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Now will I sing of my beloved a shirat dodi touching His kerem (vineyard). My beloved had a kerem (vineyard) in a very fruitful hill;

And He dug it up, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a migdal in the midst of it, and also made a yekev (winepress) therein; and He looked that it should bring forth anavim (grapes), and it brought forth b’ushim (wild grapes).

And now, O inhabitants of Yerushalayim, and Ish Yehudah, judge, now, between Me and My kerem (vineyard).

What could have been done more to My kerem (vineyard), that I have not done in it? Why, when I looked that it should bring forth anavim, brought it forth b’ushim?

And now then; I will tell you now what I will do to my kerem (vineyard): I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be grazed upon; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trampled down;

And I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned, nor cultivated; but there shall come up briers and thorns; I will also command the clouds that they rain no matar (rain) upon it.

For the Kerem Hashem Tzva’os is Bais Yisroel, and the Ish Yehudah are the planting of His delight; and He looked for mishpat (justice), but, hinei, mishpach (bloodshed, rapaciousness); for tzedakah, but, hinei, tze’akah (cry of distress).

Hoy unto them that add bais to bais, that join sadeh to sadeh, till there be no makom (place, home), that ye alone are dwelling in the midst of ha’aretz!

Hashem Tzva’os said in my ozen, Batim rabbim shall be in ruins, gedolim and tovim, with no one to live in them.

10 Yea, ten yokes of kerem (vineyard) shall yield 10 gallons, and the homer (six bushels) of zera (seed) shall yield an ephah (three-fifths bushel).

11 Hoy unto them that rise up early in the boker, that they may chase after shekhar (strong drink); that continue until night, till yayin inflame them!

12 And the kinnor, and the nevel, the tambourine, and flute, and yayin, are in their mishtehim; but they regard not the Po’al Hashem (the work of Hashem), neither consider the ma’aseh of His hands.

13 Therefore my people [see Isa. 53:8] are gone into the Golus, because they have no da’as; and their men of rank are starved, and their multitude parched with thirst.

14 Therefore Sheol hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without chok (limit); and their nobility, and their masses, and their throngs, and the reveler, shall descend into it.

15 And adam shall be abased, and the ish shall be brought low, and the eyes of the haughty shall be humbled;

16 But Hashem Tzva’os shall be exalted in mishpat, and HaEl HaKadosh shall show Himself Kadosh in tzedakah.

17 Then shall the kevasim feed as upon their pasture, and the gerim (sojourners) will eat in the ruins of the rich.

18 Hoy unto them that draw avon (guilt) with cords of deceit, and tug at chatta’ah (sin) as with a cart rope;

19 That say, Let Him make speed, and hasten His Ma’aseh, that we may see it; and let the Atzat Kadosh Yisroel (purpose of the Holy One of Israel) draw near and come, that we may know it!

20 Hoy unto them that call rah tov, and tov rah; that put choshech for ohr, and ohr for choshech; that put mar for matok, and matok for mar!

21 Hoy unto them that are chachamim in their own eyes, and clever in their own sight!

22 Hoy unto them that are Gibborim to drink yayin, and anshei chayil to mix shekhar;

23 Which justify the rasha for shochad (bribe), and take away the tzidkat tzaddikim from him!

24 Therefore as the eish licketh up the stubble, and the flame consumeth the dry grass, so their shoresh shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust; because they have cast away the Torat Hashem Tzva’os, and spurned the word of the Kadosh Yisroel.

25 Therefore is the Af Hashem kindled against His people, and He hath stretched forth His yad against them, and hath struck them down; and the mountains did tremble, and their nevilah were like refuse in the streets. For all this His anger is not turned away, but His yad is stretched out still.

26 And He will lift up a banner to the distant Goyim, and will whistle for him at the ketzeh ha’aretz; hinei, they shall come with speed swiftly;

27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the ezor of their loins be loosed, nor the thong of their sandals be broken;

28 Whose khitzim (arrows) are sharp, and all their bows bent, the hoofs of their susim shall seem like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:

29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions; yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the teref, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.

30 And in Yom Hahu they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea; and if one look unto ha’aretz, hinei, choshech and tzar (distress), and the ohr groweth dark with clouds.

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)

Woes and Judgments

Woe(S) to you who add house to house
    and join field to field(T)
till no space is left
    and you live alone in the land.

