VITICULTURE AND JOHN 15:1-6∗

GARY W. DERICKSON
Associate Professor of Biblical Studies
Western Baptist College
Salem, Oregon

I. INTRODUCTION
Few Bible students today can point to having an agricultural back-
ground or having lived on a farm. This has led to a distinct lack of fa-
miliarity with all or most aspects of agriculture, including viticulture.1
Since the culture of the Bible was principally agrarian, this modern un-
familiarity may contribute to misunderstanding some portions of Scrip-
ture. When interpreting difficult passages, such issues as context and
lexical meanings are certainly important. But the proper use of historical
and cultural data may also inform one’s understanding of key terms and
concepts, thereby clarifying what might otherwise be obscure or confus-
ing in a biblical passage.
The problem of John 15:1-6 is made apparent by the variant and dis-
parate interpretations given this passage. Debate continues concerning
the meaning of airei and kathairei in v 2 and whether v 6 describes a
believer’s or an unbeliever’s destiny. Some of the confusion can be clari-
fied with an adequate understanding of the viticultural practices of the
first century. This article seeks to describe key viticultural practices in
first-century Palestine and then use them as a basis, though not the sole
basis, for answering questions concerning the fate of the unfruitful
branches. This will be accomplished by first introducing the debate be-
tween the “lordship” and “free grace” views on John 15:1-6.2 Then a

∗
This article was previously printed in Bibliotheca Sacra, Vol. 153 (Janu-
ary 1996) and has been reprinted with permission.
1
This author holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in horticulture from Texas A&M
University and taught grape-pruning as a teaching assistant there.
2
J. Carl Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John
15:1–6,” Bibliotheca Sacra 146 (January–March 1989): 55-66; and Joseph C.
Dillow, “Abiding Is Remaining in Fellowship: Another Look at John 15:1-6,”
Bibliotheca Sacra 147 (January–March 1990): 44-53. Their arguments are gen-
erally built from lexical and textual clues, though Laney does refer to present

23
24 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

discussion of cultural practices will be detailed, followed by analysis of

the passage with the relevant data in view.

II. INTERPRETIVE OPTIONS

At least three interpretations of the passage exist: 1) the unfruitful
branches of v 2 and burned branches of v 6 represent Christians who lose
their salvation; 2) they represent professing “Christians” who never had
salvation; or 3) they represent unfruitful Christians who are cared for by
God and then eventually are disciplined by means of death.3 The second
and third views, both arising within Calvinism, are the focus of this arti-
cle. They are represented by men such as Laney and MacArthur who
reflect the lordship (justification) view, and Dillow who reflects the fel-
lowship (sanctification) view.
A. PROFESSING “CHRISTIANS” WHO ARE UNBELIEVERS
The dominant view among Calvinists is that the nonfruit-bearing and
removed branches of vv 2 and 6 are nonbelievers within the visible
church who appear to be believers but who are spiritually fruitless.4 Re-
flecting this position, MacArthur says, “The healthy, fruit-bearing
branches…represent genuine Christians.” He argues, “We are not saved
by works, but works are the only proof that faith is genuine, vibrant, and
alive (Jas 2:17). Fruit is the only possible validation that a branch is abid-
ing in the True Vine.”5 Thus the absence of fruit demonstrates the ab-
sence of life.6 And, since abiding is necessary for fruitfulness, one who
does not abide is one who is not saved.

cultural practices. Still, neither refers to any first-century data that might
enlighten meanings within the text to support their understanding of key terms.
3
Charles R. Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” Grace Journal 9
(Spring 1968): 3, 7.
4
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
55; Robert A. Peterson, “The Perseverance of the Saints: A Theological Exege-
sis of Four Key New Testament Passages,” Presbyterion 17 (1991): 108; and
James E. Rosscup, Abiding in Christ (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1973), 42.
5
John F. MacArthur Jr., The Gospel According to Jesus, rev. ed. (Grand
Rapids: Zondervan, 1994), 168.
6
Robert Law, The Tests of Life: A Study of the First Epistle of St. John (Ed-
inburgh: Clark, 1909; reprint, Grand Rapids: Baker, 1969), 220; Rosscup, Abid-
ing in Christ, 42; J. C. Ryle, Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, John
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 25

Laney identifies “two divine actions” being taken on the branches of

v 2. Those that are fruitful are “pruned” (kathairo„) while the fruitless
(i.e., unregenerate) ones are “removed” (airo„).7 The unfruitful branches
of v 2 are identified in v 6 as the cast out branches. Judas is an example
of the kind of people who initially identify with Jesus and then fall away
and are the ones who, though they appear to belong to the faith, are in
fact pruned out and destined to destruction.8
B. CHRISTIANS WHO ARE LIFTED UP AND ENCOURAGED AND THEN
LATER DISCIPLINED WITH DEATH
The second view says that unfruitful branches represent believers
who are cared for by God and later are disciplined. According to Chafer,
abiding in John 15:1-6 refers to communion and not union because the
passage’s focus is on the believer’s walk. Further, he sees the action on
the branches in v 6 as an issue of communion, not union. A believer’s
failure to abide and thus to bear fruit leads to discipline from God, which
may include physical death.9 Dillow concurs with Chafer, adding that
believers experience not only divine discipline in this life but also loss of
reward at the judgment of Christ.10
C. THE ISSUE AT HAND
These two views conflict in their understanding of John 15:1-6. The
unfruitful branch cannot be both a believer and an unbeliever. The
branch that fails to abide cannot be a believer who is disciplined and also

