I have been thinking about the symbolism in Lehi’s dream in the Book of Mormon this weekend, and I have come away with a new idea: What if I missed the whole point?
This started when I was considering some of the symbols from Lehi’s dream:
- The tree
- The fruit
- The strait and narrow path
- The mist of darkness
- The river of filthy water
- The great and spacious building
- The iron rod
The iron rod is where I got stuck. I have understood for my whole life that the iron rod represents “The Word of God.” Nephi says so himself:
“And they said unto me: What meaneth the rod of iron which our father saw, that led to the tree?
“And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken 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 Nephi 15: 23-34
In every Sunday School lesson and every seminary lesson and every family home evening discussion I recall being part of since I first learned what the Iron Rod was, I have understood “The Word of God” to be the scriptures or the words of living prophets.
Photo by Sparsh Karki
The Rod of Iron
But if you go clear back to 1 Nephi 8:19 where Lehi first introduces the “rod of iron” into the narrative, there are several footnote scriptures. If you dig a little deeper and read those references, you see that in nearly every case, the “rod of iron” relates to the power and authority of the Savior. The incredible light bulb moment for me was realizing that the symbol of the iron rod represents Jesus Christ himself.
For me, that changes almost everything about the story. If clinging to, or holding fast to the rod symbolizes holding fast to the Savior, then it is clear He is on the path with me. He is the guide, He is the support. He is the way to stay on the strait and narrow path. He is the thing I hold onto in the darkness if the mists overpower my vision temporarily.
And if He is the iron rod, then I think it stands to reason that The Love of God is available to me today, right now. Not at some future and distant point when I drag myself, wounded and exhausted to the end of the path and the end of my life where I get to taste the fruit in some kingdom of glory. He wants me to taste the Love of God right now, just like Lehi wanted his family to do.
The Savior has become the iron rod of my everyday life. I think that changes everything.
Note: for a further discussion of this idea, see, “But We Heeded Them Not,” by Elder David A. Bednar, with special attention to the section, “Holding Fast to the Iron Rod.”
Main photo photograph by Julia Fuchs, via Pexels
