3 Nephi 17

“I Have Compassion upon You”

It had already been a long day for the Nephite multitude when the Savior announced it was time for Him to leave. Nevertheless, the multitude’s tears and yearning that He would stay a little longer touched His heart. In a marvelous display of compassion, He healed them, prayed with them, and blessed their children one by one. This lesson can help you feel the compassion Jesus Christ has for you.

Using Book of Mormon videos. The Book of Mormon videos are intended to help students have meaningful experiences with the text. These videos are not intended to replace scripture reading. Wisely determine when and how to use the videos to enhance students’ experiences with the scriptures.

Student preparation: Invite students to think of times when they have felt mercy, compassion, or love from God. Students might prepare to share how these experiences affected their relationships with Him.

Possible Learning Activities

The Savior’s perception

Imagine you have just spent a day with the Savior and He has announced that it is time for Him to leave.

To help students visualize this event, you could show the video “Jesus Christ and Angels Minister with Compassion” (11:59), available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, from time code 0:12 to 1:30.

• How might you feel in this situation?

Help students recall what they learned about the Savior from 3 Nephi 11–16. They could review what they wrote in their journals under “Learning about Jesus Christ in 3 Nephi.”

Before they answer the following question, it may be helpful to ask students to list on the board verbs describing what the Savior did.

• How did the Savior’s actions show His love for the Nephites?

Today you will read more about how the Savior showed His loving compassion among the Nephites. As you study, think about what His actions teach about His character. Pay attention to how you feel about Him.

It may be helpful to know that all the events recorded in 3 Nephi 11–17 happened in one day.

Read 3 Nephi 17:1–6, looking for what you can learn about Jesus Christ from His words and actions.

• What did you find in these verses?

Students may discover a principle similar to the following: By pondering and praying to the Father, we prepare our minds to receive greater understanding.

If you would like to do more with this principle, see the “Supplemental Learning Activities” section.

You may have identified a truth similar to the following: Jesus Christ is filled with compassion toward me. Consider recording this truth near verse 6.

Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles taught:

It is meaningful to observe that Jesus’s compassionate acts were not occasional or mandated manifestations based on a list of tasks to be completed but everyday expressions of the reality of His pure love for God and His children and His abiding desire to help them. (Ulisses Soares, “The Savior’s Abiding Compassion,” Liahona, Nov. 2021, 14)

• In your own words, what is Elder Soares teaching about the Savior’s compassion?

The Savior’s compassion

The rest of 3 Nephi 17 demonstrates the Savior’s compassionate nature. Remember that what Jesus Christ did in 3 Nephi 17 came about because He perceived the Nephites’ righteous desires and He genuinely wanted to be with and bless them.

The intent of the following activity is to help students develop greater love for the Savior through visualizing His compassionate nature. Students may have practiced this skill while studying 3 Nephi 11. Repeating the skill can help students increase their ability to use it.

Display the following questions and passages. Invite students to select which passage they would like to study, and ask them to reflect on the questions as they study. Students could answer these questions in their study journals under “Learning about Jesus Christ in 3 Nephi.”

Consider allowing students to choose to study alone or quietly with a partner.

• Which moment would have been most special for you? Why?

• What impressed you about the way Jesus ministered?

• How do His words and actions impact the way you feel about Him?

• 3 Nephi 17:7–10: Healing their sick and afflicted

• 3 Nephi 17:13–20: Praying with and for them

• 3 Nephi 17:11–12, 21–25: Blessing the children

Consider displaying the following questions and giving students time to think about them before answering.

• If you had been there, how would this experience affect your relationship with your Savior Jesus Christ?

• How do you think Jesus Christ shows compassion for us today?

• What do you feel motivated to do to express your love for Jesus Christ?

Time permitting, consider singing a hymn about the Savior’s love and compassion. Some examples include “Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee” (Hymns, no. 141), “Precious Savior, Dear Redeemer” (Hymns, no. 103), and “Our Savior’s Love” (Hymns, no. 113).

