Isaiah Chapter 5:1-7 The Song of the Vineyard
Concluding the introduction of his book, Isaiah uses a song to reveal Israel’s dire condition. Chapter one introduced the whole prophetic message of Isaiah’s ministry. Chapters two through four revealed the two visions of Israel, current and future, judgment and hope. Now, in chapter five, Isaiah returns to the current condition of Israel. It is like a vineyard that God prepared and lovingly cared for, only for it to not produce the good fruit it should have.
The song has four parts.
-A description of the vineyard and the quandary of its “stink fruit” (verses 1 and 2).
-Questions for the hearer of the song. What should be done about the vineyard? (Verses 3 and 4)
-The decision of the beloved, the owner and creator of the vineyard (verses 5 and 6).
-The meaning of the song and its application (verse 7).
1 Let me sing for my beloved,
the song of my beloved for his vineyard.
My beloved had a vineyard,
On a very fertile hill.
2 He DUG it and
CLEARED it of stones and
PLANTED it with choice vines.
He BUILT a watchtower in the midst of it, and
HEWED out a wine vat in it.
And he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded “stink fruit.”
3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah,
judge between me and my vineyard.
4 What more was there to do for my vineyard,
that I have not done in it?
When I looked for it to yield grapes,
why did it yield stink fruit?
5 And now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard.
I WILL REMOVE its hedge and it SHALL BE DEVOURED.
I WILL BREAK DOWN its wall, and it SHALL BE TRAMPLED DOWN.
6 I WILL MAKE it a WASTELAND.
It SHALL NOT BE PRUNED or HOED,
And briars and thorns SHALL GROW up;
I WILL ALSO COMMAND the clouds that they RAIN no rain upon it.
7 For the vineyard of YHWH Sabaoth is the house of Israel,
and the men of Judah are his pleasant planting;
and He looked for justice,
but behold, bloodshed;
for righteousness,
but behold, an outcry!
Some notes about the song:
In verse one, we see that it is a song of Isaiah’s beloved. The vineyard is not the beloved here, but rather the owner and builder of the vineyard. We know that this is YHWH, but this fact is not apparent to the listeners from the very beginning.
Verse two shows us the careful work that the Beloved performed to build the vineyard. He spared no effort in providing the vineyard with everything it would need to produce good wine. He even intended to live there in the vineyard. The description of the efforts in this verse, five actions, would have been an endeavor that would have taken two years as the vines reached maturity to be able to produce fruit. However, despite every provision and care, the high-quality vines failed to produce good fruit.
Verses three and four are rhetorical questions. Isaiah’s hearers would have known what the answers were. The vineyard ended up being useless. There is nothing more to be done to help it improve. It deserves to be abandoned.
However, the Beloved has even harsher plans in mind. He will not just leave the vineyard. He will contribute to its destruction! He will tear down the walls and expose it to the elements and wild animals. In the harshest of actions, He will deny it rain. If any hearers had any doubts that the Beloved was God, they are gone now. Only God can control the rain.
If any doubts remain, the song ends be revealing that it is a song about Israel. The northern kingdom has already been destroyed and taken into exile. Isaiah reveals that Judah faces the same fate. They were chosen and saved to produce the good fruit of Justice and Righteousness. Instead, they have produced bloodshed and the outcry of oppressed people. Sin is not just a failure to do what is best, it is perversion of the good God desires from His creation.
The song has four parts.
-A description of the vineyard and the quandary of its “stink fruit” (verses 1 and 2).
-Questions for the hearer of the song. What should be done about the vineyard? (Verses 3 and 4)
-The decision of the beloved, the owner and creator of the vineyard (verses 5 and 6).
-The meaning of the song and its application (verse 7).
1 Let me sing for my beloved,
the song of my beloved for his vineyard.
My beloved had a vineyard,
On a very fertile hill.
2 He DUG it and
CLEARED it of stones and
PLANTED it with choice vines.
He BUILT a watchtower in the midst of it, and
HEWED out a wine vat in it.
And he looked for it to yield grapes, but it yielded “stink fruit.”
3 And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah,
judge between me and my vineyard.
4 What more was there to do for my vineyard,
that I have not done in it?
When I looked for it to yield grapes,
why did it yield stink fruit?
5 And now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard.
I WILL REMOVE its hedge and it SHALL BE DEVOURED.
I WILL BREAK DOWN its wall, and it SHALL BE TRAMPLED DOWN.
6 I WILL MAKE it a WASTELAND.
It SHALL NOT BE PRUNED or HOED,
And briars and thorns SHALL GROW up;
I WILL ALSO COMMAND the clouds that they RAIN no rain upon it.
7 For the vineyard of YHWH Sabaoth is the house of Israel,
and the men of Judah are his pleasant planting;
and He looked for justice,
but behold, bloodshed;
for righteousness,
but behold, an outcry!
Some notes about the song:
In verse one, we see that it is a song of Isaiah’s beloved. The vineyard is not the beloved here, but rather the owner and builder of the vineyard. We know that this is YHWH, but this fact is not apparent to the listeners from the very beginning.
Verse two shows us the careful work that the Beloved performed to build the vineyard. He spared no effort in providing the vineyard with everything it would need to produce good wine. He even intended to live there in the vineyard. The description of the efforts in this verse, five actions, would have been an endeavor that would have taken two years as the vines reached maturity to be able to produce fruit. However, despite every provision and care, the high-quality vines failed to produce good fruit.
Verses three and four are rhetorical questions. Isaiah’s hearers would have known what the answers were. The vineyard ended up being useless. There is nothing more to be done to help it improve. It deserves to be abandoned.
However, the Beloved has even harsher plans in mind. He will not just leave the vineyard. He will contribute to its destruction! He will tear down the walls and expose it to the elements and wild animals. In the harshest of actions, He will deny it rain. If any hearers had any doubts that the Beloved was God, they are gone now. Only God can control the rain.
If any doubts remain, the song ends be revealing that it is a song about Israel. The northern kingdom has already been destroyed and taken into exile. Isaiah reveals that Judah faces the same fate. They were chosen and saved to produce the good fruit of Justice and Righteousness. Instead, they have produced bloodshed and the outcry of oppressed people. Sin is not just a failure to do what is best, it is perversion of the good God desires from His creation.
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