Lehi did not dismiss the dream as an illusion. He accepted it as a message from God. It brought him joy because of Nephi and Sam, but he feared because of Laman and Lemuel. In olden days dreams were often accepted as revelations. Eliphas, one of the friends of Job, said,
"Now a thing was secretly brought to me, and mine ear received a little thereof. In thoughts from the visions of the night, when deep sleep falleth on men, fear came upon me, and trembling, which made all my bones to shake." (Job 33:14-16)
Lehi was seized with fear; not for himself, but for his two sons. One of the objects of this dream was to acquaint Lehi with the condition of his sons, in order that he might warn them, and bring them to repentance. America might have had a different history, if Laman and Lemuel had accepted the sweet fruit of the tree and acknowledged Nephi as their divinely appointed leader.