10:10 to End (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, n.d.), 328; and Smith, “The Unfruitful
Branches in John 15,” 13-14.
7
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
57.
8
William Hendricksen, Exposition of the Gospel according to John, 2 vols.
in 1 (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1953), 2:294-95; Homer A. Kent Jr., Light in the
Darkness: Studies in the Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1974), 181-82;
MacArthur, The Gospel According to Jesus, 166; J. H. Bernard, A Critical and
Exegetical Commentary on the Gospel according to St. John, 2 vols. Interna-
tional Critical Commentary (Edinburgh: Clark, 1928), 479; Peterson, “The Per-
severance of the Saints: A Theological Exegesis of Four Key New Testament
Passages,” 108.
9
Lewis S. Chafer, “The Eternal Security of the Believer,” Bibliotheca Sa-
cra 106 (October–December 1949): 402-403.
10
Dillow, “Abiding Is Remaining in Fellowship: Another Look at John
15:1-6,” 51-52.
26 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

be an individual who was never regenerate. The question the exegete

faces is which view has the greater probability of being correct. This
must be answered on the basis of cultural as well as textual data. The
assumption that the message of the Gospel of John focuses on justifica-
tion, as well as a lack of understanding of viticulture, seems to force
most interpreters to look to v 6 as a guide to interpreting v 2. This forces
some interpreters to view “professing Christians” as distinguished from
actual believers. A few Calvinist interpreters have attempted to answer
the question from a sanctification perspective and so have differed in
their conclusions.
If Jesus was pointing to a certain practice or was using terminology
with distinct and understood meanings, then discovering the viticultural
practice or the term’s meaning within the culture of His day will aid in
understanding those key terms.

III. ARGUMENTS
A. PROFESSING “CHRISTIANS”
The interpretation of John 15:1-6 hinges in part on one’s understand-
ing of v 6.11 The problem of the burning of detached branches and one’s
conclusion concerning their destiny directly influences the meaning of
other key terms in the passage. Thus that issue must be addressed before
discussing the other related arguments.
1. Nonbelievers Are in View in Verse 6
The justification interpretation identifies the burned branches in v 6
as unbelievers who are destroyed in hell.12 As MacArthur wrote, “the
imagery of burning suggests that these fruitless branches are doomed to
hell.”13 Laney points to John 6:37 and Jesus’ promise not to cast out (ek-
balo„ exso„) any who come to Him as proof that the branches being cast
out (eble„the„ exso„) cannot be believers.14

11
Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” 16.
12
Peterson, “The Perseverance of the Saints: A Theological Exegesis of
Four Key New Testament Passages,” 108.
13
MacArthur, The Gospel according to Jesus, 171.
14
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
62.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 27

Belief is the connection that unites the vine and branches.

Without belief there is no abiding. The absence of abiding in-
dicates deficient (transitory or superficial) belief…There is no
fruit without faith, and there is no faith without fruit…While
Reformation theology affirms that faith alone saves, it affirms
with equal conviction that the faith that saves is not alone.15
Laney rejects the idea that burning refers to discipline on believers
because the removal of the branches is “a prelude to judgment, not of
blessed fellowship with Christ in heaven.”16
But if these branches be taken as Christians, what can the re-
moval signify? The taking to heaven of sinning believers, as
suggested by Chafer, does not remove them from Christ or
from profession in Christ. If Jesus wanted to teach the truth
that sinning believers may be removed to heaven it does not
seem likely that He would have chosen this figure. What hap-
pens to dead and removed branches is not good.17
Peterson and Smith note that when Jesus referred to unfruitful, re-
moved, and burned branches He used the third person, but that He re-
ferred to the disciples in the second person.18 Peterson concludes from
this that Jesus “carefully distinguishes his disciples from the unfruitful
branches which are headed for God’s judgment.”19 This then leads to the
problem of the unfruitful branches in v 2.
2. Fruitless Branches Refer to Nonbelievers
In this view the unfruitful branches that are “removed” in v 2 are
synonymous with the nonabiding branches in v 6. Laney suggests that
the “natural flow” of the context means Jesus was referring to the same
people.20 MacArthur looks to the context and key players, including Ju-
das, to argue for false believers being represented by “barren branches”
that are judged.21

15
Ibid., 65-66.
16
Ibid., 61.
17
Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” 17.
18
Ibid., 15.
19
Peterson, “The Perseverance of the Saints: A Theological Exegesis of
Four Key New Testament Passages,” 109.
20
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
60, 65.
21
MacArthur, The Gospel According to Jesus, 166.
28 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

