An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah - Kwok Chi Keung (200407) HONG KONG CATHOLIC BIBLICAL INSTITUTE
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HONG KONG CATHOLIC BIBLICAL INSTITUTE
Kwok Chi Keung (200407)
An analysis of the
2 Vineyard songs
in Isaiah
Graduation Thesis
Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong, OFM
HONG KONG 2007(This page is left blank intentionally)
An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Acknowledgments................................................................................................1
Introduction .............................................................................................................3
Part I: Analysis of Isaiah 27:2-6 ...................................................................5
A. Literary analysis of Isaiah 27:2-6 ....................................... 5
B. The Message of Isaiah 27:2-6............................................. 8
C. Thorns ָשׁ ִמירand Briers ַשׁיִ ת................................................ 9
D. The 2nd vineyard song in the context of Isaiah 27............ 11
E. In the context of Isaiah 24-27 ........................................... 12
Part II: Analysis of Isaiah 5:1-7 ..................................................................13
A. Literary analysis of Isaiah 5:1-7 ....................................... 13
B. The message of the 1st Vineyard Song ............................. 23
Part III: Relation between Isaiah 5:1-7 & 27:2-6 ...............................33
A. Survey of previous interpretations.................................... 33
B. Breaking New Grounds .................................................... 33
C. A hypothesis for the development of this Vineyard Song34
D. The relation with the Vineyard Song of Isaiah 27............ 37
E. The relation with Isaiah 1-39............................................ 39
Part IV: Conclusion ...........................................................................................40
Appendix I: Cantillation Marks in Masoretic Text ...........................42
Appendix II: Determining stresses ............................................................44
Appendix III: A Redaction history of Isaiah 1-39 as discussed in
Sweeney’s paper ............................................................................47
Appendix IV: Tables of verb stem changes ..........................................53
Appendix V: The Genre of Isaiah 5:1-7 by John Willis .................55
Appendix VI: Chanting the songs in Isaiah ..........................................64
Bibliography .........................................................................................................73An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Acknowledgments
As a Religious Studies teacher in a secondary school, I have to prepare my students to
sit for public examinations. Moreover, I need to train them to see things from other
perspectives, to help them become less egocentric. In these three years, I myself have
to sit on the students’ desks instead of lecturing in front of the blackboard. I have to
do assignments, write up essays, learn new languages and go through examinations
like my students. All these experiences help me better understand the difficulties my
students face everyday in the classroom. I hope I will become a more understanding
teacher after going through these three years of ‘student’ life.
Part I of this paper is an expanded version of an oral presentation for course #2303
(Prophetic Writings). It was not done satisfactorily and I hope this version can make
up what I failed to achieve last time.
A number of references are probably not accessible to the general public. Therefore, I
summarize them and put them at the Appendix for any interested readers to pursue.
Appendix I is an adaptation from an article in Wikipeida.org1, a free encyclopaedia on
the Internet. The Internet is really resourceful.
Some years ago, Fr. Gabriel Lajeune, M.E.P., challenged the parishioners of Tuen
Mun to read through the book of Isaiah in Advent. It is he, who never deems himself
too old to learn new things, such as Changjei input method and sending emails, who
inspires my adventure into this study of Isaiah’s vineyard songs. I want to thank him
first and foremost.
I thank my supervisor, Fr. Placid Wong O.F.M., for his critical advice. He has a very
busy teaching schedule in the Seminary, in the Institute, in the formation of aspirants
in the community, in parish work and schoolwork … You name it. Without his
generous opinions, I would have wandered into many unfruitful blind alleys.
I thank John Fok Kwai Chuen, a fellow classmate in the Biblical Institute for his
generosity of allowing me to make use of the Libronix Digital Library System on
which he has spent tens of thousands of dollars to bring to fullness. The System is
very powerful and morphological searching has never been an easier job. John’s mind
1
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantillation
Page 1An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
and tongue are sharp and he works extremely fast, just like the System he has invested
in. He is undoubtedly our leader in this study.
I have to thank Hilary, my eldest son, for helping me borrow the books I needed;
Wulstan, my second son for relieving me of some clerical chores during this period of
time and Mr. Francis Yu, a colleague in STC, for logistic supports. Regrettably, he is
leaving us for a more fulfilling job in a Direct Subsidy School. The admirable Mrs.
Eva Yu exemplifies the perfect wife of Proverbs 31:20 by extending her generosity
to provide, lucky me, with unfailing logistic supports. I have to thank another Francis,
Dr. Wong, Principal of STC, for not bothering my pursuit in Biblical studies. Our
brainwaves are different and we keep a healthy distance from each other all these
years. In a curiously negative way, he prods me ahead. God really works in a
mysterious way. Blessed be the Lord.
Last, but not the least, I have to thank Erminia, my wife for her patience, tolerance
and sacrifices such that I am able to pursue my Biblical studies without worries. From
the very first day we met, I know that she, like the BOOK I am presently studying, is
sent from God. It should be her turn to enjoy the study now.
Alex Kwok
October 2007
Page 2An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Introduction
When we read the story of the Wicked Vinedressers in the Synoptic Gospels together
with the Vineyard Song in Isaiah 5, we will be struck by the creativity of the
Evangelists in making use of the prophetic material and transforming it to suit their
contemporary situations. They did not just interpret a prophetic text, but used it to
champion their cause. Naturally, one may ask whether Isaiah did the same thing,
making use of more primitive materials to pronounce Yahweh’s judgment on his
contemporaries.
The book of Isaiah is a book of judgment as well as salvation. After a lot of critical
studies, scholars generally come to the consensus that the book in its present form is
the result of a long history of redaction. They were able to identify three blocks of
texts, the Proto-Isaiah (Isaiah 1-39), Deutero-Isaiah (Isaiah 40-55) and Trito-Isaiah
(Isaiah 56-66)2. Proto-Isaiah is a book of judgment while the other two are books of
consolation, of salvation. With newer methodologies, the 20th century saw a
proliferation of researches on the book of Isaiah as a unity and the classification
above is becoming less air-tight but porous. Scholars were able to identify influences
from Deutero, or even Trito on Proto-Isaiah.
The Vineyard Song falls within the realm of Proto-Isaiah, which contains a lot of
judgment pronouncements. But it is not the only vineyard song in Isaiah. In fact, there
is one more vineyard song (Isaiah 27:2-6) which falls within the Isaianic Apocalypse
(Isaiah 24-27). But the second Vineyard Song is not a song of judgment but salvation,
probably from the hands of Deutero-Isaiah!
The present writer is not yet capable of engaging in scholarly debates on these high-
order redactional criticisms. Taking cue from the parable of Wicked Vinedressers, the
present writer would do some literary analysis on the texts of the two Vineyard Songs,
hoping to identify the ‘original’ song and the prophet’s own additions.
2
C. Stuhlmueller, Deutero-Isaiah, JBC, 22:2
Page 3An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
The present writer wants to demonstrate the following findings in this thesis.
1. Isaiah 5:1b-2 is the Vineyard Song proper. It was probably a popular
drinking song among the husbandmen.
2. The prophet made use of this drinking song and developed it, through
several generations of redaction, into a ‘Judgment Speech’ to condemn
royal elites in Jerusalem.
