You brought a grapevine out of Egypt; you drove out other nations and planted it in their land.

Listen while I sing you this song, a song of my friend and his vineyard: My friend had a vineyard on a very fertile hill.

He dug the soil and cleared it of stones; he planted the finest vines. He built a tower to guard them, dug a pit for treading the grapes. He waited for the grapes to ripen, but every grape was sour.

I planted you like a choice vine from the very best seed. But look what you have become! You are like a rotten, worthless vine.

Then Jesus spoke to them in parables: "Once there was a man who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a hole for the wine press, and built a watchtower. Then he rented the vineyard to tenants and left home on a trip.

"I am the real vine, and my Father is the gardener.

My strength will always be with him, my power will make him strong.

The royal line of David is like a tree that has been cut down; but just as new branches sprout from a stump, so a new king will arise from among David's descendants.

Before I was born, the LORD appointed me; he made me his servant to bring back his people, to bring back the scattered people of Israel. The LORD gives me honor; he is the source of my strength.

The LORD says, "The time is coming when I will choose as king a righteous descendant of David. That king will rule wisely and do what is right and just throughout the land.

When he is king, the people of Judah will be safe, and the people of Israel will live in peace. He will be called 'The LORD Our Salvation.'

This is what the Sovereign LORD says: "I will take the top of a tall cedar and break off a tender sprout; I will plant it on a high mountain,

All the trees in the land will know that I am the LORD. I cut down the tall trees and make small trees grow tall. I wither up the green trees and make the dry trees become green. I, the LORD, have spoken. I will do what I have said I would do."

Listen then, Joshua, you who are the High Priest; and listen, you fellow priests of his, you that are the sign of a good future: I will reveal my servant, who is called The Branch!

Tell him that the LORD Almighty says, 'The man who is called The Branch will flourish where he is and rebuild the LORD's Temple.