Isaiah 27: Vineyard, Leviathan, Trumpet

Short answer: Isaiah 27 promises that Yahweh will defeat the fleeing serpent and twisted serpent, and that he will guard a pleasant vineyard night and day. It also describes Jacob's sin being forgiven, a fortified city becoming desolate, and a great trumpet gathering outcasts to worship Yahweh in Jerusalem.

What Isaiah 27 says

The chapter opens with a decisive act of divine judgment. In verse 1, Yahweh wields a hard, great, and strong sword against leviathan, described as the fleeing serpent, the twisted serpent, and the dragon in the sea. This is not a vague threat but a specific conquest of a many-named adversary. The same day introduces a song about a pleasant vineyard. Yahweh himself is its keeper, watering it every moment and guarding it night and day so no one can damage it. The movement from dragon-slaying to vineyard-keeping shows that the same power that destroys the serpent also protects what is precious to Yahweh.

Verses 4 and 5 turn to Yahweh's own disposition and the choice set before briers and thorns. He says wrath is not in him, yet if briers and thorns are found, he would do battle, march on them, and burn them together. Then comes an alternative: let him take hold of Yahweh's strength to make peace. The invitation to make peace is repeated, making it clear that peace is possible but only on Yahweh's terms. Verses 6 and 7 widen the horizon. In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will blossom and bud, and they will fill the surface of the world with fruit. Yet the chapter asks whether Yahweh has struck them as he struck their attackers, or whether they were killed as their killers were killed.

Verses 8 through 11 explain the nature of Yahweh's dealing with his people. In measure, when they are sent away, he contends with them; he removes them with a rough blast in the day of the east wind. The purpose is stated in verse 9: by this the iniquity of Jacob will be forgiven, and this is the fruit of taking away his sin, that all the stones of the altar are made like chalk stones beaten in pieces, so the Asherah poles and incense altars rise no more. Then the fortified city is solitary, deserted like a wilderness, with a calf feeding and lying down there and consuming its branches. When its boughs wither, they are broken off and women come to set them on fire, because the people have no understanding. Therefore the one who made them will not have compassion, and the one who formed them will show no favor.

The final two verses return to a day of gathering. In verse 12, Yahweh will thresh from the flowing stream of the Euphrates to the brook of Egypt, and the children of Israel will be gathered one by one. In verse 13, a great trumpet will be blown, and those ready to perish in Assyria and those outcast in Egypt will come and worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem. The chapter ends not with the desolation of the fortified city but with worship. The same day that begins with the sword against the dragon closes with a trumpet gathering the scattered. Judgment and restoration are held together in the chapter's own sequence, and the final note is the holy mountain where Yahweh is worshiped.

Verses that carry the chapter

• “In that day, Yahweh with his hard and great and strong sword will punish leviathan, the fleeing serpent, and leviathan the twisted serpent; and he will kill the dragon that is in the sea.” (Isaiah 27:1) — This verse names the adversary in multiple ways and shows Yahweh acting with a hard, great, and strong sword. It sets the tone of decisive divine victory over the serpent and dragon.
• “I, Yahweh, am its keeper. I will water it every moment. Lest anyone damage it, I will keep it night and day.” (Isaiah 27:3) — Yahweh declares himself the keeper of the vineyard, watering it every moment and guarding it night and day. It is a picture of unceasing care rather than occasional attention.
• “Therefore by this the iniquity of Jacob will be forgiven, and this is all the fruit of taking away his sin: that he makes all the stones of the altar as chalk stones that are beaten in pieces, so that the Asherah poles and the incense altars shall rise no more.” (Isaiah 27:9) — This verse ties forgiveness of Jacob's iniquity to the removal of false worship, specifically the breaking of altar stones and the end of Asherah poles and incense altars. It shows that sin is taken away with visible consequences.
• “It will happen in that day that a great trumpet will be blown; and those who were ready to perish in the land of Assyria, and those who were outcasts in the land of Egypt, shall come; and they will worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.” (Isaiah 27:13) — The great trumpet gathers those ready to perish and those outcast to worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem. It closes the chapter with restoration and worship rather than judgment.

