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Ezekiel 15

Ezekiel 15 Summary, Context, and Full Chapter

Ezekiel 15 is a short, direct warning about Jerusalem's unfaithfulness. Through the image of vine wood, God shows that the city has no strength or value for the purpose it was meant to serve. The passage ends with a serious announcement of judgment and desolation.

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What happens in Ezekiel 15?

The word of the LORD comes to Ezekiel with a question about vine wood. Unlike stronger timber, a vine cannot be turned into useful tools or furniture; when it is burned, it has little value even before the fire. God applies that image to Jerusalem, saying the city is fit for judgment because of its faithlessness. The warning is repeated with force: if one judgment does not finish the work, another will. The chapter closes with the land made desolate because of unfaithfulness.

This chapter sits in the middle of Ezekiel's early messages of warning against Judah and Jerusalem. It follows a call to hear and respond to God's word and comes before a striking portrayal of Jerusalem's unfaithfulness in chapter 16. Ezekiel 15 uses a brief parable to explain why judgment is coming and why the city cannot rely on its former status.

Themes to notice

  • Useless vineThe vine image shows that Jerusalem has become unfit for the purpose it was meant to fulfill.
  • JudgmentGod announces that His face is set against the people and that fire will come upon them.
  • UnfaithfulnessThe reason for the coming desolation is the city's failure to remain faithful to the LORD.

Questions for Ezekiel 15

  • What does the vine image teach about Jerusalem's condition?
  • Why does God describe the city as fit only for fire?
  • How does this chapter connect unfaithfulness with coming desolation?

Read the full text of Ezekiel 15 below, then open it in the reader to highlight, take notes, or ask follow-up Bible questions. No account is required to read.

Ezekiel 15

Jerusalem the Useless Vine

1Then the word of the LORD came to me, saying,2“Son of man, how does the wood of the vine surpass any other branch among the trees in the forest?3Can wood be taken from it to make something useful? Or can one make from it a peg on which to hang utensils?4No, it is cast into the fire for fuel. The fire devours both ends, and the middle is charred. Can it be useful for anything?5Even when it was whole, it could not be made useful. How much less can it ever be useful when the fire has consumed it and charred it!

6Therefore 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 for fuel, so I will give up the people of Jerusalem.7And I will set My face against them. Though they may have escaped the fire, yet another fire will consume them. And when I set My face against them, you will know that I am the LORD.8Thus I will make the land desolate, because they have acted unfaithfully,’ declares the Lord GOD.”

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