Since the second Vineyard Song appears to be more homogeneous, it will be dealt
with first as a warm-up. The procedure employed in dealing with the 2nd song will be
applied to analyse the first Vineyard Song which the parable of Wicked Vinedresser
modelled.
In order to achieve the above aim, this thesis will follow the outline below:
Part I: Analysis of Isaiah 27:2-6
1. Some low criticisms of Isaiah 27:2-6
2. The message of Isaiah 27:2-6
Part II: Analysis of Isaiah 5:1-7
1. Some low criticisms of Isaiah 5:1-7
2. The message of Isaiah 5:1-7
Part III: Relation between Isaiah 5:1-7 & 27:2-6
Part IV: Conclusion
Page 4An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Part I: Analysis of Isaiah 27:2-6
Scholars agree without exception that Isaiah 27:2b-6 is the lyrics of a song. It is
attested by the text itself which begins with “In that day, sing ye unto her, a vineyard
of red wine…”3
This vineyard song falls within the context of the so-called Isaianic Apocalypse
(Isaiah 24-27) which, had contributed to a fresh debate on the origin of Apocalyptic4.
A. Literary analysis of Isaiah 27:2-6
a. A chiastic structure for the 2nd vineyard song
Employing first level “Emperor” disjunctive cantillation marks of the
Masoretic Text, the present writer proposes the following chiastic structure,
for the study of Isaiah 27:2-6. From this very crude structure, we find that
27:4 is the core of the song. If we want a more refined identification of the
core message, we may apply cantillation marks of the second level “Kings” or
even deeper levels. Interested readers may refer to Appendix I to find out how
disjunctive cantillation marks are used in breaking up the text into meaningful
units.
A In that day
sing ye unto her a vineyard of red wine.
B I the LORD do keep it; I will water it every moment:
lest any hurt it I will keep it night and day.
C Fury is not in me:
who would set the briers and thorns against me in battle? I would
go through them. I would burn them together.
B’ Or let him take hold of my strength that he may make peace with me;
and he shall make peace with me
A’ He shall cause them that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and
bud
and fill the face of the world with fruit.
3
The present writer would use KJV, as far as possible because, in most cases, this translation preserves
the word order and morphology of the Hebrew Scripture.
4
W.R. Millar, “Isaiah 24-27 and the Origin of Apocalyptic”, Harvard Semitic Monographs no.11,
Missoula, Mont.:Scholar Press 1976, pg 1
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Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
The following table shows how the Masoretic Text has been broken up, employing
the cantillation marks. Notice the use of atnach to mark off the middle of a verse.
A
ַבּיּ֖ וֹם ַה ֑הוּא
נּוּ־להּ
ֽ ָ ֶ ֥כּ ֶרם ֶ ֖ח ֶמד ַע
B ֲא ִ ֤ני יְ הוָ ֙ה ֹֽנ ְצ ָ ֔רהּ ִל ְר ָג ִ ֖עים ַא ְשׁ ֶ ֑קנָּ ה
יה ַ ֥ליְ ָלה וָ י֖ וֹם ֶא ֳצּ ֶ ֽרנָּ ה
ָ ֶ ֚פּן יִ ְפ ֣קֹד ָע ֔ ֶל
C ֵח ָ ֖מה ֵ ֣אין ִ ֑לי
יתנָּ ה ָיּ ַֽח
֥ ֶ ִ ֽמי־יִ ְתּ ֜ ֵנ ִני ָשׁ ִ ֥מיר ַ֨שׁיִ ֙ת ַבּ ִמּ ְל ָח ָ֔מה ֶא ְפ ְשׂ ָ ֥עה ָ ֖בהּ ֲא ִצ
B’ עוּזּי יַ ֲע ֶ ֥שׂה ָשׁ ֖לוֹם ִ ֑לי
ִ֔ ֚אוֹ יַ ֲח ֵז֣ק ְבּ ָמ
ה־לּי
ֽ ִ ָשׁ ֖לוֹם ֽי ֲַע ֶשׂ
A’
וּפ ַ ֖רח יִ ְשׂ ָר ֵ ֑אל
ָ ַה ָבּ ִא ֙ים יַ ְשׁ ֵ ֣רשׁ ַי ֲֽע ֔קֹב יָ ִ ֥ציץ
נוּבה ֽ ָ י־ת ֵ ֖בל ְתּ
ֵ וּמ ְל ֥אוּ ְפ ֵנ ָ
b. Poetic Devices found in Isaiah 27:2-6
i. Rhymes
The major rhyme is a chain of five Qāmĕṣ running through the whole
poem from 27:2 to 27:6 (נּוּ־להּ
ֽ ָ ַעin 27:2, ַא ְשׁ ֶ ֑קנָּ הand ֶא ֳצּ ֶ ֽרנָּ הin
27:3, ָיּ ַֽחin 27:4b and the final word נוּבה
ֽ ָ ְתּ in 27:6b), which is
criss-crossed by a ִליin 27:3. This rhyme is completely missing in
27:5. By itself, 27:5 is a tiny lovely pun-line, playing on the phrase
ָשׁ ֖לוֹם ִ ֑לי. It sprinkles some icing, a little variation to an otherwise
dull song. As a whole, the song is pleasing to the ears.
Page 6An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
ii. Parallelism5
1. in meanings
The following verses are examples showing semantic parallelism. The
second halves of the verses repeat similar ideas of the first halves, or
press the idea further.
… I will water it every moment: … I will keep it night and day
(27:3b)
… I would go through them, I would burn them together (27:4b)
… that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me.
(27:5b)
… that come of Jacob to take root: Israel shall blossom and bud,
(27:6b)
The examples above all show perfect semantic parallelism.
2. in word order
All the examples above, except for 27:5b, also show perfect syntactic
parallelism. The word order of the nouns and verbs of the first halves
of the verses matches those in the second halves. Isaiah 27:5b is
different. It is chiastic:
( יַ ֲע ֶ ֥שׂה ָשׁ ֖לוֹם ִ ֑ליthat he may make peace with me)
ה־לּי
ֽ ִ ( ָשׁ ֖לוֹם ֽי ֲַע ֶשׂpeace he shall make with me)
3. in stresses
If we follow the disjunctive cantillation marks, 27:2-6 has the
following stress patterns. (Double slashes delimit the verses. Therefore,
27:2 has a stress pattern of 2/3; 27:3 a pattern of 3/2/3/3 etc.)
Interested readers may refer to Appendix II to find out how the stresses
are determined.
2/3 // 3/2/3/3 // 3/4/4 // 3/3/2 // 3/3/3
5
R. Alter, The Art of Biblical Poetry, Basic Books 1985, pp 7-8
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Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Meter is a very tricky problem in Hebrew poetry. Different scholars define
meter in very different and loose manners. Some, like Millar, simply count
the syllables6. The present writer prefers to rely on the cantillation marks
on the Masoretic Text to determine the stresses.
In ancient time, people did not have many books. Scriptures were publicly
read and even chanted in assemblies. The congregation attentively listened
to the scriptures as they do today in Jewish synagogues. Chanting was, and
is, employed to facilitate the delivery of the text to the audience. With the
aid of melodies, the audience was better able to memorize the text.
Nowadays, however, it is difficult for us to reconstruct their melodies or
even their stress patterns. With limited resources in hand, the present
writer can only say that this 2nd vineyard song as a whole has a rather
stable and regular stress pattern of 3s.
