44 And thou beheldest
that I also cut down that which cumbered this spot of ground, that I might
plant this tree in the stead thereof.
45 And thou beheldest
that a part thereof brought forth good fruit, and a part thereof brought forth
wild fruit; and because I plucked not the branches thereof and cast them into
the fire, behold, they have overcome the good branch that it hath withered
away.
Jacob 5:44-45
The Lord is lamenting the fact the branch he planted is not
bringing forth good fruit. “One of the
key elements of the allegory of Zenos is the image of taking cuttings from the
tame tree and not just grafting them into other trees (Jacob 5:8–9) but
clearing the ground (Jacob 5:44) and ‘planting’ them elsewhere (Jacob 5:23, 24,
25, 54). These branches will take root (Jacob 5:54).”[1]
Matthew Roper addresses how the Nephites fit into the
allegory.
The allegory of the olive tree, as
recounted by Jacob, spells their fate out even more plainly. Branches broken
off the tame tree, which represents historical Israel (Jacob 5:3), are to be
grafted onto the roots of wild trees, meaning non-Israelite groups. In other
words, there is to be a demographic union between two groups, with "young
and tender branches" from the original tree, Israel, being grafted onto
wild rootstock in various parts of the vineyard or the earth (Jacob 5:8; see
also 14). Jacob 5:25 and 43 clearly identify Lehi's people as such a broken-off
branch. That branch is to be planted in the choicest spot of the vineyard. In
that prime location, the Lord has already cut down "that which cumbered
this spot of ground" (Jacob 5:44)—clearly a reference to the destruction
of the Jaredites.61 In
addition, the statement that one part of the new hybrid tree "brought
forth good fruit," while the other portion "brought forth wild
fruit," is an obvious reference to the Nephites and Lamanites respectively
(Jacob 5:45).[2]
Mormon used the example of the Jaredites when writing Moroni2
about the future of the Nephites. “And if they perish it will be like unto the Jaredites,
because of the wilfulness of their hearts, seeking for blood and revenge” (Moroni
9:23).
A part of the tree had brought forth good fruit and part had
brought forth wild fruit. “[T]he
statement that one part of the new hybrid tree ‘brought forth good fruit,’
while the other portion ‘brought forth wild fruit,’ is an obvious reference to
the Nephites and Lamanites respectively (Jacob 5:45).”[3]
Nephi had referred to this when teaching his brethren.
12
Behold, I say unto you, that the house of Israel was compared unto an
olive-tree, by the Spirit of the Lord which was in our father; and behold are
we not broken off from the house of Israel, and are we not a branch of the
house of Israel?
13
And now, the thing which our father meaneth concerning the grafting in of the
natural branches through the fulness of the Gentiles, is, that in the latter
days, when our seed shall have dwindled in unbelief, yea, for the space of many
years, and many generations after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto
the children of men, then shall the fulness of the gospel of the Messiah come
unto the Gentiles, and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed—
14
And at that day shall the remnant of our seed know that they are of the house
of Israel, and that they are the covenant people of the Lord; and then shall
they know and come to the knowledge of their forefathers, and also to the
knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, which was ministered unto their
fathers by him; wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer
and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him
and be saved.
15
And then at that day will they not rejoice and give praise unto their
everlasting God, their rock and their salvation? Yea, at that day, will they not receive the
strength and nourishment from the true vine?
Yea, will they not come unto the true fold of God?
16
Behold, I say unto you, Yea; they shall be remembered again among the house of
Israel; they shall be grafted in, being a natural branch of the olive-tree,
into the true olive-tree.
17
And this is what our father meaneth; and he meaneth that it will not come to
pass until after they are scattered by the Gentiles; and he meaneth that it
shall come by way of the Gentiles, that the Lord may show his power unto the
Gentiles, for the very cause that he shall be rejected of the Jews, or of the
house of Israel.
1 Nephi 15:12-17
Blessing his posterity, Lehi would tell them, “Wherefore, Joseph truly saw our day. And he obtained a promise of the Lord, that
out of the fruit of his loins the Lord God would raise up a righteous branch
unto the house of Israel; not the Messiah, but a branch which was to be broken
off, nevertheless, to be remembered in the covenants of the Lord that the
Messiah should be made manifest unto them in the latter days, in the spirit of
power, unto the bringing of them out of darkness unto light—yea, out of hidden
darkness and out of captivity unto freedom” (2 Nephi 3:5).
Moroni1 would refer to the Nephites as a remnant
of Jacob when rallying the Nephites.
24
Yea, let us preserve our liberty as a remnant of Joseph; yea, let us remember
the words of Jacob, before his death, for behold, he saw that a part of the remnant
of the coat of Joseph was preserved and had not decayed. And he said—Even as this remnant of garment
of my son hath been preserved, so shall a remnant of the seed of my son be preserved
by the hand of God, and be taken unto himself, while the remainder of the seed
of Joseph shall perish, even as the remnant of his garment.
25
Now behold, this giveth my soul sorrow; nevertheless, my soul hath joy in my
son, because of that part of his seed which shall be taken unto God.
26
Now behold, this was the language of Jacob.
Alma 46:24-26
[1]
Botanical
Aspects of Olive Culture Relevant to Jacob 5, Wilford M. Hess, Daniel
Fairbanks, John W. Welch, and Jonathan K. Driggs, Maxwell Institute, accessed
April 4, 2014.
[2]Nephi's
Neighbors: Book of Mormon Peoples and Pre-Columbian Populations, Matthew
Roper, Maxwell Institute, accessed April 16, 2014.
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