As appropriate, invite students to share what they felt during today’s lesson. Encourage them to continue looking for evidence of the Savior’s compassion in their lives.

Commentary and Background Information

What kinds of afflictions did the Savior heal the people from?

President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency taught:

When the Savior appeared to the righteous in the New World, He called for persons to come forward who were lame or blind or had other physical ailments. He extended the same invitation to those “that are afflicted in any manner” (3 Nephi 17:7). “Bring them hither,” He said, “and I will heal them” (v. 7). The Book of Mormon tells how the multitude brought forward “all them that were afflicted in any manner” (v. 9). This must have included persons with every kind of physical or emotional or mental affliction, and the scripture testifies that Jesus “did heal them every one” (v. 9). (Dallin H. Oaks, “He Heals the Heavy Laden,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2006, 6)

Sister Bonnie H. Cordon, Young Women General President, also taught in the following video about the Savior’s ability and willingness to heal.

How can I grow in Christlike compassion?

Elder Ulisses Soares of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles shared:

The compassionate attitude of Jesus is rooted in charity, namely, in His pure and perfect love, which is the essence of His atoning sacrifice. Compassion is a fundamental characteristic of those who strive for sanctification, and this divine quality intertwines with other Christian traits such as mourning with those who mourn and having empathy, mercy, and kindness. The expression of compassion for others is, in fact, the essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ and a marked evidence of our spiritual and emotional closeness to the Savior. Furthermore, it shows the level of influence He has on our way of life and demonstrates the magnitude of our spirits. (Ulisses Soares, “The Savior’s Abiding Compassion,” Liahona, Nov. 2021, 13–14)

Supplemental Learning Activities

3 Nephi 17:1–3. “Ponder upon the things which I have said”

The following can help prepare students to ponder the scriptures.

President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency taught that “reading, studying, and pondering are not the same. We read words and we may get ideas. We study and we may discover patterns and connections in scripture. But when we ponder, we invite revelation by the Spirit. Pondering, to me, is the thinking and the praying I do after reading and studying in the scriptures carefully” (Henry B. Eyring, “Serve with the Spirit,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2010, 60).

You could invite students to study 3 Nephi 17:1–3, looking for the instructions the Lord gave to the Nephites so they could “prepare [their] minds for the morrow.” They could then identify a truth such as by pondering and praying to the Father, we prepare our minds to receive greater understanding.

Share the statement by President Eyring, and invite students to discuss how studying, praying, and pondering can work together to prepare our minds to receive greater understanding. Students could then apply what they learned about pondering as they study the rest of 3 Nephi 17. For example, they could visualize the events in the scriptures or think about how the Savior would treat them. Afterward, discuss how their pondering deepened their understanding of the scriptures and love for the Lord.

3 Nephi 17:5. “He cast his eyes round about again”

One of the Savior’s divine qualities is His ability to recognize or perceive the needs of others and then attend to those needs with love and kindness.

Invite students to study 3 Nephi 17:5, looking for how Jesus Christ demonstrated His ability to perceive the needs of others. Consider showing the video of President Bonnie H. Cordon in the “Commentary and Background Information” section. As students watch, invite them to think of how they can improve their ability to perceive others’ needs and attend to them as the Savior would.

Consider singing or reading the words to “I’m Trying to Be like Jesus” (Children’s Songbook, 78–79).

Discuss how we can follow the Savior’s example by noticing the needs of others and then helping them.

3 Nephi 17:12. “Jesus stood in the midst”

To help students feel that the Savior is close to them, invite them to study 3 Nephi 11:8; 3 Nephi 20:22; 3 Nephi 27:2; Doctrine and Covenants 38:7; 88:13; and Abraham 3:22–23, looking for how those verses are similar to 3 Nephi 17:12. Students could link these verses. Then discuss what students discovered about the Savior and His relationship with us.