Home/Topics/Vineyards

What the Bible Says About Vineyards

Overview

The Bible addresses vineyards across 58 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Isaiah, Leviticus and Matthew. Closely related themes include Vineyard, Agriculture or Husbandry, Wine and Parables. Figures whose stories touch this theme include Solomon and Noah.

Key Bible verses about vineyards

Old Testament

Leviticus

Leviticus 19:10

And thou shalt not glean thy vineyard, neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard; thou shalt leave them for the poor and stranger: I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 19:23

And when ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.

Leviticus 19:24

But in the fourth year all the fruit thereof shall be holy to praise the LORD withal. holy: Heb. holiness of praises to the LORD

Leviticus 19:25

And in the fifth year shall ye eat of the fruit thereof, that it may yield unto you the increase thereof: I am the LORD your God.

Leviticus 25:4

But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of rest unto the land, a sabbath for the LORD: thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard.

Leviticus 25:5

That which groweth of its own accord of thy harvest thou shalt not reap, neither gather the grapes of thy vine undressed: for it is a year of rest unto the land. of thy vine: Heb. of thy separation

Leviticus 25:11

A jubile shall that fiftieth year be unto you: ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of thy vine undressed.

Leviticus 26:5

And your threshing shall reach unto the vintage, and the vintage shall reach unto the sowing time: and ye shall eat your bread to the full, and dwell in your land safely.

Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 20:6

And what man is he that hath planted a vineyard, and hath not yet eaten of it? let him also go and return unto his house, lest he die in the battle, and another man eat of it. eaten: Heb. made it common

Deuteronomy 22:9

Thou shalt not sow thy vineyard with divers seeds: lest the fruit of thy seed which thou hast sown, and the fruit of thy vineyard, be defiled. fruit of thy seed: Heb. fulness of the seed

Deuteronomy 23:24

When thou comest into thy neighbour's vineyard, then thou mayest eat grapes thy fill at thine own pleasure; but thou shalt not put any in thy vessel.

Deuteronomy 24:21

When thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard, thou shalt not glean it afterward: it shall be for the stranger, for the fatherless, and for the widow. afterward: Heb. after thee

Deuteronomy 28:39

Thou shalt plant vineyards, and dress them, but shalt neither drink of the wine, nor gather the grapes; for the worms shall eat them.

Isaiah

Isaiah 1:8

And the daughter of Zion is left as a cottage in a vineyard, as a lodge in a garden of cucumbers, as a besieged city.

Isaiah 5:2

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 winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. fenced: or, made a wall about made: Heb. hewed

Isaiah 5:5

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 break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down: trodden: Heb. for a treading

Isaiah 5:7

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, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry. his: Heb. plant of his pleasures oppression: Heb. a scab

Isaiah 5:10

Yea, ten acres of vineyard shall yield one bath, and the seed of an homer shall yield an ephah.

Isaiah 7:23

And it shall come to pass in that day, that every place shall be, where there were a thousand vines at a thousand silverlings, it shall even be for briers and thorns.

Isaiah 16:9

Therefore I will bewail with the weeping of Jazer the vine of Sibmah: I will water thee with my tears, O Heshbon, and Elealeh: for the shouting for thy summer fruits and for thy harvest is fallen. the shouting: or, the alarm is fallen upon, etc

Isaiah 16:10

And gladness is taken away, and joy out of the plentiful field; and in the vineyards there shall be no singing, neither shall there be shouting: the treaders shall tread out no wine in their presses; I have made their vintage shouting to cease.

Isaiah 24:13

When thus it shall be in the midst of the land among the people, there shall be as the shaking of an olive tree, and as the gleaning grapes when the vintage is done.

Isaiah 27:2

In that day sing ye unto her, A vineyard of red wine.

Isaiah 32:10

Many days and years shall ye be troubled, ye careless women: for the vintage shall fail, the gathering shall not come. Many: Heb. Days above a year

Isaiah 61:5

And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.

Jeremiah

Jeremiah 12:10

Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness. pleasant: Heb. portion of desire

Jeremiah 35:7

Neither shall ye build house, nor sow seed, nor plant vineyard, nor have any: but all your days ye shall dwell in tents; that ye may live many days in the land where ye be strangers.

Jeremiah 35:8

Thus have we obeyed the voice of Jonadab the son of Rechab our father in all that he hath charged us, to drink no wine all our days, we, our wives, our sons, nor our daughters;

Jeremiah 35:9

Nor to build houses for us to dwell in: neither have we vineyard, nor field, nor seed:

Jeremiah 48:32

O vine of Sibmah, I will weep for thee with the weeping of Jazer: thy plants are gone over the sea, they reach even to the sea of Jazer: the spoiler is fallen upon thy summer fruits and upon thy vintage.

New Testament

Matthew

Matthew 20:1

For the kingdom of heaven is like unto a man that is an householder, which went out early in the morning to hire labourers into his vineyard.

Matthew 20:2

And when he had agreed with the labourers for a penny a day, he sent them into his vineyard. penny: the Roman penny is the eighth part of an ounce, which after five shillings the ounce is seven pence halfpenny; about fourteen cents

Matthew 21:23

And when he was come into the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came unto him as he was teaching, and said, By what authority doest thou these things? and who gave thee this authority?

Matthew 21:28

But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work to day in my vineyard.

Matthew 21:29

He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went.

Matthew 21:30

And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not.

Matthew 21:33

Hear another parable: There was a certain householder, which planted a vineyard, and hedged it round about, and digged a winepress in it, and built a tower, and let it out to husbandmen, and went into a far country:

Matthew 21:34

And when the time of the fruit drew near, he sent his servants to the husbandmen, that they might receive the fruits of it.

People in the Bible and vineyards

Biblical figures whose stories intersect with this theme.

In the Bible dictionary

Studying vineyards for yourself

  • Begin with Genesis 9:20, then read the passages below in canonical order.
  • Compare how Isaiah, Leviticus and Matthew each treat the theme.
  • Consider the lives of Solomon and Noah and how their stories intersect with it.
  • Widen the study to related themes: Vineyard, Agriculture or Husbandry, Wine and Parables.

Frequently asked questions

What does the Bible say about vineyards?

The Bible addresses vineyards across 58 verses, drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. These passages cluster most in Isaiah, Leviticus and Matthew. Closely related themes include Vineyard, Agriculture or Husbandry, Wine and Parables. Figures whose stories touch this theme include Solomon and Noah.

How many Bible verses are about vineyards?

The Bible references vineyards in 58 verses (King James Version).

Where does the Bible first mention vineyards?

In canonical order, the first of these passages is Genesis 9:20: “And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:”

Which people in the Bible are associated with vineyards?

Solomon and Noah.

Preach & teach

Outline a sermon or build a study series on vineyards.

Preach a series on Vineyards