Narrative: The vision of the tree comes after Lehi’s desire for mercy, by which he means the things of the Spirit, not personal comforts. Similarly, in “The Narrative of Zosimus,” the vision occurs after a righteous man expresses his desires: “About that time there was in the desert a certain man named Zosimus, [who for forty years ate no bread, and drank no wine, and saw not the face of man]. This man was entreating God that he might see the way of life of the blessed.”
Like Zosimus, Lehi receives his dream of the tree in response to expressing the righteous desires of his heart.