Lehi's Other Vision

And it had come to pass that my father spake unto her [Sariah], saying: I know that I am a visionary man; for if I had not seen the things of God in a vision I should not have known the goodness of God, but had tarried at Jerusalem, and had perished with my brethren. (1 Ne 5:4)

Lehi father of Nephi had two major visions that we learn about in the Book of Mormon. The well-known vision is the vision where he saw the Tree of Life and an iron rod leading multitudes of people there. We commonly talk about how Lehi prophesied the coming destruction of Jerusalem, but I don't think I (in my not too many years at church) have heard a discussion about the vision where he learned about Jerusalem's fate.

Summary of Lehi's Visions

Here is a list of Lehi's dreams and vision from 1 Nephi (let me know if I missed any)

1 Ne 1 - Lehi sees "much" in a pillar of fire that causes him to quake and tremble

1 Ne 1 - Lehi lies on his bed and sees God, Jesus, and 12 others. He reads a book about the fate of Jerusalem and the coming of the Messiah

1 Ne 2 - Lehi is commended for his preaching and commanded to flee Jerusalem

1 Ne 3 - Lehi receives commandment through a dream that his sons should retrieve the brass plates

1 Ne 7 - The Lord spake unto him again, commanding Lehi's sons to bring Ishmael along
1 Ne 8 - Lehi's sees the vision of the Tree of Life
Lehi also has many other prophecies and teachings, but the above reference visions and dreams.

Summary of Lehi's first recorded vision

Lehi is praying for his people when a pillar of fire comes and dwells on a rock before him. He sees and hears much and trembles and quakes because of it. Then he goes and "casts" himself on his bed, being overcome with the Spirit and the things he had seen. The second part of the vision begins with the heavens opening. He sees God and a numberless host of angels in the attitude of singing and praising God. He sees Jesus coming down from heaven and twelve others with him. One of the twelve gave him a book to read, and Lehi reads about the destruction of Jerusalem as well as about the coming of the Messiah, for which he praises God.

Symbols:
pillar of fire - God promised the Israelites that he would be their pillar of fire by night. Lehi's experience with the pillar of fire was a symbol for God's visitation.
a rock - the pillar of fire dwelt on a rock, which might tell us about its size. I am not really sure why it is significant that the pillar of fire dwelt on a rock.
the attitude of singing and praising - I think this tells us that the numberless concourses of angels were spirits. Without a body, singing is difficult. But even with  a body, how often are we in the attitude of singing and praising our Lord?
a book - John the Beloved wrote about angels giving him a book and prophesied afterwards about it.

Lessons Learned:
1. God gives clear instruction
     Lehi was one of many prophets to come warning of the destruction of Jerusalem. God wanted his message to be preached to the people. He didn't send a text or a scroll or an army. He sent many prophets who knew and experienced incredible spiritual revelations. I can only imagine how fervently they must have taught and preached to the people. Jeremiah (contemporary to Lehi) described how he felt about his testimony in these words.
   What messages has God sent to you very clearly that you haven't acted on yet?

2. God gives us more when we are ready 

    Lehi was totally wiped out after his experience with the pillar of fire. We don't know a lot about what he saw and heard there (notice both verbs), but it did cause him to shake and tremble exceedingly. The second experience came a little later and seems to be more focused on the role of the Messiah (1 Ne 1:9, 19).

3. The righteous can be joyful in the midst of wickedness
    The storyline starts with many prophets prophesying Jerusalem's destruction. Lehi sees this and starts praying "yea, even with all his heart, in behalf of his people." (1Ne1:5) The Lord blesses Lehi  with His presence and reveals His character to Lehi. Lehi catches a glimpse of God's eternal perspective, both of the impending doom for the wicked and the redemption of the world through the Messiah. Lehi's reaction to the vision is overwhelmingly positive (1Ne1:14-15). The chapter ends with all of his neighbors trying to kill him. This is reminiscent of Nephi's praise of the Lord while he is bound and about to to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea in 1 Nephi 18.

     How often do we stop praising and thanking the Lord because things aren't going our way?