Reverend Jonas Nightengale, is a slick-as-oil flimflam man who'll trade salvation for a donation to his touring ministry. Jonas knows how to work a crowd and a con, but his works of wonder are done with mirrors and smoke. When his tour bus breaks down, Jonas pitches his tents in impoverished Rustwater, Kansas. While his alluring manager tries to persuade the local sheriff not to close the show, Jonas sets his sights on a beautiful skeptic named Marva....