Lehi’s concluding statement about the events of the Garden of Eden is well known. When “Adam fell that men might be”, what did Lehi mean? It is possible to contrast this statement with the statement that “Adam and Eve would not have had children”, and that is certainly a part of what he meant. However, Lehi’s interests are not in the temporal, but in the spiritual meaning. When Lehi says that Adam fell that men might be, he did not mean only that it was physically possible for them to be born, but that God’s plan for his children could be implemented.
The evidence for this reading is the conclusion. When humankind is, it is for a purpose—which is that it might have joy. Understanding what Lehi meant by having joy requires that we remember the context in which these words were spoken. This is Lehi’s exposition on choice, and the necessity of having opposites. He has, more than once, contrasted misery and happiness. Thus, when he speaks of joy, we should understand it in the implied context of its opposite, eternal misery.
Lehi had described the fallen angel as miserable in opposition to God. Thus, if humankind is to have joy, it is part of eternal opposition. We are not to belong to the fallen angel, but to belong to God, to become like God, and to participate in the joy of God.