“I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.”
~ Isaiah 5:1
Hi James and Ellen,
Suppose that you own a beautiful parcel of land – like your dad’s grandpa’s farm. Suppose that on the land there is lake. Suppose that the land will grow every crop that you plant. Suppose that the land has flowers growing everywhere. Suppose that the land receives regular rainfall. Suppose that the land has a lot of animals on it. Suppose that you would like to give this land to another guy or gal. Who would you choose to give this land? What would you expect that the guy or gal who you decide to give the land to would do with the land? Would you expect that the guy or gal would enjoy and take care of the land? Would you expect the guy or gal to appreciate you for having given the land to him or her? How would you feel if the guy or gal who you gave the land to did a lot of things which showed you that he or she after they had taken possession of the land did not want anything more to do with you? How would you feel if the guy or gal who you gave the land to asked another guy or gal to help him or her to care for the land? Do you think that this really would be an okay thing to do if a guy or gal did this? How would you feel if after you randomly chose a kid to give all your toys, clothes and books and then after you have given the kid all your things, the kid does not want to have anything more to do with you? Would you feel really bummed out?
Isaiah 5 is God speaking through Isaiah telling His specially chosen guys and gals how He feels about them and about what they had done with the land that He had given to them to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . God had led His specially chosen guys, gals and kids – who are the Israelite people group’s guys, gals and kids, back to the land that God had promised to a guy – Abraham, 1350 years earlier that his extended family would always have to live in as their very own land. God through using ten plagues got an Egyptian Pharaoh to let His specially chosen guys, gals and kids leave Egypt. God through using a cloud during the day and fire at night personally led His specially chosen guys, gals and kids to where He was taking them. God through damming up a significant stretch of the Jordan River had His especially chosen guys, gals and kids walk across a dry riverbed into the land that God had promised them that they would always have to live in as their very own land if . . . God totally expected His specially chosen guys to completely annihilate all the guys, gals and kids who were already living in the land so that His specially chosen guys, gals and kids would have the land all to themselves. God starts out in verse 1 saying “I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard: My loved one had a vineyard on a fertile hillside.” The fertile hill that God is talking about in this verse through Isaiah is the land that God had led the Israelite people group’s guys, gals and kids to for them to always to have to live in as their very own land if . . . the vineyard that God is talking about in this verse through Isaiah are all the Israelite people group’s guys, gals and kids. God planted the Israelite people group’s guys, gals and kids – His specially chosen guys, gals and kids, back into the land that He had prepared for them to live in for the rest of their lives if . . . God was the one who did everything so that His specially chosen guys, gals and kids could live in a fertile land – where they could raise their animals, grow their crops and live peacefully with their families. God expected that His specially chosen guys and gals would be very thankful for His having specially chosen them and for everything that He had done for them. God had years before asked His specially chosen guys to build something where He could be worshipped. Instead of thanking God for all that He had done for them, God’s specially chosen guys and gals would look for help from inanimate gods made from wood, stone and metal and they would make friends with their enemy neighbors. God is telling His specially chosen guys and gals at this time through Isaiah that He is not happy at all with them. God is telling Hs specially chosen guys and gals through Isaiah at this time that if they are wondering why the land that He had given to them was now filled with briers and thorns, why it was no longer raining on the land, why their land was not producing food for them to eat, why Israelite people group guys, gals and kids were dying all over the land from not having enough to eat and why Israelite people group guys were being killed throughout their land that it was because they had become deceived into thinking that evil can be called good, that darkness or evil is actually light and that it is fine to live in darkness or evil and becoming drunk is fun.
God chose that your grandmaa and grandpaa would both be born to a dad and a ma who were very grateful for the lives that God had given to them, who had made decisions of faith to believe in God the Son – Jesus Christ, and who sincerely worshipped God. Your grandmaa and grandpaa when they were still young both made decisions of faith to believe in God the Son – Jesus Christ, because they both knew what God the Son – Jesus Christ, had done for them. Your grandmaa and grandpaa were born in very fertile ground – in God-fearing homes. If your grandmaa and grandpaa had followed the path of God’s specially chosen guys, gals and kids – after God had led them to fertile ground to live, they would have made thinking only of themselves their god and/or having lots of things their god and/or making a lot of money their god and/or trusting other people to help them instead of going to God for help and/or . . . your grandpaa believes that God will take away everything that He has given to him if your grandpaa chooses to no longer let God be his one true God – just as God did with His specially chosen guys and kids. Your grandpaa believes that God chose you both to be born in a fertile home so that you will be fertile vineyards for Him.
Isaiah 5 (225)