1 AND it came to pass that after I, Nephi, had been carried away in the spirit, and seen all these things, I returned to the tent of my father. [ Did he physically walk somewhere else to ponder as per 1 Ne 11:1 these things and then return or does he mean when he returns and finds himself outside of the being carried away by the spirit? ]

2 And it came to pass that I beheld my brethren, and they [ Laman and Lemuel. ] were disputing one with another concerning the things which my father had spoken unto them. [ What was it that Lehi had said to them that had them in such a deep discussion? Lehi had used the reference of the olive tree and the house of Israel. See 1 Ne 8:12. Lehi's words concerning the allegory of the olive tree, along with it's latter-day ramifications for the Gentiles somehow became of great concern for Laman and Lemuel. It must have touched a cord with them as it had to do with their posterity. They were confused as to what it all meant and got further clarification from Nephi who has seen the same dream as their father Lehi did. See 1 Ne 15:19-20. Additionally it shows of their attitude, rather than ask of the Lord they are left to the reasoning of man. I suppose this shows us really who they are. They do not have a relationship with God in any way - somehow they have not learned how to do that. Nephi asks God because he wants to understand, to know the truth; whereas his brothers don't really want to know the truth so they argue. From his glorious vision, Nephi comes back to their tent and finds that Laman and Lemuel have spent that same time, “disputing one with another concerning the things which my father had spoken unto them” (1 Nephi 15:2). What? They are just fighting with each other, complaining about their father, and fueling their negativity? Give me a break. Surely they can do better than this. Nephi, too, is incredulous. “Have ye inquired of the Lord?” They, too, could have had answers. The Lord had stood with his arms outstretched to them, willing, but they would have nothing of it. Instead, they bickered, “the Lord maketh no such thing known to us (1 Nephi 15:9). What a sad trade. Surely, as sons of Lehi, Laman and Lemuel had been taught about God, just as Nephi had—but, nonetheless, and obviously, they did not know Him. They had not learned what they had been taught, because to come to know the dealings of that God who has created us, it is not enough to have someone else tell you about him. You learn about who he is, in those hours in your room on your knees. He reveals himself to you when you seek him with all your heart and when your whole mind and soul is inclined toward him. Laman and Lemuel did not want to pay that price, and so they paid other, agonizing prices instead, throughout the entire journey. They suffered, not because the Lord imposed suffering upon them, but given the nature of the journey, it was the natural consequence of attempting to go it alone. Because at their core, they knew not God, at their core they could only respond to the reality of the journey with the outlook of the natural man. We are often told by the world that real freedom and growth comes from abandoning God and his standards, and exercising our will, walking in our own way. What God wants is to make us sheep, to restrict us, to trample our individuality, we hear. Yet, who not only has all the fun, but also all the growth on this journey—Nephi, or his brothers, Laman and Lemuel? Who develops leadership, ingenuity and integrity? Who gets to make a bow and build a ship? Who has visions and talks to the very Creator, himself? Who, on the other hand, spends all their time plotting and complaining, withering away with every passing year? We know those answers, and it is easy to sit here at our seeming distance from the desert and call Laman and Lemuel foolish, but the more telling thing is to use their story to look back at ourselves. In actuality, we are not so far from the desert. We are on our own wilderness journey, specially designed and customized to purge us of our weaknesses and bring us home ready to inherit the promised land. If we would weather our lives with joy, feel shored up and loved even on the loneliest stretches, strengthened for the battle that rages all around us, made courageous against the fiery darts of the economy or the family disappointments or the illness which plagues us, then it is not enough just to decide to have a good attitude. Such resolutions will ultimately fail us, because they do not come from the place of real power. Instead, we must “know the dealings of that God who created us.” When we are willing to pay the price to know him, more than a good attitude follows. What follows is strength and joy and the deep affirmation, “O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever.”]

