The Three Acts of the Drama:—First of all, Christ knew and explained to others the nature and outcome of his own mission: what his purpose was in coming to earth, how he would be received here, and what would happen after he left. These points are all touched upon in a single parable—the only parable in the Bible to which the Lord himself has left us a full explanation. The parable might be called a drama in three acts. Act One is the Lord’s earthly mission, in which he likens himself “unto a man which sowed good in his field” (Matthew 13:24 [Matt. 7:5], 37), the field being the world, (Matthew 13:38 [Matt. 7:9]). In Act Two the villain enters: “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat” (Matthew 13:25 [Matt. 7:5]), and as a result the crop was spoiled: “when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also” (Matthew 13:26 [Matt. 7:5]). This sorry state of things, with wheat and tares indistinguishably mixed together, does not represent the state of the church, for we are explicitly told that the ruined field is the world, in which the good seed (“the children of the kingdom”) have not yet been brought together (Matthew 13:27–30 [Matt. 7:5]). This time of confusion is a long one, lasting “until the harvest,” which is Act Three, entitled “the end of the world” (Matthew 13:39 [Matt. 7:9]). Here everything is set to rights again, and the wheat is finally gathered together out of the world and “into my barn” (Matthew 13:30 [Matt. 7:5]). “A gathering out” happens to be the very meaning of the world ekklesia—”church.” In the settling of accounts in the last act the tares are bound in bundles for the burning, and “then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father” (Matthew 13:43 [Matt. 7:9]; italics added), “so shall it be at the end of this world” (Matthew 13:40 [Matt. 7:9]). It is a happy ending, indeed, but a delayed one: first the Lord, then the adversary, who is the devil (Matthew 13:39 [Matt. 7:9]), and finally the Lord again.
The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares
Wheat and tares grow together in the field of the world until the harvest at the end of the age.
Note. Preserved in Matthew alone. Mark and Luke carry the Sower, but the Tares, and the Savior’s own interpretation of it, are Matthew’s witness only.
? How to read this edition
The reading is the Joseph Smith Translation, in the text of the Covenant Christian Edition, carried beside each Gospel and set against the King James baseline. Headers give both numbering systems: the CCE chapter and verse, and the traditional KJV reference.
Each movement Joseph discusses carries a JS link down to his letter; the letter carries a roman-numeral link back up to the movement.
A man sows good seed; while he sleeps, an enemy sows tares among the wheat.
24Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a man who sowed good seed in his field, 25but while men he slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26But when the blade was sprung up and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. 27So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, did not you sow good seed in your field? From where then does it have tares? 28He said unto them, An enemy has done this. And the servants said unto him, Do you desire then that we go and gather them up? 29But he said, Nay, lest while you gather up the tares, you root up also the wheat with them. 30Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn. the wheat into my barns, and the tares are bound in bundles to be burned.
All this he spoke in parables, that the word of the prophet might be fulfilled.
34All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitudes in parables, and without a parable spoke he not unto them, 35that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.
The disciples ask; the Son of Man names the field, the seed, the enemy, and the harvest.
36Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And his disciples came unto him, saying, Declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. 37He answered and said unto them, He that sows the good seed is the Son of Man. 38The field is the world. The good seed are the children of the kingdom, but the tares are the children of the wicked. 39The enemy that sowed them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the world, or the destruction of the wicked, and the reapers are the angels or the messengers sent of Heaven. 40As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of this world, or the destruction of the wicked. 41The Son of man shall send forth his angels, For in that day, before the Son of Man shall come, he shall send forth his angels and messengers of Heaven, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend and them who do iniquity, 42And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: and shall cast them out among the wicked. And there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth, for the world shall be burned with fire. 43Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who has ears to hear, let him hear.
Joseph Smith on the Wheat and Tares
And all eternity is pained, and the angels are waiting the great command to reap down the earth, to gather the tares that they may be burned, and behold, the enemy is combined.
The Parable Explained by Revelation
D&C 86:1–7 (CCE T&C 84:1–2) · December 6, 1832 · scriptures.info ↗Truly thus says the Lord unto you my servants, concerning the parable of the wheat and of the tares: Behold, truly I say that the field was the world, and the apostles were the sowers of the seed. And after they have fallen asleep, the great persecutor of the church, the apostate, the whore, even Babylon, that makes all nations to drink of her cup, in whose heart the enemy, even Satan, sits to reign, behold, he sows the tares. Wherefore, the tares choke the wheat and drive the church into the wilderness.
But behold, in the last days, even now while the Lord is beginning to bring forth the word, and the blade is springing up and is yet tender, behold, truly I say unto you, the angels are crying unto the Lord day and night, who are ready and waiting to be sent forth to reap down the fields. But the Lord says unto them, Pluck not up the tares while the blade is yet tender (for truly your faith is weak) so that you don’t destroy the wheat also. Therefore, let the wheat and the tares grow together until the harvest is fully ripe, then you shall first gather out the wheat from among the tares. And after the gathering of the wheat, behold and lo, the tares are bound in bundles and the field remains to be burned.
