The central symbol in Lehi’s dream is a tree. When he sees it in the middle of a large field, he seems to be instinctively drawn to it. He tastes the fruit and discovers that it is “most sweet,” more delicious than anything he has ever tasted. It fills his soul with “exceedingly great joy,” and he immediately wants to share it with his family. (See 1 Nephi 8:9-12.)
Lehi’s son Nephi subsequently learns in a vision that this tree represents “the love of God.” He learns this by observing scenes from the life of Jesus Christ, beginning with His birth. As he observes these scenes, Nephi declares that God’s love “is the most desirable above all things.” And an angel adds, “Yea, and the most joyous to the soul” (1 Nephi 11:22-23).
Elder David A. Bednar provided the following interpretation of these passages:
The birth, life, and atoning sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ are the greatest manifestations of God’s love for His children…. The tree can be considered as a representation of Christ.
One way of thinking about the fruit on the tree is as a symbol for the blessings of the Savior’s Atonement. The fruit is described as “desirable to make one happy” [1 Nephi 8:10] and produces great joy and the desire to share that joy with others.
Significantly, the overarching theme of the Book of Mormon, inviting all to come unto Christ [see Moroni 10:32], is paramount in Lehi’s vision [see 1 Nephi 8:19].
“‘Abide in Me, and I in You; Therefore Walk with Me,'” General Conference, April 2023, footnote 18, originally from a devotional address given to new mission leaders on June 27, 2017 called “The Power of His Word Which Is in Us”
The symbols in dreams and parables can have multiple meanings. I particularly like this interpretation. The tree represents the love of God, but more specifically it represents the most powerful manifestation of God’s love: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son” (John 3:16). And if the tree represents the Savior, then its delicious fruit represents the gifts we receive from Him, and which we want to share with the people we love.
Today, I will strive to draw closer to the Savior, so that I can partake of the fruit which is “the most joyous to the soul.” I will invite others to come to Him so that they can also experience that joy.