B12-devotions

Isaiah 5:1-7

Devotions for Thursday 8th May

This passage is called the ‘Song of the Vineyard’. It is a tragic poem which is well known amongst the prophecies of Isaiah because the idea of God’s people being His vineyard is one which is well used in scripture. The story is simple. Isaiah recites the poem on behalf of the Lord, who likens His work with His people to that of a farmer who prepares and plants a vineyard using all the best methods, but discovers that it does not produce the sweet cultivated grapes required for wine-making, but bitter wild grapes which are unusable. The Lord is therefore forced to do away with his vines and abandon the vineyard (5:6).

If you have followed these studies of Isaiah, your head will now be spinning! Yesterday, we read from chapter 4 the most sublime promises of God to those who would survive the coming troubles, and for whom the Lord would provide the perfect protection of His presence by ‘cloud, smoke and fire’ (4:5)! Yet despite this, Isaiah had previously spoken the most shattering of prophecies against the arrogant women and the failed leadership of Jerusalem (ch.3). The whole book swings ever more violently between extremes; at one moment we hear of the Lord’s passion and love for His people and then in the very next part we read of His wrath in judgement against the sins of His people!

We have already concluded that Isaiah believed that the sins of the people would indeed have their due consequences, and occasionally, Isaiah prophesies war as a consequence of Judea’s sin (as in 1:7,8; 3:2,3; 3;25,26), but he also says that God has a purpose for some of the ‘survivors’ of His people (4:2) through whom He intends to achieve His plans for the world. However, some might say that His approach to His people was ‘two-faced’; for as we read through Isaiah it is as if we do not know what we are going to get from the Lord next; love and compassion or justice and retribution! This criticism is a little unfair, because there is one other good and logical explanation of God’s attitude to His people: He is heartbroken. Most of us are aware of the complex feelings we all have when we have been rejected by someone we love. These feelings combine the passions of love with abhorrence, and it would be fair to say that Isaiah’s prophecies paint a picture of God as One who is certainly heartbroken that His people have rejected Him. Sin has its consequences and will be met with punishment, but God’s love is not simply destructive; He has higher plans and purposes (see chapter 4).

If we do not have this understanding firmly fixed in our minds than we are liable to read Isaiah 5 without the necessary balanced approach. Undoubtedly, this poem reads like a religious horror story, but from all we know of Isaiah’s prophecies so far, the ‘Song of the Vineyard’ (together with the rest of chapter 5) begs the very important question; what therefore will the Lord do about this sorry state of affairs? The Lord does indeed have a great plan which He is about to reveal through the life and work of Isaiah, but the introductory passages in Isaiah (before the famous ‘call of Isaiah’ in Isaiah 6) serve to highlight the critical tension which arose between God and His people. Something had to happen, because the relationship between God and His people had broken down.

1 Let me sing for the One I love

my love-song about His vineyard:

The One I love had a vineyard

on the side of a fertile hill.

2 He dug it, cleared it of stones,

and planted it with choice vines;

He built a watchtower within it,

and carved out a wine vat in it;

He expected a good crop of grapes,

but it yielded wild grapes!

3 So now, inhabitants of Jerusalem

and people of Judah:

Judge, if you please,

between me and my vineyard.

4 What more could I do for my vineyard

that I have not done for it?

When I looked for good grapes,

why did it yield wild grapes?

5 So I will now tell you

what I will do to my vineyard.

I will remove its hedge,

and it will be eaten up;

I will break down its wall,

and it will be trampled down.

6 I will set it aside for destruction;

it will not be pruned or hoed,

and it will be overgrown

with briers and thorns;

I will also command the clouds

so that they do not rain on it.

7 The vineyard of the Lord of hosts

is the house of Israel,

and the people of Judah

are plants in which he delights;

he expected justice, but saw bloodshed;

righteousness, but heard a cry!

To read more about this passage of scripture: go to the Bible study page

To read the questions and discipleship challenges for this text: go to the discipleship page

Call us, O Lord, from Your glorious throne on high;

Speak to us, O Lord, through the world of natural beauty;

Address us, O Lord, in the joys and hardships of our earthly lives;

Talk with us, O Lord, in the midst of our deepest, heartfelt feelings;

Tell us, O Lord, how to understand the many things we hear.

Your voice, O Lord, is always true: Praise You!

Be comforted, you who have felt the power of sin,

There is One who has the victory over Satan’s evil sway.

Be strengthened, you who know cruel oppression,

There is One who has the courage to bring you freedom.

Be heartened, you who struggle with your burdens,

There is One who takes the weight you suffer on Himself.

Be encouraged, you who need to hear good news,

There is One who broke through death to bring you love.

Be enlightened, you who have the heart to understand,

There is One who taught the way of life, and lived it perfectly.

Be enthused, you who are willing to speak your faith,

There is One who works through you in authority and power!

Be blessed, you who have walked in hope and joy,

There is One you know who has a place for you in heaven!

Weekly Theme:

Clothes

Vast amounts of money are made by the clothing industry, and large numbers of women and men are dominated by the fashion desires which are fed by that industry. Pray that God’s people might gain a sense of perspective when dealing with their clothing, including issues of fashion, make-up, shoes and toiletries. Pray for godly modesty to be taught, practiced and appreciated by God’s people.

Going Deeper: (what you will find on the Bible study page)

We will look further at some of the details of the poem, though its general theme is readily understandable. What is interesting, however, is how the ‘picture’ of the vineyard appears in the Old Testament prior to Isaiah’s use of it in this prophecy. Secondly, if we look in the New Testament, we will find that Jesus used the picture of the vine and the vineyard at critical points in His own ministry. The ‘Song of the Vineyard both built on scripture and provided a base for what was to come.

For the full Bible study, click link above,

or for a brief review, scroll page down.