{"id":65237,"date":"2019-11-05T10:47:53","date_gmt":"2019-11-05T08:47:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=65237"},"modified":"2023-05-24T13:50:55","modified_gmt":"2023-05-24T10:50:55","slug":"my-beloveds-vineyard-sour-grapes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/my-beloveds-vineyard-sour-grapes\/","title":{"rendered":"My Beloved’s Vineyard: Sour Grapes?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Isaiah contended with deep theological issues by way of parables, which encouraged dialogue among his students, as well as engagement with the spiritual realms from within the human world. The prophet introduces his friend, who planted a vineyard in fer\u00adtile soil, and did all in his power to cultivate its growth:<\/p>\n

I will sing now of my friend, a song of my beloved\u2019s vineyard \u2013 my friend had a vineyard on a fertile hillside, and he dug it and cleared it of stones and he planted it with the choicest of vines, and he built a tower within it, and hewed out a winepress within it \u2013 and he hoped it would produce good grapes, but it produced bad grapes. (5:1\u20132)<\/p>\n

The prophet described the owner\u2019s devotion to his vineyard. Both Isaiah and his listeners were well aware of the labor involved in planting on the Judean hills; its rocky terrain requires particular effort, and there is much work to be done even before beginning to plant\u2026. But despite his efforts, the choice vine, and the fertile soil, he suffered grave disappointment. Why did the vineyard produce \u201cbad grapes,\u201d and what do these \u201cbad grapes\u201d represent? The song of the vineyard, its opening evocative of the Song of Songs, is transformed from an ode into a lamentation.<\/p>\n

The \u201cbeloved\u201d (owner) then turns to the dwellers of Jerusalem and Judah, asking them to judge him and his vineyard, claiming that he did all in his power to ensure the success of his crop: “What more could be done for My vineyard that I did not do?” (5:3).<\/p>\n

Of course, the question is rhetorical; the prophet provides the answer. The beloved vineyard tender decrees:<\/p>\n

And now, I will tell you what I shall do to my vineyard: Remove its fence, and it will be destroyed. Break down its wall, and it will be trampled. I will leave it as a wasteland, without pruning or weeding and thorn and thistle will grow, and I will command the clouds not to rain down upon it. (5:5\u20136)<\/p>\n

The vineyard tender feels anger towards his vineyard for producing bad fruit, and unleashes his wrath upon it. The fence and the wall, pre\u00adviously unmentioned, further convey how much effort was put into this vineyard. Removing the fence exposes the vineyard to grazing goats, and removing the stone wall allows cattle and sheep to enter and trample the vines.<\/p>\n

After the vineyard tender removes the vineyard\u2019s protection, he ceases to care for it.<\/p>\n

Only after this friend has unleashed his frustration upon the rogue vineyard is another secret revealed, \u201cI will command the clouds not to rain down upon it.\u201d With this statement, the vineyard tender\u2019s true identity is revealed to the prophet\u2019s audience. The friend, the vine\u00adyard tender, is He who makes the rain fall. The parable\u2019s end reveals the identity of the true Master of the vineyard, who is at once its tender, judge, and executioner.<\/p>\n

From: Lau and Bin Nun, Isaiah: Prophet of Righteousness and Justice <\/em>(Maggid Books, 2019), chapter 5.
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