Every gardener understands this principle. Fruitless branches

are detrimental to the vine. They take sap away from the fruit-
bearing branches. Wasted sap means less fruit. Even after
careful pruning these branches will remain barren. There is no
way to make them bear fruit.22
MacArthur also points to Rom 9:6 and 11:17-24 to argue that “a per-
son can be in the family tree but not be a true Israelite. Likewise, one can
be a branch on the True Vine without really abiding in Christ.” The “cut-
ting off ” is related to 1 John 2:19 and the departure of the antichrists
from the apostolic fellowship.23 Ryle argues,
One principle is that no one can be a branch in Christ, and a
living member of His body, who does not bear fruit. Vital un-
ion with Christ not evidenced by life is an impossibility, and a
blasphemous idea. The other principle is that no living branch
of the true vine, no believer in Christ, will ever finally perish.
They that perish may have looked like believers, but they were
not believers in reality.24

3. Airei Means “Remove,” not “Lift”

Laney defends his interpretation of airei as “remove” rather than “lift
up” by noting that 13 of its 23 uses in John’s Gospel have the sense of
“take away” or “remove” while only eight times it means “to take up” or
“to lift up.”25 Thus the majority of uses points to a judgmental sense.
Noting that the basic sense of the word is “removal,” Smith says, “Since
the context must determine what kind of removal is in view, it is cer-
tainly not the best method of exegesis to interpret the word in a manner
that is contradictory to the context…In the context, verse 6 describes the
taking away in no uncertain terms as a taking away to judgment.”26
MacArthur presents a “viticultural” argument.
Vinedressers had two chief means of maximizing the fruit that
grew on the vine. One was to cut off the barren limbs. The
other was to prune new shoots from the fruit-bearing branches.

22
Ibid., 170.
23
Ibid., 171.
24
Ryle, Ryle’s Expository Thoughts on the Gospels, 335.
25
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
58.
26
Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” 9.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 29

This all insured that the vine would produce more fruit, not
just leafy growth. Verse 2 describes both chores:…Barren
branches grow more rapidly, and new ones sprout quickly.
They must be carefully and regularly pruned. It is the only
way to insure maximum quantities of fruit.27
This is a nice-sounding description for the nonviticulturalist. But is it
what was actually practiced? That will be seen later.
4. Not Abiding “in Me” Refers to Nonbelievers
Smith rejects the fellowship interpretation of “in Me” in v 2.
Those who hold that the unfruitful branches represent Chris-
tians base their interpretation largely upon this phrase and al-
low it to determine their view of the rest of the passage. Most
commentators, however, have felt that the rest of the passage
is so clear that this one phrase should be carefully weighed in
the light of the whole context…The familiar technical usage of
the phrase “in Christ,” as it is found in Paul’s prison epistles,
was not until many years later. At the time when Jesus spoke
these words no one was “in Christ” in this technical sense be-
cause the baptism of the Holy Spirit did not begin until Pente-
cost. When these words were spoken, to be “in Christ” was not
different from being “in the kingdom.” Jesus’ parables about
the kingdom being composed of wheat and tares, good and
bad, fruitful and unfruitful, are very familiar.28
Laney invalidates Smith’s argument by noting that the phrase clearly
refers to salvation elsewhere in the Gospel of John.29 Even so, he at-
tempts to refute the argument that “in Me” in v 2 indicates that the un-
fruitful branches are believers by making it an adverbial phrase modify-
ing the verb “bearing” rather than an adjectival phrase modifying
“branch.” Thus bearing fruit occurs “in the sphere” of Christ and empha-
sizes the “process of fruit-bearing” rather than the “place.”30
5. Modern Practice
Laney attempts to strengthen his arguments by reference to modern viti-
cultural practices. Quoting from a circular from the California Agricultural

27
MacArthur, The Gospel according to Jesus, 168.
28
Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” 10.
29
Laney, “Abiding Is Believing: The Analogy of the Vine in John 15:1-6,”
63.
30
Ibid., 63-64.
30 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

Extension Service entitled “Grape Growing in California,” he notes that

“regular pruning is necessary during the vine’s growing season.” From it
he identifies pinching, topping, thinning, and pruning as four actions
taken to control growth and improve fruit production.31 He then says that
Jesus’ point was that “as the vinedresser cuts away what would hinder
the productivity of the vine, so God the Father, through loving discipline
(cleaning, purging, purifying), removes things from the lives of believers
that do not contribute to their spiritual fruitfulness.”32
The problem with this data is that it does not point out the difference
between growing-season pruning and dormant-season pruning, as will be
noted later. To his credit, Laney admits that “the destruction of the Jews
at the time of the Arab conquest (A.D. 640) suggests that changes may
have occurred in agriculture as the Arab people took over Palestine.”
This leads him to conclude that the “grammatical and lexical context” is
all that is left to the interpreter “to gain a proper understanding of the
passage.”33 This is true if no way exists by which to ascertain the viticul-
tural practices of first-century Judea. But there is.
B. CHRISTIANS WHO ARE ENCOURAGED AND THEN DISCIPLINED
In the fellowship or sanctification interpretation of this passage the
imagery Jesus used in the vine-branch analogy describes fellowship with
God rather than union with Him. “With John, the kind of relationship
pictured in the vine-branch imagery describes an experience that can be
ruptured (John 15:6) with a resultant loss of fellowship and fruitfulness,”
and so the passage describes “the believer’s fellowship with God.”34
Vanderlip notes that in the Gospel of John “life” occurs 32 times in
chaps. 1–12 and then only three times in chaps. 13–20 because Jesus was
then with His disciples who had “come to possess life and therefore the