B. The Message of Isaiah 27:2-6
27:2 ‘In that day’ ַבּיּ֖ וֹם ַה ֑הוּאoccurs 45 times in the book of Isaiah. Only
once does it fall outside Proto-Isaiah in 52:6, which predicts the day when the
evangelist makes the people of Yahweh recognize Yahweh again. So, this
probably is one of the signature phrases of Proto-Isaiah.
Since this vineyard song is located in the Isaianic Apocalypse, it is natural to
interpret it to mean ‘at the end of time’. However, for the contemporaries of
the disciples of the Isaianic School, it might mean a nearer future. From the
context of Isaiah 24-27, the prophet probably meant a lapse of 70 years after
exile. Therefore, the opening verse proclaims that at the end of time (or a near
future), a new vineyard of choice vine will emerge from somewhere (A).
Unlike the previous vineyard, this one is laudable (thus ‘sing ye unto her’). It
is a vineyard of choice vine and is pleasing to Yahweh ח ֶמד
ֶ֖ ֶ ֥כּ ֶרם.
6
Millar (1976), pg 24
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Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
27:3 Yahweh takes care of her personally. He does not delegate the
responsibility to anybody else. He waters her all the time. Fearing her safety or
any legal challenges, Yahweh keeps her night and day (B).
27:4 Now, Yahweh will be angry of His vineyard no more. Previously, briers
and thorns ravaged the land because Yahweh had removed His protection of
the land. These briers and thorns became symbols of desolation. Now, He will
take care of His vineyard and drive away desolation, burn out briers and thorns.
This is the key message of the song (C).
27:5 The identity of the 3rd person in this verse remains hidden until the next
verse. It is Jacob (Israel). Furthering the goods in 27:3, Yahweh invites them
to have confidence in His strength and take the opportunity to make peace
with Him. He does not simply water them, providing them for their needs, but
also offers them peace, of which the exiled Israelites have been deprived (B’).
27:6 The identity of the vineyard is revealed. It is Jacob (Israel). In time,
Yahweh will gather the scattered Israelites. A remnant shall return.
Høgenhaven (1988) argued that Isaiah presupposes the right of the house of
David to rule over a united kingdom of Israel and Judah7. So a united Israel
will flourish and fill up the face of the earth. The whole world will become
Yahweh’s vineyard of choice vine (A’).
C. Thorns שׁ ִמיר
ָ and Briers ַשׁיִ ת
A search for ‘thorns’ and ‘briers’ in the book of Isaiah shows the following
interesting results. Only seven verses are found and they all fall within the
First Isaiah! Once again, ‘Thorns and briers’ seems to be another signature
phrase of Proto-Isaiah.
7
M.A. Sweeney, “Reevaluating Isaiah 1-39 in Recent Critical Research”, Currents in Research:
Biblical Studies 4 (1996), pg 101
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Thorns and Briers always go in pair in the seven verses found (5:6, 7:23-25,
9:17, 10:17, 27:4)8. They first appear in the first Vineyard Song in Isaiah 5
and vanish from the scene after the 2nd vineyard song in Isaiah 27. The two
vineyard songs act like an inclusio. But the phrase ‘thorns and briers’ takes on
a different meaning with the announcement of the birth of the ‘… Wonderful,
Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace’
(Isaiah 9:6).
In 5:6 and the 3 verses in the Book of Immanuel (7:23-25), thorns and briers
symbolize desolation. In Isaiah 5, despite Yahweh’s special care and
provision, the Israelites fell short of His expectations. Therefore, Yahweh
announced His judgment and left the land desolate, only to be filled with
thorns and briers. In Isaiah 7, Ahaz was contemplating an alliance with
Assyria to ward off the Syrio-Ephraimitic threat. Isaiah confronted Ahaz with
his failure to rely on the help of Yahweh. ‘…If ye will not believe, surely ye
shall not be established.’ (Isaiah 7:9) After an exchange of words with Ahaz
concerning Immanuel, Isaiah predicted ruins and depopulation in 7:18-25.
From 9:17(18) on, we read of the burning of thorns and briers. In 9:17(18)-21,
Isaiah lamented the internal conflicts among Manasseh, Ephraim and Judah.
Wickedness among them burnt like wild fire, first the thorns and briers then
the forest. For the first time, it is mentioned that ‘thorns and briers’ are burnt.
Though the verse does not signify who burnt whom, it becomes obvious
because the key message is repeated three times in this strophe:
For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out
still. (9:12, 17, 21)
Yahweh would burn them. Yahweh would make use of the wickedness of the
people, especially those who held high positions in the society, to punish them.
They would eat the cake they baked (Isaiah 3:11).
8
In 32:13, they appear in different terms ( ) ֥קוֹץ ָשׁ ִ ֖מירin the context of warning against complacent
women. Therefore, the present writer will not discuss this particular verse here.
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Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
The context of 10:17 is Yahweh’s punishment of the arrogant Assyrians.
Assyria was the rod of Yahweh’s anger against the hypocritical Israel (10:5-6).
Yet, out of arrogance, Assyria did more than was required from Yahweh
(10:7-14). Yahweh decided to punish Assyria in return. ‘The light of Israel …
his Holy One’, i.e. Yahweh himself, shall burn and devour his thorns and his
briers, shall consume the glory of his forest and of his fruitful land, both soul
and body … (10:17-18). Here, Assyria was Yahweh’s thorns and briers, the
object to be burnt. In this context, the message is crystal clear. Yahweh is in
full control of human history. Assyria, Tyre, Babylon etc. are instruments of
Yahweh’s chastisement of Israel, Yahweh’s beloved Vineyard. Here, the
burning of thorns and briers is for the benefit of Yahweh’s vineyard, Israel.
‘Thorns and briers’ appears for the last time in the 2nd vineyard song. Here,
they are instruments or consequences of the actions of the enemies of Israel
whose keeper is Yahweh. For the sake of Israel, Yahweh would go through
them, burn them up (27:4).
In short, Yahweh is alive, at work and in total control. He has forgiven Israel.
The key phrase is the burning out of briers and thorns. Israel can thrive and
grow and Jerusalem gains in importance and meaning.
D. The 2nd vineyard song in the context of Isaiah 27
After a delay of 70 years (Isaiah 23:17), the day of judgment for Leviathan
(Babylon, Tyre) has come (Isaiah 27:1). So, after 70 years of exile, Israel
would be restored because Assyria and Babylon would be defeated and
punished. Yahweh’s intention is sung out in the 2nd vineyard song (27:2-6).
Yahweh would restore Israel and keep good care of her. However, Israel cast
doubt on her sufferings. She did not understand and was not sure whether her
sufferings were yet to continue. It was explained to her that the removal of
idolatry would expiate her sins (27:7-9). The desolation of Jerusalem (the
‘fortified city’ of 27:10) bore witness that this is a people without
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understanding (27:10-11) 9 . Yet, Yahweh will gather the exiled Israelites
(27:12) and they will come to worship Yahweh on Zion (27:13).
E. In the context of Isaiah 24-27
Dan Johnson interprets the eschatological scenes in Isaiah 24, the plunging
into chaos, as an image of the catastrophic event, the destruction of Jerusalem
and her Temple, witnessed by the prophet.
