Ezekiel 15:1-8 – Walking and working in tandem with God.

Ezekiel 15 is a parable. It’s a parable concerning Judah and Jerusalem which were at the brink of being destroyed in God’s judgment. Since they were God’s chosen people, the people of Judah only wanted the privilege but not the responsibility of living for Him. Presuming on their relationship with God, they felt more important and superior to the people of the other nations. So self-absorbed were they that they were not able to see the looming dangers. This parable was aimed at helping them see how worthless they were to God due to their unfaithfulness.

The Bible has used vineyards and vines as symbols of Israel and her people. In this parable, like a vineyard in a forest of trees so was Judah (Israel) a nation among other nations. God asked two rhetorical questions in verses 2-3. “How is the wood of the vine better than any wood of a branch which is among the trees of the forest? Can wood be taken from it to make anything, or can men take a peg from it on which to hang any vessel? These two questions were asked to debunk Judah’s false feeling of security. In verses 1-5, God was showing that Judah’s unfaithfulness to Him made her as useless as the other nations for His purpose. As a vine that is unfit as material for a peg to hold heavy utensils, Judah was not ready for God’s big task.

As it is, the stem of the vine could not be used to make into a peg much less could it be used when it had gone through the fire twice. Judah was like a vine that had gone through a fire twice, where both ends of the stem had been destroyed leaving the middle of the stem charred. Even when she did not go through the fire, she was already unusable how could the charred stem out of the fire be of any use? The answer to the question of course is no. The fire that had burnt off both ends of the vine was alluding to the two previous sieges of Jerusalem by Babylon. In the two sieges, the Babylonians had taken some captives with them. Like a charred vine, Judah would again be thrown into the fire and be destroyed in the coming judgment.    

Like Israel, we must not presume on our relationship with God.  The privilege given to us in Christ must make us more responsible not less. Just because we are saved does not mean we can now live a careless undisciplined life. If anything, our relationship with Christ should make us want to be more diligent in living for Him. We must never think that our relationship with Christ means we can do anything, and God will overlook and forgive. Don’t take God’s goodness to mean that the rule for right living no longer applies.  Let’s collaborate with God in godly living!