The priests, the servants of the Lord, weep because the sacrifices and offerings are no longer made in accordance with the law, particularly lamenting the absence of tithes that were once provided. The entire land mourns metaphorically for its inhabitants; wheat, wine, and oil are scarce, and the farmers and vine dressers are filled with shame and grief as not only the wheat has perished, but also the barley which is more valuable and abundant. The harvest of the field, representing all that the earth normally yields, has ceased. The absence of wheat, wine, oil, and barley is evident even as the fruits on the trees have withered—the fig tree, the pomegranate, the palm, the apple, and all other trees, whether fruitful or barren, have been laid waste by locusts. This was meant to ensure that the joy of humanity would end or be turned to reproach.
A parallel can be drawn to the Jewish people following the arrival of the Savior, as they screamed in anger: "Crucify Him, crucify Him; we have no king but Caesar" (John 19:6, 15). During the siege of Jerusalem by an army, the Jews faced severe famine and pestilence, leading them to unspeakable desperation, and the sacrifices, along with the joy of humanity, were halted because they refused to accept the joy proclaimed by the angel to the shepherds: "I bring you good tidings of great joy" (Luke 2:10).
The deeper significance of this passage appears to indicate that when the bride, who has received divine revelation, is separated due to sin from her bridegroom and is clothed in garments of mourning rather than fine linen, the sacrifice mentioned—"The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit" (Psalm 51:17)—and the libation of joy that nourishes the heart has ceased in the house of God—that is, in the Church, as the Apostle Paul instructs Timothy regarding how to conduct oneself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God (1 Timothy 3:15). The offerings in the house of the Lord will transform when, due to the increase of iniquity, love diminishes (Matthew 24:12), and when the leaders of the Church become true ministers of God. This occurs when the leaders of the people and ministers of the altar observe that the fields and plains of the faithful fail to yield the fruits of virtue, being overrun with the thorns of vice. When the wheat, barley, vines, and oil are consumed by pests, we will no longer have the glorious cup mentioned in Scripture: "Thy cup runs over" (Psalm 23:5); and the oil referred to in Ecclesiastes, "Always be clothed in white, and always anoint your head with oil" (Ecclesiastes 9:8), which brings life to the countenance and is used by those who fast to anoint their heads.
Farmers will feel shame when they see their fields failing to produce wheat, the nourishment for people, and barley, which sustains animals. They will mourn over grapes that were meant to yield abundance but instead produced only thorns (Hosea 10:1). The fig tree, which Nathanael stood beneath before believing (John 1:48), the pomegranate, emblematic of the bride in the Song of Solomon (Song of Solomon 6:7), and the palm tree, which has withered after losing its moisture, will join in this lamentation. The psalmist once affirmed, "The righteous shall flourish like a palm tree” (Psalm 92:12). The apple tree is likewise mentioned in the Song of Solomon, "As the apple tree among the trees of the wood, so is my beloved among the sons" (Song of Solomon 2:3). Ultimately, there is no need to list each tree, as everything has withered, and instead of joy, sorrow and shame prevail among humanity.
THEOSIS