3 For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord; [ Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of 12 Apostles discussed how a hard heart limits our spirituality: “Nephi attempted to teach his brothers that they could know the meaning of their father’s prophetic utterances, ‘which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord’ -see verse 11 for the steps required of them in order to be able to see the same things that Nephi saw. ] and they being hard in their hearts, [ Hardness of heart is… -lacking genuine sorrow over sin. -continuing to go back again and again into temptation, lies and deceit. -choosing to think of yourself as most important. -choosing what’s best for you and not the other. -the small lies and huge lies that you convince yourself are not a big deal. -being unteachable. -tearing down with words. -comparing and contrasting your wrongs against the other and making the judgement that “theirs is worse.” -responding with defensiveness. -the need to always be in control. -waiting for the other to say sorry first. -demanding the other change first. -thinking more of what you deserve instead of what you can give. -focusing more on being right than on becoming righteous. -what you can get out of someone instead of how you can invest in them. -the refusal to forgive. -the refusal to humble yourself to ask for forgiveness. -saying you forgive, but never letting go. -asking for forgiveness and then going back to do the same thing again. -magnifying the weaknesses and minimizing the strengths of the other, while magnifying the strengths and minimizing the weaknesses of yourself. -justifying wrongful actions because they “started it first.” -spending more time trying to find an official clinical diagnosis to explain away their issues than looking in the mirror to address your own. -preserving your own well-being at the expense of the other. -reading this list and thinking someone else should be reading this… ] therefore they did not look unto the Lord as they ought.

4 And now I, Nephi, was grieved because of the hardness of their hearts, [ Nephi in his own way does not understand why they will not go ask the Lord like he did. What do you suppose is the message here? Nephi has come to know the ways of God while his brothers don't. They are wired a little different I suppose. So whether it is just their nature to be different, or whether it their rebellious attitude it does not matter. Either way they don't know how to, they don't trust in or have never learned to call on the Lord. ] and also, because of the things which I had seen, and knew they must unavoidably [ Have you ever seen an individual or a group doing certain things and you know that if they keep doing them you pretty much know what the result is going to be. ] come to pass because of the great wickedness of the children of men.

5 And it came to pass that I was overcome because of my afflictions, for I considered that mine afflictions [ To strike down or cast down - being downcast  or brought low humbled in body~ mind~ or spirit  including tribulation~ adversity~ calamity~ distress~ grief~ trouble~ trial or sorrow- evidence of divine chastisement. ] were great above all, because of the destruction of my people, for I had beheld their fall. [What did he see? 3 Ne 8-9]

6 And it came to pass that after I had received strength [ What is the strength that he is speaking of here? Is it the strength or courage to talk to his older brothers? Or is it his real physical strength - that after the vision he was so drained that he needed some time to recover? Spiritual experiences can take a lot out of the body. ] I spake unto my brethren, desiring to know of them the cause of their disputations.

7 And they said: Behold, we cannot understand the words which our father hath spoken concerning the natural branches of the olive-tree, and also concerning the Gentiles.

8 And I said unto them: Have ye inquired of the Lord?

9 And they said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us. [ Note how they respond - it is not just a flat out no. It has a clarification with the no. They respond "for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us" - so have they just not bothered to ask or have they ask and not gotten an answer? Might it also happen to have something to do with what they expect for an answer? Note what they are comparing the expectation of what they should receive as an answer- it should be like what Nephi received. so if you were to ask and you did not get an answer like Nephi did what would your response be? Is this to say that they never have asked anything of the Lord? Have they asked before and just not heard an answer? Is part of the answer in the next 2 verses? Or are Laman and Lemuel just trying to put all the blame on the Lord, like it is all his fault? ]

10 Behold, I said unto them: How is it that ye do not keep the commandments of the Lord? [ If we are not keeping the commandments can we hear the voice of the master? I would suppose that the answer lies in the question of who is their master then. We are taught that we can only serve one master - I suppose that we can only hear one masters voice. So if they are not keeping the commands of the Lord then they are already not hearkening to his voice and cannot hear his reply as he is really not their master. So if we do not hear or get an answer to our prayers we need to evaluate our life against this measure. Now having said that If I asked to see the same dream as Lehi and Nephi would the Lord show it to me? What might he? Why would he not? ] How is it that ye will perish, [ Or are you really so foolish that you would rather be daed to the things of God that to give it your best effort to find out - to know for yourself? ] because of the hardness of your hearts? [ Remember the heart is symbolic of desires, emotions and feelings. It is where we feel the spirit. ]

