Chapter 5 of Yeshayahu opens with a wondrous parable - the Song of the Vineyard. The prophet comes to rebuke the people of Israel, but he does not begin with an overt rebuke. Instead, he speaks by way of a parable: a song about a vineyard planted by its owner with the greatest investment, who anticipated choice grapes - yet received wild berries. Only after the parable is etched into the hearts of the listeners will the prophet unveil the meaning and state explicitly: "For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel."
אָשִׁירָה נָּא לִידִידִי שִׁירַת דּוֹדִי לְכַרְמוֹ, כֶּרֶם הָיָה לִידִידִי בְּקֶרֶן בֶּן־שָׁמֶן׃ - "Let me sing now to my Beloved a song of my Beloved concerning His vineyard: My Beloved had a vineyard on a fertile hill."
"My Beloved" (yedidi) and "my Beloved" (dodi) refer to the Holy One, blessed be He. The prophet sings a song to his Beloved, a song that, as it were, the Beloved Himself sings for His vineyard. And the vineyard is the Jewish people, who belonged to my Beloved, to Hashem, "on a horn, a son of oil" (be-keren ben-shamen). At first, the song focuses entirely on the parable, and we will see the underlying lesson in detail later in the chapter.
What is meant by "keren ben-shamen"? The Malbim explains that the concept of keren appears in three senses: an animal's horn, the horn with which an ox gores; a corner or an angle, as in the phrase "on the southeastern corner" (be-keren deromit mizrachit); and rays of light, sunbeams (karnei or). The foundation of all of them is an animal's horn. From it, the term was borrowed to describe an angled corner - which is like a horn protruding from an ox's head - and similarly rays of light, which refract when hitting water and form an angle, and that angle resembles the protrusion of a horn.
And what is the difference between a keren and a side, shoulder, or flank (tzed, kateif, and tzela)? A keren refers specifically to something that protrudes outward. Therefore, "keren ben-shamen" means a high mountain, protruding prominently like the horn of an ox.
The Malbim adds a figurative dimension to the verse's wording. A horn symbolizes royalty, for when kings were anointed, a horn was filled with oil and used for the anointing. Our Sages thus expounded the words of Chana, "My horn is exalted" - and she did not say, "My flask is exalted": it was not Shaul, who was anointed with a flask, whose dynasty endured, but David, who was anointed with a horn. The horn, with which one gores, hints at physical might and material success; while the oil within it - an exquisite substance - hints at soulful and spiritual success.
And where does material success come from? From spiritual success. Hashem's providence over us and the constant spiritual abundance are what bring victory over enemies; they are what give us a horn with which to gore. Therefore, the verse is precise: "keren ben-shamen" - the horn is the child of the oil, material success that unfolds and flows from spiritual success. This is likewise alluded to elsewhere: "There I will cause a horn to sprout for David; I have prepared a lamp for My anointed" - the lamp is fueled and fed by oil, the horn represents material success, and the lamp is spiritual light. Similarly, "My horn was exalted like that of a wild ox; I was saturated with fresh oil" - a horn on one hand, and oil on the other.
וַיְעַזְּקֵהוּ וַיְסַקְּלֵהוּ וַיִּטָּעֵהוּ שֹׂרֵק, וַיִּבֶן מִגְדָּל בְּתוֹכוֹ וְגַם יֶקֶב חָצֵב בּוֹ, וַיְקַו לַעֲשׂוֹת עֲנָבִים וַיַּעַשׂ בְּאֻשִׁים׃ - "He fenced it, cleared it of stones, and planted it with choice vines; He built a watchtower in its midst, and also hewed out a winepress in it; and He hoped that it would produce grapes, but it produced wild berries."
The verse details how the vineyard's owner developed his vineyard in the finest possible manner - yet despite all this, the vineyard failed to meet expectations. "He fenced it around" (vaye'azkeihu) - he surrounded it with a fence, related to the Aramaic word izka, which means a ring; he encircled it like a ring so that it would be protected from external damage. "He cleared it of stones" (vayesakleihu) - he cleared out stumbling stones and obstacles so they would not prevent the roots from spreading properly; this represents the removal of internal impediments.
"And planted it with choice vines" (vayita'eihu soreik) - the Malbim explains that soreik, sarigim (branches), serikot, and soreikah (whether spelled with a shin or a samech) all share one meaning; the branches of the vine are called sarigim, as in the verse, "and behold, on the vine were three branches." That is, he planted it in such a way that the vines could spread out and the branches would receive sufficient sunlight and air, giving them ample room to grow; for had they been cramped and pressed close together, they could not have thrived properly. He therefore planted them with generous spacing between each vine.
