31 And now, behold,
are ye sure that this is a good seed? I say unto you, Yea; for every seed
bringeth forth unto its own likeness.
32 Therefore, if a
seed groweth it is good, but if it groweth not, behold it is not good,
therefore it is cast away.
33 And now, behold,
because ye have tried the experiment, and planted the seed, and it swelleth and
sprouteth, and beginneth to grow, ye must needs know that the seed is good.
34 And now, behold, is
your knowledge perfect? Yea, your knowledge is perfect in that thing, and your
faith is dormant; and this because you know, for ye know that the word hath
swelled your souls, and ye also know that it hath sprouted up, that your
understanding doth begin to be enlightened, and your mind doth begin to expand.
35 O then, is not this
real? I say unto you, Yea, because it is light; and whatsoever is light, is
good, because it is discernible, therefore ye must know that it is good; and
now behold, after ye have tasted this light is your knowledge perfect?
36 Behold I say unto you,
Nay; neither must ye lay aside your faith, for ye have only exercised your
faith to plant the seed that ye might try the experiment to know if the seed
was good.
37 And behold, as the
tree beginneth to grow, ye will say: Let us nourish it with great care, that it
may get root, that it may grow up, and bring forth fruit unto us. And now
behold, if ye nourish it with much care it will get root, and grow up, and
bring forth fruit.
38 But if ye neglect
the tree, and take no thought for its nourishment, behold it will not get any
root; and when the heat of the sun cometh and scorcheth it, because it hath no
root it withers away, and ye pluck it up and cast it out.
39 Now, this is not
because the seed was not good, neither is it because the fruit thereof would
not be desirable; but it is because your ground is barren, and ye will not
nourish the tree, therefore ye cannot have the fruit thereof.
40 And thus, if ye
will not nourish the word, looking forward with an eye of faith to the fruit thereof,
ye can never pluck of the fruit of the tree of life.
41 But if ye will
nourish the word, yea, nourish the tree as it beginneth to grow, by your faith
with great diligence, and with patience, looking forward to the fruit thereof,
it shall take root; and behold it shall be a tree springing up unto everlasting
life.
42 And because of your
diligence and your faith and your patience with the word in nourishing it, that
it may take root in you, behold, by and by ye shall pluck the fruit thereof,
which is most precious, which is sweet above all that is sweet, and which is
white above all that is white, yea, and pure above all that is pure; and ye
shall feast upon this fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not,
neither shall ye thirst.
43 Then, my brethren,
ye shall reap the rewards of your faith, and your diligence, and patience, and
long-suffering, waiting for the tree to bring forth fruit unto you. (Alma
32:31-43)
Alma continues to explain the seed.
If a seed grows, it is a good seed. He asks if they are sure
it is a good seed. It is, “for every seed bringeth forth unto its own likeness”
(Alma 32:31). If the seed grows, it is good; if it doesn’t grow, it is to be
cast away.
They have tried his experiment. They planted the seed. It sprouted
and begin to grow. This is how they know the seed is good.
As the seed grow, is their knowledge perfect? “The law of
the Lord is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the Lord is sure,
making wise the simple” (Psalm 19:7).
“The fear of the Lord [OR reverence of the LORD] is the
beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction” (Proverbs 1:7).
If the seed grows, their knowledge becomes perfect in which
they had faith. Faith becomes dormant, and it sprouts and they become
enlightened and their mind begins to expand.
The brother of Jared is an example of this. “And because of
the knowledge of this man he could not be kept from beholding within the veil;
and he saw the finger of Jesus, which, when he saw, he fell with fear; for he
knew that it was the finger of the Lord; and he had faith no longer, for he
knew, nothing doubting” (Ether 3:19).
“We have come a long distance in our understanding of faith.
We have come from faith not being a perfect knowledge to a knowledge which is
perfect … [T]his entire process whereby we begin to experience the fruits of
truth and to know one thing and then another is faith. Understood as this
process, faith leads us to a knowledge as sure and as perfect as any we could
ever want. Faith could not become knowledge unless it already was knowledge. In
a very real sense faith is knowledge—not the knowledge whose claim to
perfection is in sensory experience or in rational argument, but the knowledge
whose claim to perfection is in discernible and undeniable experience.”[1]
This is real because what ever is light is good. It is evident.
Ye know it is good. After they have “tasted” this light, do they have perfect
knowledge?
No, and they should not lay aside their faith. They have
only exercised it to plant the seed to try the experiment and determine the
seed is good.