The Harvest and the Gathering
D&C 101:63–66 (CCE T&C 101:14) · December 16–17, 1833 · scriptures.info ↗And again, truly I say unto you, I will show unto you wisdom in me, concerning all the churches, inasmuch as they are willing to be guided in a right and proper way for their salvation, that the work of the gathering together of my saints may continue, that I may build them up unto my name upon holy places, for the time of harvest is come and my word must needs be fulfilled. Therefore, I must gather together my people according to the parable of the wheat and the tares, that the wheat may be secured in the garner, to possess eternal life and be crowned with Celestial glory when I come in the kingdom of my Father, to reward every man according as his work shall be, while the tares shall be bound in bundles and their bands made strong, that they may be burned with unquenchable fire.
The Lord Wants the Tares and Wheat to Grow Together
This is not an exposition of the parable. In a letter to the church officers in Missouri, signed by Joseph Smith, Oliver Cowdery, W. W. Phelps and John Whitmer, the presidency applied the householder’s ruling in verse 30 to the church: in Zion’s region the elders had no authority to hold courts, and were to stop trying members and go and preach instead. It is shown for that application of the verse.
Letter to John Burk and the church officers in Missouri, 1 June 1835, Kirtland, Ohio (Phelps likely wrote it; published, revised, as “To the Saints Scattered Abroad,” Messenger and Advocate, June 1835; Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, p. 76) · Joseph Smith Papers ↗Also recorded in the revised version published in the Messenger and Advocate, June 1835.
Now the Lord wants the tares and wheat to grow to gether while in an organized states,; Zion must be redeemed with Judgments and her Converts by righteousness: Every elder that can, after he has provided for his family (if any he has) and paid his debts must go forth and clear his skirts from the blood of this generation: while they are there, instead of holding courts to stop communion, or any thing else, let every one laber to bind up the broken hearted; reclaim the wanderer, and persuade back into the Kingdom, such as have been cut off. by encouraging them to lay to and work rightousness, and prepare with one heart and one mind to redeem Zion, that goodly land of promise, where the willing and the obedient shall be blessed. Souls are as precious in the sight of God as they ever were, and the elders were never called to drive any down to hell, but invite and persuade men every where to repent—
Joseph Smith’s 1835 letter to the Elders moves from the Sower directly into the Wheat and the Tares. This is the next portion of that same letter, published in the Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate (December 1835, 2:226–227).
Letter to the Elders of the Church, 30 Nov.–1 Dec. 1835 · Joseph Smith Papers ↗Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, (which parable has an allusion to the setting up of the kingdom, in that age of the world also)
the kingdom of Heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field, but while men slept an enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way; but when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also; so the servants of the householder came and said unto him, sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, an enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him wilt thou then that we go and gather them up; but he said nay, lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them.— Let both grow together until the harvest, and in the time of the harvest, I will say to the reapers, gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles, to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn.
Now we learn by this parable, not only the setting up of the kingdom in the days of the Savior, which is represented by the good seed, which produced fruit, but also the corruptions of the church, which is represented by the tares, which were sown by the enemy, which his disciples would fain have plucked up, or cleansed the church of, if their views had been favored by the Savior; but he, knowing all things, says not so; as much as to say, your views are not correct, the church is in its infancy, and if you take this rash step, you will destroy the wheat or the church with the tares:
therefore it is better to let them grow together until the harvest, or the end of the world, which means the destruction of the wicked; which is not yet fulfilled; as we shall show hereafter, in the Savior’s explanation of the parable, which is so plain, that there is no room left for dubiety upon the mind, notwithstanding the cry of the priests, parables, parables! figures, figures! mystery, mystery! all is mystery! but we find no room for doubt here, as the parables were all plainly elucidated.
The End of the World Is the Destruction of the Wicked
The same letter, after the Mustard Seed and the Leaven, comes back to this parable with Jesus’ own explanation of it, as it had promised. The harvest and “the end of the world,” it says, are not figures: they mean the destruction of the wicked, and refer “directly to the human family in the last days, instead of the earth, as many have imagined.”
Letter to the Elders of the Church, 30 Nov.–1 Dec. 1835 · Latter Day Saints’ Messenger and Advocate (Dec. 1835), 2:228–229 · Joseph Smith Papers ↗Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house, and his disciples came unto him, saying, declare unto us the parable of the tares of the field. He answered and said unto them, he that soweth the good seed is the son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom, but the tares are the children of the wicked one.