"And built a watchtower in its midst" - he stationed a watchman there to guard the grapes from birds and thieves. "And he also hewed out a winepress in it" - a yekev is the vat where grapes are trodden to extract wine. Thus, the vineyard contained everything necessary to produce choice wine. "And he hoped it would yield grapes" - he anticipated that it would yield good, high-quality grapes, "yet it yielded wild grapes" (be'ushim). Be'ushim is related to the verse "in place of barley, foul weeds (ba'shah)" - something foul and rotting. Rav Hai Gaon explains that this refers to wild grapes that grow uncultivated; others explain it based on the Mishnah's term ovshim (rotting), which conveys the same idea. The vineyard produced foul grapes that completely failed to meet what was expected of it.
וְעַתָּה יוֹשֵׁב יְרוּשָׁלִַם וְאִישׁ יְהוּדָה, שִׁפְטוּ נָא בֵּינִי וּבֵין כַּרְמִי׃ - "And now, O inhabitant of Jerusalem and man of Judah, judge now between Me and My vineyard."
מַה לַּעֲשׂוֹת עוֹד לְכַרְמִי וְלֹא עָשִׂיתִי בּוֹ, מַדּוּעַ קִוֵּיתִי לַעֲשׂוֹת עֲנָבִים וַיַּעַשׂ בְּאֻשִׁים׃ - "What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it? Why, when I hoped it would yield grapes, did it yield wild grapes?"
The Holy One, blessed be He, summons the inhabitants of Jerusalem - the royal capital - and the men of Judah, meaning the surrounding Judean hills who had not yet sinned, to serve as judges between Himself and His vineyard; that is, between Himself and the Ten Tribes who had already been judged and exiled. Come and judge: who is at fault here? Who did not act properly? "What more was there to do for My vineyard that I have not done in it?" - what else was there for Me to do for the vineyard that I left undone, and why was My hope dashed?
In passing, the Malbim teaches us the distinction between lamah and madua: lamah means "for what purpose," while madua means "due to what cause." They are two distinct questions.
Let us introduce the allegory here, to be expanded later. The vineyard is the congregation of Israel. "A fertile hillside" (keren ben shamen) - the good and bountiful Land, a place where all forms of perfection can be attained, both spiritually and materially. Spiritually: "A land upon which the eyes of the Lord your God are always, from the beginning of the year" - it enjoys perpetual Divine Providence, whereas other lands are governed through celestial ministering angels. It is a place primed for spiritual elevation and the attainment of prophecy, for prophecy did not rest outside the Land unless a prophet had begun his prophecy in the Land, or prophecy for the sake of the Land of Israel. And materially: a land overflowing with every bounty, "a land wherein you will lack nothing."
From the spiritual capacities provided, the Maker of the vineyard anticipated spiritual success; and from the material abundance, He anticipated that people would not steal, rob, or take from one another - for there is more than enough for everyone, leaving no reason to rob.
And all the needs of the vineyard were provided: The fence - this is the separation that the Holy One, blessed be He, established between us and the nations, so they would not corrupt us. Clearing the stones - the Canaanites who dwelt in the Land, who would have led us astray from the service of Hashem, and concerning whom He commanded, "You shall not leave alive any soul"; I removed the stumbling stones from your midst so they would not lead you astray. "And planted it with choice vines" - He allocated to each individual an inheritance of field and vineyard; the tribes entered the Land and no man was left without an inheritance. If so, what remained for them to do? Only to engage in justice and righteousness; they had nothing else to worry about, with all their needs provided, and there was no need to steal from one's fellow, for Hashem gave you of your own as well. "And built a watchtower in its midst" - this is the Beit HaMikdash, symbolizing the protection over the vineyard: "Behold, He neither slumbers nor sleeps, the Guardian of Israel." The Beit HaMikdash protected Israel from enemies; therefore, when the prophets warned them of impending war and destruction, they responded, "The Temple of Hashem, the Temple of Hashem, the Temple of Hashem are these" - Hashem will not destroy His sanctuary; the Temple protects us, and we offer sacrifices. In a sense, they were right: as long as they offered sacrifices, the enemy could not harm them, and only when the offerings ceased did Jerusalem fall. "And he also hewed out a winepress in it" - the winepress alludes to Divine abundance, for just as wine flows copiously, so Divine bounty was meant to flow upon all who dwell in the Holy Land. Yet despite all this - "and he hoped it would yield grapes, yet it yielded wild grapes"; instead of justice (mishpat), there was oppression (mispach).
