Notes on Jacob 5: Understanding the Attributes of Jesus Christ
The Centrality of Jesus Christ in Jacob 5
Jacob 5 is often viewed as a dissertation on the scattering and gathering of Israel, but its deeper purpose, as Elder Holland emphasizes, is about Jesus Christ from the outset.
We tend to compartmentalize gospel topics, but Jacob 5 demonstrates how all threads interweave around Christ. Understanding Him allows us to comprehend the scattering and gathering, His Atonement, the Plan of Salvation, faith, the Fall, and repentance as an interconnected tapestry, not separate compartments.
Elder Holland: "Even as the Lord of the vineyard and his workers strive to bolster, prune, purify, and otherwise make productive their trees in what amounts to a one chapter historical sketch of the scattering and gathering of Israel, the deeper meaning of the atonement undergirds and over arches their labors."
This quote is crucial to remember; it re-frames how we should approach Jacob 5. It's not just about botanical insights or historical processes, but about getting to know God and Jesus Christ.
Three Necessities for Faith in God (Lectures on Faith)
From the "Lectures on Faith" (believed to be a compilation involving Joseph Smith), three things are necessary to exercise faith in God unto life and salvation:
First: The idea that God actually exists.
Second: A correct idea of His character, perfections, and attributes.
Having false, misunderstood, or watered-down understandings of God severely affects our ability to exercise faith in Him.
While we might recognize many divine attributes in a quiz, applying them to daily actions is harder. For example, if God is omniscient, how does that affect our prayers? If He is loving, how does that impact our feelings about our circumstances?
Third: An actual knowledge that the course of life which one is pursuing is according to His will.
This lesson focuses primarily on the second necessity: identifying the character, perfections, and attributes of God (Character, Perfections, and Attributes of God).
We are encouraged to compile a comprehensive list of these attributes from the scriptures.
The Four Visits in Jacob 5
Jacob 5 is structured around four distinct visits from the Master of the Vineyard. While all are important, the first two are explored in more detail.
Perspective: For optimal understanding, consider yourself as "the tree" in the allegory, internalizing everything that happens to it.
First Visit (Jacob 5:3-14)
Jacob 5:3: The House of Israel is likened to a "tame olive tree."
Jacob 5:4: The Master sees the tree decaying and commands to "prune, and dig about it, and nurture it; perhaps it may shoot forth young and tender branches, and flourish."
Attributes of God revealed in Verse 4:
Hard worker: He labors for us (Moses 1:39). He gets "dirt under his fingernails."
Caring: He cares deeply, more than we often care for plants.
Humble: The Master himself is involved in the manual labor, not just servants.
Attentive: He pays close attention to our state.
Proactive: He intervenes before decay becomes irreversible.
Involved: He is directly engaged in our development.
Modeling: He sets an example of diligence and care.
Actions of the Master:
Nourishes: Our favorite part, showing His tender care.
Prunes: This often involves cutting out things to help us produce more fruit, reflecting His love and desire for us to become what He knows we can be. Pruning can be painful but necessary (e.g., pruning apple trees to prevent branches from breaking and to produce larger, edible fruit).
Digs about (the roots): This breaks up bound roots, allowing them to go deeper, symbolizing changing our circumstances or removing negative influences without necessarily moving us (e.g., Daniel thriving in Babylon, not being removed from it).
Jacob 5:7: The Master says, "it grieveth me that I should lose this tree." He commands to pluck branches from a wild olive tree and graft them in, while burning the withered ones.
Attributes of God revealed in Verse 7:
Empathy/Grieving God: He "grieves" for us (the word appears around 7 times in Jacob 5). He cries with us, like Jesus with Mary and Martha for Lazarus.
Seeing/Aware God: He is constantly aware of our state.
Gathering/Scooping Up God: He actively gathers and brings us to Him.
Compassionate: He seeks to fix and save, not just discard (unlike how we might treat a struggling plant in our yard, planting a new one).
Burning God/Just God: While not often highlighted, He is also a just God who is willing to do what is necessary, even if it involves burning the corrupt branches for the tree's ultimate salvation. He grieves while doing it, but His justice is intertwined with His mercy.
The word "perhaps" (Jacob 5:4): This indicates God's unwavering hope and loyalty, even when the outcome is uncertain. He invests in us even when there's a chance His efforts might not immediately "work out." This shows His immense hope in us.
