Indeed Israel is the vineyard of the Lord who commands armies, the people of Judah are the cultivated place in which he took delight. He waited for justice, but look what he got -- disobedience! He waited for fairness, but look what he got -- cries for help!

You uprooted a vine from Egypt; you drove out nations and transplanted it.

But the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground!

During that long period of time the king of Egypt died, and the Israelites groaned because of the slave labor. They cried out, and their desperate cry because of their slave labor went up to God.

The Lord said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt. I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.

"You must not wrong a foreigner nor oppress him, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Be careful lest you entertain the wicked thought that the seventh year, the year of cancellation of debts, has almost arrived, and your attitude be wrong toward your impoverished fellow Israelite and you do not lend him anything; he will cry out to the Lord against you and you will be regarded as having sinned.

Then there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.

"If my land cried out against me and all its furrows wept together,

so that they caused the cry of the poor to come before him, so that he hears the cry of the needy.

the root your right hand planted, the shoot you made to grow!

The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers, and in those who wait for his loyal love.

For the Lord takes delight in his people; he exalts the oppressed by delivering them.

The one who shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and will not be answered.

How beautiful you are! How lovely, O love, with your delights!

From the soles of your feet to your head, there is no spot that is unharmed. There are only bruises, cuts, and open wounds. They have not been cleansed or bandaged, nor have they been treated with olive oil.

The Lord comes to pronounce judgment on the leaders of his people and their officials. He says, "It is you who have ruined the vineyard! You have stashed in your houses what you have stolen from the poor.

So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion's women with skin diseases, the Lord will make the front of their heads bald."

He built a hedge around it, removed its stones, and planted a vine. He built a tower in the middle of it, and constructed a winepress. He waited for it to produce edible grapes, but it produced sour ones instead.

No, this is the kind of fast I want. I want you to remove the sinful chains, to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke, to set free the oppressed, and to break every burdensome yoke.

As a young man marries a young woman, so your sons will marry you. As a bridegroom rejoices over a bride, so your God will rejoice over you.

Many foreign rulers will ruin the land where I planted my people. They will trample all over my chosen land. They will turn my beautiful land into a desolate wasteland.

He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord really wants from you: He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful, and to live obediently before your God.

The Lord your God is in your midst; he is a warrior who can deliver. He takes great delight in you; he renews you by his love; he shouts for joy over you."

"The Lord who rules over all said, 'Exercise true judgment and show brotherhood and compassion to each other.

Therefore produce fruit that proves your repentance,

"Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law -- justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others.

Won't God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long to help them?

He takes away every branch that does not bear fruit in me. He prunes every branch that bears fruit so that it will bear more fruit.

But you yourselves wrong and cheat, and you do this to your brothers and sisters!

Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.

Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Jesus is righteous.

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Summary

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.

The vineyard

Oppression

General references

Bible References

The vineyard

You uprooted a vine from Egypt; you drove out nations and transplanted it.
Many foreign rulers will ruin the land where I planted my people. They will trample all over my chosen land. They will turn my beautiful land into a desolate wasteland.

His pleasant plant

As a young man marries a young woman, so your sons will marry you. As a bridegroom rejoices over a bride, so your God will rejoice over you.
The Lord takes delight in his faithful followers, and in those who wait for his loyal love.
For the Lord takes delight in his people; he exalts the oppressed by delivering them.
How beautiful you are! How lovely, O love, with your delights!
The Lord your God is in your midst; he is a warrior who can deliver. He takes great delight in you; he renews you by his love; he shouts for joy over you."

He looked

He built a hedge around it, removed its stones, and planted a vine. He built a tower in the middle of it, and constructed a winepress. He waited for it to produce edible grapes, but it produced sour ones instead.
No, this is the kind of fast I want. I want you to remove the sinful chains, to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke, to set free the oppressed, and to break every burdensome yoke.
"You must not afflict any widow or orphan.
He has told you, O man, what is good, and what the Lord really wants from you: He wants you to promote justice, to be faithful, and to live obediently before your God.
"The Lord who rules over all said, 'Exercise true judgment and show brotherhood and compassion to each other.
Therefore produce fruit that proves your repentance,
"Woe to you, experts in the law and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth of mint, dill, and cumin, yet you neglect what is more important in the law -- justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You should have done these things without neglecting the others.
He takes away every branch that does not bear fruit in me. He prunes every branch that bears fruit so that it will bear more fruit.
But you yourselves wrong and cheat, and you do this to your brothers and sisters!
Little children, let no one deceive you: The one who practices righteousness is righteous, just as Jesus is righteous.

Oppression

From the soles of your feet to your head, there is no spot that is unharmed. There are only bruises, cuts, and open wounds. They have not been cleansed or bandaged, nor have they been treated with olive oil.
So the sovereign master will afflict the foreheads of Zion's women with skin diseases, the Lord will make the front of their heads bald."

A cry

But the Lord said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground!
During that long period of time the king of Egypt died, and the Israelites groaned because of the slave labor. They cried out, and their desperate cry because of their slave labor went up to God.
The Lord said, "I have surely seen the affliction of my people who are in Egypt. I have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows.
"You must not wrong a foreigner nor oppress him, for you were foreigners in the land of Egypt.
Be careful lest you entertain the wicked thought that the seventh year, the year of cancellation of debts, has almost arrived, and your attitude be wrong toward your impoverished fellow Israelite and you do not lend him anything; he will cry out to the Lord against you and you will be regarded as having sinned.
Then there was a great outcry from the people and their wives against their fellow Jews.
"If my land cried out against me and all its furrows wept together,
so that they caused the cry of the poor to come before him, so that he hears the cry of the needy.
The one who shuts his ears to the cry of the poor, he too will cry out and will not be answered.
Won't God give justice to his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he delay long to help them?
Look, the pay you have held back from the workers who mowed your fields cries out against you, and the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.

General references

If you make a sale to your fellow citizen or buy from your fellow citizen, no one is to wrong his brother.

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