31
Laney identifies H. E. Jacob, “Grape Growing in California,” Circular
#116 (California Agricultural Extension Service, College of Agriculture, Uni-
versity of California at Berkeley, April 1940) as his source (ibid., 57).
32
Ibid.
33
Ibid., 60.
34
Zane C. Hodges, “1 John,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary, New
Testament, ed. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1983),
888-89.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 31

subject matter of the book advances to other themes.”35 As a result what

Jesus said in John 13–20 should be understood differently.
1. Believers Are in View in Verse 6
Dillow does not see a soteriological focus in v 6. Instead, “the point
of the figure of the vine and the branches is not to portray organic con-
nection but enablement and fellowship. This casting out then is not from
salvation but from fellowship.”36 The fire of 1 Cor 3:15 is the same as
this verse.
Paul wrote that the believer is the building and that the build-
ing is built up with various kinds of building materials and that
the fire is applied to the building. The apostle obviously saw
an intimate connection between the believer and his work. To
apply the fire of judgment to the believer is the same as apply-
ing it to his work. Indeed the believer’s works are simply a
metonymy for the believer himself…The believer who does
not remain in fellowship because of disobedience is cast out in
judgment and withers spiritually, and faces severe divine dis-
cipline in time and loss of reward at the judgment seat of
Christ.37
This branch is neither a nonbeliever nor one who loses his salvation.
2. Fruitless Branches Refer to Believers not in Fellowship
Dillow rejects the idea that unfruitful branches cannot be either re-
generate or abiding. He asks, “If the fruitless branches are only profess-
ing Christians, then what bearing did the passage have on the disciples?”
In his response to Laney, Dillow argues that
the passage gives every indication that it was addressed in its
entirety to the disciples to tell them how they could bear fruit
in their lives. Jesus said to them, “If you [the disciples, not
those to whom they would one day minister] abide in Me, and
My words abide in you, ask whatever you wish, and it shall be
done for you.”38

35
George Vanderlip, Christianity according to John (Philadelphia: West-
minster, 1975), 31.
36
Dillow, “Abiding Is Remaining in Fellowship: Another Look at John
15:1-6,” 53.
37
Ibid.
38
Ibid., 51-52, italics his.
32 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

Cook concurs.
Abiding in Christ is to be distinguished from being in Christ,
although ideally there should be no practical difference be-
tween the two. We may observe the distinction by noting John
15:1-11, where the “in Me” branch of verse 2 is seen to be dif-
ferent from the “abide in Me” branch of verse 4. To be in
Christ is to be born again, to be regenerated, to have had for-
giveness of sins through Christ. Thus the disciples are in
Christ (v. 2) because they have been cleansed of their sins
(v. 3). To abide in Christ, however, is to be an obedient fol-
lower in fellowship with Christ the Savior and Lord (vv. 4-5,
9-11). An examination of 1 John 3:24 will reveal that obedi-
ence is the condition for abiding. Moreover, in John 15:10 our
obeying Christ and thus abiding in Him is compared to the
Son’s obeying the Father and thus abiding in Him; the Son
was already in the Father by virtue of His sonship, but the Son
abided in the Father by obeying Him. We see, then, that just as
Christ’s abiding in the Father was the maintenance of personal
fellowship with the Father, so our abiding in Christ is the
maintenance of personal fellowship with Christ.39

3. Airei Means “Lift up,” not “Remove”

Dillow identifies R. K. Harrison’s interpretation of airei as “lifts up”
in v 2 and notes that in at least 8 out of its 24 occurrences in John it is
used in that sense.40 He then responds to Laney by noting that Harrison
reported how fallen vines in Palestine “were lifted ‘with meticulous care’
and allowed to heal.”41 Further, in a footnote Dillow remarks that Harri-
son states that airei has airo„ (“to lift”) as its root rather than aireo„ (“to
catch, take away”).42 Dillow then points to his own personal observation
of viticultural care,43 concluding that if “lift up” is the meaning, “then a
fruitless branch is lifted up to put it into a position of fruit-bearing.” He
adds that this interpretation does not contradict v 6, but that it rather

39
W. Robert Cook, The Theology of John (Chicago: Moody, 1979), 133-34,
italics in original.
40
Dillow, “Abiding Is Remaining in Fellowship: Another Look at John
15:1-6,” 50. He lists John 5:8-12; 8:59; 10:18, 24 as examples.
41
Ibid., 50-51.
42
Ibid., 51, fn. 17.
43
Ibid., 51.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 33