God's Joy in Mercy: Elder Holland once stated that "surely the thing God enjoys most about being God is the thrill of being merciful, especially to those who don't expect it and often feel they don't deserve it." This highlights God's intrinsic goodness and His desire to extend mercy.
Jacob 5:8: The Master grafts in new branches, showing He is a grafting God, actively working to help us produce good fruit.
Counseling vs. "Counsel Me Not" (Jacob 5:22):
God is willing to counsel with us when we seek guidance on paths (e.g., career choices, choosing a spouse, considering options like A, B, C, D, or E). He often trusts our agency, sometimes saying "it mattereth not" which choice we make, as He can exalt us either way.
This recognizes His trust in us and our agency, which was central to the Plan of Salvation.
This aligns with doctrines like "no one can stop the work from progressing" (D&C 121:33), implying God's plans are not easily thwarted by individual choices.
However, when we try to tell God what to do, or question His overarching plan, He responds with "Counsel me not." He is omniscient and righteous, and His ways are higher than ours. He knows best.
Second Visit (Jacob 5:15, 23, 22, 25, 28)
Addressing the "unfairness" mentality: When the servant complains about the disparity of conditions ("this isn't fair," Jacob 5:21), the Master responds with "Counsel me not" (Jacob 5:22) and acknowledges He knows the conditions (I know it is).
President Packer: "Life isn't fair, nor was it meant to be." God's definition of "fair" is different from ours.
The crucial point from Jacob 5:22 is that He did the nourishing. It's "okay" because He is with them, nourishing and taking care of them, regardless of their starting position.
God's different "math": Like the parable of the talents (Matthew 25:14-30) or Elder Gilbert's "parable of the slope," God measures progression and growth differently than we do. The man with 2 talents who makes 4 is commended just as much as the man with 5 talents who makes 10 because it's about diligence and increasing from one's given starting point.
Focus on personal growth: We are encouraged to stop looking side-to-side at others' progress and rejoice in our own growth through Christ.
Jacob 5:28: The Master states He will "nourish all the fruit of the vineyard." He does not play favorites, but cares for everyone.
The Master knows potential: He, as the Creator, understands the potential of both the tree (us) and the soil (our circumstances). His perfect understanding of our pains, sorrows, and sins came at the cost of Gethsemane.
Wild Olives are Worthless: Unlike many wild fruits (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, blackberries), wild olives are bitter and worthless. They have no medicinal, oil, or food value. They are like "rocks" meant to be trod upon. This highlights that God cares deeply about what kind of fruit we produce.
Purpose of Fruit (Matthew 7): God's purpose is for us to become. In Matthew 7, Jesus teaches that at His coming, trees that produce bad fruit and trees that produce no fruit are both destroyed. The goal is to produce good fruit and fulfill our potential.
Third Visit (Jacob 5:41, 47)
Jacob 5:41: The Master weeps, saying, "What could I have done more for my vineyard?" This again reveals a Crying God who grieves over our choices and the pain they cause Him.
Jacob 5:47: He states, "Nay, I have nourished it, and I have digged about it, and I have pruned it, and I have dunged it." This reaffirms His constant, tireless efforts.
Dunging: If we find ourselves in "deep dung," it's a reminder that this can be excellent fertilizer for growth. Difficult situations, though painful, can foster spiritual development.
A Final Plea: Despite the vineyard's corruption, the servants plead, "Let us go one more time," leading to the "last visit" (the latter-day Church of Jesus Christ).
Fourth Visit (Jacob 5:71, 76)
Jacob 5:71: "Go forth and labor in the vineyard with your might. For behold, this is the last time that I shall nourish my vineyard." He invites us to participate.
Why God Invites Participation:
Not because He needs us (He is God and could do it Himself), but because we need to work.
He wants us to experience the joy of delivering and gathering.
Working allows us to become like Him; by pruning, dunging, and gathering, we learn divine attributes.
He knows that the "only real way to have joy in this life is to work with, to do this, or to engage in the gathering of Israel" (Jacob 5:75).
Even though our efforts might "slow down" the work in a practical sense (like a parent trying to work with small children), the goal is our growth and experience, not just efficiency.
Conversion and Service: We all start as "trees." Through God's work, we are transformed into His "servants." Working with Him keeps us closer to Him.
Reflection: What did you learn about Christ from this study? How does knowing these attributes affect your daily life and your ability to trust Him more fully? Trust in God grows as we understand His character and perfections.