114 lines
4.8 KiB
Markdown
114 lines
4.8 KiB
Markdown
# Chapter 5
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1 Now I will sing for the one I love
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a song about his vineyard:
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My beloved had a vineyard
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on a rich and fertile hill.
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2 He plowed the land, cleared its stones,
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and planted it with the best vines.
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In the middle he built a watchtower
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and carved a winepress in the nearby rocks.
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Then he waited for a harvest of sweet grapes,
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but the grapes that grew were bitter.
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3 Now, you people of Jerusalem and Judah,
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you judge between me and my vineyard.
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4 What more could I have done for my vineyard
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that I have not already done?
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When I expected sweet grapes,
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why did my vineyard give me bitter grapes?
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5 Now let me tell you
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what I will do to my vineyard:
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I will tear down its hedges
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and let it be destroyed.
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I will break down its walls
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and let the animals trample it.
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6 I will make it a wild place
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where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed,
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a place overgrown with briers and thorns.
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I will command the clouds
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to drop no rain on it.
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7 The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
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The people of Judah are his pleasant garden.
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He expected a crop of justice,
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but instead he found oppression.
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He expected to find righteousness,
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but instead he heard cries of violence.
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8 What sorrow for you who buy up house after house and field after field,
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until everyone is evicted and you live alone in the land.
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9 But I have heard the Lord of Heaven’s Armies
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swear a solemn oath:
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“Many houses will stand deserted;
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even beautiful mansions will be empty.
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10 Ten acres of vineyard will not produce even six gallons of wine.
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Ten baskets of seed will yield only one basket of grain.”
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11 What sorrow for those who get up early in the morning
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looking for a drink of alcohol
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and spend long evenings drinking wine
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to make themselves flaming drunk.
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12 They furnish wine and lovely music at their grand parties—
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lyre and harp, tambourine and flute—
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but they never think about the Lord
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or notice what he is doing.
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13 So my people will go into exile far away
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because they do not know me.
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Those who are great and honored will starve,
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and the common people will die of thirst.
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14 The grave is licking its lips in anticipation,
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opening its mouth wide.
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The great and the lowly
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and all the drunken mob will be swallowed up.
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15 Humanity will be destroyed, and people brought down;
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even the arrogant will lower their eyes in humiliation.
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16 But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies will be exalted by his justice.
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The holiness of God will be displayed by his righteousness.
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17 In that day lambs will find good pastures,
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and fattened sheep and young goats will feed among the ruins.
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18 What sorrow for those who drag their sins behind them
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with ropes made of lies,
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who drag wickedness behind them like a cart!
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19 They even mock God and say,
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“Hurry up and do something!
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We want to see what you can do.
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Let the Holy One of Israel carry out his plan,
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for we want to know what it is.”
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20 What sorrow for those who say
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that evil is good and good is evil,
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that dark is light and light is dark,
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that bitter is sweet and sweet is bitter.
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21 What sorrow for those who are wise in their own eyes
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and think themselves so clever.
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22 What sorrow for those who are heroes at drinking wine
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and boast about all the alcohol they can hold.
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23 They take bribes to let the wicked go free,
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and they punish the innocent.
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24 Therefore, just as fire licks up stubble
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and dry grass shrivels in the flame,
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so their roots will rot
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and their flowers wither.
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For they have rejected the law of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies;
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they have despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
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25 That is why the Lord’s anger burns against his people,
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and why he has raised his fist to crush them.
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The mountains tremble,
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and the corpses of his people litter the streets like garbage.
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But even then the Lord’s anger is not satisfied.
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His fist is still poised to strike!
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26 He will send a signal to distant nations far away
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and whistle to those at the ends of the earth.
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They will come racing toward Jerusalem.
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27 They will not get tired or stumble.
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They will not stop for rest or sleep.
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Not a belt will be loose,
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not a sandal strap broken.
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28 Their arrows will be sharp
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and their bows ready for battle.
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Sparks will fly from their horses’ hooves,
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and the wheels of their chariots will spin like a whirlwind.
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29 They will roar like lions,
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like the strongest of lions.
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Growling, they will pounce on their victims and carry them off,
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and no one will be there to rescue them.
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30 They will roar over their victims on that day of destruction
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like the roaring of the sea.
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If someone looks across the land,
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only darkness and distress will be seen;
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even the light will be darkened by clouds. |