Daily Devotions
Isaiah
"I will lay it waste"
Text: Isaiah 5:6
A SEVERE WORD OF WARNING
The house of Israel in this context is a reference to Judah, the Southern Kingdom. The Northern Kingdom formed under Jeroboam I had become idolatrous very quickly. Judah had remained steadfast and true for a short while. But soon, it became idolatrous too. The LORD warned Judah that the nation would suffer the same fate as Israel.
“‘I will lay it waste;
It shall not be pruned or dug,
But there shall come up briers and thorns.
I will also command the clouds
That they rain no rain on it.’
For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel,
And the men of Judah are His pleasant plant.
He looked for justice, but behold, oppression;
For righteousness, but behold, a cry for help.”
Isaiah 5:6-7
1. The grim warning:
a) The Vineyard would be laid waste.
i) The branches would not be pruned.
ii) The land would not be dug.
iii) The needed rain would not be given.
b) The results would be disastrous.
i) Briers and thorns would come.
ii) The fertile land would become a wasteland.
2. The symbols explained:
a) The Vineyard of the LORD is a reference to the nation of Israel.
b) The people of Judah are His pleasant plant.
3. The Fruit that the LORD looked for.
a) He had looked for Justice to be upheld.
b) He has looked for righteousness to be practised.
4. The bad grapes.
a) Oppression of the poor and the weak was rampant.
b) Many had cried out for help for justice, but these pleas were ignored.
These were undeniable realities!
The LORD had to issue this severe word of warning to His people.