A Prayer Given by the Savior

Daniel H. Ludlow

With the exception of the Lord's Prayer, which he gave to us as an example, the scriptures contain very few personal prayers of the Savior. However, a notable exception to this is 3 Nephi 19:20-23, which contains the exact words of a personal prayer given by the Savior. This prayer is a classic example for several reasons. First, the prayer is very personal. This brief prayer of only four verses contains forty personal pronouns used by the Savior. Also, the prayer contains the thanks of the Savior to our Heavenly Father (verse 20) and a petition to the Father for a future blessing (verse 21). Another interesting feature of this prayer is that the Savior explains to the Father why the Nephites are praying directly to him rather than to the Father: ". . . they pray unto me because I am with them." (3 Nephi 19:22.) Elsewhere the Savior clearly taught that we should pray unto the Father in the name of the Savior. (See 3 Nephi 18:20.)

A Companion To Your Study of The Book of Mormon

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