Revised Common Lectionary (Complementary)
5 I shall sing for my darling the song of mine uncle’s son, of his vineyard. A vinery was made to my darling, in the horn, that is, in an high place and excellent, in the son of oil, that is, in a place full of olives, of whose fruit is wrung out oil. (I shall sing for my darling the song of my darling’s vineyard. A vineyard was made for my darling in the horn, that is, in a high and an excellent place, in the son of oil, that is, in a place full of olives, where oil is wrung out of the fruit.)
2 And he hedged it, and chose (the) stones thereof, and planted a chosen vinery; and he builded a tower in the midst thereof, and reared (up) a (wine)press therein; and he abode, that it should make grapes, and it made wild grapes (and he waited, for it to yield sweet new grapes, but only sour wild grapes grew there).
3 Now therefore, ye dwellers of Jerusalem, and ye men of Judah, deem between me and my vinery. (And so now, ye inhabitants of Jerusalem, and ye people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard.)
4 What is it that I ought to do more to my vinery, and I did not to it? whether that I abode, that it should make grapes, and it made wild grapes? (What more could I have done for my vineyard, that I did not do for it? but why, when I waited for it to yield sweet grapes, did it instead bring forth only sour wild grapes?)
5 And now I shall show to you, what I shall do to my vinery. I shall take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be into ravishing (and it shall be eaten up); I shall cast down the wall thereof, and it shall be into defouling;
6 and I shall set it deserted, either forsaken. It shall not be cut, and it shall not be digged, and briars and thorns shall grow upon it; and I shall command to [the] clouds, that they rain not rain on it.
7 Forsooth the vinery of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah be the delightable burgeoning of him. I abode, that it shall make doom, and lo! wickedness; and that it should do rightfulness, and lo! cry. (And the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah be his delightful burgeoning. I waited for them to yield justice, but lo! wickedness; and that they should do righteousness, or do what is right, but lo! cries of distress/cries for justice.)
7 God of virtues, turn thou us (again); and show thy face, and we shall be safe. (God of hosts, bring us back; and shine thy face upon us, and we shall be saved.)
8 Thou translatedest a vine from Egypt; thou castedest out heathen men, and plantedest it. (Thou broughtest up a vine out of Egypt; thou threwest out the heathen, and then thou plantedest that vine, that is, us.)
9 Thou were leader of the way in the sight thereof; and thou plantedest the roots thereof, and it filled the land. (Thou madest a place for it on the way; and it planted its roots, and it filled the land.)
10 The shadow thereof covered hills; and the branches thereof filled the cedars of God. (Its shadow covered the hills; and its branches were thick, like the cedars of God.)
11 It stretched forth his scions till to the sea, and the generations thereof till to the flood. (It stretched out its branches unto the Mediterranean Sea, and as far as the Euphrates River.)
12 Why hast thou destroyed the wall thereof; and all men that go forth by the way, gather away the grapes thereof? (But why hast thou destroyed the wall around it? so that now all those who go forth by the way, can gather up, or take away, all of its grapes?)
13 A boar (out) of the wood destroyed it; and a singular wild beast devoured it.
14 God of virtues, be thou turned (again to us); behold from heaven, and see, and visit this vine. (God of hosts, turn thou again to us; look down from heaven, and see us in dire straits, and help us/and care for this vine.)
15 And make thou it perfect, which thy right hand planted; and behold thou on the son of man, which thou hast confirmed to thee. (And make thou perfect what thy right hand hath planted; yea, look thou upon the son of man, whom thou hast made strong for thyself/yea, look thou upon the branch, that thou hast made strong for thyself.)
4 though I have trust, yea, in the flesh. If any other man is seen to trust in the flesh, I more,
5 that was circumcised in the eighth day, of the kin of Israel [circumcised in the eighth day, of the kindred of Israel], of the lineage of Benjamin, an Hebrew of Hebrews, by the law a Pharisee [after the law a Pharisee],
6 by love pursuing the church of God, by rightwiseness that is in the law living without plaint. [after love pursuing the church of God, after rightwiseness that is in the law living without plaint.]
7 But which things were to me winnings, I have deemed these impairings for Christ.
8 Nevertheless I guess all things to be impairment for the clear science of Jesus Christ my Lord. For whom I made all things impairment, and I deem as drit [and I deem as turds], that I win Christ,
9 and that I be found in him, not having my rightwiseness that is of the law, but that that is of the faith of Christ Jesus [but that that is of the faith of Christ], that is of God the rightwiseness in faith,
10 to know him, and the virtue of his rising again, and the fellowship of his passion, and to be made like to his death, [to know him, and the virtue of his rising again, and the fellowship of his passion, I configured, or made like, to his death,]
11 if on any manner I come to the resurrection that is from death. [if on any manner I shall come to the resurrection that is of dead men.]
12 Not that now I have taken, or now am perfect; but I follow, if in any manner I catch, in which thing also I am caught of Christ Jesus. [Not that now I have taken, or now am perfect; forsooth I follow, if on any manner I shall comprehend, in which thing also I am comprehended of Christ Jesus.]
13 Brethren, I deem me not that I have caught; but one thing, I forget those things that be behind, and stretching forth myself to those things that be before, [Brethren, I deem me not to have comprehended; one thing, forsooth, I forgetting soothly those things that be behind, stretching myself forsooth to those things that be the former,]
14 and pursue to the ordained meed of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. [to the ordained thing, pursue to the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.]
33 Hear ye another parable. There was an husbandman, that planted a vineyard, and hedged it about, and delved a presser therein, and builded a tower [and built a tower], and hired it to earth-tillers, and went far in pilgrimage.
34 And when the time of fruits approached, he sent his servants to the earth-tillers, to take fruits of it.[a]
35 And the earth-tillers took his servants, and they beat one, they slew another, and stoned another. [And, his servants taken, the earth-tillers beat one, they killed another, forsooth they stoned another.]
36 Again he sent other servants, more than the first, and in like manner they did to them [and they did to them in like manner].
37 And at the last he sent his son to them, and said [saying], They shall dread my son.
38 But the earth-tillers, seeing the son, said within themselves, This is the heir; come ye, slay we him, and we shall have his heritage.
39 And they took him, and casted [cast] him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
40 Therefore when the lord of the vineyard shall come, what shall he do to those earth-tillers?
41 They say to him, He shall destroy evil the evil men, and he shall set to hire his vineyard to other earth-tillers, which shall yield to him fruit in their times.[b]
42 Jesus saith to them, Read ye never in scriptures, The stone which the builders reproved, this is made into the head of the corner? Of the Lord this thing is done, and it is marvelous in our eyes.
43 Therefore I say to you, that the kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and shall be given to a folk doing [the] fruits of it.[c]
44 And he that shall fall on this stone, shall be broken; but on whom it shall fall, it shall bruise him all to pieces [it shall pound him all to pieces].
45 And when the princes of priests and [the] Pharisees had heard his parables, they knew that he [had] said of them.
46 And they sought to hold him, but they dreaded the people [And they, seeking to hold him, dreaded the companies], for they had him as a prophet.
2001 by Terence P. Noble