1 And the word of þe Lord came vnto me, saying.
2 Sonne of man, What is the Uine tree more then any tree, or then a branch which is among the trees of the forrest?
3 Shall wood bee taken thereof to doe any worke? or, will men take a pin of it, to hang any vessell thereon?
4 Behold, it is cast into the fire for fewell: the fire deuoureth both the ends of it, and the middest of it is burnt. Is it meete for any worke?
5 Behold, when it was whole it was meete for no worke: how much lesse shall it be meete yet for any worke, when the fire hath deuoured it, and it is burned?
6 ¶ Therefore thus saith the Lord God; As the Uine tree among the trees of the forrest, which I haue giuen to the fire for fewell, so will I giue the inhabitants of Ierusalem.
7 And I will set my face against them, they shall goe out from one fire, and another fire shall deuoure them, and ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I set my face against them.
8 And I will make the land desolate, because they haue committed a trespasse, saith the Lord God.
Jerusalem like an unfruitful vine.
- If a vine be fruitful, it is valuable. But if not fruitful, it is worthless and useless, it is cast into the fire. Thus man is capable of yielding a precious fruit, in living to God; this is the sole end of his existence; and if he fails in this, he is of no use but to be destroyed. What blindness then attaches to those who live in the total neglect of God and of true religion! This similitude is applied to Jerusalem. Let us beware of an unfruitful profession. Let us come to Christ, and seek to abide in him, and to have his words abide in us.
Commentary by Matthew Henry, 1710.