Throughout the Scriptures, God went through great detail to paint a beautiful picture of His special people as a vine or tree. That imagery allowed Him to make clear His love and devotion to His people.
You have brought a vine out of Egypt; You have cast out the nations, and planted it. You prepared room for it, and caused it to take deep root, and it filled the land. The hills were covered with its shadow, and the mighty cedars with its boughs. (Psalm 80:8-10)
Now let me sing to my Well-beloved a song of my Beloved regarding His vineyard: my Well-beloved has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill. He dug it up and cleared out its stones, and planted it with the choicest vine. He built a tower in its midst, and also made a winepress in it; so He expected it to bring forth good grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes. And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem and men of Judah, judge, please, between Me and My vineyard. What more could have been done to My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why then, when I expected it to bring forth good grapes, did it bring forth wild grapes? (Isaiah 5:1-4)
Do not miss the great pictures God painted for us. He uprooted the vine (Israel) from Egypt, brought it out, and rooted it deeply in the land. He did everything He could do to make the vine bring forth good fruit. That was His desire. Yet, the vine did not comply. It continually brought forth wild grapes, evil fruit. God has been very clear about the end of the vine or tree that does not bring forth good fruit.
Behold, the Lord, the Lord of hosts, will lop off the bough with terror; those of high stature will be hewn down, and the haughty will be humbled. He will cut down the thickets of the forest with iron, and Lebanon will fall by the Mighty One. (Isaiah 10:33-34)
For thus has the Lord of hosts said: “Cut down trees and build a mound against Jerusalem. This is the city to be punished. She is full of oppression in her midst.” (Jeremiah 6:6)
Clearly, we have seen that God had a purpose for His people. They were to relive oppression, help the helpless, serve the poor and bring good news to the needy. Instead, they oppressed the people, neglected the poor and needy, and refused to provide help to the helpless. Their lives and actions were completely antithetical to God’s purposes. God’s vine was not bringing forth good fruit, and God was ready to cut the vine down.
Jesus and His Gospel brought good news – even to the ones who had been oppressing the needy people.
He also spoke this parable: “A certain man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard, and he came seeking fruit on it and found none. Then he said to the keeper of his vineyard, ‘Look, for three years I have come seeking fruit on this fig tree and find none. Cut it down; why does it use up the ground?’ But he answered and said to him, ‘Sir, let it alone this year also, until I dig around it and fertilize it. And if it bears fruit, well. But if not, after that you can cut it down.’” (Luke 13:6-9)
Jesus told that parable right after He taught the people about repentance (Luke 13:1-5). They wanted to focus on the sin of others, the sins that, in their minds, led to the deaths of the worshipers and Galileans. Jesus wanted them to focus on their own sins. “Unless you repent you, will all likewise perish.”
He followed that teaching up with His parable about a vineyard owner (God) being ready to cut down the fig tree (God’s people). The trees were not fruitful. However, the keeper of the vineyard (Jesus) wanted more time to fertilize (teach). His message was “Repent.” Stop doing what you have been doing. Stop neglecting your neighbors. Stop forgetting the needy. Stop taking advantage of people. Stop oppressing the helpless. Start loving your neighbors as yourself.