וְעַתָּה אוֹדִיעָה נָּא אֶתְכֶם אֵת אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי עֹשֶׂה לְכַרְמִי, הָסֵר מְשׂוּכָּתוֹ וְהָיָה לְבָעֵר, פָּרֹץ גְּדֵרוֹ וְהָיָה לְמִרְמָס׃ - And now, please let Me tell you what I will do to My vineyard: I will remove its hedge, and it shall be consumed; I will breach its wall, and it shall be trampled.
After clarifying before the judges who is to blame for the wrongdoing - for I planted them in the most superb manner, yet they still strayed from the path - He comes to announce what He is about to do to the vineyard that failed to meet expectations. Now, ostensibly a hedge (mesuchah) and a wall (geder) are the same thing; why did He divide them into two separate matters? The Malbim explains: It was their practice to build a stone wall, and atop it, a hedge of thorns (mesuchah is related to sochech, canopy or shelter, and also to masach, a screen). The wall stops walking beasts that cannot pass through, but there are animals capable of leaping over a wall - and for their sake, the tall thorn hedge was added.
Therefore, He said first, "Remove its hedge, and it shall be consumed" - once the thorn hedge is removed, agile animals can leap inside and consume the vineyard by eating. Afterward, "Breach its wall, and it shall be trampled" - once the stone wall is breached, heavy beasts will also enter and trample the produce. This is what the Jerusalem Talmud states: "Remove its hedge, and it shall be consumed" - this refers to the tooth; "Breach its wall" - this refers to the foot. The jumpers are the light animals, sheep and goats, which consume with their teeth; whereas the heavy animals, incapable of leaping, enter through the breach, and their very entry trampling and destroying everything.
The meaning of the parable is that Hashem will remove from them the individual Divine Providence (hashgachah pratit) sheltering them from above - that is the hedge; and He will weaken their natural martial might protecting them from below - that is the wall, the physical, earthly defense.
וַאֲשִׁיתֵהוּ בָתָה, לֹא יִזָּמֵר וְלֹא יֵעָדֵר, וְעָלָה שָׁמִיר וָשָׁיִת, וְעַל הֶעָבִים אֲצַוֶּה מֵהַמְטִיר עָלָיו מָטָר׃ - And I will make it a desolation; it shall not be pruned nor hoed, and briars and thorns shall come up; and I will command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
"And I will make it" (va'ashiteihu) rather than va'asimeihu - the Malbim notes: the root shit denotes a lasting foundation, as in "For the foundations (hashetot) are destroyed" (Tehillim 11:3), meaning that I will establish it this way permanently and fundamentally, not merely as a temporary state. "A desolation" (batah) - a wasteland unfit for building or cultivation. It is the antithesis of the noun ben (son), which signifies building (binyan): a son inherits his father's estate, providing continuity and building upon his father's deeds, whereas a daughter (bat) does not perpetuate her father's household name through estate succession. Thus bat is associated with dismantling and ruin, in contrast to ben, which represents building.
"It shall not be pruned" - its coarse, wild shoots will not be cut back. In those times, they would periodically prune away the coarse branches that merely sap strength from the vine without yielding grapes; this thinning allows the remaining branches to produce superior fruit. "Nor hoed" - they would hoe around the vine to clear out weeds and thistles, but this vineyard will not be hoed, and consequently, "briars and thorns (shamir vashayit) shall come up." Rashi cites Menachem ben Saruk, who translated these as varieties of thorns, while Rashi himself notes that shamir refers to the formidable worm that cleaves stones - the very Shamir known to us from King Solomon, who sought it for the building of the Beit HaMikdash. According to this, shamir and shayit allude to a worm that will consume the vineyard, with shayit deriving from the concept of ruin and shattering, as in "ruin and breach" (hash'et vehashever), and "laid waste (tishaeh) in desolation." That is, the place will become fodder for worms and a desolate wasteland incapable of sustenance.
"And I will command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it" - and the meaning of the parable: after the Holy One, blessed be He, brings foreign invaders here, since the hedge was removed and the wall breached, and they breach the ramparts to enter the Holy Land and Jerusalem - He will subsequently cause them to cease being an independent nation. They will have no king, ministers, or leaders, and whatever remains will be consumed by worms and overgrown with briars and thistles. Rain symbolizes heavenly bounty and alludes to prophecy: prophecy, too, will be taken from them. And this was indeed what occurred: after the destruction of the First Temple, prophecy ceased, and during the Second Temple era we no longer had prophets - a sign that rain, the transcendent spiritual abundance, would no longer descend upon us.
