Ezekiel 15
1 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
Then the word of Yahweh came to me, saying,
2 Son of man, what is the wood of the vine more than any wood, the vine-branch, which is among the trees of the forest?
“Son of man, how is a vine better than any tree with branches that is among the trees in a forest?
3 Shall wood be taken thereof to do any work? or will [men] take a pin of it to hang any vessel thereon?
Do people take wood from a vine to make anything? Or do they make a peg from it to hang anything on it?
4 Behold, it is given to the fire for fuel: the fire consumeth both the ends of it, and the midst of it is burned; is it fit for [any] work?
See! If it is thrown into a fire as fuel, and if the fire has burned both of its ends and also the middle, is it good for anything?
5 Behold, when it was whole, it was used for no work; how much less when the fire hath consumed it, and it is burned, should it yet be used for any work?
See! When it was complete, it could not make anything; surely then, when the fire has burned, then it still will not make anything useful.
6 Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: As the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
Therefore the Lord Yahweh says this: Unlike the trees in the forests, I have given the vine as fuel for fires; I will act in the same way toward the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7 And I will set my face against them: they shall go forth from [one] fire, and [another] fire shall devour them; and ye shall know that I [am] Jehovah when I set my face against them.
For I will set my face against them. Though they come out from the fire, yet the fire will consume them; so you will know that I am Yahweh, when I set my face against them.
8 And I will make the land a desolation, because they have wrought unfaithfulness, saith the Lord Jehovah.
Then I will make the land into an abandoned wasteland because they have committed sin—this is the Lord Yahweh's declaration.”