Jerusalem was viewed as being the centre of the earth, its destruction
was perceived as the actual return of chaos. For this reason the prophet
drew upon the powerful imagery of the chaos myth in order to
communicate the cosmic sense of loss which the historical events of
587 entailed.10
But the prophet was confident of Yahweh’s triumph. Out of chaos, Yahweh
had restored order. Life in the United Monarchy and even under the Divided
Kingdom would have been orderly, had it not been for the disintegrating
elements introduced into Israelites’ settled urban living by idolatry and
prosperity. Israel needed to go through this Assyrian and Babylonian Captivity
in order to purify herself. Hope is offered in Isaiah 25 where salvation is
promised and a banquet will also be held to entertain all peoples. Yahweh and,
Yahweh alone will bring about this salvation, this national resurrection.
Human efforts would be futile like a pregnant woman who is unable to deliver
her baby on her own (Isaiah 26). The defeat of political hegemonies will
inaugurate the Last Things (Isaiah 27:1). Israel would be restored and became
once more the vineyard of Yahweh (2nd vineyard song). Yahweh would gather
the scattered Israelites and restore them in Zion to worship Him (Isaiah 27).
9
J.D.W. Watts, Isaiah 1-33, Word Biblical Commentary vol.24, Dallas:Word Books 1985, pg 348
10
D.G. Johnson, From Chaos to Restoration, JSOT Supp. 61, Shefied:JOST Press 1988, pg.98
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Part II: Analysis of Isaiah 5:1-7
In the 1970’s, scholars attempted to reconstruct the redaction history of the book of
Isaiah. They usually took Isaiah 5 as part of some early, if not the earliest, materials
upon which more materials would be laid up. For example, Lack’s 1973 monograph
postulates a late 6th century redaction in which the author of Isaiah 56-66 collected
40-55 and 1:1-9:6. 11 Barth (1977) argued for the existence of a late 7th century
redaction of Isaiah, called the ‘Assyrian redaction’ which included much of Isaiah 2-
32, that supported the political and religious reforms of King Josiah.12 Clements’ 1980
commentary accepts Barth’s Assyrian redaction, but prefers to label it ‘Josianic
redaction’ which begins with Isaiah 5:1, not Isaiah 2, and extends up to Isaiah 36-
37. 13 Interested readers may refer to Appendix III for a more detailed synopsis of
Sweeney’s work on the studies of Isaiah 1-39.
If the First Isaiah is a prophet of judgment, the first Vineyard Song is truly Proto-
Isaianic, not just because it was believed to be penned by Isaiah the prophet, but also
because of its judgment theme. We will do a similar structural analysis to uncover its
message.
A. Literary analysis of Isaiah 5:1-7
a. A delimitation of the structure for the 1st Vineyard Song
At first glance, the Vineyard Song consists of the following structure.
5:1a Invitation
5:1b-2 a song of defrauded husbandmen
5:3-4 a lawsuit against the vineyard
5:5-6 pronouncement of judgment
5:7 Isaiah’s interpretation
When we take a closer look, a sort of parallel structure reveals. This structure
consists of two parts: a parallel structure for 5:1-2 (A&B) and 5:3-4 (A’ & B’)
as well as a chiastic structure for 5:5-6 (CDC’). Refer to the table below.
11
Sweeney 1996, pg 84
12
Ibid pg 85
13
Ibid pg 87
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When we take a closer look at the part of the actions of Yahweh (D), we will
discover yet another parallel structure at a deeper level. The reason why 5:7 is
dropped off will be explained in the Masoretic Text section.
A 5:1a Invitation to sing
B 5:1b-5:2b a drinking bout
A’ 5:3a Invitation to judge
B’ 5:3b-5:4b a lawsuit
C 5:5a Pronouncement of Judgment
D 5:5b-5:6a Yahweh’s actions
C’ 5:6b Command not to rain
Regrettably, the present writer has to admit that the table below has much
artificiality involved. When one tries to impose any structure on a piece of text,
it can only be hoped that the structure is able to help the readers better
understand the text. By dropping Isaiah 5:7 off, the song is more balanced.
5:1a Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard
5:1b My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill
5:2a And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the
choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress
therein
5:2b and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth
wild grapes
5:3a And now O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah,
5:3b judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
5:4a What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it?
5:4b wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it
forth wild grapes?
5:5a And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard
5:5bα I will take away the hedge thereof,
5:5 bβ and it shall be burnt down;
5:5 bβ’ and break down the wall thereof,
5:5bγ and it shall become a trampling ground:
5:6aα And I will lay it waste:
5:6aβ it shall not be pruned, nor digged;
5:6aβ’ but there shall come up briers
5:6aγ and thorns
5:6b I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
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b. Justifications for dropping 5:7 off
In 5:5a, the verb (I will tell you, I will cause you to know) ה־נּ֣א
ָ יע
ָ אוֹד
ִֽ is
a Hiph’il imperfect 14 whereas in 5:7, the verb (he looked for, he intensely
waited for) וַ יְ ַ ֤קו is a Pi’el imperfect. The two do not match. In 5:6b, the verb
(to cause the clouds not to rain) ֵמ ַה ְמ ִ ֥טיר is a Hiph’il infinitive and it
matches the ‘I will cause you to know’ in 5:5a. Therefore, Isaiah 5:7 has been
dropped from the chiastic structure.
A 5:1a ( ָא ִ ֤שׁ ָירהlet me sing) Qal imperfect 1 c.s. cohortative ה
B 5:1b-5:2b A drinking bout
A’ 5:3a יוֹשׁב
֥ ֵ (living) Qal active participle
B’ 5:3b-5:4b a lawsuit
C 5:5a יעה
ָ אוֹד
ֽ ִ (let me tell) Hiph’il imperfect 1 c.s. cohortative ה
D 5:5b-5:6a Yahweh’s actions
C’ 5:6b ( ֵמ ַה ְמ ִ ֥טירshall not rain) Prep-Hiph’il infinitive construct
The present writer believes that in a piece of text, combinations of verb stems
are employed to express specific thoughts. Moreover, switches in verb stems
in the flow of text usually mark reasonable breaks/ends in the train of thoughts
of the one who penned the text. Therefore, by applying disjunctive
cantillation marks together with a mismatch with verb stems from 5:5-6, the
present writer deems it reasonable to drop Isaiah 5:7 off and arrange the text
as shown in the structure mentioned above. For a more detailed break down of
verb stems in the drinking bout (B), the lawsuit (B’), Yahweh’s actions (D)
and Isaiah’s interpretation of the song (5:7), interested readers may refer to
Appendix IV.
14
J.J. Owen, Analytical Key to the Old Testament Vol.4, Grand Rapids:Baker Books 1989, pg 13
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To be fair, we should apply the same procedure to Isaiah 27:2-6 where a Pi’el
appears at the beginning of the Song. Can we drop it, like what we have done
to Isaiah 5:7? The answer is negative because it is an invitation to sing praises
to the vineyard and therefore, we cannot drop it. Moreover, all the remaining
four verses contain Hiph’il imperfects, guaranteeing the song as a unity.
A 27:2 ַענּוּ (sing) Pi’el imperative 2 m.p.
B 27:3 ( ַא ְשׁ ֶ ֑קנָּ הwater)
Hiph’il imperfect 1 c.s. – 3 f.s. suffix
C 27:4 יתנָּ ה
֥ ֶ ֲא ִצ
(burn)
Hiph’il imperfect 1 c.s. – 3 f.s. suffix
B’ 27:5 ( יַ ֲח ֵז֣קtake hold of) Hiph’il imperfect 3 m.s.
