Nephi records a vision his father received. Lehi went out and prayed on behalf of his
people. He was following Jeremiah’s
words, “Then shall ye call upon me,
and ye shall go and pray unto me, and I will hearken [HEB hear you] unto you. And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye
shall search for me with all your heart” (Jeremiah 29:12–13). Nephi would later write about his experience
crying unto the Lord.
“Behold, he hath
heard my cry by day, and he hath given me knowledge by visions in the night–time.
“And by day have I
waxed bold in mighty prayer before him; yea, my voice have I sent up on high;
and angels came down and ministered unto me.
“And upon the wings
of his Spirit hath my body been carried away upon exceedingly high
mountains. And mine eyes have beheld
great things, yea, even too great for man; therefore I was bidden that I should
not write them” (2 Nephi 4:23–25).
John Welch writes about Lehi’s prayer. “[Lehi] may have gone forth and prayed unto
the Lord (1 Nephi 1:5) because he was among the prophets who were already
actively crying repentance in Jerusalem, but it appears more likely that he was
profoundly moved to pray, motivated by the problems in Jerusalem and by the
messages of the prophets whom he had just heard.”[1]
Terryl Givens continues:
“We know virtually nothing for certain of Lehi or his
background except that he is a person of wealth and, as his wife laments and
Lehi agrees, is a “visionary man” (1 Nephi 5:2, 4). His first recorded
vision occurs as Lehi is praying “with all his heart” (1 Nephi 1:5) on
behalf of his people. Strangely, this is the only one of Lehi’s visions about
whose content we are told nothing at all. Nephi simply reveals that as Lehi
prays, “there came a pillar of fire . . . and he saw and heard much” (1 Nephi
1:6). No details of the message, no particulars of any message, are available
to distract from the fact of the visitation itself, given to a man who shares
neither the public prestige nor, so far as we can tell, the national
stewardship of his contemporary Jeremiah.”[2]
While praying, a pillar of fire appeared on a rock in front
of Lehi. This may well have reminded Lehi
of the Lord’s dealing with Moses during the exodus. “And the LORD went before them by day in a
pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to
give them light; to go by day and night” (Exodus 13:21).
What he saw and heard during his vision is unknown. What Nephi did records is that what “he saw
and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake
and tremble exceedingly” (1 Nephi 1:6).
After his vision ended, he returned home, having been
overcome by his vision. Being weakened
by a vision is not unusual. Nephi would
later tell his brothers, “Behold, my soul is rent with anguish because of you,
and my heart is pained; I fear lest ye shall be cast off forever. Behold, I am full of the Spirit of God,
insomuch that my frame has no strength” (1 Nephi 17:47). When Ammon met Alma2, his joy “was so great even that he was full; yea, he
was swallowed up in the joy of his God, even to the exhausting of his strength;
and he fell again to the earth” (Alma 27:17).
No sooner had he “cast himself upon his bed,” he saw a
second vision. The heavens opened and he
saw God sitting on his throne. He was
surrounded by angels singing and praising God.
Alma2 would describe his experience, identical to Nephi’s
words. “Yea, methought I saw, even as our father Lehi saw, God sitting upon
his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels, in the attitude of
singing and praising their God; yea, and my soul did long to be there” (Alma
36:22)
He next saw One descending out of heaven. “[H]is
luster was above that of the sun at noon-day” (1 Nephi 1:9). Describing His luster, Richard Dilworth Rust
wrote, “As Christ is called a fire, so he is a light in the wilderness (see 1
Nephi 17:13). In vision, Lehi saw the Son of God as glowing brighter than the
sun (see 1 Nephi 1:9) … Both physically and figuratively, light and whiteness
are associated with truth, purity, and divine guidance, just as darkness is
associated with unbelief and error (for example, see Alma 40:14).”[3]
Twelve followed him, “and
their brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament” (1 Nephi
1:10). The twelve went forth and the One
stood before Lehi.
[1] The Calling of Lehi as a Prophet in the World
of Jerusalem, John W. Welch, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
[2] Joseph Smith’s American Bible: Radicalizing
the Familiar, Terryl L. Givens, Provo, Utah: Maxwell Institute.
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