We are God’s vineyard. Jesus uses the image of the vineyard or a building to describe the People of God. Paul uses these same two images to describe Christians and their teachers in his letter to the Corinthians. “The one who plants and the one who waters are equal, and each will receive wages in proportion to his labor. For we are God’s co-workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.” (1 Corinthians 3:8-9).
The prophet Isaiah already used the image of the vineyard to describe God’s care for Israel in his Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah 5:1-7).
“My friend had a vineyard on a fertile hillside; He spaded it, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines; Within it he built a watchtower, and hewed out a wine press. The he waited for the crop of grapes, but it yielded rotten grapes.”
“The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, the people of Judah, his cherished plant; He waited for judgment, but see, bloodshed! for justice, but hark, the outcry!”
Jesus is intentionally retelling Isaiah’s Song of the Vineyard. Matthews then retells Jesus’ parable and identifies Jesus as the son whom the tenants killed and “threw him out of the vineyard.” Jesus was killed on Golgotha, outside the walls of Jerusalem.
All three versions of this Song of the Vineyard (Isaiah, Jesus, Matthew) are a challenge to religious people and especially religious leaders. We should never presume to have the ways of God completely figured out and we should never be so presumptuous as to think we can tell God whom he can save and how he can save. God is always ready to surprise us. God may be a farmer or builder but he does not always follow established protocols. Jesus, the Son of God, is “The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; by the Lord has this been done, and it is wonderful in our eyes?” (Matthew 21:42; Psalm 118:22). Let us always be open to encounter God in different and surprising ways!
Image: “Red Vineyard HDR (Pollak Vineyards)” by Rick Collier is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0.