suggests “that the heavenly Vinedresser first encourages the branches

and lifts them in the sense of providing loving care to enable them to
bear fruit. If after this encouragement, they do not remain in fellowship
with Him and bear fruit, they are then cast out.”44 This casting out is
from fellowship, not salvation.
4. Not Abiding “in Me” Refers to Believers out of Fellowship
Dillow notes Smith’s argument that “in Me” is only a general refer-
ence to people being in the kingdom rather than to the Pauline concept of
being in Christ, since both the present kingdom and the future millennial
kingdom include a mixture of true and false believers.45 Dillow responds
by pointing out that professing Christians are not in Christ. He says that
“it is unlikely that ‘in Me’ can refer to an ‘Israel within Israel’ (i.e., the
truly saved within the professing company) in view of the consistent
usage of ‘in Me’ in John’s writings to refer to a true saving relation-
ship.”46 He asserts that the phrase “in Me” always refers to fellowship
with Christ in its 16 uses in the Gospel. “It is inconsistent then to say the
phrase in 15:2 refers to a person who merely professes to be saved but is
not.”47 Further, “the preposition en is used ‘to designate a close personal
relation.’ It refers to a sphere within which some action occurs. So to
abide ‘in’ Christ means to remain in close relationship to Him.”48 Jesus’
use of the phrase refers to “a life of fellowship, a unity of purpose, rather
than organic connection,” which is distinct from the Pauline concept of
“in Christ.”49 Based on the use of the phrase to describe the relationship
of Christ and the Father and His nonrelationship with Satan (John 14:30),
Dillow argues that it does not speak of “organic connection or common-
ality of essence, but of commonality of purpose and commitment.”50 Its
use in John 17:21 indicates a unity of purpose rather than organic con-
nection. “If this ‘in Me’ relationship referred to organic connection, Jesus

44
Ibid.
45
Smith, “The Unfruitful Branches in John 15,” 10.
46
Dillow, “Abiding Is Remaining in Fellowship: Another Look at John
15:1-6,” 45.
47
Ibid.
48
Ibid.
49
Ibid., 46.
50
Ibid.
34 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

would not have prayed for an organic connection between Him and be-
lievers because it already existed.”51 He concludes from this,
To be “in Me” is to be in fellowship with Christ, living obedi-
ently. Therefore it is possible for a Christian not to be “in Me”
in the Johannine sense. This seems evident from the command
to “abide in Christ.” Believers are to remain in fellowship with
the Lord. If all Christians already remain “in Me,” then why
command them to remain in that relationship? It must be pos-
sible for them not to remain.52

C. SUMMARY
The two views approach the passage differently and attempt to an-
swer the other’s positions. Both point to textual as well as contextual
data. Both refer to viticultural practices, or at least their understanding of
them. Before interpreting the passage, an examination of some of the
available information that might illumine the meanings of key terms is
appropriate.

IV. HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL DATA

Viticulture was an integral aspect of first-century Judah’s culture.
When Jesus presented the analogy of the vine and the branches to His
disciples, He was speaking from a familiar context. Because its practice
was so widespread it is likely that all the disciples, including the fisher-
men, may have seen grapes cultivated in their villages or on hillsides
around their homes.
A. TRAINING OF PLANTS
In early Israel the branches of cultivated grapes were either allowed
to trail along the ground or were trained to grow over a pole.53 Pliny’s
mention of this indicates that it was still being practiced in first-century

51
Ibid., 47.
52
Ibid., 47-48.
53
Jehuda Feliks, “Vine,” in Encyclopedia Judaica, 16:156; James M. Free-
man, Manners and Customs of the Bible (Plainfield, NJ: Logos International,
1972; reprint, New York: Nelson and Phillips, n.d.), 360-61; W. E. Shewell-
Cooper, Plants, Flowers, and Herbs of the Bible (New Canaan, CT: Keats,
1977), 75; and David C. Hopkins, The Highlands of Canaan (Decatur, GA:
Almond, 1985), 228.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 35

Palestine as well.54 When the stems were trained along the ground the
grape clusters were propped up to keep them from contacting the soil and
being ruined.55 Trellising of vines seems to have been introduced by the
Romans as one of their advancements in viticulture and was used exten-
sively in Palestine. It allowed air to flow through the branches to dry the
dew more quickly.56 Pliny described five approaches to training grape-
vines “with the branches spreading about on the ground, or with the vine
standing up of its own accord, or else with a stay but without a cross-bar,
or propped with a single cross-bar, or trellised with four bars in a rectan-
gle.”57 Thus when Jesus related His analogy, the disciples would proba-
bly have been familiar with both trailing and trellising practices.
B. PRUNING
Pruning of the vineyards occurred at two principal times during the
year. Immediately following the harvest the grapes were pruned severely
in the fall and all leaves were stripped from the plants to induce dor-
mancy.58 Spring trimming of vines was practiced before blooming as
well as after.59
The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, dated around A.D. 280, contain a contract
for labor in a vineyard. They, along with Pliny’s writings, represent the
nearest viticultural documents to the first century. In this contract the
procedure for vineyard management began with “pruning, transport of
leaves and throwing them outside the mud-walls.”60 This corresponds to
the postharvest pruning. Following this the workers were committed to
“planting as many vine-stems as are necessary, digging, hoeing round the