As the tree grows, they are to nourish it with great care.
It will take root, grown and bring forth fruit.
If they neglect the tree and provide no nourishment it will
not take root. It will be scorched by the sun and withers and dies.
“Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in
man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord” (Jeremiah
17:5).
“For every one that doeth evil hateth the light” (John 3:20).
“And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man can
come unto me, except it were given unto him of my Father.
“From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked
no more with him” (John 6:65-66).[2]
“And it came to pass that there arose a mist of darkness;
yea, even an exceedingly great mist of darkness, insomuch that they who had
commenced in the path did lose their way, that they wandered off and were lost…
“And after they had tasted of the fruit they were ashamed,
because of those that were scoffing at them; and they fell away into forbidden
paths and were lost” (1 Nephi 8:23, 28).
Should it die, it was not because the seed wasn’t good; nor was
it because the fruit was not desirable. It was not because the ground was
barren.
“Some [seeds] fell upon stony [IE rocky land over which a
thin layer of soil is spread] places, where they had not much earth: and
forthwith they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth:
“And when the sun was up, they were scorched; and because
they had no root, they withered away” (Matthew 13:5-6).
It was because they failed to nourish the tree. There would
be no fruit to harvest. They can never harvest the fruit of the tree of life.
However, should they nourish the tree, it will grow through
their faith and diligence. When the fruit takes root, it will be a tree springing
unto everlasting life. “But unto him that keepeth my commandments I will give
the mysteries of my kingdom, and the same shall be in him a well of living
water, springing up unto everlasting life” (D&C 63:23).
“Partaking of the fruit is described by Alma as tasting
light (Alma 32:35). Tasting the light is not sufficient, though. Alma teaches
that this tree of life, or tree of light, must be nourished until it becomes ‘a
tree springing up unto everlasting life’ (Alma 32:41).”[3]
Through their diligence and faith, along with patience, the
word is nourished and takes root.
“Thou hast commanded us to keep thy precepts diligently” (Psalm
119:4).
“Therefore, as ye abound in every thing, in faith, and
utterance, and knowledge, and in all diligence, and in your love to us, see
that ye abound in this grace also” (2 Corinthians 8:7).
They will then pick the fruit and feat upon “feast upon this
fruit even until ye are filled, that ye hunger not, neither shall ye thirst”
(Alma 32:42).
“For the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof ye
heard before in the word of the truth of the gospel;
“Which is come unto you, as it is in all the world; and bringeth
forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since the day ye heard of it, and knew the
grace of God in truth”[4]
(Colossians 1:5-6).
“Because the Zoramites had once known the doctrines of the
gospel, Alma did not begin by teaching them basic principles, but instead
encouraged them to put what they knew into practice—to act upon the “seed,” or
word of God, that they already possessed (see Alma 32). In developing his
metaphor of the seed, Alma placed great emphasis on patience and diligence (see
Alma 32:41–43), virtues they apparently had neglected before their dissent,
resulting in failure to nurture the word. Accordingly, Alma promised that if this
time they would nurture the word in patience and diligence, they would “hunger
not, neither . . . thirst” (Alma 32:42). In other words, they would no longer
feel the discontent that had driven them from their mother culture and the
teachings of the gospel.”[5]
“Then, my brethren, ye shall reap the rewards of your faith,
and your diligence, and patience, and long-suffering, waiting for the tree to
bring forth fruit unto you” (Alma 32:43).
“In developing his metaphor of the seed, Alma placed great
emphasis on patience and diligence (see Alma 32:41–43), virtues they apparently
had neglected before their dissent, resulting in failure to nurture the word.
Accordingly, Alma promised that if this time they would nurture the word in
patience and diligence, they would ‘hunger not, neither . . . thirst’ (Alma
32:42). In other words, they would no longer feel the discontent that had
driven them from their mother culture and the teachings of the gospel.”[6]
[2] “And he said, Therefore said I unto you, that no man
can come unto me, except he doth the will of my Father who
hath sent me” (JST John 6:65).
[3] Light:
A Masterful Symbol, Richard Dilworth Rust, Journal of the Book of Mormon and Other Restoration Scripture 20/1
(2011): 60.
[4] “Which is come unto you, as it is in all generations
of the world; and bringeth forth fruit, as it doth also in you, since
the day ye heard of it, and knew the grace of God in truth” (JST Colossians 1:6).
[5] The
Zoramite Separation: A Sociological Perspective, Sherrie Mills Johnson, Journal of Book of Mormon Studies 14/1
(2005): 83.
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