Isaiah 5 · Verse 7

Isaiah 5:7

For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.
Isaiah 5:7, King James Version

Isaiah 5:7 in other translations

BSBFor the vineyard of the LORD of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah are the plant of His delight. He looked for justice, but saw bloodshed; for righteousness, but heard a cry of distress.
WEBFor the vineyard of the LORD of Armies is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but behold, oppression, for righteousness, but behold, a cry of distress.
ASVFor the vineyard of Jehovah of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for justice, but, behold, oppression; for righteousness, but, behold, a cry.
YLTBecause the vineyard of Jehovah of Hosts Is the house of Israel, And the man of Judah His pleasant plant, And He waiteth for judgment, and lo, oppression, For righteousness, and lo, a cry.
DARBYFor the vineyard of Jehovah of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah the plant of his delight: and he looked for justice, and behold, blood-shedding; for righteousness, and behold, a cry.
BBEFor the vine-garden of the Lord of armies is the people of Israel, and the men of Judah are the plant of his delight: and he was looking for upright judging, and there was blood; for righteousness, and there was a cry for help.
WebsterFor the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

What does Isaiah 5:7 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
7. Isaiah here applies the parable. It is no mere human owner, nor a literal vineyard that is meant. vineyard of the Lord--His only one (Ex 19:5; Am 3:2). pleasant--"the plant of his delight"; just as the husbandman was at pains to select the sorek, or "choicest vine" (Is 5:2); so God's election of the Jews. judgment--justice. The play upon words is striking in the Hebrew, He looked for mishpat, but behold mispat ("bloodshed"); for tsedaqua, but behold tseaqua (the cry that attends anarchy, covetousness, and dissipation, Is 5:8, 11, 12; compare the cry of the rabble by which justice was overborne in the case of Jesus Christ, Mt 27:23, 24).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 7 And he looked for judgment - The paronomasia, or play on the words, in this place, is very remarkable; mishpat, mishpach, tsedakah, tseakah. There are many examples of it in the other prophets, but Isaiah seems peculiarly fond of it. See Isa 13:6, Isa 24:17, Isa 32:7, Isa 28:1, Isa 57:6, Isa 61:3, Isa 65:11, Isa 65:12. Rabbi David Kimchi has noticed the paronomasia here: he expected משפט mishpat, judgment, but behold משפח mishpach, oppression; he expected צדקה tsedakah, righteousness, but behold צעקה tseakah, a cry. The rabbins esteem it a great beauty; their term for it is צחות הלשון tsachoth haltashon, elegance of language. Oppression "tyranny" - משפח mishpach, from שפח shaphach, servum fecit, Arab. Houbigant: שפחה shiphchah is serva, a handmaid or female slave. משפח mispach, eighteen MSS.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Isaiah 5:1-7

The state and conduct of the Jewish nation. (Is. 5:1-7) The judgments which would come. (Is. 5:8-23) The executioners of these judgments. (Is. 5:24-30) Verses 1-7 Christ is God's beloved Son, and our beloved Saviour. The care of the Lord over the church of Israel, is described by the management of a vineyard. The advantages of our situation will be brought into the account another day. He planted it with the…

Read the full comment on Isaiah 5:1-7 →

Isaiah 5:7 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

כִּ֣יkiforH3588
כֶ֜רֶםKhe.rem[the] vineyard ofH3754
יְהוָ֤הYah.wehYahwehH3068
צְבָאוֹת֙tze.va.'Otof hostsH6635
בֵּ֣יתbeit[is] [the] house ofH1004
יִשְׂרָאֵ֔לYis.ra.'ElIsraelH3478
וְאִ֣ישׁve.'Ishand everyone ofH376
יְהוּדָ֔הye.hu.DahJudahH3063
נְטַ֖עne.Ta'[is] [the] plantation ofH5194
שַׁעֲשׁוּעָ֑יוsha.'a.shu.'Avdelight<s> hisH8191
וַיְקַ֤וvay.Kavand he waitedH6960
לְמִשְׁפָּט֙le.mish.Patfor justiceH4941
וְהִנֵּ֣הve.hi.Nehand there!H2009
מִשְׂפָּ֔חmis.PachbloodshedH4939
לִצְדָקָ֖הlitz.da.Kahfor righteousnessH6666
וְהִנֵּ֥הve.hi.Nehand there!H2009
צְעָקָֽה\׃\ \סtze.'a.Kahan outcryH6818

