And now I make an end of speaking concerning the things which I saw while I was in the Spirit (1 Nephi 14:30)Interestingly, while Nephi is carried away in the Spirit he sees others carried away in the Spirit. In verse 15, Nephi sees the virgin Mary. She is carried away in the Spirit in verse 19 and when he sees her again she carries a child in her arms. In verse 29, he sees the 12 Apostles following Jesus. They are also carried away in the Spirit until they reappear some time after Christ's death.
As we can see, this is a dominant theme in Nephi's vision. We find it other places in the scriptures too. In the Bible, this expression is mentioned only a few times. We saw one example of Paul being caught up to Heaven in part 1. Philip is caught away by the Spirit in Acts 8. Ezekiel 40:2 is the closest we get in the Old Testament, I think. It reads
In the visions of God brought he me into the land of Israel, and set me upon a very high mountainBut this theme is the most prevalent in the Book of Revelation. He starts off his vision with
On the Lord's day I was in the Spirit (Revelation 1:10)Also, twice more in Revelations, John describes himself being carried away in the Spirit; in 21:10 and 17:3. Not surprisingly perhaps, because there are several connections between Nephi's and John's visions. There is some common language, like "nations, kindreds, tongues and people" and the whore sitting on many waters (see Revelation 17:1 and 1 Nephi 14:11) and of course the fact that John is explicitly mentioned in the end of Nephi's account (1 Nephi 14:27).
In the Book of Moses, we find it too. In part 1, I mentioned Adam. Also, in Moses 1:1
The words of God, which he unto Moses at a time when Moses was caught up into an exceedingly highI see a recurring theme in many of these accounts. Perhaps it goes without saying that they are typical precedents for Heavenly manifestations. But they seem to be very special, personal and sacred events involving the presence of the glorified divine that requires a transformation of the body to endure as discussed in Part 1. In fact, they are so sacred that they are often forbidden to talk or write about it.
Nephi is forbidden to record everything he saw (1 Nephi 14:28). Mary, who he sees carried away in the Spirit, has become the mother of the Savior when he sees her again. Definitely a sacred experience we know little about. One thing we know is that Joseph was not the father! The other "carried away" he sees is the 12 Apostles. This one is more difficult for me to understand. But one thing that comes to mind is that the Mount of Transfiguration fits the pattern. They experience sacred things, saw Christ's glory and probably much more than what is recorded. And again, they are forbidden to speak about it. The 3 disciples in 3 Nephi, who were "caught up into heaven" also follow the same pattern:
And it was them that they should utter; neither was it given unto them that they could utter the things which they saw and heard (3 Nephi 28:14)A final example is Joseph Smith. Although we don't see the language "caught up/carried away" used, we learn about his first vision and read that "many other things did he [Christ] say unto me, which I cannot write at this time." Don Bradley's research shows that "caught up" would be a very fitting term here.
Conclusions
- Even though I still don't understand the metaphysics, "caught/carried up/away in/by (the Spirit)" are expressions that seem to signify going through a transformation to be able to endure the presence of the divine and being physically lifted or at least guided to a "higher" place, like a mountain or even heaven.
- The expression is typically used in connection with very profound, sacred and personal experiences. These are often forbidden to write down or talk about.
- This theme is particularly prevalent in Nephi's vision and John's revelation, making up just one of several connections between the two.