2 Nephi
30 verses
I will sing to my beloved a song about his vineyard. My beloved has a vineyard on a very fruitful hill.
And then will I sing to my well-beloved a song of my beloved, touching his vineyard. My well-beloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill.
He fenced it, cleared out the stones, planted it with the best vine, built a tower in the middle, and made a winepress there. He expected it to produce good grapes, but it produced wild grapes instead.
And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a wine-press therein; and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
Now, people of Jerusalem and men of Judah, please judge between me and my vineyard.
And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
What more could I have done for my vineyard that I haven’t already done? When I expected it to produce good grapes, it produced wild grapes instead.
What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done in it? Wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes it brought forth wild grapes.
Now I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard—I will take away its hedge, and it will be eaten; I will break down its wall, and it will be trampled.
And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard—I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and I will break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down;
I will make it a wasteland; it won’t be pruned or cultivated, and briers and thorns will grow there. I will also command the clouds not to rain on it.
And I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns; I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
The vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are his pleasant plant. He looked for justice, but found oppression; he expected righteousness, but heard a cry of distress.
For the vineyard of the Lord of Hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant; and he looked for judgment, and behold, oppression; for righteousness, but behold, a cry.
Sorrow awaits those who add house to house until there’s no space left, so they can live alone in the middle of the land.
Wo unto them that join house to house, till there can be no place, that they may be placed alone in the midst of the earth!
The Lord of Hosts has told me that many houses will be left empty, and large, beautiful cities will have no one living in them.
In mine ears, said the Lord of Hosts, of a truth many houses shall be desolate, and great and fair cities without inhabitant.
Ten acres of vineyard will produce only one bath, and a homer of seed will yield only an ephah.
Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of a homer shall yield an ephah.
Sorrow awaits those who get up early in the morning to chase after strong drinks, who continue drinking until night, letting wine consume them.
Wo unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink, that continue until night, and wine inflame them!
They have harps, lyres, tambourines, pipes, and wine at their feasts, but they pay no attention to the work of the Lord and do not consider what he has done.
And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine are in their feasts; but they regard not the work of the Lord, neither consider the operation of his hands.
So my people have gone into captivity because they lack knowledge; their honorable men are starving, and the crowds are parched with thirst.
Therefore, my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge; and their honorable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.
So, hell has expanded and opened its mouth wide; their glory, their crowds, their pride, and those who celebrate will go down into it.
Therefore, hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure; and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.
The common person will be brought down, the powerful person will be humbled, and those who are proud will be humbled.
And the mean man shall be brought down, and the mighty man shall be humbled, and the eyes of the lofty shall be humbled.
But the Lord of Hosts will be exalted through judgment, and the holy God will be shown holy through righteousness.
But the Lord of Hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God that is holy shall be sanctified in righteousness.
Lambs will graze as usual, and strangers will eat in the ruins left by the wealthy.
Then shall the lambs feed after their manner, and the waste places of the fat ones shall strangers eat.
Disaster awaits those who drag their sins along with lies and pull their wrongdoing like it’s tied to them with a heavy rope.
Wo unto them that draw iniquity with cords of vanity, and sin as it were with a cart rope;
They say, “Let him hurry and do his work so we can see it; let the plan of the Holy One of Israel come closer and happen so we can know it. ”
That say: Let him make speed, hasten his work, that we may see it; and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come, that we may know it.
Sorrow awaits those who call evil good and good evil, who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness, who exchange bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.
Wo unto them that call evil good, and good evil, that put darkness for light, and light for darkness, that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!
Woe to those who think they are wise and consider themselves clever.
Wo unto the wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight!
Sorrow awaits those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing strong drinks.
Wo unto the mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink;
They justify the wicked for a reward and take away the righteousness from those who are righteous.
Who justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!
Just as fire burns up stubble and flames consume chaff, their roots will rot and their blossoms will be blown away like dust, because they have rejected the law of the Lord of Hosts and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
Therefore, as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, their root shall be rottenness, and their blossoms shall go up as dust; because they have cast away the law of the Lord of Hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel.
So the Lord’s anger is stirred against his people, and he has stretched out his hand against them and struck them. The hills trembled, and their bodies were scattered in the streets. Even after all this, his anger has not turned away, and his hand is still stretched out.
Therefore, is the anger of the Lord kindled against his people, and he hath stretched forth his hand against them, and hath smitten them; and the hills did tremble, and their carcasses were torn in the midst of the streets. For all this his anger is not turned away, but his hand is stretched out still.
He will raise a banner for the distant nations and signal to them from the ends of the earth. They will come quickly and swiftly; none will be tired or stumble among them.
And he will lift up an ensign to the nations from far, and will hiss unto them from the end of the earth; and behold, they shall come with speed swiftly; none shall be weary nor stumble among them.
No one will slumber or sleep; their belts will not come loose, and the straps of their shoes will not break.
None shall slumber nor sleep; neither shall the girdle of their loins be loosed, nor the latchet of their shoes be broken;
Their arrows will be sharp, and all their bows ready; their horses’ hooves will be like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind, their roaring like a lion.
Whose arrows shall be sharp, and all their bows bent, and their horses’ hoofs shall be counted like flint, and their wheels like a whirlwind, their roaring like a lion.
They will roar like young lions; they will roar and seize their prey, and they will carry it away safely, and no one will rescue it.
They shall roar like young lions; yea, they shall roar, and lay hold of the prey, and shall carry away safe, and none shall deliver.
On that day, they will roar against them like the roaring of the sea; and if they look to the land, there will be darkness and sorrow, and the light in the heavens will be darkened.
And in that day they shall roar against them like the roaring of the sea; and if they look unto the land, behold, darkness and sorrow, and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof.