Israel, The Vineyard of the LORD

"Now let me sing to my Well-beloved a song of my beloved regarding his vineyard:

"My Well-beloved has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill. He dug it up and cleared out its stones, and planted it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, and also made a winepress in it; so he expected it to bring forth good grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes.

"And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge, please, between me and my vineyard. What more could have been done to my vineyard that I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, did it bring forth wild grapes?

"And now, please let me tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; and break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned or dug, but there shall come up briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain on it.

"For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are his pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, weeping" (Isaiah 5:1-7).

One who is Beloved has great status. Benjamin was called "the beloved of the LORD" when Moses, the man of God blessed the children of Israel before he died. "Of Benjamin he said: 'The beloved of the LORD shall dwell in safety by him, who shelters him all the day long; and he shall dwell between his shoulders'" (Deuteronomy 33:12). Benjamin's beloved status is indicated by his position.

He would be sheltered and living in safety because he was between the Lord's shoulders. All who stayed close to Benjamin, therefore, would be blessed and beloved thus benefiting from being near him.

Note the beloved status given to John, the apostle, and his posture at the Passover. "Then Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following, who also had leaned on his breast at the supper . . . This is the disciple who testifies of these things, and wrote these things; and we know that his testimony is true" (John 21:20,24). John was between the shoulders of the Lord.

This is the position and status of the Well-beloved of the Lord who has a vineyard in Isaiah 5. The Beloved of the Lord is the Lord's Anointed, the Messiah. As Yeshua came up out of the River Jordan the heavens were opened, "And suddenly a voice came from heaven saying, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'" (Matthew 3:17).

The song tells how the Messiah carefully planted His vineyard in the most appropriate place, ideal for bringing forth good fruit. The vineyard in fact was placed "on a very fruitful hill" literally, in the horn of oil, which further emphasizes the location's significance. The position was anointed, set apart specifically for the vineyard. It was prominent, like a mountain among smaller hills. The vineyard would be in a position of leadership and like a beacon atop a hill.

Furthermore, the Messiah "dug it up", prepared the soil, "cleared out its stones," laboured to make sure nothing would hinder the vineyard's growth. He chose the best variety of vine and planted it at the right time, which would bring the highest yield; He "planted it with the choicest vine" . He "built a tower in its midst," endeavouring to warn and prepare for outside influences that would threaten the vineyard's survival. He "also made a winepress in it; so he expected it to bring forth good grapes." Nothing more could be done to preapre and cultivate the vineyard in order for it to produce an abundance of good fruit.

Not only did it not produce an abundance of good fruit "but it brought forth wild grapes" or rotten grapes, literally poison grapes, and an odour that made you think, I don't want any part of that, whatever it is!"

The Lord then identifies the Messiah's vineyard. First He points to the "inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah" and challenges them to make judgement. They are accountable and are being held responsible for the vineyard's fruit.

Then the Lord clarifies that the whole vineyard is the nation of Israel, and that the actual vine from which the vineyard grows is the men of Judah: "For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel and the men of Judah are his pleasant plant."

In the fulfilment of His purposes in working salvation to the ends of the earth, the Almighty intends to establish His kingdom of righteousness with Jerusalem as His royal residence, and the city in which His Anointed, the Messiah, will be enthroned.

The Lord's Anointed therefore will come from the house of Judah. "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a law-giver from between his feet, until Shilio comes; and to him shall be the obedience of the people" (Genesis 49:10). All Israel looked to the men of Judah not only for leadership but for the fulfilment of the King Messiah. In this way the men of Judah are the choice wine, from which the whole vineyard would develop and bring forth the fruit of the Kingdom.

Then when the time came for the vineyard to bear fruit the Messiah looked and behold, poison grapes – fruit that no one wanted. "He looked for justice, but behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, weeping" (Isaiah 5:7).

Thus Israel is the vineyard of the LORD and in spite of the bad fruit, the Messiah would not discard or replace it but He would take appropriate action.

"And now, please let me tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away its hedge, and it shall be burned; and break down its wall, and it shall be trampled down. I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned or dug, but there shall come up briers and thorns. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain on it."

The history of Israel from that time records how the nation was unable to avoid the onslaught of the Gentiles and how as a people they have been trampled and suppressed by Gentile overlords. The vineyard lay wasting among briers and thorns. Then when the Messiah came He spoke of the vineyard.

"There was a certain landowner who planted a vineyard and set a hedge around it, dug a winepress in it and built a tower. And he leased it to vine-dressers and went into a far country.

