Parable of the Useless Vine

15 Then the word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, how does the wood of the vine,(A) that branch among the trees of the forest, compare to any other wood? Can wood be taken from it to make something useful? Or can anyone make a peg from it to hang things on? In fact, it is put into the fire as fuel.(B) The fire devours both of its ends, and the middle is charred. Can it be useful for anything? Even when it was whole it could not be made into a useful object. How much less can it ever be made into anything useful when the fire has devoured it and it is charred!”

Therefore, 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 as fuel, so I will give up the residents of Jerusalem. I will turn against them.(C) They may have escaped from the fire, but it will still consume them.(D) And you will know that I am the Lord when I turn against them. I will make the land desolate because they have acted unfaithfully.” This is the declaration of the Lord God.

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The vine’s wood

15 The Lord’s word came to me: Human one, how is the vine’s wood better than the wood of all the trees in the forest? Can you make anything useful from its wood? Can you make a peg from it and hang objects on it? If not, can it be used as firewood? Fire would consume its two ends, but its middle part would only get charred. So is it useful for anything? Look, even when it was whole, it was worthless. Now that the fire has consumed it, and it is charred, it’s even more useless.

Therefore, the Lord God proclaims: Of all the trees in the forest, I have decreed that the vine’s wood is destined to be consumed by fire. So also have I decreed for those who live in Jerusalem, and I have confronted them. They may try to go out from the fire, but the fire will consume them. You will know that I am the Lord, because I confronted them. I will turn the land into a ruin because they acted faithlessly, proclaims the Lord God.

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