Last week’s lesson dealt with the vision of the Tree of Life, which covered text in 1 Nephi 8 as well as text from the beginning of Nephi’s vision. This lesson covers the remainder of the contents of Nephi’s vision. After Lehi tells of his dream, Nephi “was desirous also that [he] might see, and hear, and know of these things.” Nephi proceeds to ponder his fathers words in his heart, and is then “caught away in the Spirit of the Lord, yea, into an exceedingly high mountain.”

He first meets the Spirit of God, then meets an angel, who serves as his guide through his vision. The first things he sees relate to Lehi’s dream and to the Tree of Life. Nephi sees these things in juxtaposition with scenes from the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, and learns of the Tree’s symbolism. The subsequent chapters of Nephi’s vision (12-14) address these topics and themes:

• Jesus’ Visit to America
• The Decline of Nephi’s Posterity
• The Great Apostasy
• Gentile Colonization of the New World
• The Influence of the Bible on the Gentiles
• The Restoration of the Gospel
• Additional Scripture
• The Judgment of the Wicked
• John the Revelator’s Ministry

A common thread through many of these items is the destiny of the New World. One particular item of interest is the mentioning of “a man among the gentiles,” which seems to be a reference to Christopher Columbus. Nephi sees that “the Spirit of God, that it came down and wrought upon the man.” This seems a bit odd when we try to fit Columbus into the blood-thirsty conquistador stereytype we sometimes have. However, Colombus is reported to have a self acknologed spiritual side, and felt the Lord’s inspiriation in his conquests:

“I have seen, and truly I have studied all books and cosmographies, histories, chronicles, and philosophies and other arts for which our Lord with provident hand unlocked my mind, sent me upon the seas and gave me fire for the deed. Those who heard of my enterprise called it foolish, mocked me, and laughed, but who can doubt but that the Holy Ghost inspired me?”

Jacob Wasserman, Columbus, Don Quixote of the Seas, p. 18

Something else worth noting is the vision of the Nephite downfall. Nephi mentions “[his] seed” and “the seed of [his] brethren,” which is a fairly clear reference to the Nephites and Lamanites. He sees the Nephite’s demise, reporting that “the people of the seed of my brethren that they had overcome my seed.” If we flash forward a thousand years, we find ourselves in Mormon’s account, where he does infact speak of the annihilation of the Nephites. However, we must remember that at this point, the distinction between Lamanites and Nephites is not an ethnic one. We must recall that after the coming of Christ, all groups and factions merged into one, and there were not “any manner of -ites.” Generations later, we see a ressurgence of Lamanites, but their schism was not based on lineage, but on ideology. Thus, at the final battle, those labeled “Nephites” were those who were within the covenant, and those labeled “Lamanites” were not. So what did Nephi mean when he spoke of “[his] seed” and the “[seed] of his brethren”?

One insight might come from Galatians 3:29, which states that “if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Perhaps Nephi assumed a role similar to Abraham, who was known as the “father of faithful.” Oftentimes, scriptural references to ancestry, for example in elements relating to the gathering of Israel and the responsibility of certain tribes, are not meant to be understood in terms of genealogy, but rather in terms of covenantal association (hence “if ye be Christ’s.) With that in mind, it would seem appropriate to refer to those in the covenant as “[his] seed,” even though they may have been descendants of the Samuel the Lamanite, the Ammonites, or any other person who may be descendants of Laman or Lemuel who also come into the Christian covenant.

Nephi’s vision is full of many other significant insights and revelation, and serves as preview of sorts for the themes and messages of the Book of Mormon.