1 Nephi 11:7

7  And behold this thing shall be given unto thee for a ^asign, that after thou hast beheld the tree which bore the fruit which thy father tasted, thou shalt also behold a man descending out of heaven, and him shall ye witness; and after ye have witnessed him ye shall ^bbear record that it is the Son of God.

            -verse 7 is an introduction or summary of the vision that is about to take place.  The events actually come about in verses 8 through chapter 14 .

    “shall be given unto thee for a sign”

            -signs are given unto men and women but, ironically, they are not given to those who seek signs.  They are given to those who possess faith.  It even appears that God desires to give us signs but these are allocated by purity of motivation and faith.

            -Nephi is given a preparatory course for the things he is about to see… why?

    “him shall ye witness; and after ye have witnessed him ye shall bear record”

            -establishing witnesses or testifiers of the Savior is evidently an important matter to God.  God, in fact, goes through great pains to make the things of eternity known to man by man’s own word.  It is as if God is trying to help man penetrate the veil as much as man is willing.