A’ 27:6 ( יַ ְשׁ ֵ ֣רשׁcause) Hiph’il imperfect 3 m.s.
The following two tables show how Isaiah 5:1-6 is broken up according to
cantillation marks. The first table applies 2nd level disjunctive marks whereas,
in order to reveal the finer parallelism in the strophe of Yahweh’s actions, the
3rd level disjunctive marks are applied to Isaiah 5:5b-6a.
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)Kwok Chi Keung (200407 Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Applying only the second level (Kings) disjunctive cantillation marks in the Masoretic Text, we have the following table.
A 5:1a
דּוֹדי ְל ַכ ְר ֑מוֹ
ירת ִ ֖
ידי ִשׁ ַ ֥
ָא ִ ֤שׁ ָירה נָּ ֙א ִ ֽל ִיד ִ ֔
B 5:1b
ן־שׁ ֶמן
ידי ְבּ ֶ ֥ק ֶרן ֶבּ ָ ֽ
ֶ ֛כּ ֶרם ָה ָי֥ה ִ ֽל ִיד ִ ֖
(a drinking
5:2a
)bout ם־י֖ ֶקב ָח ֵצ֣ב ֑בּוֹ
תוֹכוֹ וְ גַ ֶ
הוּ שׂ ֵ ֹ֔רק וַ ִ ֤יּ ֶבן ִמ ְג ָדּל֙ ְבּ ֔
ַ ֽו יְ ַעזְּ ֵ ֣קהוּ ַ ֽו יְ ַס ְקּ ֗ ֵלהוּ וַ יִּ ָטּ ֨ ֵע ֙
5:2b
וַ יְ ַ ֛קו ַל ֲע ֥שׂוֹת ֲענָ ִ ֖בים וַ ַ ֥יּ ַעשׂ ְבּ ֻא ִ ֽשׁים
A’ 5:3a
הוּדה
רוּשׁ ַל֖םִ וְ ִ ֣אישׁ יְ ָ ֑
יוֹשׁב יְ ָ
וְ ַע ָ ֛תּה ֵ ֥
’B 5:3b
וּבין ַכּ ְר ִ ֽמי
טוּ־נא ֵבּ ִ ֖יני ֵ ֥
ִשׁ ְפ ָ֕
)(a lawsuit
5:4a
עוֹד ְל ַכ ְר ִ֔מי וְ ֥ל ֹא ָע ִ ֖שׂ ִיתי ֑בּוֹ
ה־לּ ֲע ֥שׂוֹת ֙
ַמ ַ
5:4b
֛יתי ַל ֲע ֥שׂוֹת ֲענָ ִ ֖בים וַ ַיּ ַ֥עשׂ ְבּ ֻא ִ ֽשׁים
ַמ ֧דּ ַוּע ִקֵוּ ִ
C 5:5a
ר־א ִ ֥ני ע ֶ ֹ֖שׂה ְל ַכ ְר ִ ֑מי
ה־נּ֣א ֶא ְת ֶ֔כם ֵ ֛את ֲא ֶשׁ ֲ
יע ָ
אוֹד ָ
וְ ַע ָתּ ֙ה ִ ֽ
D 5:5b
תוֹ וְ ָהיָ ֣ה ְל ָב ֔ ֵער ָפּ ֥ר ֹץ ְגּ ֵד ֖רוֹ וְ ָה ָ ֥יה ְל ִמ ְר ָ ֽמס
שׂוּכּ ֙
ָה ֵ ֤סר ְמ ָ
(Yahweh’s
5:6a
)actions יתהוּ ָב ָ֗תה ֤ל ֹא יִ זָּ ֵמר וְ ֣ל ֹא יֵ ָע ֵ ֔דר וְ ָע ָ ֥לה ָשׁ ִ ֖מיר וָ ָ ֑שׁיִ ת
וַ ֲא ִשׁ ֵ ֣
C’ 5:6b
וְ ַ ֤על ֶה ָע ִב ֙ים ֲא ַצ ֶ ֔וּה ֵמ ַה ְמ ִ ֥טיר ָע ָל֖יו ָמ ָ ֽטר
Page 17An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
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To reveal a finer structure of Yahweh’s actions (D), we apply the third level (Dukes) disjunctive cantillation marks to Isaiah 5:5b-6a and
obtain the following table.
D (Yahweh’s actions) 5:5b
תוֹ
֙ שׂוּכּ
ָ ָה ֵ ֤סר ְמ
וְ ָה ָי֣ה ְל ָב ֔ ֵער
ָפּ ֥ר ֹץ ְגּ ֵד ֖רוֹ
וְ ָה ָ ֥יה ְל ִמ ְר ָ ֽמס
5:6a
יתהוּ ָב ָ֗תה
֣ ֵ וַ ֲא ִשׁ
֤ל ֹא יִ זָּ ֵמר וְ ֣ל ֹא יֵ ָע ֵ ֔דר
וְ ָע ָ ֥לה ָשׁ ִ ֖מיר
וָ ָ ֑שׁיִ ת
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c. Poetic devices found in the 1st Vineyard Song
i. Rhymes
If we follow the cantillation marks to chant the song, we will discover
two chains of smoothly changing rhymes interrupted, in 5:5-6,
naturally by Yahweh’s punishments.
5:2 It is the liveliest verse. 15 words are fully packed with eight verbs
and three rhymes are smoothly passing from one to the next: הוּx3
כוֹx2 ִ◌יםx2. The last םlinks skillfully to the next verse.
5:3 There are 2 rhymes. Like verse 5:2, the second rhyme provides a
link to the next verse. ָדםx3 ִמיx2.
5:4 This verse starts with ִמיthe link from verse 5:3. It then closes off
the first chain of rhymes by repeating the last rhyme of verse 5:2. It
repeats the question of why sour grapes have sprung up instead of good
grapes.
5:5-6 Nine verbs are packed within the 17 words of verse 5:5b-6a,
second only to verse 5:2! The rhymes in these verses are chaotic ( ֶכם,
ֶשׂה, ִמי, ֵער, רוֹ, ָמס, ֵדר, ִמיר, יִ ת, וֶּ ה, ָליוand ) ָטר. Such
rhymes, or rather the lack of them, are very appropriate for conveying
Yahweh’s punishments. Together, they convey a rather pessimistic
outlook or probably they painted a depressing picture of what the
prophet had actually witnessed. Rhyme analysis of the 1st vineyard
song stops here. But the present writer would like to analyse Isaiah 5:7
because of its vigour and beauty.
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5:7 This is a verse with the lowest density of verbs. There are only 3
verbs in this 17-word verse. (Verses 5:1 and 5:3 have 2 verbs in 11 and
10 words respectively). But the last chain of rhymes consists of six
Qāmĕṣ with various consonants. There are also 2 pairs of word-play of
puns, which also show how the Qāmĕṣ paired with various consonants:
ִמ ְשׁ ָפּ ֙ט+ ִמ ְשׂ ָ֔פּחand ְצ ָד ָ ֖קה+ ְצ ָע ָ ֽקה.