Now let our readers mark the expression, the field is the world; the tares are the children of the wicked one: the enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world. Let them carefully mark this expression also, the end of the world, and the reapers are the angels. Now men cannot have any possible grounds to say that this is figurative, or that it does not mean what it says; for he is now explaining what he had previously spoken in parables; and according to this language, the end of the world is the destruction of the wicked; the harvest and the end of the world have an allusion directly to the human family in the last days, instead of the earth, as many have imagined, and that which shall precede the coming of the Son of man, and the restitution of all things spoken of by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began; and the angels are to have something to do in this great work, for they are the reapers: as therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the end of this world; that is, as the servants of God go forth warning the nations, both priests and people, and as they harden their hearts and reject the light of the truth, these first being delivered over unto the buffetings of satan, and the law and the testimony being closed up, as it was with the Jews, they are left in darkness, and delivered over unto the day of burning: thus being bound up by their creeds and their bands made strong by their priests, are prepared for the fulfilment of the saying of the Savior: the Son of man shall send forth his angels, and gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire and there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.
We understand, that the work of the gathering together of the wheat into barns, or garners, is to take place while the tares are being bound over, and preparing for the day of burning: that after the day of burnings, the righteous shall shine forth like the sun, in the kingdom of their Father: who hath ears to hear let him hear.
The Son of Man Shall Send Forth His Angels
In a Commerce sermon on the priesthood and its keys, Joseph Smith cited verse 41 by chapter and verse. The angels the Son of Man sends forth are the men who held the keys in earlier ages, now in heaven, whose children are on the earth; they will come down and join in the work of the last days.
Discourse, between circa 26 June and circa 4 August 1839, Commerce, Illinois (Willard Richards, “W. Richards Pocket Companion Written in England,” probably recorded by John Taylor; Words of Joseph Smith, “Before 8 August 1839 (1)”) · Joseph Smith Papers ↗These men are in heaven, but their children are on Earth. Their bowels yearn over us. God sends down men for this reason, Mat. 13.41. & the Son of man shall send forth his angels &c— All these authoritative characters will come down & join hand in hand in bringing about this work—
Parables: The Harvest Cannot Come Without Angels
A short sermon headed “Parables,” preached at Commerce the same summer and never printed in the Teachings, reads the Tares as Jesus explained them: the reapers are the angels, and the harvest cannot come until they are sent. It moves on through the other parables of the chapter, so it is given here whole.
Discourse, between circa 26 June and circa 4 August 1839, Commerce, Illinois (Willard Richards, “W. Richards Pocket Companion Written in England,” probably recorded by John Taylor; Words of Joseph Smith, “Before 8 August 1839 (2)”) · Joseph Smith Papers ↗Behold a sower went forth to Sow &c Our Savior is the sower; the people are the world; the harvest is the end of the world; the reapers are the angels The end of the world is not come, consequently the Harvest. The harvest cannot come without Angels; The Son of man is to send forth his Angels. The Son of Man Said that the Saints shall Judge the world & Angels.— God has revealed himself. when they come up before God they will be asked did this Angel perform this or that. that he was sent to do. if not they will be judged— The world judgd— Some fell among thorns &c—
God sows— The enemy comes & Sows parties divisions. heresies; Shall we kill them? NO. not till harvest— The end of the world. The Son of God will do as he ever has done from the beginning. Send forth his Angels. If the reapers do not come, the wheat cannot be Saved. Nothing but the Kingdom being restored, can save the world.
Like unto a treasure hid in a field. This figure is a representation of the [kingdom] in the last days. Michael = Adam. Noah. I am Gabriel— Well says I. Who are you? I am Peter, the Angel flying through the midst of heaven Moroni delivered the book of Mormon. The pearl of great price is the inheritance prepared for the Saints. Sell all you have got, purchase &c.
What is the end of the world? the destruction of the wicked. The Angels have begun to be revealed. They shall bind up the testimony Like unto a merchantman buying goodly Pearls A net that gathers of every kind. The wheat gathered into barns; the tares left on the field to be burned. The Net gathers in of every kind. Those who held Keys were more concerned about their children than themselves. It happens to be our Lot to live in a day when this takes place.
The World and Earth Are Not Synonymous Terms
Joseph Smith is not expounding this parable here. At the opening of a school of instruction in Nauvoo in January 1841 he stated in two sentences the rule behind his reading of “the end of the world” in verses 39 and 40: the world is the human family, not the earth. Ehat and Cook tie the distinction to his translation of Matthew 24, which reads “the end of the world” as “the destruction of the wicked.”
Discourse, 5 January 1841, Nauvoo (Old Homestead) · Extracts from William Clayton’s Private Book; Words of Joseph Smith, 60 · Joseph Smith Papers ↗… The world and earth are not synonymous terms. The world is the human family. …
A Drama in Three Acts
The wheat and the tares, the one parable the Lord himself fully explained, Nibley read as a drama in three acts: the Lord’s sowing, the enemy’s counter-sowing while men slept, and the harvest at the end of the world.