11 Do ye not remember the things which the Lord hath said? [ Or have your ever heard, or do you not believe - Nephi's plea for them to take action and come to know the things of God for themselves. Does this apply to us today? What things can we not see or understand because we have harden hearts, we don;t ask in faith, we are not diligent enough in keeping the commandments? ] —[1]If ye will not harden your hearts, [2] and ask me in faith, [3] believing that ye shall receive, [4] with diligence in keeping my commandments, surely these things shall be made known unto you. [“If we harden our hearts, reject continuing revelation, and limit our learning to what we can obtain by study and reason on the precise language of the present canon of scriptures, our understanding will be limited to what Alma called ‘the lesser portion of the word’ (Alma 12:11). (“Scripture Reading and Revelation,” Ensign, Jan. 1995, 7]

12 Behold, I say unto you, [ At least in part this discussion is not about the olive-tree at all, but Nephi is using the olive-tree that his father has talked to Laman and Lemuel already about to ask them as series of questions that encourage them to not be so stubborn, so hard hearted. He is trying to teach them that they could inquire of the Lord and he would help them out of their ignorance. Not only do they not ask the Lord for enlightenment, they also are choosing to ignore what they have already been taught.] that the house of Israel was compared unto an olive-tree, by the Spirit of the Lord which was in our father; and behold are we not broken off from the house of Israel, and are we not a branch of the house of Israel? [ The obvious answer is yes all are descendants of Joseph; Lehi from the tribe of Manasseh - see Alma 10:3 "3 And Aminadi was a descendant of Nephi, who was the son of Lehi, who came out of the land of Jerusalem, who was a descendant of Manasseh, who was the son of Joseph who was sold into Egypt by the hands of his brethren." And Ishmael from the tribe of Ephraim. See 1 Ne. 7:2 so the question that begs asking here is how in the world would Joseph Smith have know that except that this record was translated? ]

13 And now, the thing which our father meaneth concerning the grafting in of the natural branches through the fulness of the Gentiles, [ In Hebrew "melo’ haggoyim" - which means fulness or completeness. It has to do with the temple ordinances of which the end-time descendants of Ephraim will bear the responsibility to administer to the world. 3 Nephi 16:4–5, 17–20; cf. Isaiah 52:8–10 ] is, that in the latter days, when our seed shall have dwindled in unbelief, [ Romans 11:7-24 ] yea, for the space of many years, and many generations after the Messiah shall be manifested in body unto the children of men, then shall the fulness of the gospel of the Messiah come unto the Gentiles, [ The restoration of the gospel. ] and from the Gentiles unto the remnant of our seed [ Nephi is writing here so the Nephites and Lamanites constituted a part or remnant of the seed of Joseph. ] —

14 And at that day [ Speaking of our time - meaning the last days. After the gospel has been restored and has been taught to the seed of Nephi. ] shall the remnant [ Residue; that which is left after the separation, removal or destruction of a part. ] of our seed know [ To perceive with certainty; to understand clearly; to have a clear and certain perception of truth, fact, or any thing that actually exists. One way we come to know is for the spirit of the Holy ghost to bear witness to us so that we have a confirmation that something is true. ] that they are of the house of Israel, and that they are the covenant people of the Lord; [ The Lord wants, rather he needs them to understand that they are a covenant people. ] and then shall they know and come to the knowledge of their forefathers, [ What knowledge did their forefather have that God wants his children to have in the last days? Maybe we start with who is their forefather - the first one is Adam. So Adam taught his children everything from the beginning. This is the same information that Abraham went seeking in Abraham 1, the knowledge of his fathers. To be taught the truth about God, the purpose of life, of Gods plan for us... That he is their God, that they have special blessings available to them if they will return to the covenants that he made with their forefathers. Many times we think that we have evolved in so many ways to be better than our forefathers. We think of them as living in a primitive society. We have cars, tractors, planes, cell phones, commerce - so many more things to make our life better. Well that may have been the case with some things, but it was not with gospel knowledge. Adam was there he lived it. Adam taught his children first hand, so we need to be careful that we think that we know so much. ] and also to the knowledge of the gospel of their Redeemer, [ He also wants them to know of Jesus Christ and his role as Savior and redeemer of mankind. ] which was ministered unto their fathers by him; [ So speaking here their father would have been those who were born before these men in the last days. So his ministry includes his dealings with Abraham, Isaac , Jacob of old, as well as his ministry to the seed of Nephi and Lehi on the American contentant. ] wherefore, they shall come to the knowledge of their Redeemer and the very points of his doctrine, that they may know how to come unto him and be saved. [ Very critical we must know how to be saved - the knowledge comes from revelation, something that most of the world does not understand. Why don't they know how to come to the savior and be saved? because it is the priesthood that reveals that process and administered those ordinances that allows one to come unto him and be saved. D&C 84:19-22 ]

