62 Wherefore, let us
go to and labor with our might this last time, for behold the end draweth nigh,
and this is for the last time that I shall prune my vineyard.
63 Graft in the
branches; begin at the last that they may be first, and that the first may be last,
and dig about the trees, both old and young, the first and the last; and the
last and the first, that all may be nourished once again for the last time.
64 Wherefore, dig
about them, and prune them, and dung them once more, for the last time, for the
end draweth nigh. And if it be so that
these last grafts shall grow, and bring forth the natural fruit, then shall ye
prepare the way for them, that they may grow.
65 And as they begin
to grow ye shall clear away the branches which bring forth bitter fruit,
according to the strength of the good and the size thereof; and ye shall not
clear away the bad thereof all at once, lest the roots thereof should be too
strong for the graft, and the graft thereof shall perish, and I lose the trees
of my vineyard.
66 For it grieveth me
that I should lose the trees of my vineyard; wherefore ye shall clear away the
bad according as the good shall grow, that the root and the top may be equal in
strength, until the good shall overcome the bad, and the bad be hewn down and
cast into the fire, that they cumber not the ground of my vineyard; and thus
will I sweep away the bad out of my vineyard.
Jacob 5:62-66
The Lord of the vineyard continues to explain to his servant
what he will do.
This will be the last time he will do anything in the
vineyard. “This is, however, the last
time the Lord of the vineyard will, through grafting and pruning, clean and
purify the vineyard (Jacob 5:62–63; see also D&C 24:19; 39:17; 43:28; and
95:4). He will continue this process until there is no more degeneracy or
corruption anywhere in the vineyard and the whole earth is full of his glory.”[1]
The Lord had been talking about burning the vineyard. This appears to be a drastic measure. The truth is, it isn’t.
[B]urning an olive grove is a
symbol of rebirth. The Lord's efforts throughout the allegory represent the
last effort, leading to the "last time" that he will graft and plant
as he does to rejuvenate the old tree in his vineyard (Jacob 5:62–64, 71,
75–77), but the image of burning in the end is not one of destruction. It
conveys botanically the idea of starting over. It reminds us that the Lord had
preserved the roots of the young shoots planted in the nethermost parts for an
unstated future purpose (Jacob 5:54). After the vineyard is burned, the old
stump will be removed and the young roots will shoot forth new growth carrying
forth the favorable genetic [material].[2]
The Lord decided to graft branches beginning with the last
tree and continuing until he finishes with the first. The process will work the same as they
nourish the tree. They will begin with
the last tree and continue until they finish with the first tree. This is the last time he will nourish them.
The angel speaking to Nephi during his great vision told
him, “And the time cometh that he shall
manifest himself unto all nations, both unto the Jews and also unto the
Gentiles; and after he has manifested himself unto the Jews and also unto the
Gentiles, then he shall manifest himself unto the Gentiles and also unto the
Jews, and the last shall be first, and the first shall be last” (1 Nephi 13:42).
Referring to the words of Ether, Moroni2 wrote:
10
And then cometh the New Jerusalem; and blessed are they who dwell therein, for
it is they whose garments are white through the blood of the Lamb; and they are
they who are numbered among the remnant of the seed of Joseph, who were of the
house of Israel.
11
And then also cometh the Jerusalem of old; and the inhabitants thereof, blessed
are they, for they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb; and they are they
who were scattered and gathered in from the four quarters of the earth, and
from the north countries, and are partakers of the fulfilling of the covenant
which God made with their father, Abraham.
12
And when these things come, bringeth to pass the scripture which saith, there
are they who were first, who shall be last; and there are they who were last,
who shall be first.
Ether 13:10-12
The Lord told Joseph Smith, “But remember that all my judgments are not given unto men; and as the
words have gone forth out of my mouth even so shall they be fulfilled, that the
first shall be last, and that the last shall be first in all things whatsoever
I have created by the word of my power, which is the power of my Spirit” (D&C
29:30).
Writing about Zenos’s allegory, Hugh Nibley explained:
To restore the tree the Lord of the
garden must work with a will: "When I apply my hand to dig the furrows
thereof," says the Thanksgiving Hymns, "its roots strike even on
granite, its stocks are firm-grounded in the earth."60 Through Zenos the Lord commands:
"Dig about the trees, both old and young, the first and the last.
. . . Prepare the way for them, that they may grow" (Jacob 5:63—64).
And when this is done, "the natural branches began to grow and thrive
exceedingly . . . and they did keep the root . . . thereof
equal, according to the strength thereof" (Jacob 5:73).[3]
Dig around the trees, the Lord says. Prune and fertilize the trees. Again, he emphasizes, “for the last tie, for the end draweth nigh.” If the grafts grow and bring forth
natural fruit, “then shall ye prepare the
way for them, that they may grow.”
Rather than raze the unprofitable,
apostate earth, God decided to try one more time to establish the gospel on the
earth to see if the trees of the vineyard would produce good fruit. He began by
having the branches from the mother tree "grafted into the natural
trees" and branches from the natural trees "grafted into their mother
tree" (Jacob 5:55 and 56). He instructed the servant to "dig about
them, and prune them, and dung them once more, for the last time" (Jacob
5:64).[4]
As they grow, the servant is told to clear away the branches
that have bitter fruit, according to the strength and size of the roots.
In Jacob 5:65 it is
stated, "And ye shall not clear away the bad thereof all at once, lest the
roots thereof should be too strong for the graft, and the graft thereof shall
perish, and I lose the trees of my vineyard." If all of the branches were
replaced at the same time, the tree and roots could be overstressed. Perhaps
the "roots being too strong for the graft" refers to excess water and
minerals being made available at the deficit of photosynthetic products,
because the newly grafted branches would not have enough foliage to
photosynthesize and translocate carbon compounds to the roots.[5]
Don’t clear all the bad branches at once, “lest the roots thereof should be too strong
for the graft, and the graft thereof shall perish, and I lose the trees of my
vineyard.” Paul Hoskisson writes:
The gathering described in the
allegory is also deliberately slow … From the transplanted tame trees that had
become wild, natural branches would be cut and grafted back into the mother
tree, and from the mother tree which had also become wild, branches would be
grafted into the transplanted tame trees. As these branches gain strength and
as the roots can bear it, the branches that continue to produce wild fruit will
eventually be pruned out and destroyed.[6]
The Lord does not want to lose the trees in his
vineyard. The servant is told to clear
away the bad so the good grows. The root
and top of the tree should be the same in strength. The good should overcome the bad, “and the bad be hewn down and cast into the
fire.” The Lord will “sweep away the bad out of my vineyard.”
It is necessary to achieve and
maintain a proper balance between the roots and branches of the olive tree. Due
to various climate and soil conditions, the one may grow more vigorously than
the other. Pruning does not necessarily stop excessive growth when trees are
young and may even aggravate the imbalance between the above- and below-ground
portions of the tree. When trees are young with inadequate foliage, pruning
should be minimized. As trees get older more severe pruning becomes necessary
because of the now diminished root activity.[7]
[1]
The
Allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob, Paul Y. Hoskisson, Maxwell Institute,
accessed April 24, 2014.
[2]
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
[3]
Prophets
in the Wilderness, Hugh Nibley, Maxwell Institute, accessed April 24, 2014.
[4]
The
Allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob, Paul Y. Hoskisson, Maxwell Institute,
accessed April 24, 2014.
[5]
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
[6]
The
Allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob, Paul Y. Hoskisson, Maxwell Institute,
accessed April 24, 2014.
[7]
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
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