1 Nephi 11

Nephi’s Vision Begins

I, Nephi, wanted to understand what my father had seen. I believed the Lord could show me. While I was sitting and thinking about it, the Spirit took me away to an incredibly high mountain—a place I’d never been before. The Spirit asked me, 'What do you want?' 'I want to see what my father saw,' I answered.

The Spirit asked, 'Do you believe your father really saw that tree he talked about?' 'Yes,' I said. 'You know I believe everything my father says.' When I said that, the Spirit shouted with joy: 'Praise God! He is the Most High God over all the earth! You’re blessed, Nephi, because you believe in God’s Son. Now you’ll see what you wanted to see.' 'Here’s your sign: After you see the tree with the fruit your father tasted, you’ll see a man coming down from heaven. You’ll witness him yourself. Then you’ll testify that he is the Son of God.'

The Tree of Life

The Spirit said, 'Look!' I looked and saw a tree just like the one my father had seen. It was more beautiful than anything I’d ever imagined—whiter than fresh snow. After seeing the tree, I said to the Spirit, 'You’ve shown me the tree that’s more precious than anything else.' 'What else do you want?' he asked. 'I want to understand what it means,' I said. I spoke to him like I’d talk to any person—he looked like a man to me, though I knew it was the Spirit of the Lord. 'Look,' he said. But when I turned to look at him again, he was gone.

A Virgin in Nazareth

Then I saw the great city of Jerusalem and other cities. I saw the city of Nazareth, and there I saw a virgin, incredibly beautiful and radiant. The heavens opened, and an angel came down and stood in front of me. 'Nephi,' he asked, 'what do you see?' 'A virgin,' I said, 'more beautiful than any other.' 'Do you understand how God humbles himself?' the angel asked. 'I know God loves his children,' I answered, 'but I don’t understand everything.' The virgin you're seeing is the mother of God, in the flesh.

I watched as she was carried away by the Spirit. After some time passed, the angel said, 'Look!' I looked again and saw the virgin holding a baby in her arms. 'Look at the Lamb of God—the Eternal Father!' the angel said. 'Do you understand what the tree your father saw means?' 'Yes,' I said. 'It’s God’s love pouring into people’s hearts. Nothing is more desirable.' 'And nothing brings more joy to the soul,' he added.

The Son of God Among the People

'Look!' he said again. I saw the Son of God walking among people. Many fell at his feet to worship him. Then I understood: the iron rod my father saw was God’s word, leading to the fountain of living water—the tree of life. Both the water and the tree represented God’s love. The angel said again, 'Look at how God humbles himself!'

I saw the Savior my father had spoken about. I saw the prophet who would prepare his way. The Lamb of God went to him to be baptized. After his baptism, I saw the heavens open and the Holy Spirit come down like a dove and rest on him. I watched him teach the people with power and glory. Large crowds gathered to hear him, but then they threw him out. I saw twelve others following him. Then they were all carried away by the Spirit, and I couldn’t see them anymore.

The angel said, 'Look!' I saw the heavens open again. Angels came down to the people and ministered to them. 'Look!' he said again. I saw the Lamb of God walking among the people. I saw crowds of sick people—suffering from all kinds of diseases, tormented by demons and evil spirits. The angel showed me how they were all healed by the power of the Lamb of God. The demons and evil spirits were driven out.

The Cross and the World’s Pride

The angel said, 'Look!' I watched as the people seized the Lamb of God. The Everlasting God was judged by the world. I saw it and I testify to it. I saw him lifted up on a cross and killed for the world’s sins.

After he was killed, I saw crowds of people gathering to fight against his apostles—the twelve the angel had named. The crowds gathered in a huge, sprawling building like the one my father saw. The angel said, 'Look at the world and its wisdom. The House of Israel has gathered to fight against the Lamb’s twelve apostles.' I watched and testify: that great building was the world’s pride. It collapsed, and its destruction was complete. The angel said, 'This is how every nation, family, language, and people who fight against the Lamb’s twelve apostles will be destroyed.'