Isaiah 5:1–7

SONG OF THE VINEYARD

5I will sing about the one I love,

a song about my loved one’s vineyard:^ai

The one I love had a vineyard

on a very fertile hill.

²He broke up the soil, cleared it of stones,

and planted it with the finest vines.^aj

He built a tower in the middle of it

and even dug out a winepress there.

He expected^ak it to yield good grapes,

but it yielded worthless grapes.^al

³So now, residents of Jerusalem

and men of Judah,

please judge between me

and my vineyard.

⁴What more could I have done for my vineyard

than I did?^a

Why, when I expected a yield of good grapes,

did it yield worthless grapes?

⁵Now I will tell you

what I am about to do to my vineyard:

I will remove its hedge,^b

and it will be consumed;

I will tear down its wall,^c

and it will be trampled.

⁶I will make it a wasteland.^d

It will not be pruned or weeded;

thorns and briers will grow up.^e

I will also give orders to the clouds

that rain should not fall on it.

⁷For the vineyard of the Lord of Armies

is the house of Israel,^f

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.