I love Isaiah’s song regarding the vineyard. In it, the Lord beautifully and allegorically describes his love for Israel and his sorrow that they have not brought forth righteous fruit. He laments “what more could have been done” to save the vineyard. And the destruction follows because it is the only way to reclaim the land for fruits of righteousness.

This parable is applicable to our own relationship with the Lord. Sometimes, we allow our heart to turn hard and stony, so that only wild grapes can come forth. God as the Gardner hopes to help us instead to bring forth delicious fruit. But we resist his pruning and his caring hand, and therefore we become barren. At times, the only way to save the vineyard is to drastically shake things up and cause us to once against become humble and repentant. But if we instead remain humble and allow the Gardner to do his work, we will avoid much unnecessary sorrow.

For Nephi, I suspect that this parable would have again served dual purpose. A reminder of the fall of Israel, but also a warning that the new vineyard that the Lord had planned could likewise become corrupted over time. For they had been given a promised land and sent there to bring forth much fruit. But their promise was conditional upon righteousness and striving to keep the commandments of God. If they failed, they too could be destroyed just as Judah had been.



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