5 Wherefore, my
beloved brethren, I beseech of you in words of soberness that ye would repent,
and come with full purpose of heart, and cleave unto God as he cleaveth unto
you. And while his arm of mercy is
extended towards you in the light of the day, harden not your hearts.
6 Yea, today, if ye
will hear his voice, harden not your hearts; for why will ye die?
7 For behold, after ye
have been nourished by the good word of God all the day long, will ye bring
forth evil fruit, that ye must be hewn down and cast into the fire?
8 Behold, will ye
reject these words? Will ye reject the
words of the prophets; and will ye reject all the words which have been spoken
concerning Christ, after so many have spoken concerning him; and deny the good word
of Christ, and the power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the
Holy Spirit, and make a mock of the great plan of redemption, which hath been
laid for you?
Jacob 6:5-8
Jacob continues to preach to the Nephites. He called on them to repent and cleave to
God. Moses taught the Israelites, “Thou
shalt fear the LORD thy God; him shalt thou serve, and to him shalt thou
cleave, and swear [OR make an oath in] by his name” (Deuteronomy 10:20). Joshua taught, “But cleave unto the LORD your
God, as ye have done unto this day” (Joshua 23:8). Mormon would write about the situation with
the Nephites. “Therefore the Lord did
cease to preserve them by his miraculous and matchless power, for they had
fallen into a state of unbelief and awful wickedness; and they saw that the
Lamanites were exceedingly more numerous than they, and except they should
cleave unto the Lord their God they must unavoidably perish” (Helaman 4:25).
John Tvedtnes explains:
“Jacob continued his explanation by using elements also
found in Lehi’s vision of the tree of life (1 Nephi 8). He noted the invitation
to come to God (Jacob 6:5), similar to Lehi's invitation to his family (1 Nephi
8:15–18). He exhorted his audience to cleave to God (Jacob 6:5); Lehi had seen
people clinging to the rod of iron (1 Nephi 8:24, 30), which Nephi identified
as the word of God (1 Nephi 15:23–24).”[1]
God’s “arms of mercy” is extended to the Nephites if they
don’t harden their hearts. Lehi would
teach his family in the New World, “But behold, the Lord hath redeemed my soul
from hell; I have beheld his glory, and I am encircled about eternally in the
arms of his love” (2 Nephi 1:15). The
voice of the Lord would tell the Nephites that survived the calamities, “Yea,
verily I say unto you, if ye will come unto me ye shall have eternal life. Behold, mine arm of mercy is extended towards
you, and whosoever will come, him will I receive; and blessed are those who
come unto me” (3 Nephi 9:14).
It’s apparent Jacob’s teachings are influenced by his
father, Lehi.
“Both Lehi (2 Nephi 2:12) and Jacob (2 Nephi 9:12, 19,
25—26, 46, 53; Jacob 4:10; 6:5, 10) spoke of the ‘power’ and the ‘mercy’ and
the ‘justice’ of God. Each spoke of God as creator (2 Nephi 2:14—15; 9:26) and
noted that those who ‘believe’ in him will be saved (2 Nephi 2:9; 9:18). Lehi
spoke of God's ‘arms of love’ (2 Nephi 1:15), while Jacob spoke of his ‘arm of
mercy’ (Jacob 6:5).”[2]
Jacob tells them when they “have been nourished by the good
word of God,” why would they “bring forth evil fruit” and “be hewn down and
cast into the fire?” Alma2
would refer to this when teaching the people of Zarahemla. “And again I say unto you, the Spirit saith:
Behold, the ax is laid at the root of the tree; therefore every tree that
bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire, yea, a
fire which cannot be consumed, even an unquenchable fire. Behold, and remember, the Holy One hath
spoken it” (Alma 5:52).
The Savior would tell the Nephites, “But if it be not built
upon my gospel, and is built upon the works of men, or upon the works of the
devil, verily I say unto you they have joy in their works for a season, and by
and by the end cometh, and they are hewn down and cast into the fire, from
whence there is no return” (3 Nephi 27:11).
Paul Hoskisson writes:
“The roots of the main natural tree, I believe, represent
the scriptural heritage revealed by the God of Israel. (By scriptural
heritage I mean not just canonized scripture, but also all other truths that
this particular heritage might have received and does receive through
inspiration; see D&C 68:4 and Alma 29:8.) If roots are conceived of as
providing the nourishment of the word of God to the tree, Jacob
6:7 suggests this correlation of the roots with scripture. If this
correlation of roots with scriptural heritage is accurate, it would explain why
the roots remain good throughout the allegory, that is, throughout the history
of the house of Israel. The branches on the other hand can alternate between
good and bad, tame and wild. Perhaps the branches then represent the various
cultures that draw on the scriptural heritage of Israel.”[3]
Jacob asks the Nephites if they would reject his words. Would the reject the words of the prophets
and all the words that have been spoken about Christ. Will they deny the word of Christ “and the
power of God, and the gift of the Holy Ghost, and quench the Holy Spirit and
make a mock of the great plan of redemption, which hath been laid for you?”
Louis Midgley writes:
“God is carrying out a plan (see 2 Nephi 9:6, 13; Jacob
6:8) that includes the testing of his people Israel—they are on probation (see
1 Nephi 10:21; Mormon 9:28). Part of the plan is to provide a way for their
redemption from sin and darkness. But they must trust God, repent, and keep the
commandments, or the plan fails. The importance of memory, in the Book of
Mormon sense, is to bring about their obedience and so allow them to claim the
promised blessings and avoid the cursings.”[4]
[1]
Borrowings from the Parable of Zenos, John Tvedtnes, Maxwell Institute.
[2]
The Influence of Lehi's Admonitions on the Teachings of His Son Jacob, John A.
Tvedtnes, Maxwell Institute.
[3]
The Allegory of the Olive Tree in Jacob, Paul Hoskisson, Maxwell Institute.
[4]
The Ways of Remembrance, Louis Midgley, Maxwell Institute.
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