At the beginning of the Book of Mormon, readers are presented with a visionary scene describing the story of the soul. This story is Lehi’s Dream.
The dream details specific things in a particular landscape, and people’s relationships with those things and each other tell the story of the soul. Embedded are ideas for spiritual growth that can inspire believers everywhere.
The centerpiece of the landscape is a tree whose fruit represents God’s love. It is optimality—perfect joy and peace.
This fruit is found by holding an iron rod on a straight, narrow path leading to the tree. The iron rod represents the word of God. It clarifies that God speaks, and those who listen will find Him. His words are found anywhere truth is taught.
Every other location in the landscape is, at best, a waste and, at worst, terribly destructive.
Elder Bednar describes four groups of people in the dream. The set of these four covers every possible relationship an individual may have with the word of God:
- The Mockers: This group did not seek after the tree, desiring instead the great and spacious building as their ultimate destination (see 1 Nephi 8:31–33). “It was filled with people, both old and young, both male and female, and their manner of dress was exceedingly fine; and they were in the attitude of mocking and pointing their fingers towards those who had come at and were partaking of the fruit.” The word of God is a joke to these, as are people who pursue it.
- The Lost: In 1 Nephi 8:21–23 we learn about a group of people who pressed forward and commenced in the path that led to the tree of life. However, as the people encountered the mist of darkness, which represents “the temptations of the devil” (1 Nephi 12:17), they lost their way, wandered off, and were lost. Notice that no mention is made in these verses of the rod of iron. The word of God is unimportant to these.
- The Ashamed: In 1 Nephi 8:24–28 we read about a group of people who obtained the strait and narrow path that led to the tree of life. This group “did press forward through the mist of darkness, clinging to the rod of iron, even until they did come forth and partake of the fruit of the tree” (verse 24). However, as the finely dressed occupants of the great and spacious building mocked this second group of people, “they were ashamed” and “fell away into forbidden paths and were lost” (verse 28). Please notice that this group is described as “clinging to the rod of iron” (1 Nephi 8:24; emphasis added). These weakly embrace the word of God and fall away.
- The Holding Fast: In verse 30 we read about a group of people who pressed forward “continually holding fast to the rod of iron, until they came forth and fell down and partook of the fruit of the tree.” The key phrase in this verse is continually holding fast to the rod of iron. Those who “heeded [The Mockers] not” are undeterred, choosing instead to “feast upon” the word of God.
The four groups metaphorically describe our relationship with the word of God, either as whole individuals or aspects of individual character. An individual may be heading towards the tree feasting upon the word of God in one principle, such as charity, and departing from it in another, such as virtue. For other principles, consider these Christlike attributes.
Aside from the movement of people within the landscape, the only event the vision describes is the falling of the great and spacious building. “It fell, and the fall thereof was exceedingly great” (1 Nephi 11:36). Within it are The Mockers, the only group described as harming others.
This starkly contrasts The Holding Fast, described as “desirous that [others] should come and partake of the fruit also” and trying to help others find the tree and its fruit.
From recent teachings by President Oaks, we can infer that nearly everyone in the dream eventually winds up at the tree. “The revealed doctrine of the restored Church of Jesus Christ teaches that all the children of God—with exceptions too limited to consider here—will finally wind up in a kingdom of glory.” Kingdoms of glory are the permanent, eternal manifestations of God’s love.
The three kingdoms of glory may align with Lehi’s Dream:
- The Holding Fast, who feast upon the word of God while the great and spacious building is rife with mock, may inherit the Celestial Glory in a first resurrection.
- The Lost or The Ashamed, who are not valiant in pursuing the tree, waiting until the great and spacious building falls to follow the word of God, may inherit the Terrestrial Glory in a later resurrection.
- The Mockers fall with the collapse of the great and spacious building. These metaphorically may suffer the most in such an impending destruction. Their souls may experience a hellish spiritual prison while unable to move as they recover from the collapse of their pride, ultimately embracing the word of God and inheriting the Telestial Glory in a last resurrection.
God desires all to receive the fullness of His love at the tree. He wants the optimal outcome for each, even those mocking or desperately lost. He is most pleased with those who seek His word for themselves and offer a helping hand to others.
Before the fall of the great and spacious building, individuals can always decide to move towards the tree or away from it, no matter their current location within the landscape.
Of infinite possible landscapes for God to share, this is the one we received in the Book of Mormon. In understanding Lehi’s Dream and self-evaluating relative to it, we have a powerful tool for building spiritual awareness. God can help us as we humbly consider our character attributes and their relationship to our best understanding of His word.
As for anyone else, we cannot diagnose them, no matter what we think we know about them. It is not our role to judge; doing so is akin to mocking.
Earnest people of all faiths have the opportunity to hear God and approach His love. I hope and pray that we find His love by feasting upon His word as it is delivered to our hearts and minds.
I am grateful for Lehi’s Dream—this story of our souls. It is beautiful to consider. I pray that we may each see the pursuit of His word as worthwhile despite the clamor of those who mock people.
What else? What are other insights you have had studying Lehi’s dream?
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