"Now when the season for fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the vine-dressers, that they might receive its fruit. And the vine-dressers took his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another.

"Again he sent other servvants, more than the first, and they did likewise to them.

"Then last of all he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' But when the vine-dressers saw the son, they said among themselves, 'This is the heir. Come let us kill him and seize his inheritance.'

"And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and killed him. Therefore, when the owner comes, what will he do to those vine-dressers? They said to him, 'He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vine-dressers who will render him the fruits in their seasons.'

"Jesus said to them, 'Did you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner-stone. This was the LORD's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes'?

"Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whoever it falls, it will grind him to powder.

"Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard his parables, they perceived that he was speaking of them" (Matthew 21:33-45).

The concept of the vineyard was nothing new for the Jewish people. From the prophet Isaiah it was understood that the nation of Israel was the vineyard. They were custodians of the Kingdom. From them would come the King and the Kingdom, the King coming from the men of Judah, and in particular the house of David.

Those responsible for nurturing the Kingdom within the Jewish people and leading the people at the time were the chief priests, scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees. They were, therefore, the vine-dressers of the day.

They had failed to prepare the nation. "But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut up heaven against men; for you neither go in yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in" (Matthew 23:13).

The Landowner in the parable is God. He sent servants, the prophets, to Israel's leaders, the vine-dressers, time and time again, but as the parable and history reveal, the leaders refused the messengers and harshly treated them, even killing some.

Nevertheless, God, the Landowner, sent His Son. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only beogtten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life" (John 3:16).

Probably the most stunning aspect of the parable is that the vine-dressers recognized the son of the landowner and conspired to kill him. Amazingly, the Messiah would be cut-off from the land of the living, but He would rise from the dead.

"From that time Jesus began to show to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day" (Matthew 16:23).

In spite of this amazing development the vineyard and God's working toward the establishment of the Kingdom would continue.

Furthermore, the vine-dressers would be the focus of God's punishment, whereas in Isaiah chapter 5 it was the vineyard's protection God removed, thus allowing the nation to be trampled, and for briers and thorns to overwhelm them.

God however would destroy the wicked vine-dressers and appoint new vine-dressers, as the Jewish leaders correctly assessed. "They said to him, 'He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease his vineyard to other vine-dressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons.'"

The vineyard would not be left to wither away, but other vine-dressers would now be involved in the nurturing of the Kingdom. The Messiah announced that God would now allow non-Jewish people to be among the new vine-dressers. "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to another nation (literally , ethnei from ethnos) bearing the fruits of it" (Matthew 21:43). The new vine-dressers would now include Gentiles.

The leaders of Israel realized that the responsibility of nurturing the kingdom of God would be taken from them. "Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard this parable, they perceived that he was speaking of them." Like the wicked vine-dressers of the parable they would be punished for their irresponsible behaviour.

The responsibility of the vine-dressers has always been to bring forth good fruit – the Kingdom of God and His righteousness from the nation of Israel, the vineyard of the Lord. The new thing here is that non-Jewish people would be involved with the cultivation of the nation of Israel to bring forth the fruit of the kingdom. The Messiah would still expect good fruit.

The Messiah planted His vineyard, the nation of Israel, to bring forth good fruit, the kingdom of God. The prophet Isaiah warned that because the vineyard procuced bad fruit obnoxious and dangerous weeds would overwhelm it.

The men of Judah were held accountable, they were charged with making judgement and assessing whether God had been unfaithful in any way toward the vineyard. He had not. "Judge, please, between me and my vineyard. What more could have been done to my vineyard that I have not done it it?"

Then when the Messiah came He charged the vine-dressers for their irresponsibility. They had not learned from their ancestors. They had rejected the servants of God and refused to prepare the vineyard for harvest. God, therefore, has called other vine-dressers to tend His vineyard and be involved with the building of His kingdom.

The people of Israel continue to be the vineyard of the Lord and custodians of the coming kingdom. The vine-dressers, however, have changed: they now include non-Jewish vine-dressers who, like their predecessors, will be accountable for development of the vineyard and good fruit.

Though many of these new vine-dressers are non-Jewish servants of the Messiah they have not rejected the stone the builders rejected. "Jesus (Yeshua) said to them, 'Did you never read the Scriptures: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner-stone, this was the LORD's doing, and it is marvellous in our eyes"? And whoever falls on this stone will be broken, but on whoever it falls, it will grind him to powder'" (Matthew 21:42,44).

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