“Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.” — Joel 2:281
Lucy Mack Smith recorded that Joseph Smith Sr. had seven dreams or visions, but she could only remember five of them. He began having them around 1811.2
In the first vision, Joseph Sr. dreamed he was journeying through a desolate field, symbolic of a world without the fullness of the gospel. A spirit who led him to a box said to contain wisdom and understanding. When he opened this box, violent creatures appeared and threatened him, forcing him to abandon the box and flee. Despite this, he awoke with a feeling of peace.3
His second vision was similar to Lehi's vision of the tree of life recorded in 1 Nephi. Joseph Sr. was guided to a path with a rope on one side which he followed past a river to a tree with white fruit. After eating the fruit, he shared it with his family, and his guide told him the fruit represented the pure love of God. Joseph Sr. also noticed a building full of people mocking his family.4
In his third dream, Joseph Sr. said that he was struggling to walk along a path with his angelic companion. He asked the angel to heal him. He was informed that if he went to a garden ahead he would be healed. Continuing along the path, he found the garden which had 12 figures sitting in chairs at the center. They all bowed to him, and he was healed.5
In the sixth dream (Lucy could not remember the two previous clearly), Joseph Sr. was rushing toward a door but was locked out. He prayed to be let in and was eventually asked if he had done all he could. He then prayed to Jesus to intercede on his behalf and was told that he must always do so.6
The final dream was of a peddler who informed him that he had visited him seven times and had always found him honest but that Joseph lacked one thing. Joseph Sr. asked the peddler to write that thing down, but in his excitement to find paper, Joseph Sr. woke up.2
