Nephi and his brothers all heard Lehi recount his dream of the iron rod, great and spacious building, mists of darkness, and the Tree of Life with its delicious fruit. Evidentally the brothers all had questions about what the dream meant.
We have Lehi’s cursory explanation of the dream. Nephi noted that Lehi preached and prophesied about many things. Did the brothers ask Lehi their questions about the dream and subsequent prophecies? We don’t know.
To Ask or Not To Ask
What we do know is that most of the family tried to decipher the dream’s meaning by talking it out amongst themselves. Laman, Lemuel, and crew “disputed” about possible interpretations.
When Nephi asked if they’d asked God for the dream’s meanings,
[T]hey said unto me: We have not; for the Lord maketh no such thing known unto us.
They hadn’t asked because they didn’t anticipate a heavenly response. According to Nephi’s record, they’d experienced heavenly responses before. Why not again?
For he truly spake many great things unto them, which were hard to be understood, save a man should inquire of the Lord; and they being hard in their hearts, therefore they did not look unto the Lord as they ought.
It doesn’t really matter what caused them to not look to God. What matters is what causes us to not look to God as we ought. When we have a question, do we ask God anticipating a response?
Nephi heard the same dream and prophecies. He had questions, too. He left camp to find solitary space.
I, Nephi, was desirous also that I might see, and hear, and know of these things, by the power of the Holy Ghost, which is the gift of God unto all those who diligently seek him….
He expected to engage all the senses–see, hear, know.
[A]fter I had desired to know the things that my father had seen, and believing that the Lord was able to make them known unto me, as I sat pondering in mine heart I was caught away in the Spirit of the Lord…
Desire. Belief. Ponder. Revelation.
Understanding Versus Knowing
When he returned to camp, Nephi systematically answered his brothers’ questions. So they ultimately understood the meaning of the dream and prophecies, but did they know? Understanding the dream changed their behavior for a time, but soon old habits crept back into their life.
Nephi’s revelatory knowledge became his common themes as he taught and warned his brothers throughout the rest of his narrative. Who was the Messiah and what was His role? What was the destiny of the House of Israel and other peoples on Earth? What was the destiny of Lehi’s family?
Nephi’s knowing changed him. His conversion moved to the next level. He saw, heard, and knew the Savior.
Ask and It Shall Be Given
I searched “ask given” on lds.org and found 65 passages with some version of the phrase “Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.” That’s a lot of instances, especially considering all of the “Love your” (love God, neighbor, wife, enemy) instances total 50.
I love this example of Nephi and his brothers because I see the results of their choices to ask in faith or to not ask, assuming God wouldn’t really talk to them.
The Lord knows we’ll have questions, expects us to question, and promises that as we question and ask Him, He will answer.
And to them will I reveal all mysteries, yea, all the hidden mysteries of my kingdom from days of old, and for ages to come, will I make known unto them the good pleasure of my will concerning all things pertaining to my kingdom.
Yea, even the wonders of eternity shall they know, and things to come will I show them, even the things of many generations.
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