54
Pliny says, “This is better for wine, as the vine so grown does not over-
shadow itself and is ripened by constant sunshine, and is more exposed to cur-
rents of air and so gets rid of dew more quickly, and also is easier for trimming
and for harrowing the soil and all operations; and above all it sheds its blossoms
in a more beneficial manner” (Natural History 17.35).
55
Walter Duckat, Beggar to King: All the Occupations of Biblical Times
(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1968), 264; and Madeleine S. Miller and J. Lane
Miller, Harper’s Encyclopedia of Bible Life, rev. Boyce M. Bennett Jr. and
David H. Scott (San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1978), 183.
56
Pliny, Natural History 17.35.
57
Ibid.
58
Hopkins, The Highlands of Canaan, 228.
59
Pliny, Natural History 17.35.
60
The Oxyrhynchus Papyri, Part 14, “1631. Contract for Labor in a Vine-
yard,” 18.
36 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

vines and surrounding them with trenches.”61 The planting of stems re-
fers to asexual reproduction of grapes through cuttings and would be
done during dormancy, using material taken from the plants in the prun-
ing. This stage of contracted labor was postharvest and followed the
severe pruning in the early dormant season. The contract continues, “We
being responsible for the remaining operations after those mentioned
above, consisting of breaking up the ground, picking off shoots, keeping
the vines well tended, disposition of them, removal of shoots, needful
thinnings of foliage.”62 This describes their responsibilities during the
growing season. Direct actions on the vines included “picking off shoots,
removal of shoots,” and “needful thinnings of foliage,” no one of which
fits the description of the removal of a branch. This work, being of minor
impact on the plant, was designed to encourage fruit development while
discouraging extensive vegetative growth.
For best results the growth rate of a grapevine must be carefully
maintained. If it has too few growing points, it grows too fast and be-
comes vegetative, producing fewer flowers and smaller grape clusters. If
it is allowed to have too many growing points, it grows too extensively
and its energy is wasted on growth and the clusters do not produce large
or juicy grapes. The severe pruning in the early dormant season involves
the reduction of the plants to their appropriate number of growing points,
the buds. Later the spring removal of shoots reflects the process of insur-
ing that the plant is not allowed to grow too slowly by spreading its
energy among the large number of suckers and water sprouts that appear
on the main trunk as well as the fruiting branches.
Based on Isa 18:5 Duckat asserts, “After the plants budded and the
blossoms turned into ripening grapes, the vine dressers cut off the barren
branches.”63 However, this is refuted by Pliny, who notes:
Thus there are two kinds of main branches; the shoot which
comes out of the hard timber and promises wood for the next
year is called a leafy shoot or else when it is above the scar
[caused by tying the branch to the trellis] a fruit-bearing shoot,
whereas the other kind of shoot that springs from a year-old
branch is always a fruit-bearer. There is also left underneath
the cross-bar a shoot called the keeper—this is a young

61
Ibid.
62
Ibid.
63
Duckat, Beggar to King: All the Occupations of Biblical Times, 264.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 37

branch, not longer than three buds, which will provide wood
next year if the vine’s luxurious growth has used itself up—
and another shoot next to it, the size of a wart, called the pil-
ferer is also left, in case the keeper-shoot should fail.64
Of significance is the number of nonfruit-bearing branches left on
the vines. Pliny also noted that after the harvest, when the most severe
pruning occurs, the fruiting branches are pruned away for they are con-
sidered useless.65 This procedure has not changed since the first century.
Branches are selected for various purposes and pruned accordingly dur-
ing dormancy. The fruiting branches for the following season are al-
lowed to keep between 8 and 20 buds, depending on the cultivar.66 This
serves to regulate the branch’s growth rate in the spring at a level that
encourages maximum flowering and fruit-set. The nonfruiting branches
are pruned more severely to encourage vegetative growth with a view to
a thick branch which can be used for fruiting the following year. Other
adventitious growths, like water sprouts that arise from the roots at the
base of the vine, are removed.

V. INTERPRETATION
Did Jesus intend to teach that unfruitful followers were not true be-
lievers, or that they faced divine discipline, or something else? How
much should the immediate audience and the viticultural terminology
influence one’s understanding of the passage?
A. THE SETTING AND CONTEXT
As part of His final discourse, Jesus’ words in John 15:1-6 are ad-
dressed to His believing disciples. Judas had recently departed from their
company with the intention of betraying Him, something the others
would learn very soon. Jesus was discussing His relationship to them as
their source of life and as the one whose ministry would be continued
through the Holy Spirit after His departure. Because the disciples

64
Pliny, Natural History 17.35.
65
Ibid. When discussing propagation practices, he says, “Vines give more
numerous kinds of shoots for planting. The first point is that none of these are
used for planting except useless growths lopped off for brush-wood, whereas
any branch that bore fruit last time is pruned away (ibid.).”
66
Jules Janick, Horticultural Science, 2nd ed. (San Francisco: Freeman,
1972), 240-48.
38 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

