to me, saying,

2 「人子啊，葡萄樹比別樣樹有甚麼強處？葡萄枝比眾樹枝有甚麼好處？

“Son of man, is wood from a vine better than the wood from any other tree in the forest?

3 其上可以取木料做甚麼工用，可以取來做釘子掛甚麼器皿嗎？

Can you make anything useful from vine wood? Can you use it to make even just a peg to hang up pots and pans?

4 看哪，已經拋在火中當作柴燒，火既燒了兩頭，中間也被燒了，還有益於工用嗎？

No, you just throw it on the fire to keep the fire burning. Even then the fire burns both ends, but only chars the middle part. Can you use it for anything?

5 完全的時候尚且不合乎甚麼工用，何況被火燒壞，還能合乎甚麼工用嗎？」

Even before you burned it you couldn't make it into anything useful. It's even less useful once the fire has burned and charred it!

6 所以，主耶和華如此說：「眾樹以內的葡萄樹，我怎樣使它在火中當柴，也必照樣待耶路撒冷的居民。

So this is what the Lord God says: In the same way that I have taken the wood of a vine from the forest and thrown it on the fire to be burned, so I'm going to throw away the people of Jerusalem.

7 我必向他們變臉；他們雖從火中出來，火卻要燒滅他們。我向他們變臉的時候，你們就知道我是耶和華。

I will turn against them. While they might have escaped this fire, another fire is going to burn them up. When I turn against them, then you will know that I am the Lord.

8 我必使地土荒涼，因為他們行事干犯我。這是主耶和華說的。」

I'm going to turn the country into a wasteland, because they were unfaithful to me, declares the Lord God.”