In summary, Isaiah 5:1b-6 is musically a more accomplished song
than the second one. It carries a long rhyme chain of six different
rhymes spanning across fifteen words, from 5:1b to 5:4. In itself,
Isaiah 5:7 is a very forceful verse. It carries a single rhyme spanning
across six words. Linking rhymes are shown in blankets in the table
below.
5:1b-4 הוּx3 כוֹx2 ִ◌יםx2 ָדםx(3) ִמיx(3) ִ◌יםx2
5:7 ָדהx6
ii. Parallelism
1. in meanings
The following verses are examples showing semantic parallelism. The
second halves of the verses repeat similar ideas, or press an idea further.
and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress
therein (5:2b)
O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah (5:3a)
take away the hedge thereof, …; and break down the wall
thereof … (5:5b)
the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men
of Judah his pleasant plant: (5:7a)
he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness,
but behold a cry. (5:7b)
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2. in word order
The verses 5:2b, 5:5b and 5:7b quoted above show a perfect syntactic
parallelism in that the word order of the second half mirrors the first
half. Moreover, 5:7b shows an ellipsis and 5:7a shows a chiasm within
the line.
3. in stresses
From Appendix II, we can see that Isaiah 5:1-7 has the following
stress pattern.
Original Adjusted
5:1 3/3/3/2 5:1b-2a 3/2/2/2
5:2 2/2/3/3/3/2 5:2b 3/3/3/2
5:3 3/2/2/2 5:3 3/2/2/2
5:4 3/3/4/2 5:4 3/3/4/2
5:5 3/4/4/4 5:5 3/4/4/4
5:6 6/3/3/3 5:6 6/3/3/3
5:7 6/2/2/4/3 5:7 6/2/2/4/3
In sticking himself to cantillation marks, the present writer can detect
two stress clusters in 5:1b; six stress clusters in 5:2, and four in 5:3 etc.
In fact, after removing 5:1a, one can obtain a perfect pattern of clusters
of 4-stress all the way from 5:1b to 5:6! This makes perfect sense
because we saw above that 5:1b-2, 3-4 and 5-6 form three different
semantic units. Now, we see that even their stress clusters match
beautifully.
If we take a closer look at the clusters themselves, we can see that
5:1b-2 contains equal number of 2-stresses and 3-stresses. This strophe
carries a very melodic stress pattern of 3/2/2/2 + 3/3/3/2. It is very
balanced and not boring at all. 5:3-4 is nearly identical with 5:1b-2,
except that it has a 4-stress near the end, creating a kind of tension.
However, 5:5-6 contains stresses of 3, 4 and even 6! It is very different
from the previous 2 strophes. Musically speaking, one may argue that
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the final redactor was trying to build up a climax by squeezing more
stresses within the strophe.
Isaiah 5:7 has five stress clusters, an odd-man out. Moreover, the
stresses are very irregular. This confirms the present writer’s decision
to drop it out of the 1st Vineyard Song.
Musically speaking, one may argue that the final redactor had created
the climax at the 6-stress which is immediately followed by an
anticlimax of 2-stresses. This makes perfect sense and shows that the
final redactor was musically very skilful.
After analyzing the formal aspects of the 1st Vineyard Song, let us
study its meaning and message.
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B. The message of the 1st Vineyard Song
5:1a The prophet invited the wellbeloved ִל ִיד ִידיto listen to the song of his
beloved דּוֹדי
ִ ִשׁ ַירת. Several questions immediately spring to our mind:
the identities of the people involved.
1. Who was the audience, the wellbeloved? a bride15, her bridegroom, a
group of friends, the inhabitants of Jerusalem or even Yahweh16?
2. Who was the beloved of the prophet? This ‘beloved’ has a song or a
song about him (and his vineyard). He owns a vineyard. Therefore, he
may be the prophet himself who happened to own a vineyard, a
(husbandman) friend of his or Yahweh?
3. His vineyard, whose? the wellbeloved (from 5:1b) or the beloved?
4. What was the Sitz im Leben (life situation)? a wedding banquet in
which a love song was sung to entertain the guests or to exhort the
bride? a harvest feast in which the farmers laughed off the misfortunes
of a frustrated fellow husbandman? or an assembly in the Temple
where the prophet was delivering, in a novel way, his oracles against
idolatry or criticizing, in a veiled fashion, the social injustice
engendered by the greed of the people in high offices?
A lot of ink has been spilt and consensus is yet to reach. The choice at the
beginning will determine the conclusion in the end. But the redactor of Isaiah
had already chosen to make use of this Vineyard Song to rebuke the people of
Jerusalem for their injustice and bloodshed (5:7). Probably at the end of this
study, we will achieve no more than we have started with. Anyway, the beauty
15
In view of the sexual imagery of a vineyard, it is reasonable to think of a love song being sung to a
bride, to exhort her to be faithful to her future husband.
16
We can imagine a situation in which the prophet sings to Yahweh the good deeds He has done to
Israel, His vineyard. Yet, Israel betrayed Yahweh. The prophet, working for Yahweh, tried to console
Him or even to divert His anger.
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of this song (excluding 5:7 of course) lies in the latitude of imagination it
stimulates in the audiences.
5:1b In light of 5:7, the vineyard is Israel and therefore the prophet’s
wellbeloved is Yahweh. The fruitful hill is the fertile land of Canaan. That
Israel was the beloved vine, plant, or vineyard of Yahweh and that Yahweh
had driven out the Canaanites to transplant this beloved twig were popular
images called up by the other prophets (Hosea, Jeremiah and Ezekiel) as well.
Such an interpretation can also be found in Psalm 80, which is classified a
communal petition by Drijvers17. Other than the prophets and wisdom writings,
we can also find the ‘vine’ in Jacob’s parting blessing on Judah, promising
him sovereignty (Genesis 49:11). The vine is one of the three good and useful
trees (olive that gives fatness, fig that gives sweetness and vine that cheers
gods and men) in the parable poem in (Judges 9:7-15). Love scenes also took
place in vineyards (Song of Songs 7). All these images (sexual, proverbial and
theological) had been so deeply itched into the psyche of Israelites that it is
pointless to argue otherwise. Israel is the vine or vineyard of Yahweh.
5:2 An understanding of the socio-political background will help us
understand this Vineyard Song better. This particular verse will supply us with
the crucial material we need. Chaney (1999) tried to identify whom Isaiah
criticized in this Vineyard Song. First of all, in broad stroke, Chaney painted
the contradictions in the economic life of 8th century Israel vividly in the
following:
Eighth-century Israel and Judah saw an increase in international
trade, in which their leaders imported luxury goods, military materiel,
and the wherewithal of monumental architecture. To pay for these
imports, food-stuffs --- particularly the triad of wheat, olive oil, and
wine --- were exported. Imports mostly benefited an elite minority,
while the exports necessary to procure them cut deeply into the
sustenance of the peasant majority.18
17
P. Drijvers, The Psalms:Their structure and meaning, Montreal:Herder Palm 1965, pg 248
18
M.L. Chaney, “Whose Sour Grapes? The Addressees of Isaiah 5:1-7 in the light of political
economy”, SEMEIA 87 (1999), pg 107
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Therefore, the urban elites, the high officials in Jerusalem engineered a change
in land use. This resulted in an exploitation of the peasant majority by the
urban elites. In Isaiah 5:2, we find ( וַ יְ ַעזְּ ֵקהוּhe fenced/dug it) and וַ יְ ַס ְקּ ֵלהוּ
(and gathered out the stones). These two verbs show how a piece of farmland
was converted into a vineyard.