15 And then at that day will they not rejoice and give praise unto their everlasting God, their rock and their salvation? Yea, at that day, will they not receive the strength and nourishment from the true vine? [ Who is Jesus Christ. ] Yea, will they not come unto the true fold of God? [ The Church Of Jesus Christ. ]

16 Behold, I say unto you, Yea; they shall be remembered again among the house of Israel; they shall be grafted in, [ Through baptism when they take upon them his name. ] being a natural branch of the olive-tree, into the true olive-tree. [ Symbolic reference to the restored church or Jesus Christ. ]

17 And this is what our father meaneth; and he meaneth that it will not come to pass until after they are scattered by the Gentiles; and he meaneth that it shall come by way of the Gentiles, that the Lord may show his power unto the Gentiles, for the very cause that he shall be rejected of the Jews, or of the house of Israel.

18 Wherefore, our father hath not spoken of our seed alone, but also of all the house of Israel, pointing to the covenant [ A contract or agreement between two parties, God and his people in which God makes certain promises and requires certain behavior from them in return. In the Old Testament the Hebrew word _brith_ is always thus translated. _Berith_ is derived from a root which means "to cut," and hence a covenant is a "cutting," with reference to the cutting or dividing of animals into two parts, and the contracting parties passing between them, in making a covenant (Gen. 15; Jer. 34:18, 19)] which should be fulfilled in the latter days; which covenant the Lord made to our father Abraham, [ A covenant between the lord and abraham which included 1) promise of land 2) promise of prosperity 3) promise of priesthood blessings 4) promise of gospel blessings for all families. One of the covenant blessing with Abraham was possession of certain lands. What of that promise? Territorial inheritance is destined for the sons of Israel which provides property in the Holy Land for Reuben, Simeon, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Dan, Naphtali, and Benjamin. But where was the inheritance for Joseph and his seed? From the Book of Mormon we learn that his inheritance was this land in the American hemisphere (see Ether 13:8)—identified as being choice above all other lands (see Ether 1:42, 10:28, 13:2; D&C 38:20). It was choice, but not necessarily from the standpoint of scenery or wealth. It was choice because it was chosen. America was to serve as the repository of sacred records written on metallic plates. It one day was to become the location for the restoration of the gospel. It was to host headquarters of the Lord’s restored church. ] saying: In thy seed [ The seed of Abraham. ] shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.

19 And it came to pass that I, Nephi, spake much unto them concerning these things; yea, I spake unto them concerning the restoration of the Jews in the latter days.

20 And I did rehearse unto them the words of Isaiah, [ This is the reason why Nephi loves Isaiah so much, this is the reason why Nephi included the writings of Isaiah. He was not allowed to talk in further detail about what he knew but he could quote and reference Isaiah. ] who spake concerning the restoration of the Jews, or of the house of Israel; [ Remember that the Jews are only a very small part of the House of Israel. The ten tribes were scattered and their restoration will be part of the restoration of the House of Israel as well. ] and after they were restored they should no more be confounded, neither should they be scattered again. And it came to pass that I did speak many words unto my brethren, that they were pacified and did humble themselves before the Lord.

21 And it came to pass that they did speak unto me again, saying: What meaneth this thing which our father saw in a dream? What meaneth the tree which he saw? [ Their question are coming in rapid fire, not even waiting for Nephi to respond. Kind of like you don't know the answer any better than we do. But notice how Nephis starts to respond right back with out need to reflect on the answer - just shoots it right back. Note they ask about all of the major symbols in the dream except the large and Spacious building. Gee I wonder why?]

