Title: The Meaning of Grapes and the Vineyard in the Bible

Topic: Word

Summary: A look at the unity of Scripture through the lens of imagery regarding grapes and the vineyard. The Old and New Testaments sing the same song throughout.

Use the reference links below to follow along in the Bible as you watch.

References:
Mark 11:12, 20
Genesis 14:18; 49:8
Deuteronomy 34:14, Deuteronomy 34:28
2 Kings 25:11-12
Psalms 80:89
Isaiah 5; 37:30-31
Jeremiah 2:20-21; 12
Ezekiel 19:10
Hosea 9:10; 10:1-2
Amos 9:11-end
Matthew 21:28
Luke 6:43-45; 13:1-10
Deuteronomy 6:10-12
Isaiah 65:17, 19
Zephaniah 1:12-18
John 15:1
Galatians 4:24

In regular language, "mercy" means being caring and compassionate toward people in poor states. That's a position we are all in relative to the Lord, all the time. Without Him we would be unable to choose what is good; without Him we would be unable to formulate a reasonable thought. Without Him, in fact, we would instantly cease to exist; we have life only because He constantly gives us life. So we are, quite literally, at His mercy. Fortunately, the Lord is caring and compassionate to a degree we cannot fathom. He is the source of all caring and all compassion, and of love itself. His mercy toward us never lessens, never abates, never ends; His whole purpose is to bring each of us, individually, to heaven. The meaning of "mercy" in the Bible is closely tied to this idea: it represents love in a general sense, and the desire for good that comes from love. It can also represent the desire for good and the ideas that describe it when those thoughts and desires are inspired by love of the Lord.