OT XXVII [A] SUNDAY Is 5:1-7; Phil 4:6-9; Mt 21:33-43

In the first reading of today, the prophet pictures God as a wine grower who had laboured hard to prepare the land for a good harvest: “He dug the soil, cleared it of stones and planted choice vines in it. In the middle, he built a tower; he dug a press there, too. He expected it to yield sweet grapes, but sour grapes were all that it gave.”

We can detect the pain and frustration in God’s rhetorical question: “What could I have done for my vineyard that I have not done? Why did it yield sour grapes instead?” The sentence pronounced upon the vineyard swiftly follows. Its hedge and wall of protection will be destroyed, and it shall be rendered a wasteland bearing thorns and thistles, parched for lack of rain.

Applying this parable to the nation of Israel, we see that God gave His people every advantage and opportunity to repent. They were His chosen nation. They were His beloved Bride, and He was Israel’s Bridegroom. Countless times, they turned away to serve and follow other gods. With all the work God had put into His vineyard—the people of Israel—He should have been able to expect them to yield a harvest of righteousness. Instead of clusters of sweet grapes, the nation could only produce sour grapes. Time after time, in His love, God called them back. The people couldn’t do it. They kept messing up the plan. Much of the first reading is a warning, and being a warning, it is also meant for us too.

Let us now consider our Lord’s updated version of the gospel. Reading alongside the first reading, it is very clear that the Lord Jesus intends His hearers to hear His parable against the background of Isaiah’s parable. In this parable, it is not principally the vineyard itself that is judged, but the wicked tenant farmers to whom the vineyard had been entrusted. It is not that the vineyard is failing to produce sweet grapes but that it is being controlled by tenants who deny the vineyard owner its harvest and treat his emissaries violently. They finally even kill the owner’s son to rob him of his inheritance. These wicked tenants are the sour grapes in Jesus’ story. The judgment that will befall the vineyard will not be the destruction of the vineyard itself but the dispossession of the wicked tenants.

This gospel says a lot of good things about our God and some very disappointing things about our human response to God's generosity and patience.

We see that God is extremely loving. The owner of the land did not just give them an empty parcel of land and said, "There you go, now build a vineyard and give me the fruits of it." Rather, the Master plants it himself, fences it off, builds accommodation and security and then builds the winepress for the fruits to be processed.

The landowner is not a control freak. He hands over the vineyard and does not stand over them or set up an oppressive system to make sure they do the right thing. He trusts his tenants and entrusts the job to them and then steps back from it to give them time to do their job unhindered.

The Master is extremely patient. He is certainly not ruthless. After the very first messenger was sent and rejected, he would have been entitled to destroy the wicked tenants immediately, but instead, he continues to give them the benefit of the doubt; perhaps there has been a miscommunication, or perhaps there is a reason for this shocking behaviour. The master is being more than reasonable. He sends a long line of messengers to ask for what is his. There is no bitterness to be found in God, and his fruits are all patience, forbearance, and compassion. He is very long-suffering, giving many chances for change and growth, but in the end, he must have the fruits of the vineyard as he deserves.

 The master spares nothing. He even risks his most precious treasure, his beloved son, and sends him to sort this out peacefully. As the great Easter hymn says, "To ransom a slave, God gave away his own son!" What an astounding act of love and unearthly generosity to his ungrateful people.

Now, let’s try to picture ourselves as that vineyard. Look at the way God has carefully prepared things in our life up to this point. He planted faith in our hearts at baptism. He nursed, cultivated and pruned our life of faith. The soil of His Word and Sacraments are there. He provides ongoing nutrition and water through opportunities to use the means of Grace. He speaks His law to wound and convicts hearts and pours out the Gospel to soothe and heal.

And what does He find? Does He find sweet or sour grapes? Despite the surpassing goodness shown by our Beloved God in every area of life, do we still complain that His blessings haven’t been sufficient? Instead of clusters of sweet grapes of gratitude, have we only produced sour grapes of resentment and a bloated sense of entitlement? Instead of the sweet grapes, of His people living in peace and harmony with others, has He found the sour grapes of envy and strife and jealousy just like the wicked tenants? Instead of the sweet grapes of forgiveness and kindness displayed among His people, does He only see the sour grapes of impatience and lack of forgiveness?

God lovingly desires to give us what we need and patiently calls us back to obedience. Of course, time ends up running out sooner or later. God expects us to bear the fruits of the Kingdom of Heaven. Let’s be grateful for all that He has showered on us and express it through our fruitful lives.