Verbin concurred that
As such, the two verbs describe the initial labour required to
transform a plot of land from a previously uncultivated state into a
state suitable for the cultivation of vines19
The building of a watchtower ִמ ְג ָדּל and a winepress יֶ ֶקב would mean
tremendous investment of effort and capital,
… and would be unnecessary if commercial or communal presses
were available nearby.20
While ancient people would allegorize all these actions as Yahweh’s actions
(removal of stones: driving out Gentiles, building of a tower: Temple,
winepress: sanctuary etc.), modern scholars have no difficulty in seeing
exploitative actions in the digging and the removing of stones instead. Of
course, this is a modern reading of the text. But how can such a reading
squares with the fact that Yahweh has always been understood as the
executioner of all these ‘exploitative’ actions? The present writer has no good
defense for these scholars. But they may argue that people in the 8th century
Israel would very likely equate the actions of the ruling class with the actions
of Yahweh. Though the peasant majority felt the pinch of exploitation, they
would be more willing to accept such a treatment, if these exploitative actions
were clothed in Yahweh’s name!
19
J.K. Verbin, “Egyptian Viticultural Practices and the Citation of Isa 5:1-7 in Mark 12:1-9”, Novum
Testamentum 44 (2002), pg 140
20
Ibid pg 141
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Before we proceed further, take note that the word ‘to fence/dig’ ()עזק
appears only here in the whole of Hebrew Scripture whereas the word ‘to clear
off stones’ ( )סקלappears only here and in 62:10!
The choicest vine שׂ ֵֹרקwas planted in the vineyard. It was expected to yield
grapes ֲענָ ִבים. Instead, it gave forth ְבּ ֻא ִ ֽשׁים. KJV translates it as ‘wild
grapes’. Verbin disagreed and argued that it
… should be translated as “stinking (or diseased) grapes.” It is not a
matter of the contamination of a plot of land with some foreign plants,
but of the corruption of what had been planted.21
The choicest vine had been corrupted. Israel, Yahweh’s vine, was unable to
resist the temptations of fertile Canaan and fell into idolatry. This point will be
made explicit in Isaiah 5:7. The interpretation in 5:7 imposes a limit on the
possible choices available to scholars. It makes the sociological readings
irrelevant however fashionable they may be.
This song is typically Proto-Isaiah. The frequency table below will show how
Proto-Isaiah 5:1b-2 is. All terms appear only once within 5:1b-2.
Term Frequency in 1-39 Frequency in 40-66
Vineyard ֶכּ ֶרם 14 2
Fruitful/fat ָשׁ ֵמן 9 3
Hill (horn) ֶק ֶרן 1 0
Fenced/dug ָעזַ ק 1 0
Gathered out stones ַס ְקּלוּ 1 1
Planted נָ ַטע 5 5
Choicest vine שׂ ֵֹרק 4 0
Built ָבּנָ ה 3 9
(Watch) tower ִמ ְג ָדּל 4 0
Hewed out ָח ֵצב 3 2
Winepress יֶ ֶקב 2 0
Grapes ֵענָ ב 2 0
Wild grapes ְב ֻא ִשׁים 2 0
21
Ibid pg 142
Page 26An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
We can safely speculate that Isaiah, or his disciples or the redactor of Proto-
Isaiah must have written the song because many of the key words of this song
distribute with a high concentration within Isaiah 1-39 except for two
common words ‘to plant’ and ‘to build’.
5:3 So far, the song has been sung in the 3rd person. Here, it switches to the
first person. The owner of the vineyard could no longer maintain his silence. It
is not enough for his friend to speak of his frustration. He called upon his
audiences, the inhabitants of Jerusalem רוּשׁ ַלם
ָ ְיוֹשׁב י
ֵ and men of Judah
הוּדה
ָ ְוְ ִאישׁ י, to pass judgment between him and his vineyard. However,
both יוֹשׁב
ֵ and ִאישׁare singular! Of course, these words can carry a
collective sense. However, on the basis of lexicographical analysis, Chaney
has argued that these two terms refer to royal and /or elite figures.22 He argued
convincingly, through a study of the political economy of viticulture in
Isaiah’s time; a form-critical analysis of the Vineyard Song as a juridical
parable and a lexicographical analysis of the terms used, that
[T]hose trapped into self-condemnation by the parable were the
ruling elites of Judah and Israel, led by the two dynastic houses and
their sitting dynasts, not the general populations of Jerusalem, Judah,
and Israel.23
Though it sounds funny for a vineyard to take up a personality and stand trial,
it is totally acceptable if the audiences understand the story to be a fable or a
parable. Usually, three parties are involved in the settlement of a dispute: an
impartial judge (e.g. King Solomon) and two disputants (two harlots).
However, when the judge (e.g. King David) ‘merges’ with one of the
disputants, especially the guilty party (the rich man), a trap is being laid. The
audiences, or more specifically, the ruling elites in Jerusalem (the judge and
the vineyard), would be led to condemn themselves. This is a reasonable
option.
22
Chaney (1999), pp 112-117
23
Ibid pg 117
Page 27An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
However, inviting the audiences to pass judgment is only the first step to make
the Vineyard Song a juridical parable. When the interpretation 5:7 is dropped,
the Song cannot justifiably be classified a juridical parable! If 5:1b-6 is not a
juridical parable, what would it be?
5:4a is a rhetorical question, challenging the audiences to come up with any
failures on the part of the vineyard owner (Yahweh). Of course, there is none.
The owner has done everything he is supposed to do. Therefore, the blame is
laid squarely on the corrupted vine, at the feet of the Israelite elites. Out of
sympathy for criminals, people nowadays would put the blame on the social
environment to explain away the crimes committed by individuals. These
criminals are victims of social forces beyond their control! Such is the
mentality of modern men which people in ancient times would not share.
5:4b is the accusation in the form of a question. It paraphrases all the contents
of Isaiah 5:2b into a question. While 5:4a summarizes all the efforts and
energy in 5:2a, 5:4b needs to repeat all the contents of 5:2b in order to form
an inclusio, making 5:3-4 a part of the original song.
5:5 Yahweh pronounces His judgment in 5:5a. But His identity remains
hidden throughout this verse. In 5:5b, two new features, not mentioned before
in 5:2, are introduced: the hedge שׂוּכּתוֹ
ָ ְמ and the wall ְגּ ֵדרוֹ. From our
delimitation of the text above (page 14), we see that the word ‘hedge’ is a key
element in this pronouncement of punishment, but it is an ambiguous image. It
means protection in Job 1:10; Ecclesiastes 10:8; Ezekiel 13:5 and 22:30. But
it can also mean hindrance or troubles as in the cases of Proverbs 15:19;
Hosea 2:6 and Micah 7:4. Here it means protection. When this protection is
taken away, the vineyard shall be eaten up/devoured וְ ָהיָ ה ְל ָב ֵער.
Of the 16 verses in Isaiah in which בערappears, 14 of them mean ‘to burn’!
