Isaiah 5
Tree of Life Version
Song of the Vineyard
5 Let me sing of my beloved,
a song of my beloved, about His vineyard.
My beloved had a vineyard
in a very fertile hill.[a]
2 He dug it out and cleared its stones,
planted it with a choice vine,
built a tower in the midst of it,
and even cut out a winepress.
He expected it to yield good grapes,
but it yielded worthless grapes.
3 So now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah,
please judge
between me and my vineyard.
4 What more was there to do for my vineyard
that I have not done?
Why then, when I expected it to yield good grapes,
did it yield worthless grapes?
5 So now, I will make known to you
what I will do to my vineyard:
I will take away the hedge,
and it will be eaten up.
I will break down the fence,
and it will be trodden down.
6 I will lay it waste:
it will not be pruned or hoed,
but briers and thorns will come up.
I will also command the clouds not to rain on it.
7 For the vineyard of Adonai-Tzva’ot
is the house of Israel,
and the people of Judah
the planting of His delight.
He looked for justice,
but behold, bloodshed,
for righteousness,
but behold, a cry!
Judgment for Injustice
8 Woe to those who join house to house
and merge field to field,
until there is no room,
and you will live alone
in the midst of the land!
9 In my ears, Adonai-Tzva’ot has said:
“Surely many houses will be desolate—
even grand and fine ones—
with no occupants.”
10 Ten acres of vineyard
will yield six gallons,
and an omer of seed
will yield one ephah.[b]
11 Woe to those who rise up early in the morning—
so they may pursue liquor,
who stay up late at night,
until wine inflames them!
12 Harp and lyre, tambourine and flute,
and wine are at their banquets.
They do not notice Adonai’s activity
nor see the works of His hands.
13 “Therefore My people are in captivity
for lack of knowledge.
Their honorable men are famished
and their multitudes parched with thirst.
14 Therefore Sheol has enlarged its gullet
and opened its measureless mouth—
down goes her glory, her tumult,
her uproar, and the revelry in her.
15 So humanity will be bowed down
mankind will be humbled,
and the eyes of the lofty humbled.”
16 But Adonai-Tzva’ot will be exalted through justice,
and the Holy God consecrated through righteousness.
17 Then lambs will graze as if in their own pasture,
and nomads will eat in the ruins of the wealthy.
18 Oy to those that drag iniquity along with cords of deceit,
and sin as if with a cart rope!
19 They say: “Let Him hurry up
and hasten His work, so we may see it!
Let the plan of the Holy One of Israel
draw near and come,
so we may know it!”
20 Oy to those who call evil good
and good evil,
who present darkness as light
and light as darkness,
who present bitter as sweet,
and sweet as bitter!
21 Oy to those who are wise in their own eyes,
and clever in their own sight!
22 Oy to those who are heroes at drinking wine,
and valiant at mixing drinks,
23 who justify the wicked for a bribe,
and deprive the innocent of justice!
24 Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes straw,
and as chaff collapses into the flame,
so their root will be like rot,
and their blossom will go up like dust.
For they have rejected the Torah of Adonai–Tzva’ot,
and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
25 Therefore Adonai’s anger is kindled
against His people.
When He has stretched out His hand
against them and struck them,
the hills trembled, and their carcasses
were like refuse in the streets.
For all this His anger is not turned away,
yet His hand is still outstretched.
26 He will lift up a banner to nations far off,
and will whistle for them from the ends of the earth.
Look! Swiftly, speedily they come!
27 None will be weary
and none stumble among them;
none will slumber or sleep;
no belt will be loose at the waist;
no strap of sandals be broken.
28 Their arrows are sharp
and all their bows bent;
their horse hooves will be like flint
and their wheels like a whirlwind.
29 Their roaring will be like a lion.
They will growl like young lions—
yes, they will roar, seize their prey
and carry it away safely—
and there will be none to rescue.
30 They will roar against them
like the roaring of the sea.
If one looks to the land,
behold, darkness and distress!
The light is darkened by the clouds.
Footnotes
- Isaiah 5:1 Lit. a horn, the son of fatness.
- Isaiah 5:10 About six bushels yielding just one.
Isaiah 5
Christian Standard Bible Anglicised
Song of the Vineyard
5 I will sing about the one I love,
a song about my loved one’s vineyard:(A)
The one I love had a vineyard
on a very fertile hill.
