1 Nephi 1:11 - 1:15

1 Nephi 1:11 And they came down and went forth upon the face of the earth; and the first came and stood before my father, and gave unto him a book, and bade him that he should read.

In order to comprehend the things written in the book and see them in ones’ minds eye, Lehi was filled with the Spirit. It is one thing to read about events, but to see them in real time even before they happen takes the Spirit to actuate these powers we have but that are inactive as mortals. One of the things we have to look forward to as immortals. Moses got a taste as illustrated in Moses chapter one.

1 Nephi 1:12 And it came to pass that as he read, he was filled with the Spirit of the Lord.

Reading the book filled him with the Spirit. Good way to get filled with the Spirit is by reading the scriptures. If we want revelation and intelligence from beyond the veil, we can almost always get it through scripture study. Joseph Smith experience when he read James 1:5 should be a lesson to us as what can happen with reading scriptures with a question or questions in mind. Short verse but big lesson.

1 Nephi 1:13 And he read, saying: Wo, wo, unto Jerusalem, for I have seen thine abominations! Yea, and many things did my father read concerning Jerusalem—that it should be destroyed, and the inhabitants thereof; many should perish by the sword, and many should be carried away captive into Babylon..

The vision shows Heavenly Father point of view concerning the behavior of the people of Jerusalem. That they are a wicked people and are involved in evil all day long. Lehi see that the people will not follow God’s instructions to preserve themselves from destruction. God will now withhold his protection and allow the Babylonians to conquer the city and destroy it and the Temple. In addition, most of those who do not died in battle will be taken to Babylonia as slaves and will never see their home land again.

1 Nephi 1:14 And it came to pass that when my father had read and seen many great and marvelous things, he did exclaim many things unto the Lord; such as: 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, because thou art merciful, thou wilt not suffer those who come unto thee that they shall perish!

Lehi praises the Lord for the vision he was shown. Part of the vision was the destruction of his home town. One would think he would be perhaps angry or despondent over seeing his friends, family and property destroyed.

But it seems to me on thinking about it that Lehi knew this was inevitable and that it was just. That it should happen because the people of Jerusalem just could not be allow to go on in their present state. When you’re rotten, your rotten and it’s time to be disposed of.

So the praises he gives is because the Lord has shown him what He will do to compensate for all this horror. This generation is lost and will have to be dealt with by the troubles they will experience at the hands of the Babylonians. That will included the death of many and the captivity of some. I think the really deprived will die and the marginal will be allow to live but not in the way they have been used too.

Anyway, Lehi probably sees the return of the people to Jerusalem in the future. I assume that he will see that will included relatives of his own. It might seem mean to some who read of the destruction of Jerusalem but the Lord is really being merciful to the people. It like helping a person who is getting burnt on a stove by removing him away and putting suave on the wounds.

And Lehi also praises the Lord for helping those who are looking for help in this horror. He will be merciful to Lehi and all those who are trying to be righteous and save them in one form of another.

1 Nephi 1:15 And after this manner was the language of my father in the praising of his God; for his soul did rejoice, and his whole heart was filled, because of the things which he had seen, yea, which the Lord had shown unto him.

Again, Lehi sees that the Lord loves His children enough that He will make plans to turn even bad situations into a good one that it so impressed him that the Lord has so much power that he is now filled with confidence to know that everything will be ok in the end. As President Hinckley would often say, “It will all work out.”