The Lord Almighty(U) has declared in my hearing:(V)

“Surely the great houses will become desolate,(W)
    the fine mansions left without occupants.
10 A ten-acre vineyard will produce only a bath[a] of wine;
    a homer[b] of seed will yield only an ephah[c] of grain.”(X)

11 Woe(Y) to those who rise early in the morning
    to run after their drinks,
who stay up late at night
    till they are inflamed with wine.(Z)
12 They have harps and lyres at their banquets,
    pipes(AA) and timbrels(AB) and wine,
but they have no regard(AC) for the deeds of the Lord,
    no respect for the work of his hands.(AD)
13 Therefore my people will go into exile(AE)
    for lack of understanding;(AF)
those of high rank(AG) will die of hunger
    and the common people will be parched with thirst.(AH)
14 Therefore Death(AI) expands its jaws,
    opening wide its mouth;(AJ)
into it will descend their nobles and masses
    with all their brawlers and revelers.(AK)
15 So people will be brought low(AL)
    and everyone humbled,(AM)
    the eyes of the arrogant(AN) humbled.
16 But the Lord Almighty will be exalted(AO) by his justice,(AP)
    and the holy God will be proved holy(AQ) by his righteous acts.
17 Then sheep will graze as in their own pasture;(AR)
    lambs will feed[d] among the ruins of the rich.

18 Woe(AS) to those who draw sin along with cords(AT) of deceit,
    and wickedness(AU) as with cart ropes,
19 to those who say, “Let God hurry;
    let him hasten(AV) his work
    so we may see it.
The plan of the Holy One(AW) of Israel—
    let it approach, let it come into view,
    so we may know it.”(AX)

20 Woe(AY) to those who call evil good(AZ)
    and good evil,(BA)
who put darkness for light
    and light for darkness,(BB)
who put bitter for sweet
    and sweet for bitter.(BC)

21 Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes(BD)
    and clever in their own sight.

22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine(BE)
    and champions at mixing drinks,(BF)
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe,(BG)
    but deny justice(BH) to the innocent.(BI)
24 Therefore, as tongues of fire(BJ) lick up straw(BK)
    and as dry grass sinks down in the flames,
so their roots will decay(BL)
    and their flowers blow away like dust;(BM)
for they have rejected the law of the Lord Almighty
    and spurned the word(BN) of the Holy One(BO) of Israel.
25 Therefore the Lord’s anger(BP) burns against his people;
    his hand is raised and he strikes them down.
The mountains shake,(BQ)
    and the dead bodies(BR) are like refuse(BS) in the streets.(BT)

Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away,(BU)
    his hand is still upraised.(BV)

26 He lifts up a banner(BW) for the distant nations,
    he whistles(BX) for those at the ends of the earth.(BY)
Here they come,
    swiftly and speedily!
27 Not one of them grows tired(BZ) or stumbles,
    not one slumbers or sleeps;
not a belt(CA) is loosened at the waist,(CB)
    not a sandal strap is broken.(CC)
28 Their arrows are sharp,(CD)
    all their bows(CE) are strung;
their horses’ hooves(CF) seem like flint,
    their chariot wheels like a whirlwind.(CG)
29 Their roar is like that of the lion,(CH)
    they roar like young lions;
they growl as they seize(CI) their prey
    and carry it off with no one to rescue.(CJ)
30 In that day(CK) they will roar over it
    like the roaring of the sea.(CL)
And if one looks at the land,
    there is only darkness(CM) and distress;(CN)
    even the sun will be darkened(CO) by clouds.

Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 5:10 That is, about 6 gallons or about 22 liters
  2. Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 360 pounds or about 160 kilograms
  3. Isaiah 5:10 That is, probably about 36 pounds or about 16 kilograms
  4. Isaiah 5:17 Septuagint; Hebrew / strangers will eat

Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:

And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.

And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.

What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?

And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:

And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

In mine ears said the Lord of hosts, Of a truth many houses shall be desolate, even great and fair, without inhabitant.

10 Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah.

11 Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!

12 And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands.

13 Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.

14 Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

15 And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled:

16 But the Lord of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.

17 Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.

18 Woe unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope:

19 That say, Let him make speed, and hasten his work, that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it!

20 Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

21 Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight!

22 Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink:

23 Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!

24 Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.

25 Therefore is the anger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them: and the hills did tremble, and their carcases were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.

26 And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth: and, behold, they shall come with speed swiftly:

27 None shall be weary nor stumble among them; none shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken:

28 Whose arrows are sharp, and all their bows bent, their horses' hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind:

29 Their roaring shall be like a lion, they shall roar like young lions: yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry it away safe, and none shall deliver it.

30 And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea: and if one look unto the land, behold darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.