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Isaiah 5:7

  • Psalms 80:8-11

    Thou hast brought a vine out of Egypt: thou hast cast out the heathen, and planted it. Thou preparedst room before it, and didst cause it to take deep root, and it filled the land. The hills were covered with the shadow of it, and the boughs thereof were like the goodly cedars. She sent out her boughs unto the sea, and her branches unto the river.

  • Matthew 3:8-10

    Bring forth therefore fruits meet for repentance: And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the trees: therefore every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

  • Jeremiah 12:10

    Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness.

  • James 5:4

    Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

  • Zechariah 7:9-14

    Thus speaketh the Lord of hosts, saying, Execute true judgment, and shew mercy and compassions every man to his brother: And oppress not the widow, nor the fatherless, the stranger, nor the poor; and let none of you imagine evil against his brother in your heart. But they refused to hearken, and pulled away the shoulder, and stopped their ears, that they should not hear. Yea, they made their hearts as an adamant stone, lest they should hear the law, and the words which the Lord of hosts hath sent in his spirit by the former prophets: therefore came a great wrath from the Lord of hosts. …

  • Proverbs 21:13

    Whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry himself, but shall not be heard.

  • Psalms 147:11

    The Lord taketh pleasure in them that fear him, in those that hope in his mercy.

  • Micah 6:8

    He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?

  • Isaiah 62:5

    For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee.

  • Exodus 3:7

    And the Lord said, I have surely seen the affliction of my people which are in Egypt, and have heard their cry by reason of their taskmasters; for I know their sorrows;

  • Job 31:38-39

    If my land cry against me, or that the furrows likewise thereof complain; If I have eaten the fruits thereof without money, or have caused the owners thereof to lose their life:

  • Psalms 149:4

    For the Lord taketh pleasure in his people: he will beautify the meek with salvation.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the vineyard.
Ps 80:8-11,15; Jer 12:10
his pleasant plant. Heb. plant of his pleasures.
62:5; Ps 147:11; 149:4; So 7:6; Zep 3:17
he looked.
2; 58:6-8; Ex 22:22-27; Mic 6:8; Zec 7:9-14; Mt 3:8-10; 23:23
Joh 15:2; 1Co 6:8-11; 1Jo 3:7,8
but.The paronomasia, or play of words, is very remarkable here: he looked for {mishpat,} "judgment," but behold {mispach,} "oppression;" for {tzedakah,} "justice," but behold {tzëdkah,} "a cry."
oppression. Heb. a scab.
1:6; 3:17
a cry.
Ge 4:10; Ex 2:23,24; 3:7; 22:21-24,27; De 15:9; Ne 5:1-5
Job 31:38,39; 34:28; Pr 21:13; Lu 18:7; Jas 5:4

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Isaiah 5:6

    And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.

  • Isaiah 5:7

    For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

  • Isaiah 5:8

    Woe unto them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!

Read all of Isaiah 5

Isaiah 5:7 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909
Ciertamente la viña de Jehová de los ejércitos es la casa de Israel, y los hombres de Judá planta suya deleitosa. Esperaba juicio, y he aquí vileza; justicia, y he aquí clamor.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885
Car la vigne de l’ Éternel des armées est la maison d’Israël, et les hommes de Juda sont la plante de ses délices. Et il s’attendait au juste jugement, et voici l’effusion de sang, – à la justice, et voici un cri!
German
Elberfelder 1871
Denn der Weinberg Jehovas der Heerscharen ist das Haus Israel, und die Männer von Juda sind die Pflanzung seines Ergötzens; und er wartete auf Recht, und siehe da: Blutvergießen, auf Gerechtigkeit, und siehe da: Wehgeschrei.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate
Vinea enim Domini exercituum domus Israël est; et vir Juda germen ejus delectabile: et exspectavi ut faceret judicium, et ecce iniquitas; et justitiam, et ecce clamor.