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You brought us from Egypt like a grapevine;
    you drove away the pagan nations and transplanted us into your land.
You cleared the ground for us,
    and we took root and filled the land.
10 Our shade covered the mountains;
    our branches covered the mighty cedars.
11 We spread our branches west to the Mediterranean Sea;
    our shoots spread east to the Euphrates River.[a]
12 But now, why have you broken down our walls
    so that all who pass by may steal our fruit?
13 The wild boar from the forest devours it,
    and the wild animals feed on it.

14 Come back, we beg you, O God of Heaven’s Armies.
    Look down from heaven and see our plight.
Take care of this grapevine
15     that you yourself have planted,
    this son you have raised for yourself.
16 For we are chopped up and burned by our enemies.
    May they perish at the sight of your frown.

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Footnotes

  1. 80:11 Hebrew west to the sea, . . . east to the river.

You transplanted a vine(A) from Egypt;
    you drove out(B) the nations and planted(C) it.
You cleared the ground for it,
    and it took root and filled the land.
10 The mountains were covered with its shade,
    the mighty cedars with its branches.
11 Its branches reached as far as the Sea,[a]
    its shoots as far as the River.[b](D)

12 Why have you broken down its walls(E)
    so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
13 Boars from the forest ravage(F) it,
    and insects from the fields feed on it.
14 Return to us, God Almighty!
    Look down from heaven and see!(G)
Watch over this vine,
15     the root your right hand has planted,
    the son[c] you have raised up for yourself.

16 Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire;(H)
    at your rebuke(I) your people perish.

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Footnotes

  1. Psalm 80:11 Probably the Mediterranean
  2. Psalm 80:11 That is, the Euphrates
  3. Psalm 80:15 Or branch

A Song about the Lord’s Vineyard

Now I will sing for the one I love
    a song about his vineyard:
My beloved had a vineyard
    on a rich and fertile hill.
He plowed the land, cleared its stones,
    and planted it with the best vines.
In the middle he built a watchtower
    and carved a winepress in the nearby rocks.
Then he waited for a harvest of sweet grapes,
    but the grapes that grew were bitter.

Now, you people of Jerusalem and Judah,
    you judge between me and my vineyard.
What more could I have done for my vineyard
    that I have not already done?
When I expected sweet grapes,
    why did my vineyard give me bitter grapes?

Now let me tell you
    what I will do to my vineyard:
I will tear down its hedges
    and let it be destroyed.
I will break down its walls
    and let the animals trample it.
I will make it a wild place
    where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed,
    a place overgrown with briers and thorns.
I will command the clouds
    to drop no rain on it.

The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
    The people of Judah are his pleasant garden.
He expected a crop of justice,
    but instead he found oppression.
He expected to find righteousness,
    but instead he heard cries of violence.

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The Song of the Vineyard

I will sing for the one I love
    a song about his vineyard:(A)
My loved one had a vineyard
    on a fertile hillside.
He dug it up and cleared it of stones
    and planted it with the choicest vines.(B)
He built a watchtower(C) in it
    and cut out a winepress(D) as well.
Then he looked for a crop of good grapes,
    but it yielded only bad fruit.(E)

“Now you dwellers in Jerusalem and people of Judah,
    judge between me and my vineyard.(F)
What more could have been done for my vineyard
    than I have done for it?(G)
When I looked for good grapes,
    why did it yield only bad?(H)
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)
I will break down its wall,(J)
    and it will be trampled.(K)
I will make it a wasteland,(L)
    neither pruned nor cultivated,
    and briers and thorns(M) will grow there.
I will command the clouds
    not to rain(N) on it.”

The vineyard(O) 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,(P) but saw bloodshed;
    for righteousness,(Q) but heard cries of distress.(R)

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21 But I was the one who planted you,
    choosing a vine of the purest stock—the very best.
    How did you grow into this corrupt wild vine?

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21 I had planted(A) you like a choice vine(B)
    of sound and reliable stock.
How then did you turn against me
    into a corrupt,(C) wild vine?

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10 “Many rulers have ravaged my vineyard,
    trampling down the vines
    and turning all its beauty into a barren wilderness.
11 They have made it an empty wasteland;
    I hear its mournful cry.
The whole land is desolate,
    and no one even cares.

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10 Many shepherds(A) will ruin my vineyard
    and trample down my field;
they will turn my pleasant field
    into a desolate wasteland.(B)
11 It will be made a wasteland,(C)
    parched and desolate before me;(D)
the whole land will be laid waste
    because there is no one who cares.

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Jerusalem—a Useless Vine

15 Then this message came to me from the Lord: “Son of man, how does a grapevine compare to a tree? Is a vine’s wood as useful as the wood of a tree? Can its wood be used for making things, like pegs to hang up pots and pans? No, it can only be used for fuel, and even as fuel, it burns too quickly. Vines are useless both before and after being put into the fire!

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Jerusalem as a Useless Vine

15 The word of the Lord came to me: “Son of man, how is the wood of a vine(A) different from that of a branch from any of the trees in the forest? Is wood ever taken from it to make anything useful?(B) Do they make pegs(C) from it to hang things on? And after it is thrown on the fire as fuel and the fire burns both ends and chars the middle, is it then useful for anything?(D) If it was not useful for anything when it was whole, how much less can it be made into something useful when the fire has burned it and it is charred?

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The Lord’s Judgment against Israel

10 How prosperous Israel is—
    a luxuriant vine loaded with fruit.
But the richer the people get,
    the more pagan altars they build.
The more bountiful their harvests,
    the more beautiful their sacred pillars.
The hearts of the people are fickle;
    they are guilty and must be punished.
The Lord will break down their altars
    and smash their sacred pillars.

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10 Israel was a spreading vine;(A)
    he brought forth fruit for himself.
As his fruit increased,
    he built more altars;(B)
as his land prospered,(C)
    he adorned his sacred stones.(D)
Their heart is deceitful,(E)
    and now they must bear their guilt.(F)
The Lord will demolish their altars(G)
    and destroy their sacred stones.(H)

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