responded with worry and sorrow, Jesus was reassuring and comforting
them. In light of His departure and the promised ministry of the Holy
Spirit, Jesus introduced the vine-and-branches analogy to reveal to them
the importance of their continued dependence on Him. They must
“abide.” Whether He delivered the analogy within the walls of the resi-
dence or enroute to the Garden of Gethsemane is uncertain and immate-
rial. However, the season, the time of early spring growth, is important to
note.
B. THE CENTRAL ISSUE
The central issue of Jesus’ analogy involves abiding and fruitfulness
in light of His departure and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. In John
15:1-10 Jesus mentioned “abide” or “abiding” 10 times, and He spoke of
fruit six times. Jesus was clearly teaching that only by abiding in Him
can His followers hope to be fruitful. As a result of abiding they will bear
“much fruit.” He urged them to “abide” in Him and His teachings
through obedience. But what about the two kinds of branches and the
action of the Vinedresser?
C. THE BRANCHES
Of course the fruitful branches are true believers. But what about the
unfruitful branches? And what are the nonabiding branches? Can prac-
tices in Jesus’ day provide any clues to His use of airei in v 2 or the sig-
nificance of burning in v 6?
D. THE FARMER’S ACTIONS IN VERSE 2
Most commentators state that farmers removed unfruitful branches
and then cleaned up the fruiting branches to make them more fruitful.
But that is not accurate.
As already stated, two kinds of pruning occurred in the vineyard.
First, pruning occurred after the harvest while the vines were dormant.
This pruning removed unwanted material from the desired branches,
including all remaining leaves, as well as unwanted branches and water
sprouts. Second, spring pruning removed succulent sprigs from the fruit-
ing branches, dead and diseased wood, adventitious buds on the trunk of
the vine, but not all nonfruiting branches. Some nonfruiting branches
were kept on the vine. So to what did Jesus refer in John 15:2?
E. AIREI AND KATHAIREI
A play on words is evident between airei, which many writers say
means “he removes,” and kathairei, “he prunes.” Kathairei may also
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 39

mean “he cleanses” and so is linked to John 13:10, “you are clean
[kathairoi], but not all.”67 Since Jesus was apparently referring to Judas
in that verse, some commentators say Judas was the unfruitful branch
that had to be removed.
However, much of the difficulty of the passage is removed when
exegetes stop attempting to make v 6 an exposition of v 2. Understanding
Jesus’ intended meaning in this passage is made easier by recognizing
the viticultural practices to which He referred. The weakness of the
“taken away in judgment” view of airei becomes evident when the term
is understood within its viticultural context.
Airei is not an attested viticultural term. Kathairo„, on the other hand,
does have at least one viticultural use, and when used in a literal sense it
does carry the idea of cleaning.68 It has a figurative sense of spiritual
cleanness and, building from its viticultural meaning, Jesus used the term
again in v 3. As an attested viticultural term, Jesus’ use of it in this anal-
ogy must therefore be consistent with its normal use and meaning. His
use of parables to teach spiritual truths is based on analogies built from
accurate portrayals of the natural world. What He described is what hap-
pened. Through analogies with the familiar world listeners were able to
recognize the spiritual truths being taught.
Since kathairei was the legitimate viticultural term describing the
process of removing suckers from a fruiting branch, it should be under-
stood that way. Thus the possibly nonviticultural term’s meaning should
be understood in conjunction with its clearly attested viticultural coun-
terpart. If it was not a term common to viticulture, Jesus may have cho-
sen airei because of its similarity in sound to kathairei in order to make a
play on words (paregmenon, or derivation).69 More likely, however, He
was using a term farmers used then to describe their own practice. Its
lack of attestation does not mean that it was not a term common to

67
F. F. Bruce, The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1983), 308.
68
Walter Bauer, William F. Arndt, and F. Wilbur Gingrich, A Greek-
English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature,
2nd ed., rev. F. Wilbur Gingrich and Frederick W. Danker (Chicago: University
of Chicago Press, 1979), 386.
69
E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech Used in the Bible (reprint, Grand Rap-
ids: Baker, 1968), 304. He describes this figure as a repetition of words “derived
from the same root,” that “are similar in origin and sound, but not similar in
sense.”
40 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

viticulture, though an argument from silence is not convincing proof

either. But whether airei is accepted as a viticultural term or not, its use
within the analogy must correspond to a common practice the disciples
knew and understood. Since both terms are used in the passage they are
better understood as being done simultaneously. In other words Jesus
was not putting together two tasks from separate seasons. He was most
likely referring to seasonal care of vineyards at the time He spoke,
namely, spring training and trimming.
The approach of most exegetes is to see in Jesus’ words a process by
which farmers pick off the adventitious sprigs from the fruiting branches
(cleanses them) and cut off nonfruiting branches (takes them away). This
interpretation of airei, however, contradicts the evidence from Pliny that
nonfruiting branches were preserved and nurtured for use the following
season.70 It would be better to see Jesus indicating what actually occurred
during the spring, namely, certain nonfruiting branches were tied to the
trellises along with the fruiting branches while the side shoots of the
fruiting branches were being “cleaned up.” The nonfruiting branches
were allowed to grow with full vigor and without the removal of any side
growth or leaves, since the more extensive their growth the greater the
diameter of their stem where it connected to the vine, giving greater abil-
ity to produce more fruit the following season. Removing the nonfruiting
branches from the ground and placing them on the trellis would allow the
rows of plants to benefit from unhindered aeration, considered an essen-
tial element to proper fruit development.71 To see airei as removal
(judgment or discipline) is to contradict the actual practice of the time.
Recognizing the practice described by the two terms, the meaning of
“in Me” becomes apparent also. Both kinds of branches may be in Christ
and may be abiding, since they both existed and were desired on every
vine in Jesus’ day. Denying that the unfruitful branch of v 2 is attached
to the vine violates the reality of the world from which the description
arose.
What about Jesus’ instructions to abide (meno„, v 4)? He told His
disciples that they were fruiting branches that had been “cleansed” and
so they could anticipate immediate fruitfulness, though that depended on
their maintaining a proper relationship (“abiding”) with Him. He implied
by this that others were believing in Him who were not yet ready to bear