Gospel connection

Isaiah 27 speaks of a serpent defeated, a vineyard kept, and a people gathered. The New Testament later identifies the serpent and dragon with the ancient enemy, and it presents Jesus as the one who destroys the works of the devil. The chapter's vineyard, kept and watered by Yahweh himself, resonates with Jesus' teaching about a vineyard and its keeper. The forgiveness of Jacob's iniquity in verse 9 points forward to the cross, where sin is taken away and the power of false worship is broken. The great trumpet of verse 13 anticipates the gathering of God's scattered people, a theme that runs through the Gospels and the letters, where outcasts are brought near and worship is offered to God in a holy place not made with hands. The chapter does not name Jesus, but its pattern of judgment, forgiveness, and gathering is taken up and fulfilled in him.

Application

This chapter asks the reader to consider who is actually keeping the vineyard. Verse 3 says Yahweh waters it every moment and guards it night and day. That kind of care cannot be replicated by human effort, and it invites a posture of trust rather than anxious self-protection. Verse 5 offers a choice: take hold of Yahweh's strength and make peace with him, or face the fire that consumes briers and thorns. The application is not to manufacture peace but to accept the peace he offers on his terms. Verse 9 connects forgiveness with the removal of false worship, which means repentance is concrete. It may involve tearing down the Asherah poles and incense altars in one's own life, the things that quietly compete with Yahweh. Finally, verse 13 gathers outcasts to worship. The reader is asked to live as one who has been gathered, not as one still scattered, and to join the worship that the trumpet announces.

Biblical fidelity check

The chapter does not identify leviathan beyond the names given in verse 1, nor does it explain what the dragon in the sea represents. It does not name the fortified city of verse 10, nor does it specify which historical Assyria or Egypt is in view in verse 13. It does not say when the great trumpet will blow or how the gathering will take place. It does not describe the manner of the iniquity being forgiven beyond the breaking of altar stones and the removal of Asherah poles and incense altars. It does not claim that the vineyard is Israel by name, though the song is addressed to her. It does not say that the briers and thorns are a specific nation or group. The text is silent on the identity of the women who set the withered boughs on fire, and it does not explain why the people are described as having no understanding. These are gaps in the chapter itself, and the exposition should not fill them with speculation.

Questions for study

1. What does verse 1 say about the adversary, and how does the description of leviathan shape the way you read the rest of the chapter?
2. In verses 2 and 3, Yahweh is the keeper of the vineyard. What does it mean for him to water it every moment and guard it night and day?
3. Verse 5 offers an invitation to take hold of Yahweh's strength and make peace. How does that invitation relate to the warning about briers and thorns in verse 4?
4. According to verse 9, what is the fruit of taking away sin, and why are the Asherah poles and incense altars mentioned specifically?
5. Verses 12 and 13 describe a gathering by threshing and a great trumpet. What does the chapter emphasize about who is gathered and where they go?

Keep reading

Related studies: Isaiah 1 Bible Study, Isaiah 10 Bible Study, Isaiah 11 Bible Study, Isaiah 12 Bible Study.

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FAQ

What is leviathan in Isaiah 27?

The chapter calls leviathan the fleeing serpent, the twisted serpent, and the dragon in the sea, but it does not explain the name further. It presents leviathan as an adversary that Yahweh punishes with his sword.

What is the pleasant vineyard in Isaiah 27?

The song in verses 2 and 3 addresses the vineyard as a pleasant one and says Yahweh is its keeper, watering and guarding it. The chapter does not explicitly identify the vineyard, though the surrounding verses speak of Jacob and Israel.

What does the great trumpet in verse 13 signal?

The trumpet announces a gathering of those ready to perish in Assyria and those outcast in Egypt. They come to worship Yahweh in the holy mountain at Jerusalem.