Keeping the vineyard

Isaiah 27:2-6 promises that the Lord will restore the vineyard that he had earlier abandoned (Isaiah 5:1-7). He raises the vines up, restores the hedge that had protected it, turns it into a vineyard of wine. A song of praise and love replaces the lament of chapter 5.

The section is a chiasm of chiasms. Overall the verses are chiastic:

A. Song of the vineyard, v 2

B. Yahweh guards and waters vineyard, v 3

C. Yahweh stamps down briers and thorns, v 4

B’. Yahweh offers protection and peace

A’. Jacob takes root, blossom, sprouts, produces fruit

On top of this general chiasm are other chiasms.

Verse 3 makes a neat chiasm on its own.

A. I Yahweh keep ( natzar ) her

B. Every moment I water her

C. Lest any visit her

B’. day and night

A’. I keep ( natzar ) her

The structure here mimics the content of the verse. Yahweh promises to stand guard over His vineyard, fighting off or trapping anyone who tries to attack. Structurally, Yahweh’s promise of protection stands at the beginning and end, at the “gates” of the sentence; the promise stands guard over the text, confining the intruder in the way Yahweh promises to stand guard.

The structure of verses 4-6 is looser, but still have a fairly clear chiastic arrangement:

A. No wrath; battle briers and thorns, v 4 a

B. Burns briers, v 4b

C. Offer of peace, v 5

B’. Jacob takes root, v 6a

A’. Israel blossoms, sprouts, fills, v 6b

Within this structure, verse 5 is mostly chiastic:

a. let him make

b. peace

c. to me

b’. peace

a’. let him make

c’. to me