15 And the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any wood, the vine branch that is among the trees of the forest? 3 Is wood taken from it to make anything? Do people take a peg from it to hang any vessel on it? 4 Behold, it is given to the fire for fuel. When the fire has consumed both ends of it, and the middle of it is charred, is it useful for anything? 5 Behold, when it was whole, it was used for nothing. How much less, when the fire has consumed it and it is charred, can it ever be used for anything! 6 Therefore thus says the Lord God: Like the wood of the vine among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the fire for fuel, so have I given up the inhabitants of Jerusalem. 7 And I will set my face against them. Though they escape from the fire, the fire shall yet consume them, and you will know that I am the Lord, when I set my face against them. 8 And I will make the land desolate, because they have acted faithlessly, declares the Lord God.”
Section Overview
Thus far, God’s word to his people through Ezekiel has come in the form of sign-acts, visions, and oracles. Chapter 15 begins a new section linked by a sequence of parables, which runs through to the end of chapter 19. Although the form is different, the content is similar: the central theme remains the certainty and deserved nature of Jerusalem’s forthcoming judgment. In this case Jerusalem is compared to the wood of a grapevine, the least valuable of wood to begin with but made doubly worthless after it has been in the fire for a while. This chapter is linked to what precedes it in chapter 14 by its conclusion, which describes the land as “acting faithlessly” and “desolate” (15:8; cf. 14:13; 14:16). These references form bookends, underlining the focus of these sections on the imminent and deserved annihilation of Jerusalem.
Section Outline
II. Oracles of Doom (4:1–24:27) . . .
C. Further Oracles of Judgment (12:1–24:27) . . .
6. The Parable of the Worthless Wood (15:1–8)
Response
Parables get past one’s defenses, often by stating a truth that is so obvious that one is forced to agree with it, but then revealing a hidden message that is less palatable. However, having agreed with the initial premise, one cannot escape its force. No one could argue against what the prophet observes about vine wood’s being useless, especially charred and half-burned vine wood; yet if one agrees with that, how could one argue against his conclusions regarding Jerusalem? Once the Lord gives up on the city because of her covenant unfaithfulness, Jerusalem’s fruitfulness is finished. Like the prunings from the vine, she is fit only for the fire, which in this case will not purify her but only further reinforce her uselessness.
Ezekiel 15 illuminates the background to Jesus’ image of the vine and the branches (John 15). Jesus reveals himself as the true Israel, the flourishing vine that is carefully tended by the divine vinedresser (John 15:1). Those who are united to him by faith are branches on that vine, fruitful and flourishing as long as they abide in him. Healthy branches are made even more fruitful by the pruning work of the vinedresser, who fits our sufferings to our need (John 15:2). But anyone who does not abide in him becomes like the vine wood of Ezekiel 15: worthless and fit only for the fire (John 15:6). Apart from Christ we can do nothing and are nothing, no matter our heritage as part of the visible people of God. Only those who remain bonded to Christ by faith will endure to the end and bear fruit for him.
The hope of the gospel lies in the reality that Jesus, by nature the true and flourishing vine, became like a root out of dry ground (Isa. 53:2) and took onto himself the burning fate we deserve for our sins. As a result, we who by nature are worthless vine wood can now be grafted into the living tree that is Christ—whether we are Jews or Gentile by birth (cf. Rom. 11:17–24)—and thus come to bear much fruit for God. There is no place for boasting or pride, since any fruitfulness or usefulness that we have comes only from the vitality of our root, which is Christ (Rom. 11:18). His covenant faithfulness atones for our many failures and sins; his living Spirit empowers us to serve him and glorify him forever.Ezekiel 15
Ezekiel 16