2 He broke up the soil, cleared it of stones,
and planted it with the finest vines.(B)
He built a tower in the middle of it
and even dug out a winepress there.
He expected(C) it to yield good grapes,
but it yielded worthless grapes.(D)
3 So now, residents of Jerusalem
and men of Judah,
please judge between me
and my vineyard.
4 What more could I have done for my vineyard
than I did?(E)
Why, when I expected a yield of good grapes,
did it yield worthless grapes?
5 Now I will tell you
what I am about to do to my vineyard:
I will remove its hedge,(F)
and it will be consumed;
I will tear down its wall,(G)
and it will be trampled.
6 I will make it a wasteland.(H)
It will not be pruned or weeded;
thorns and briars will grow up.(I)
I will also give orders to the clouds
that rain should not fall on it.
7 For the vineyard of the Lord of Armies
is the house of Israel,(J)
and the men[a] of Judah,
the plant he delighted in.
He expected justice
but saw injustice;
he expected righteousness
but heard cries of despair.
Judah’s Sins Denounced
8 Woe to those who add house to house(K)
and join field to field
until there is no more room
and you alone are left in the land.
9 I heard the Lord of Armies say:
Indeed, many houses(L) will become desolate,
grand and lovely ones without inhabitants.
10 For a ten-acre[b] vineyard will yield
only 22 litres of wine,[c]
and 220 litres[d] of seed will yield
only 22 litres of grain.[e]
11 Woe to those who rise early in the morning
in pursuit of beer,(M)
who linger into the evening,
inflamed by wine.
12 At their feasts they have lyre, harp,
tambourine, flute, and wine.
They do not perceive the Lord’s actions,(N)
and they do not see the work of his hands.(O)
13 Therefore my people will go into exile
because they lack knowledge;(P)
her[f] dignitaries are starving,
and her masses are parched with thirst.
14 Therefore Sheol enlarges its throat
and opens wide its enormous jaws,(Q)
and down go Zion’s dignitaries, her masses,
her crowds, and those who celebrate in her!
15 Humanity is brought low, each person is humbled,
and haughty eyes are humbled.(R)
16 But the Lord of Armies is exalted by his justice,(S)
and the holy God(T) demonstrates his holiness through his righteousness.(U)
17 Lambs will graze
as if in[g] their own pastures,(V)
and resident foreigners[h] will eat
among the ruins of the rich.
18 Woe to those who drag iniquity
with cords of deceit(W)
and pull sin along with cart ropes,
19 to those who say,
‘Let him hurry up and do his work quickly
so that we can see it!
Let the plan(X) of the Holy One of Israel(Y) take place
so that we can know it! ’
20 Woe to those who call evil good
and good evil,(Z)
who substitute darkness for light
and light for darkness,
who substitute bitter for sweet
and sweet for bitter.
21 Woe to those who consider themselves wise
and judge themselves clever.[i](AA)
22 Woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine,
who are champions at pouring beer,(AB)
23 who acquit the guilty for a bribe(AC)
and deprive the innocent of justice.
24 Therefore, as a tongue of fire consumes straw
and as dry grass shrivels in the flame,
so their roots will become like something rotten
and their blossoms will blow away like dust,
for they have rejected(AD)
the instruction of the Lord of Armies,
and they have despised
the word of the Holy One of Israel.(AE)
25 Therefore the Lord’s anger burned(AF) against his people.
He raised his hand against them and struck them;
the mountains quaked,(AG)
and their corpses were like rubbish in the streets.
In all this, his anger has not turned away,
and his hand is still raised to strike.(AH)
26 He raises a signal flag for the distant nations(AI)
and whistles(AJ) for them from the ends of the earth.
Look – how quickly and swiftly they come!
27 None of them grows weary or stumbles;(AK)
no one slumbers or sleeps.
No belt is loose
and no sandal strap broken.
28 Their arrows are sharpened,
and all their bows strung.
Their horses’ hooves are like flint;
their chariot wheels are like a whirlwind.
29 Their roaring is like a lion’s;(AL)
they roar like young lions;(AM)
they growl and seize their prey
and carry it off,
and no one can rescue it.
30 On that day they will roar over it,
like the roaring of the sea.
When one looks at the land,
there will be darkness and distress;
light will be obscured by clouds.[j]
Tree of Life (TLV) Translation of the Bible. Copyright © 2015 by The Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.
Copyright © 2024 by Holman Bible Publishers.