כִּי כֶרֶם ה' צְבָאוֹת בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְאִישׁ יְהוּדָה נְטַע שַׁעֲשׁוּעָיו, וַיְקַו לְמִשְׁפָּט וְהִנֵּה מִשְׂפָּח, לִצְדָקָה וְהִנֵּה צְעָקָה׃ - For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the House of Israel, and the people of Judah are His pleasant planting; and He hoped for justice, but behold, injustice; for righteousness, but behold, a cry.
Here begins the explanation of the parable: the House of Israel is the vineyard of Hashem, may He be blessed, "of Hosts" - for all the hosts in the world are His. And He planted them in the choicest place. Just as in every vineyard there are vines that are superior and choicer than the others, so too "and the men of Judah were His delightful plant" - Judah is the choicest part of the vineyard, the sapling in which the owner delights, rejoices, and is well pleased. For Judah always stood at a higher level than the Ten Tribes: the kings of Israel were all wicked, whereas among the kings of Judah there were both righteous and wicked kings. And from Judah He caused a horn to sprout for David; from him emerged the royal scepter and the kings.
"And He looked for justice (mishpat), but behold, a wound (mispach)" - justice and righteousness are the grapes Hashem expected from them. Justice (mishpat) pertains to relations between man and his fellow, as in "let us enter into judgment together", standing for judgment before the judge; and righteousness (tzedakah) pertains to relations between man and the Omnipresent, doing what is right. And instead of justice - mispach. "Mispach" stems from the root of annexation and joining, as in "Please attach me (safcheini na) to one of the priestly functions." What does this refer to? As we will see later in the chapter, they would join house to house and field to field in order to steal the estate in between. They would annex house to house, and the owner of the middle plot would return after years and find his estate had vanished: there was a house on the right and a house on the left with his land in between, and suddenly there was no land, only houses. This is "mispach" - bringing them close together in order to rob, which is the exact opposite of justice, the integrity between man and his fellow.
"For righteousness (tzedakah), but behold, a cry (tze'akah)" - instead of righteousness between themselves and the Omnipresent, there was a cry, like the cry of a drunkard from his wine, as we will see later in the chapter, where the prophet rebukes them for their corrupt wine-drinking habits that brought them to all this ruin.
וְהָיָה כִנּוֹר וָנֶבֶל תֹּף וְחָלִיל וָיַיִן מִשְׁתֵּיהֶם, וְאֵת פֹּעַל ה' לֹא יַבִּיטוּ וּמַעֲשֵׂה יָדָיו לֹא רָאוּ׃ - And the harp, the lute, the drum, the flute, and wine were at their feasts; but the deed of Hashem they do not gaze upon, nor have they seen the work of His hands.
Rashi explains: a lute (nevel) has more strings than a lyre (kinnor). Both are made with strings, cords like on a guitar, and the lute has more strings. And why is it called nevel? Because it belittles (menabel) every other musical instrument - its sound is so exquisite and soul-stirring that all other instruments pale in comparison to it. It is like that gentle, polite curse used by someone who does not wish to dirty his mouth, who tells his friend: "May you be invited to speak after Rabbi Lau and to sing after Dudu Fisher!" Meaning, you will be utterly overshadowed, for whatever you do and whatever voice you have will sound faint. So it is with the lute: any instrument played after it simply pales into insignificance.
"Flute" (chalil) - Rashi says this is a reed pipe, what we call a flute today: a reed in which holes are made and played upon. "But the deed of Hashem they do not gaze upon" - the Targum renders: "they did not look into the Torah of Hashem", meaning they do not contemplate the holy Torah. "Nor have they seen the work of His hands" - they have not seen the mighty deeds of Hashem and all the miracles He performed with them until this day. Another explanation: they did not praise Him in the morning with Yotzer Or, nor in the evening with Maariv Aravim.
And these words are wondrous: a person who praises Hashem in the morning in Yotzer Or and in the evening in Maariv Aravim embodies the dimension of "they gaze upon the deed of Hashem and have seen the work of His hands." He contemplates and sees what a miracle the very reality is: the Holy One, blessed be He, could have made the light of day like an electric bulb that switches on in a single instant - and we would all have gone blind. What did He do? "He rolls away light before darkness" - He gradually rolls in the darkness, and gradually rolls in the day. Thus a person enjoys the daylight, and thus he does not plunge all at once into pitch-black darkness. One who sees this gazes upon the deed of Hashem and sees the work of His hands.
The Malbim explains this duplication. There is a difference between "deed" (po'al) and "work of his hands" (ma'aseh yadav): the ongoing enterprise a person is engaged in is called po'al (activity/deed), and once he finishes his work, we see the work of his hands - "the work of My hands, in which to take pride." "Po'al" refers to the thing in the process of coming into being, while the craftsman is at work. If one sees someone in the middle of renovating, he has seen his po'al, not his finished handiwork; but when he arrives after the building is completed, he sees the work of his hands.