22 And I said unto them: It was a representation of the tree of life. [ The answer is interesting here that he just says it is a representation of the tree of life, and they go oh; ok. He does not need to explain it any further. So they must have known what the tree of life was - because their father would have taught them about it from Genesis. ]

23 And they said unto me: What meaneth the rod of iron [ See Rev 12:5. ] which our father saw, that led to the tree?

24 And I said unto them that it was the word of God; [ The gospel which is found most easily in reading the scriptures ] and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, [ First we must accept, then believe then obey it. Hebrew "Shema" is translated here as hearkenwhich means to "listen" and "obey". ] and would hold fast unto it, [ Cherish it So that we do not loose it, protect it's place with us. In essence if we would take the time to have a spiritual experience in the scriptures each and everyday we will become familiar with how the spirit speaks to us. we will hear that voice everyday and then as we go through the day we will know of the source of the voice that we hear we will know it is the spirit because it has a familiar voice to us we are used to hearing it. ] they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction. [ President Ezra Taft Benson spoke of the blessing of having the word of God in our possession. It will not only lead us to great blessings, but gives us the strength to stand firm in the face of temptation: “In his dream, Lehi saw an iron rod which led through the mists of darkness. He saw that if people would hold fast to that rod, they could avoid the rivers of filthiness, stay away from the forbidden paths, stop from wandering in the strange roads that lead to destruction. Later his son Nephi clearly explained the symbolism of the iron rod. When Laman and Lemuel asked, ‘What meaneth the rod of iron?’ Nephi answered, ‘It was the word of God; and [note this promise] whoso would hearken (listen and obey) unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.’ (1 Ne. 15:23–24; italics added.) Not only will the word of God lead us to the fruit which is desirable above all others, but in the word of God and through it we can find the power to resist temptation, the power to thwart the work of Satan and his emissaries” (“The Power of the Word,” Ensign, May 1986, 80).]

25 Wherefore, I, Nephi, did exhort them to give heed unto the word of the Lord; [ How can we give heed to something that we do not understand, How do we learn if we do not study the scriptures? We don't and we won't ] yea, I did exhort them with all the energies of my soul, and with all the faculty which I possessed, that they would give heed to the word of God and remember to keep his commandments always in all things.

26 And they said unto me: What meaneth the river of water which our father saw? [ I don't know about you but I think that to me this expresses the fact that Laman and Lemuel really wanted to know, but they really just did not know how to go about getting the answer. They were I suppose unacquainted with the spirt and how it works in their life and really did not know how to start to find out. ]

27 And I said unto them that the water which my father saw was filthiness; [ Compare with Rev 8:10 where Satan was cast out of heaven in to the rivers close to the source of (fountain which means source) They are pure at the head see Rev 22:1. ] and so much was his mind [ Lehi when he received the vision ] swallowed up in other things [It appears that in revelations, just like in reading scriptures that at different times we see and grasp different things] that he beheld not [Lehi did not notice the water was filthy as Lehi's mind before was "swallowed up in other things" - in this case his family. What can we learn from revelation from this example? this tells us something of the revelation that Lehi saw. It was one in which Lehi was choosing which way to look and what to see. If you were receiving such a revelation what would you most likely be looking for? You want to know where your family was; So we can assume that at this point as a loving father he was looking for Laman and Lemuel because they had not heeded his previous requests to come to the tree. So he was intently looking to see what was happening to them maybe; either way he was not focused on what the angel wanted him to see which was - "the filthy water". We can learn something here about revelation - that it is a process that requires both the messenger and the receiver to be in tune with the message. It is not just a download of all of the critical information that is contained on the subject. Lehi's dream (1 Ne. 8:35-38) does not contain the filthy water in his dream he just did not see it, as Nephi does and explains here - ] the filthiness of the water.

28 And I said unto them that it was an awful gulf, which separated the wicked from the tree of life, and also from the saints of God.

29 And I said unto them that it was a representation of that awful hell, which the angel said unto me was prepared for the wicked.

30 And I said unto them that our father also saw that the justice of God [ Because of His nature. (Mormon 9:3-5) ] did also divide the wicked from the righteous; [ Now we are going to get the reason why there is a separation of some from the presence of God. ] and the brightness thereof was like unto the brightness of a flaming fire, [ Because there would not be enough sunglasses in the world to be able to live in such a bright world if that was not your character as well. You would be constantly blind and have migraines - it would not be an enjoyable experience. This is based on the eternal law that says that God cannot deny Himself or His Glory. ] which ascendeth up unto God forever and ever, and hath no end.

