Scripture Study

INTRODUCTION

A while back, an acquaintance of mine stated that there was no more to learn from 1 Nephi chapter 1. He commented that it was the most read chapter in the Book of Mormon and that he had probably read it more than one hundred times as he began rereading the Book of Mormon, though he only read the entire book four or five times. I have since learned that some others feel the same way, so I decided I would dig into the chapter to see what else I could learn. There is always more to learn from the scriptures, and it will be impossible to enumerate everything I learned from 1 Nephi 1 in a short article. So, I will restrict my commentary to 1 Nephi 1:4-15, a mere twelve verses. But even with this limitation, I won’t be able to share everything I learned, as I intentionally read these verses.

1 NEPHI 1:4-15

So, let’s begin. In verse four, we read that “as he went forth,” Lehi prayed unto the Lord. This suggests that Lehi was outside of the walls of Jerusalem, traveling in the wilderness, since at that time, being outside of the city walls meant you were in the uninhabited desert. Verse seven makes this clear, stating that Lehi “returned to his own house at Jerusalem.” So, Lehi is in the desert when he has the first of two visions. Like Moses, he encounters God in the wilderness.

As Lehi prayed “with all his heart” (verse five; cf. Moroni 7:48), “there came a pillar of fire and dwelt upon a rock before him” (verse 6). The “pillar of fire” is reminiscent of the pillar of fire that led Israel at night during the exodus (Exodus 13:21-22) and of the burning bush (Exodus 2:1-3). It is clearly a symbol of God, so we can understand that Lehi is having a vision and sees God (note: this will become more explicit in verse eight). It also hearkens to the “pillar of light” that Joseph Smith saw in his first vision (JS-H 1:16-17). So, we have the pillar of fire, or God, that rests on a rock. What can we make of that rock? It is an allusion to the unhewn rock on the altar of the temple. On this altar in the temple, the priests placed holocaust offerings (burnt offerings), representing the sacrifice of the Son (Moses 5:6-7). In Exodus 20:24-25, we read:

An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee. And if thou wilt make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stone: for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou hast polluted it.

The rock is also an allusion to the Eben Shetiyyah,  or the rock on which the world is founded, the unhewn rock floor of the Holy of Holies on the temple mount in Jerusalem, the place where God appears. So, Lehi, in a natural wilderness temple, is having a vision of God in a desert, like Moses, and God appears on the unhewn rock reminiscent of the temple altar and floor. During the vision, Lehi “saw and heard much; and because of the things which he saw and heard he did quake and tremble exceeding” (verse 6). Lehi is having a temple experience, but outside of the temple in Jerusalem, which also says a lot. One school of thought suggests that the temple and all that it stands for has been corrupted because of King Josiah’s reforms a few decades earlier. In having a temple experience outside of the Jerusalem temple, God is acknowledging the corrupted temple and rejecting the reforms that Josiah made. This interpretation is even more clear in 1 Nephi 2:7 when Lehi, who is not a Levite, builds an altar and offers sacrifices to the Lord.[1]

Lehi returns to his own home (which is symbolic of us returning to our heavenly home) in Jerusalem. After being overcome with the Spirit, he is “carried away” in a second vision (verse seven), one in which he “saw God sitting upon his throne, surrounded with numberless concourses of angels in the attitude of singing and praising their God” (verse eight; cf. Alma 36:22). In effect, he sees the divine council.

The phrase “carried away” is a common phrase in scripture. Nephi was “carried away” (1 Nephi 14:30; 15:1 and 2 Nephi 4:25) in the Spirit. Mary, “the mother of the Son of God after the manner of the flesh” was carried away in the Spirit (mentioned twice in 1 Nephi 11:18-19). The apostles in Nephi’s dream were also “carried away in the Spirit” (1 Nephi 11:29). Alma₂ was “carried away” (Alma 29:16), King Lamoni was “carried away in God” after Ammon₂’s teachings (Alma 19:6) and John the Revelator says that God “carried me away in the Spirit” (Revelation 21:10). But note that there are two uses for the phrase “carried away” in 1 Nephi 1. The wicked inhabitants of Jerusalem were also “carried away captive into Babylon” (verse 13). The phrase “carried away” is used in the Old Testament more than 90 times, and most references refer to being carried away captive into Babylon. This sets up an interesting contrast in 1 Nephi 1. Lehi is overcome with the Spirt, while many inhabitants of Jerusalem will be overcome by an implacable foe. Lehi is carried away into heaven; the Jewish remnant is carried away into hell (Babylon is a symbol of hell). Lehi sees God the Father sitting on his throne, the King of heaven. Satan is the ultimate king of Babylon, or hell (see 2 Nephi 23:3-23 and 24:1-3 and 7). Lehi goes willingly to his heavenly vision; the Jewish remnant goes unwillingly to Babylon. Neither Lehi nor the Jewish remnant can get to heaven or hell by themselves. Decisions both made in their lifetimes have determined where they will go. We either sign up for the heavenly or the hellish team, who then carries us to our destination.

After being carried away, Lehi has what scholars call a “throne theophany,” or a vision of God on his throne. He also sees concourses of angels surrounding the throne and singing praises to God. In Old Testament terms, God is surrounded by the Host of Heaven (that is, other heavenly beings). Many others have had a throne theophany, including Isaiah (Isaiah 6:1-4; cf. 2 Nephi 16:1-4). In verse nine, Lehi sees “One descending out of the midst of heaven, and he beheld that his luster was above that of the sun at noon-day,” a clear reference to Christ. In Joseph Smith’s first vision, he also saw God and Christ, “whose brightness and glory defy all description” (JS-H 1:16-17). Lehi then sees 12 others following Christ, whose “brightness did exceed that of the stars in the firmament” (verse 10). While this is a reference to the 12 apostles, note that Lehi could not have known this, as apostles are never mentioned in the Old Testament. Rather, he would have seen 12 members of the Host of Heaven following Christ, who were often described in terms of stars in the heavens (e.g., Judges 5:20, 23).