So it is with Creation: it contains both the deed of Hashem (po'al) and the work of His hands (ma'aseh yadav). "Which God created to make" - Creation came to completion, and that is the work of His hands. Yet was it truly finished? Certainly not, for "He who in His goodness renews the work of Creation continually every day." Someone looking superficially sees only the work of His hands: thousands of years ago Hashem formed a world, and behold, it exists. But one who contemplates knows - as we learned at length in Nefesh HaChaim - that at every single moment the Holy One, blessed be He, says "Let there be." It is not a past event, but something maintained at every single moment; the instant Hashem were to withdraw His will from the world, it would revert to utter void and chaos. It is not like a contractor who built a balcony, finished his work, and went home, where you do not need him to hold up the balcony - and heaven forbid if you did. The Holy One, blessed be He, created the world, as it were, and sustains it at every single moment.
The Malbim makes another distinction: re'iyah (seeing) refers to the vision of the physical eye, or an unintentional, sudden glance. Habbatah (gazing or contemplating) refers to one who focuses his attention on an object to understand its character and essence - that is, reflection and in-depth study. Therefore, one can speak of "gazing" (lehabit) even without physical vision at all, since its essence is deep contemplation, whereas re'iyah is always physical sight. Seeing is superficial; gazing is penetrating depth.
For example: "You shall never see them again to eternity" - you will not see them before your physical eyes. "The face of Hashem divided them; He will no longer look upon them (lehabitam)" - could it be that Hashem does not see? Hashem sees everything! Rather, habbatah denotes Divine Providence (hashgachah pratit), the focused attention to all of a person's affairs: what he did just now and what he will do a moment later, what reward he deserves, what punishment, what trial to give him. It is meaningful to say "He will no longer gaze upon them" (lehabitam), whereas "He will no longer see them" (lirotam) cannot be said of Hashem. Likewise, "Do not gaze (al tabet) at his appearance" - do not contemplate and delve deeply into his appearance.
From this perspective, notes the Malbim, habbatah sometimes precedes re'iyah: when someone focuses his attention in order to see something, he first turns his gaze toward it, and only then sees it with his eyes. "And the Philistine looked (vayabet) and saw David" - first he sought to examine who was coming, and then he saw him. "They shall look (yabitu), they shall see me" - first they seek to observe, and only then comes sensory sight. "You will only gaze (tabit) with your eyes, and see the recompense of the wicked" - you will contemplate, and then actually see with your eyes. "If I gaze upon you (im abit eilecha)" - I will not consider your affairs; "and if I see you" - I will not even cast a physical glance. So too we plead: "Look, Hashem, and behold (Re'eh Hashem vehabitah)" - see us, and even more: contemplate and look deeply into our plight, see how terrible it is, and have pity and mercy upon us.
Based on this, we see how marvelous the verse is. To perceive the Holy One, blessed be He's governance at every single moment of creation is difficult, requiring intellectual contemplation. Consider the parable of a cup: a superficial observer sees no vitality in it at all, just an inanimate physical object; but one who contemplates knows that it contains atoms, with electrons constantly orbiting the nucleus without pause, meaning there is constant, vibrant activity here. Why doesn't the cup move? Because each particle moves in a different direction; were they all to move in one direction, the cup would move. To recognize this requires contemplation. This is the meaning of "they do not gaze upon the work of Hashem" - the intellect's contemplation of the Creator's continuous action.
The prophet, as is his way, writes in an ascending fashion of "not only this, but also that": not only do they fail to contemplate the ongoing work of Hashem (po'al Hashem), but they do not even see His completed handiwork (ma'aseh yadav) - the finished, orderly world, the rivers, seas, and lakes, the trees and vegetation, which anyone can perceive through simple sensory sight without any deep contemplation, and declare: this tree is the handiwork of Hashem, this fruit is the handiwork of Hashem! Even this they failed to see.
Finally, the Malbim notes a grammatical precision: the verb ra'ah (to see) connects with the direct-object preposition et, whereas the verb hibit (to gaze) connects with el (toward) - as in "do not gaze toward (al tabet el) his appearance," but "see him" (ra'ah oto / et). If so, why does the verse say "et the work of Hashem they do not gaze upon" (ve'et po'al Hashem lo yabitu), when it should have said "el po'al Hashem"? Because the et also governs the end of the verse, "and the deeds of His hands they did not see" (uma'aseh yadav lo ra'u), where the preposition et belongs; and since ra'u appears later in the clause, the verse employed the word et throughout.