And he proceeded to dig it up and to rid it of stones and to plant it with a choice red vine, and to build a tower in the middle of it. And there was also a winepress that he hewed out in it. And he kept hoping for it to produce grapes, but it gradually produced wild grapes.”​—Isaiah 5:1, 2;

⁴ It takes hard work to make a vineyard produce. Isaiah describes the owner’s ‘digging the land and ridding it of stones’​—tedious, exhausting work! He likely uses the larger stones “to build a tower.” In ancient times such towers served as stations for watchmen who guarded the crops against thieves and animals.a Also, he builds a stone wall to line the vineyard terraces. (Isaiah 5:5) This was commonly done to prevent the washing away of vital topsoil.

5. What does the owner properly expect from his vineyard, but what does he get?

⁵ Having worked so hard to protect his vineyard, the owner has every right to expect that it will bear fruit. In anticipation of this, he hews out a winepress. But does the hoped-for harvest materialize? No, the vineyard produces wild grapes.