The One gives Lehi a book and as he reads, he is filled with the Spirit of the Lord and begins to prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem (verses 11-13). After being filled with the Spirit and prophesying, Lehi, like the concourses of angels in verse eight, begins praising his God. “Great and marvelous are thy works, O Lord God Almighty! Thy throne is high in the heavens, and thy power, and goodness, and mercy are over all the inhabitants of the earth… And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God” (verses 14-15). In effect, Lehi has joined the heavenly choir and is speaking with the tongue of angels.

But how is this possible? Lehi is not an angel, but a mortal man and his language is earthly, not heavenly. As with so many other things, the Book of Mormon provides an answer. “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, I know that if ye shall follow the Son… repenting of your sins, witnessing unto the Father that ye are willing to take upon you the name of Christ, by baptism—yea, by following your Lord and your Savior down into the water, according to his word, behold, then shall ye receive the Holy Ghost; yea, then cometh the baptism of fire and of the Holy Ghost; and then can ye speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises unto the Holy One of Israel” (2 Nephi 31:13). Continuing in 2 Nephi 32, we also read: “Do ye not remember that I said unto you that after ye had received the Holy Ghost ye could speak with the tongue of angels? And now, how could ye speak with the tongue of angels save it were by the Holy Ghost? Angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ. Wherefore, I said unto you, feast upon the words of Christ” (2 Nephi 32:2-3). By following Christ, by being baptized, by receiving the Holy Ghost, by feasting on and speaking the words of Christ, we too, like Lehi, can join the heavenly choir, speak with the tongue of angels, and shout praises to our God. Think about that the next time you sing in church.

In summary, Lehi, while traveling in the wilderness, has a vision of God on an unhewn rock, reminiscent of the temple in Jerusalem. He returns home and is carried away in a second vision of Heavenly Father on his throne, of Jesus Christ, and of the 12 apostles. Christ gives him a book to read, after which he prophesies of the destruction of Jerusalem, including the temple, and of many inhabitants of Jerusalem being carried away captive into Babylon. Then Lehi, moved by the Spirit, sings praises to his God in the angelic tongue, like each of us may also do. These are just a few of the many, many insights I gleaned from an intentional reading of 1 Nephi 1:5-14. I could write several thousand more words about what I learned, but these few insights will suffice for this article.

CONCLUSION

There is always more to learn from scripture reading. As we more deeply understand the scriptures, we can more fully apply their meanings to our lives. Elder Neal A. Maxwell (whose voice I miss dearly) likened the Book of Mormon to a marvelous mansion, worthy of exploring in depth. Then he said this: “For my part, I am glad the book will be with us ‘as long as the earth shall stand.’ I need and want additional time. For me, towers, courtyards, and wings await inspection. My tour of it has never been completed. Some rooms I have yet to enter, and there are more flaming fireplaces waiting to warm me. Even the rooms I have glimpsed contain further furnishings and rich detail yet to be savored. There are panels inlaid with incredible insights and design and decor dating from Eden. There are also sumptuous banquet tables painstakingly prepared by predecessors which await all of us. Yet, we as Church members sometimes behave like hurried tourists, scarcely venturing beyond the entry hall to the mansion. May we come to feel as a whole people beckoned beyond the entry hall. May we go inside far enough to hear clearly the whispered truths from those who have ‘slumbered,’ which whisperings will awaken in us individually the life of discipleship as never before” (Elder Neal A. Maxwell, “The Book of Mormon: A Great Answer to ‘The Great Question,’” the last two paragraphs).

Newell D. Wright is a professor of marketing and international business at North Dakota State University in Fargo, ND, USA. He is also a lifelong student of the Book of Mormon. See attached photo.

[1] The role King Josiah played is somewhat controversial. The reading offered here is consistent with research by Margaret Barker and Kevin Christensen. For a summary of Christensen’s view, see Kevin Christensen, “Prophets and Kings in Lehi’s Jerusalem and Margaret Barker’s Temple Theology,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 4 (2013): 177–93. See also Margaret Barker, “What did Josiah Reform?” in Glimpses of Lehi’s Jerusalem, ed. John W. Welch, David Rolph Seely, and Jo Ann H. Seely (Provo, UT: Foundation for Ancient Research and Mormon Studies, 2004): 523–42, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BtFsFdINbN8. Christensen’s article is paired with one by William J. Hamblin that provides a more sympathetic, favorable view of Josiah. William J. Hamblin, “Vindicating Josiah,” Interpreter: A Journal of Mormon Scripture 4 (2013): 165–78, https://journal.interpreterfoundation.org/vindicating-josiah/. For a contrary review of Margaret Barker’s work and various LDS responses to Josiah, see, Eric. A. Eliason, “Is the Bible Reliable? A Case Study” BYU Studies 60, no. 2 (2021): 159–81, https://byustudies.byu.edu/article/is-the-bible-reliable-a-case-study/. For a rebuttal to Eliason, see Kevin Christiansen, “‘Paradigms Regained’ Part 2: Responding to Margaret Barker’s Critics and Why Her Work Should Matter to Latter-day Saints,” Interpreter: A Journal of Latter-day Saint Faith and Scholarship 55 (2023): 31–106, https://interpreterfoundation.org/twenty-years-after-paradigms-regained-part-2-responding-to-margaret-barkers-critics-and-why-her-work-should-matter-to-latter-day-saints/. What is not controversial is that the temple was destroyed by the invading Babylonians.