70
Pliny, Natural History 17.35.
71
Ibid.
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 41

fruit, but who needed to maintain a proper relationship with Him, to

abide in Him (i.e., to stay in fellowship with Him) in order to bear fruit
eventually. This understanding of vv 3-5 conforms to the cultural prac-
tices from which the analogy arose.
F. THE NONABIDING BRANCHES
The nonabiding branches of v 6 are not the same as the unfruitful
branches of v 2. Verse 6 does not raise the issue of fruitfulness reflected
in v 2 and is not looking at the same time of year. Sprigs cleaned from
the vines in the spring would be too small and succulent to do more than
wither away. They would not have enough wood in them to form a pile
and make a fire. There also would not be any adventitious “branches”
with sufficient time to develop woody stems, but only succulent sprouts.
Even a two-foot long sprout would wither to practically nothing in the
spring. To build a fire as described in v 6, mature wood would have to be
removed. This happens in the severe pruning at the beginning of the
dormant season after all fruit has been harvested, and all branches look
alike. It happens to fruitful as well as unfruitful branches.
Rather than warning of discipline or judgment, v 6 illustrates use-
lessness in light of dormant-season pruning. Within the vine-and-branch
analogy, the best illustration of the uselessness resulting from a failure to
abide could come only from the postharvest pruning. Everything pruned
in early spring was either growing from a branch (sprigs and suckers),
the branch not being removed, or from an undesired location on the
trunk. Only at the end of the season would “branches” be removed, piled
up, and burned. In fact Jesus may have chosen to allude to postharvest
cultural practices specifically because He did not want His disciples mis-
takenly to link fruitfulness or fruitlessness to divine discipline. Rather,
He wanted them to see the importance of abiding. In a vineyard anything
not attached to the vine is useless and discarded. A part of the discarding
process at the end of the productive season is the burning of dry materi-
als. The burning need not describe judgment; it is simply one step in the
process being described. It is what happens to pruned materials. Their
uselessness, not their destruction, is being emphasized.
The two verses following this illustration help clarify Jesus’ point.
He was clearly addressing His believing disciples. He linked answered
prayer to abiding (v 7) and His Father’s glory to their fruit bearing (v 8).
Both abiding and fruit bearing, developed and defined in vv 4 and 5, are
related directly and conditionally to the men standing in Jesus’ presence.
Both vv 6 and 7 begin with third-class conditional clauses, indicating that
42 Journal of the Grace Evangelical Society Spring 2005

it was possible for the disciples, undeniably identified by “you” in v 7, to

fail to abide. If they could fail to abide in v 7, they could also be de-
scribed by and subject to the warning in v 6. When the fruitfulness that
results from abiding demonstrates their relationship to Christ as His dis-
ciples (v 8) and is seen in light of the promises of vv 5 and 7, their use-
fulness as His disciples must be in view in the warning in v 6. This is
especially true since the focus of the whole passage is on what they were
to experience in this life following Jesus’ departure, not the one to come.
If one takes the fire to represent the judgment of nonbelievers in hell,
it must be based on failure to abide, not on failure to bear fruit, since
fruitfulness is not mentioned in v 6, though it is the issue of the passage.
But Jesus’ excluding it from this verse is significant. How can one be a
branch attached to Christ and then become detached without ever having
been regenerate or without losing salvation? The “Israel within an Israel”
answer is woefully inadequate. The best solution for a person who con-
siders this a commentary on justification would be that Jesus was not
implying a separation from Him but that the branches never abided in
Him. The problem with this is that it would mean, strangely, that Jesus
issued a warning to unbelievers in the middle of encouraging His disci-
ples, individuals who believed in Him but who needed to be strengthened
to keep trusting Him in view of what they would experience over the
next three days. If uselessness was not Jesus’ point, then the only inter-
pretation for anyone holding eternal security would be spiritual decline
and discipline by death for persistently disobedient believers.

VI. CONCLUSION
When Jesus gave the analogy of the vine and the branches, He based
it on the cultural practice of His day, which was to clean up only the
fruit-bearing branches and tidy up the rows during the early spring
growth following blooming. Severe pruning and removal of branches did
not occur until the grapes were harvested and dormancy was being in-
duced. Since Jesus was speaking in the spring, it is more natural to see
His words in John 15:2 as referring to the spring practice. The viticul-
tural use of kathairei, which described the removal of sprouts from fruit-
ing branches, should inform the meaning of airei. Both actions occurring
simultaneously, the verse looks at the farmer’s care for all the branches
belonging to the vine, whether fruiting or not. That v 6 looks at the fall,
postharvest pruning is seen in the practice of burning all the wood not
 Viticulture and John 15:1-6 43

attached to the vine. Thus even if v 6 is seen as teaching a judgment on

those who do not abide in Christ, it cannot be used to inform the meaning
of v 2. They are separate practices from opposite ends of the season and
would have been understood as such by the apostles.
Jesus’ message to His disciples was that, though He was departing,
the Father was still caring for them. To bear the fruit God intended, they
needed to continue to rely on Jesus and to respond to His instruction. If
they chose not to “abide,” they would not bear fruit and would therefore
not be used by God.