January 31, 2022
Please use the comment section on this page to share insights from today’s reading OR your own personal Bible reading.
Reading along with us in Isaiah? Here’s today’s reading:
Isaiah 5 (NIV)
The Song of the Vineyard
1 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,
This parable is such an awesome picture of God’s love to this world. Just as the owner of the vineyard gave the crop every advantage like God gives us some will still turn away like those “wild grapes” The grace we get from God is a free gift, however, while or work is not required it is necessary to stay on track to yield good fruit in our lives. We can not squander the gift that God has given but rather grow in it, nurture it and share it with others!
“Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.”
Isaiah 5:20 NIV
https://isaiah.bible/isaiah-5-20
Unfortunately, this is happening today!
Isaiah 5
God describes His relationship with Judah like a gardener who plans and cares for a vineyard. It is reminiscent of John 15 where Jesus describes Himself as the vine and we are the branches. I was struck by verse 4 here: what more could have been done for my vineyard than I have done for it? What plans God had for His people and what provisions He made for them. They had to try hard to follow false gods after all the power and miracles they saw. And how true that is of us as well.
Now because they have defied Him and chosen a path not only of disobedience but disbelief, He has to discipline the very vineyard He cares about. Rather than making it a thing of beauty, it will be a thing of destruction. And the people are oblivious and just preoccupied with their wealth, even when that pursuit of wealth disregards or harms other people. They are calling evil good and good evil. They are wise in their own eyes. (Boy doesn’t that sound familiar?) And God’s recourse is to bring correction, punishment and judgement. But He is just being faithful to what He said He would do. The only thing He can do…otherwise He would condone sin and unbelief and thereby not love them as a Good Father should. They (and we) bring the discipline on ourselves….
God plants a vineyard and tends to it diligently, yet it still produces wild grapes. He asks, “What more could have been done to My vineyard That I have not done in it?”
God removes their hedge and judges them for their excesses.
“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes,
And prudent in their own sight!
Woe to men mighty at drinking wine,
Woe to men valiant for mixing intoxicating drink,
Who justify the wicked for a bribe,
And take away justice from the righteous man!”
Isaiah 5