THE SONG OF THE VINEYARD

Isaiah 5:1-7 / Keywords 5:7

The vineyard of the LORD Almighty is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the garden of his delight. And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.

 The Song of the Vineyard

5 I will sing for the one I love

    a song about his vineyard:

My loved one had a vineyard

    on a fertile hillside.

2 He dug it up and cleared it of stones

    and planted it with the choicest vines.

He built a watchtower in it

    and cut out a winepress as well.

Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,

    but it yielded only bad fruit.

3 “Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,

    judge between me and my vineyard.

4 What more could have been done for my vineyard

    than I have done for it?

When I looked for good grapes,

    why did it yield only bad?

5 Now I will tell you

    what I am going to do to my vineyard:

I will take away its hedge,

    and it will be destroyed;

I will break down its wall,

    and it will be trampled.

6 I will make it a wasteland,

    neither pruned nor cultivated,

    and briers and thorns will grow there.

I will command the clouds

    not to rain on it.”

7 The vineyard of the Lord Almighty

    is the nation of Israel,

and the people of Judah

    are the vines he delighted in.

And he looked for justice, but saw bloodshed;

    for righteousness, but heard cries of distress.

1. Listen to the music! The song of the vineyard starts off bright and lively. It is a beautiful image of what could be. The vineyard has so much potential and is curated by none other than God himself. In everything, God’s breath of life, his expert handiwork and wisdom, is evident, and his unique flavors are hidden, ready to blossom and bear fruit. There is so much potential!

 

2. When the song crescendos and you expect it to reach a bright moment—it suddenly becomes tragic. The yield of fruit is not good. Sour, rotten, tasteless, and diseased grapes arise. Something has gone terribly wrong, and it is everywhere in the vineyard. We get to the dark but necessary end that the vineyard must be laid to waste. The fruit cannot continue to thrive.

 

3. The vineyard here represents God’s land. It is our community. It is us, and how we live and bear fruits of God’s spirit—his love, justice, and life for all. May the song be a wakeup call to reorient our lives to God’s life-giving spirit.

 

Prayer Lord, you are the source of life. May we trust in you to bear good fruit.

One Word Produce good fruit