Ezekiel 17:9

9 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Will it thrive? Will it not be uprooted and stripped of its fruit so that it withers? All its new growth will wither. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it up by the roots.

Ezekiel 17:9 in Other Translations

King James Version (KJV)
9 Say thou, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither? it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring, even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots thereof.
English Standard Version (ESV)
9 "Say, Thus says the Lord GOD: Will it thrive? Will he not pull up its roots and cut off its fruit, so that it withers, so that all its fresh sprouting leaves wither? It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it from its roots.
New Living Translation (NLT)
9 “So now the Sovereign LORD asks: Will this vine grow and prosper? No! I will pull it up, roots and all! I will cut off its fruit and let its leaves wither and die. I will pull it up easily without a strong arm or a large army.
The Message Bible (MSG)
9 "'God, the Master, says, Will it thrive? Won't he just pull it up by the roots and leave the grapes to rot And the branches to shrivel up, a withered, dead vine? It won't take much strength or many hands to pull it up.
American Standard Version (ASV)
9 Say thou, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Shall it prosper? shall he not pull up the roots thereof, and cut off the fruit thereof, that it may wither; that all its fresh springing leaves may wither? and not by a strong arm or much people can it be raised from the roots thereof.
GOD'S WORD Translation (GW)
9 "Tell the nation of Israel, 'This is what the Almighty LORD says: Will this vine live and grow? Won't the first eagle uproot it and tear off its fruit? Then it will wither. All the leaves on its branches will wither. It won't take much strength or many people to pull the vine up by its roots.
Holman Christian Standard Bible (CSB)
9 You are to say: This is what the Lord God says: Will it flourish? Will he not tear out its roots and strip off its fruit so that it shrivels? All its fresh leaves will wither! Great strength and many people will not be needed to pull it from its roots.
New International Reader's Version (NIRV)
9 "Ezekiel, tell the Israelites, 'The LORD and King asks, "Will the vine grow? Won't it be pulled up by its roots? Won't all of its fruit be stripped off? Won't it dry up? All of its new growth will dry up. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it up.

Ezekiel 17:9 Meaning and Commentary

Ezekiel 17:9

Say thou, thus saith the Lord God
Tell Zedekiah and his people, in the name of the Lord, what will be the issue of his ingratitude and treachery to the king of Babylon, and his vain confidence in the king of Egypt: shall it prosper?
the vine, the kingdom of Judah, and Zedekiah the king of it; can it be thought that prosperity will attend such conduct as this? was is it ever known that persons guilty of such vices ever succeeded? shall he not pull up the roots thereof;
the first eagle, Nebuchadnezzar, being provoked by the rebellion of the king of Judah and his people; will he not come against them, and utterly destroy them, and root them up from being a people and a nation? and cut off the fruit thereof, that it wither?
the sons of the king, and of the nobles, and people of the land; so that the kingdom shall be ruined, and no hope left of its ever being restored again; which is the case of a vine when withered: it shall wither in all the leaves of her spring;
whereas it had been a springtime with this vine, under the influence of the king of Babylon, its leaves were green and flourishing; but now should wither, not as leaves do in autumn, which is to be expected, but in spring, which must be fatal; signifying, that in the midst of their prosperity, and when there was the greatest hope and expectation of a continuance and increase of it, utter ruin should come upon them: even without great power or many people to pluck it up by the roots
thereof;
signifying with what ease the king of Babylon would take Jerusalem, and the land of Judea, its king and its princes, and utterly destroy them; he would have no need of a large army, or to employ all his forces, a few, were sufficient to do it; even as it does not require many hands to pluck up, a vine by the roots, a single person is equal to it.

Ezekiel 17:9 In-Context

7 “ ‘But there was another great eagle with powerful wings and full plumage. The vine now sent out its roots toward him from the plot where it was planted and stretched out its branches to him for water.
8 It had been planted in good soil by abundant water so that it would produce branches, bear fruit and become a splendid vine.’
9 “Say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Will it thrive? Will it not be uprooted and stripped of its fruit so that it withers? All its new growth will wither. It will not take a strong arm or many people to pull it up by the roots.
10 It has been planted, but will it thrive? Will it not wither completely when the east wind strikes it—wither away in the plot where it grew?’ ”
11 Then the word of the LORD came to me:

Cross References 1

  • 1. Jeremiah 42:10; Amos 2:9
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