“A Tree, Whose Fruit Was Desirable”
Lehi’s attention , as drawn to a tree, “whose fruit was desirable to make one happy,” a fruit which was white and sweet beyond anything known to his experience. Partaking of the fruit brought unspeakable joy. Nephi later learned that the tree represented the “love of God, which sheddeth itself abroad in the hearts of the children of men” (1 Nephi 11:22). This tree was more than an abstract principle, however, more than a vague sentiment, albeit a divine sentiment. Nephi was taught that the tree represented the love of God as manifest in the gift of his Son (see 1 Nephi 11:7, 20-22). Partaking of the fruit of the tree thus represented the partaking of the powers of Christ and his atonement: forgiveness of sins, as well as feelings of peace, joy, and gratitude. Ultimately through partaking of the powers of the gospel one is qualified to partake of the greatest fruit of the Atonement-the blessings associated with eternal life. Note Nephi’s words to his brothers: “Wherefore, the wicked are rejected from the righteous, and also from that tree of life, whose fruit is most precious and most desirable above all other fruits; yea, and it is the greatest of all the gifts of God” (1 Nephi 15:36). The greatest of all the gifts of God is, indeed, eternal life (see D&C 6:13; D&C 14:7). (For a consideration of both the literal and the symbolic nature of the tree of life as found in the Eden story, see 2 Nephi 2:15.)
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