The Tree of Life

I used to have the Illustrated Stories of the Book of Mormon. You know the ones. The young hungry zealous returned missionary comes to your door one summer afternoon and convinces you that you need them and then springs the shocking price on you. Yip, those ones. I no longer have them. Probably not long after I finally paid them off, I gave them away, by then the kids were grown and almost gone. One of the volumes had such an interesting preface in it that I wrote it in the front of my scriptures before I gave the book away. It was about the tree of life. Here is a little summary of that preface along with information I found in my Book of Mormon Reference companion.

The tree of life first grew in the Garden of Eden and as long as Adam and Eve partook of the fruit they lived eternally. We know the story. From the time of Noah the sacred tree of life became a religious symbol. The true meaning of the tree of life was lost through apostasy. It is fascinating to know that throughout the centuries various cultures portrayed the tree of life and its life giving fruit in their art and literature. Those cultures obviously knew something about the life-giving tree. Interestingly some Egyptian coffin lids actually depict a goddess growing out of the tree of life. All are interesting yet they are distortions and counterfeits of the original sacred tree. “The true meaning was that whoever ate the fruit could live eternally by arising in the resurrection after death.” This true meaning was restored to ancient Israel during the time and leadership of Moses and yet lost that meaning again over time. Knowing this gives deeper understanding to what we know of Lehi’s significant vision of the tree of life.

It is really interesting to me to know that the tree of life is symbolized in the menorah. The tabernacle built in the wilderness during the time of Moses housed the solid gold menorah. It stood before the entrance to the Holy of Holies. The burning lamps of the menorah symbolized the unending light from Jehovah to the children of Israel. This coincides with what we know about the fruit on the tree in Lehi’s vision. Symbolic of the love of God.

The menorah in the tabernacle stood as tall as a man, representative of the sacred tree. It did not hold candles as some small replicas we see today. It held and burned olive oil. The same sacred oil used to anoint. The Book of Mormon Reference companion says, “Even the lamps of the menorah filled with olive oil represent the presence and life of God. Anointing with olive oil symbolized partaking of the tree of life, whether in anointing prophets and kings, or in anointing the sick with a blessing of renewed and restored life.”

I love how each “piece” of the gospel of Jesus Christ fits together like the pieces of a puzzle. I love the tree of life piece of the puzzle. It adds understanding and depth to what I already know about Lehi, his vision, and the gospel in general. Each time a new puzzle piece is added, we can see more clearly our Heavenly Father’s plan. Awesome.