31 And they [ Laman and Lemuel. ] said unto me: Doth this thing mean the torment of the body in the days of probation, or doth it mean the final state of the soul after the death of the temporal body, or doth it speak of the things which are temporal? [ Whoa; that is pretty deep stuff coming from a couple of non believers. I think that it shows that they have been taught right, they have the ability to understand, but rather are making a conscience choice not to want to know more or the full meaning. ]

32 And it came to pass that I said unto them that it was a representation of things both temporal and spiritual; for the day should come that they must be judged of their works, [ Judged by what we have become(their character), the condition we have achieved see Alma 12:14 where we will be condemned by our words, works and thoughts. This verse through 36 act as a stern warning for Laman and Lemuel and follow on from the previous warning found to them in 1 Ne. 10:20-21. See their reaction in 1 Ne. 16:1. ] yea, even the works [ Of character. ] which were done by the temporal body in their days of probation. [ Because this is the place where we are developing that character(which Alma says is a time to repent(change character) and serve God). ]

33 Wherefore, if they should die in their wickedness [ Their character is wicked. ] they must be cast off also, as to the things which are spiritual, which are pertaining to righteousness; wherefore, they must be brought to stand before God, [ After they are resurrected. ] to be judged of their works; [ Their character. ] and if their works [ Their character. ] have been filthiness they must needs be filthy; and if they be filthy [ This is the law or restoration and it is based upon our agency, our choice. Man who is filthy will not be restored to a state of righteousness - it cannot be as it it RESTORATION! To bring back to a previous state. ] it must needs be that they cannot dwell in the kingdom of God; if so, the kingdom of God must be filthy also. [ And God would cease to be God. (Alma 42:22) ]

34 But behold, I say unto you, [ That this is the LAW! ] the kingdom of God is not filthy, and there cannot any unclean thing enter into the kingdom of God; [ The law is restated again. This ETERNAL LAW is that No unclean thing can enter the place where God dwells. (2 Ne. 2:5; 3 Ne. 27:19; 1 Ne. 10:21; Alma 11:37; Alma 7:21; Hel. 8:25; Moses 6:57; Eph. 5:5-6) ] wherefore [ As a result, or because your spirit is eternal. ] there must needs be a place of filthiness prepared for that which is filthy. [ If you cannot be with God and your spirit is eternal then there needs to be a place other than the place where God dwells for your spirit to dwell eternally. ]

35 And there is a place prepared, yea, even that awful hell of which I have spoken, and the devil is the preparer of it; wherefore the final state of the souls of men is to dwell in the kingdom of God, or to be cast out because of that justice [ The nature of God. No unclean thing can dwell in his presence, and he cannot deny His Glory. (Mormon 9:3-5) ] of which I have spoken. [In the end there is only two choices or places where the souls of men will end up. Either with God in his presence or cast out - there is and has been a place prepared for both. How can the final state of each man be divided into two groups? The key to answering the question is found in Doctrine and Covenants 76:43, which summarizes the work of Jesus Christ as follows: “[He] glorifies the Father, and saves all the works of his hands, except those sons of perdition who deny the son after the Father has revealed him.” Thus, the final state will include the grouping of saved individuals and unsaved individuals, or sons of perdition. Saved individuals will include those who are allowed to enter a degree of glory. Doctrine and Covenants 76 names three degrees of glory—celestial, terrestrial, and telestial—with information about the individuals who are worthy of each place in God’s kingdom. Thus, salvation within the kingdom of God occurs in all three degrees of glory, while those who do not qualify are sons of perdition. ]

36 Wherefore, the wicked are rejected from the righteous, , [ Rejected as a result of their choice according to Mormon 9:3-5. Here Nephi paints a little different version of the tree as people are being openly rejected from partaking of the fruit. Lehi sees a tree that some want to gravitate to and others don't. So one difference we have that Nehi is looking at the tree from an eternal perspective while Lehi is looking at the tree from a temporal perspective. So in an eternal setting the choosing is over and Judgement (v. 32, 33) dictates who has access to the Tree and who is tossed into "that awful hell" (v. 35). ] and also from that tree of life [ We know that no one gets to the tree of life without holding onto the iron rod. Everyone that leaves of walks away from the fruit of the tree of life does so of their own choosing - they look about, they see the great and spacious building. ] whose fruit is most precious and most desirable above all other fruits; [ This fruit is precious and it cannot be had by everyone as there is a price associated with being able to partake.] yea, and it is the greatest of all the gifts of God. [ Which is eternal life. ] And thus I spake unto my brethren. Amen.