Verse Lens · Context pointer
Ezekiel 15:5 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 5. 5Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work: how much less shall it be meet yet for any work, when the fire hath devoured it, and it is burned?
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Role in This Section
The prophetic word through Ezekiel presses the question “Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work” at Ezekiel 15:5 within “Burned Vine Wood Pictures Jerusalem's Unfitness.”
Read It With
- Ezekiel 15:1–8
Read Ezekiel 15:5 with 15:1–8. By itself, “Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work” can be detached from the speaker, addressee, date, exilic horizon, visionary movement, or outcome that gives it force. The complete unit establishes: Vine wood has little craft use even before burning; Jerusalem's inhabitants are compared to wood escaping one fire only to face another because of unfaithfulness.
Why It Needs Context
The verse is a premise, action, image, response, or transition within Ezekiel 15:1–8, not an independent maxim. The prophetic word through Ezekiel presses the question “Behold, when it was whole, it was meet for no work” at Ezekiel 15:5 within “Burned Vine Wood Pictures Jerusalem's Unfitness.”
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Ezekiel 15:1–8 — Burned Vine Wood Pictures Jerusalem's UnfitnessSources used for this context pointer
How certain is this explanation? probable
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, verse order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and complete thought-unit coverage.
Exact location: Ezekiel 15:1–8, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗hebrew text and morphology
Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Ezekiel
Open Scriptures
Open Scriptures, release 2.2
Supports: Masoretic Hebrew wording and morphology checked at the exact unit without treating morphology as a critical apparatus or interpretation.
Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v2.2, commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00, wlc/Ezek.xml, OSIS 15:1–8
Open the fixed Hebrew Ezekiel file ↗