So, why should this entry be translated ‘eaten up/devoured’ instead? Scholars
like to quote their answer in Isaiah 3:14 which contains both ‘vineyard’ and
Page 28An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
‘devoured’ ִבּ ַע ְר ֶתּם ַה ֶכּ ֶרם. There, Yahweh enters judgment with the
elders and princes of His people because they have devoured the vineyard! So,
all along, Isaiah (or the scholars) had the royal elites in mind to condemn
because of their greed and injustice. This is how Chaney insisted to interpret
the text. Scholars like to go against obvious understandings and insist on
breaking new grounds.
Let us read the text again and understand it in an obvious and natural way.
When the hedge is taken away, the vineyard shall be eaten up. Who will eat it
up? Could the Jerusalem elites eat up Israel? Does it make any sense to
imagine Yahweh removing the protection and then the royal elites ate up Israel?
In hindsight, the Isaianic School should have no difficulty in understanding
their own exilic or even post-exilic situations and wrote these two verses as a
prediction of Yahweh’s making use of Assyria and Babylon to punish Israel
and Judah respectively. If we interpret it this way, it will be reasonable to
translate the verse into ‘…I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be
burnt down’. This applied to the Babylonian Captivity (of Judah) in which the
first Temple was burnt down.
When the wall is broken down, the vineyard shall (be trodden down) become a
trampling place. Who will do this? The present writer offers to interpret this as
the Assyrian Conquer because the term ‘ ִמ ְר ָמסtrampling’ appears in Isaiah
5:5; 7:25; 10:6 and 28:18. All of these verses are related to Assyria and fall
within Proto-Isaiah.
In Isaiah 7, Ahaz was entertaining the thought of courting Assyrian support to
fight against the Syrio-Ephraimitic Alliance. By forfeiting Yahweh’s support,
Israel was inviting Assyrian invasion. Isaiah 7:25 speaks indirectly, saying
that as a result of Assyrian invasion, even if the land was not filled with briers
and thorns, it would be trodden by unattended oxen and cattle. In 10:6,
Yahweh officially announces that He gave the Assyrians a charge to take the
spoil, to take the prey and to tread them down like the mire of the streets. The
Page 29An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
oracle in Isaiah 28 warns Israel (Ephraim) against their making covenant with
death (Assyria or other foreign powers), an insurance policy to ward off
imminent threats. 28:18 predicts that this reliance on foreign powers would
fail them and that ‘the overflowing scourge’, the Assyrians, would overrun
them.
Therefore, the present writer offers to translate Isaiah 5:5 in this way:
And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will
take away the hedge thereof, and Judah shall be burnt down; and
break down the wall thereof, and Israel shall become a trampling
place:
5:6 Following the chiastic structure suggested above in page 14, let us turn to
another core message: ‘And I will lay it waste:’ (5:6aα
α). Israel and Judah
would be conquered and their inhabitants would be carried off into exiles. The
land would be depopulated and become a piece of wasteland. This
interpretation finds further support in Isaiah 7:19 after ‘the Immanuel Oracle’.
The word ָב ָתהappears again for only once more there in the whole of
Hebrew Scripture. This probably is yet another signature word for Proto-Isaiah.
It is said in that pericope that the Lord would summon a fly from Egypt and a
bee from Assyria and these insects would lay the land waste and put the
people in shame by shaving off their hair and beard, a vivid image of prisoners
being led off into exiles.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall hiss for the
fly that is in the uttermost part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee
that is in the land of Assyria.
And they shall come, and shall rest all of them in the desolate valleys,
and in the holes of the rocks, and upon all thorns, and upon all
bushes.
In the same day shall the Lord shave with a rasor that is hired,
namely, by them beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head,
and the hair of the feet: and it shall also consume the beard.
(Isaiah 7:18-20).
Page 30An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
Another word ‘ ָע ֵדרhoed, dug’ appears here and 7:25 only, again in the
context of ‘the Immanuel Oracle’. Though the land had been dug and been
taken care of and there was no fear of thorns and briers, it would still be laid
wasted, leaving only cattle to trample the ground. Indeed, Israel would become
a depopulated trampling ground.
The famous clause “I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain
upon it” (5:6b) is typically Proto-Isaiah because the word ‘to rain’ () ָמ ַטר
appears in Isaiah 4:6, 5:6 and 30:23 only. It closes off the judgment
pronouncement. This verse also betrays the identity of the owner who can
command the clouds not to rain. Who else but Yahweh can do this? However,
in order to defend their suggestion of assigning this Vineyard Song as a love
song of a frustrated husband, some scholars insisted on an allegorical reading
and come up with a fanciful interpretation of a defrauded husband cursing an
unfaithful wife to be infertile! The present writer thinks that such a defence
would be totally unnecessary because 5:7 makes it clear that Yahweh is this
defrauded husband and Israel the unfaithful wife24.
5:7 The present writer has argued in Section A above that Isaiah 5:7 is not
part of the ‘original’ Vineyard Song (parts b & c). It is an interpretation
inserted by the Isaianic School. The key words ‘righteousness’ ִמ ְשׁ ָפּטand
‘justice’ ְצ ָד ָקהreveal the prophet’s concern for social justice. The prophet
declared for good that ‘the house of Israel’ was the vineyard he had been
singing about all along. As such, it imposes a limiting factor into the range of
possible interpretations of this Vineyard Song. Any innovative interpretation
needs to comply with it.
24
Willis (1977) pg 355 (See Appendix V pg 59 footnote 79)
Page 31An analysis of the 2 Vineyard songs in Isaiah
Kwok Chi Keung (200407) Supervisor: Fr. Placid Wong OFM
A very crude search of the phrase “house of XXX”25, where XXX stands for
Jacob (9), the Lord (5), Israel (4), David (3), Judah (2), Nisroch (1), shows a
distribution of 18:6 in Proto-Isaiah and the rest of Isaiah. Proto-Isaiah is three
times more likely to use such an expression.
To round off the discussion of the message of Isaiah 5:1b-6, let us take stock
of the signature phrases we have collected in this Vineyard Song. The first two
are unique and appear only once (and twice for )סקלin the whole book of
Isaiah. This is explicable because 5:1b-2 is the original drinking song and
Isaiah is not a hymnal or psaltery. This drinking song is an alien element.
They may or may not be Proto-Isaiah.
The absence of signature phrases from Isaiah 5:3-4 is more difficult to explain.
The invitation to pass judgment between two disputants (Isaiah 5:3b) and the
rhetorical question that begins with ַמ ֧דּ ַוּע to accuse (Isaiah 5:4b) are
popular literary devices commonly found in the Hebrew Scripture. Therefore,
the present writer has no explanation to offer in this respect.
The rest are closely related to Isaiah 7:18-25. Therefore it is possible that
Isaiah 5:5-6 had been written by the same hands that wrote Isaiah 7:18-25.
But this relation would require another thesis to explore.
Signature phrases Verse Other locations
To dig עזק 5:2 Nil
To clear off stones סקל 5:2 62:10
Trampling מרמס 5:5 7:25, 10:6, 28:18
Waste בתה 5:6 7:19
Thorns ׁשמירand Briers ׁשית 5:6 7:23-25, 9:17, 10:17, 27:4
Hoed עדר 5:6 7:25
To rain מטר 5:6 4:6, 30:23
25
http://cf.blb.org/search/translationResults.cfm?Criteria=%22house+of%22&Version=KJV
Numbers in brackets are frequencies. E.g. ‘house of Jacob’ appears 9 times in the book of Isaiah.
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