Study Questions

These three chapters contain some of the most sublime statements ever to be found in scripture or anywhere else. The words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount have been studied extensively by Christians everywhere. They are sacred. Please approach them reverently and prayerfully. As you study these chapters, here are some intriguing general questions to beneficially ponder. I hope they will help you receive and love these exquisite words of Jesus with all your heart, mind, and strength.

Escalation

• What are the main themes in Jesus’s Sermon at the Temple in Bountiful and His Sermon on the Mount in the Old World?
• How often and in what ways do themes escalate over the course of this masterful Sermon?
• How is that escalation compatible with the character of this sermon as a ritual ascent text leading people into the presence of God? (see "enter" in 3 Nephi 14: 13, 21–23).
• How do the following themes escalate or intensify as this Sermon progresses from initial to higher levels of duty and spirituality: (a) giving to others, (b) praying and asking of God, (c) justice, elements regarding punishments and rewards, and (d) consequences of failed discipleship from simple circumstances to eternal concerns?
• Would you agree that the Sermon at the Temple and Sermon on the Mount become more serious and more advanced as they progress from beginning to end?

Vocabulary

• How many words and phrases in these chapters do you think would have been familiar to the Nephites, or, how many of them were they hearing for the first time?
• How many of those familiar words and phrases would have been "at home" in the Psalms or in connection with activities or themes already strongly related to practices or ordinances in their temple? See John W. Welch, "The Common Israelite Background," in Illuminating the Sermon at the Temple & the Sermon on the Mount (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999), 151–177. In other words, was Jesus beginning with familiar ideas and building upon them, or were these teachings totally new to these listeners?
• As a general characteristic, do General Conference talks and the wordings of our Temple ordinances likewise start simple and become more challenging at the end?

Audiences

• What differences are there between the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5–7 and the Sermon at the Temple in 3 Nephi 12–14?
• Why are those differences significant in terms of the audiences Jesus was addressing?
• Which of the differences are due to the following:
  • the post-resurrection setting in 3 Nephi,
  • the Nephite setting and culture,
  • the fact that the Nephites were more dependent upon written law,
  • the explicit covenant-making setting emphasizing the heart,
  • the more immediate relation to God in their presence,
  • the unseemly penalties that had been dropped,
  • a more established church organizational setting that was in place,
  • a greater universality of spiritual blessings now that Jesus had expanded his mission beyond just the House of Israel,
  • or the anti-Pharisaical, possible anti-Gentile, and alleged anti-Pauline elements were absent and irrelevant here?

You may find other differences as well. See John W. Welch, "The Sermon at the Temple and the Sermon on the Mount: The Differences," in Illuminating the Sermon at the Temple & the Sermon on the Mount (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999), 125–150.

Languages

• What do the textual similarities and differences between 3 Nephi 12–14 and Matthew 5–7, as well as the earliest Greek manuscripts of the Gospel of Matthew, tell us about the nature of the translation given to us by Joseph Smith? See Welch, "Joseph Smith and the Translation of the Sermon at the Temple," in Illuminating the Sermon, 179–198; Welch, "The Sermon at the Temple and the Greek New Testament Manuscripts," in Illuminating the Sermon, 199–210.

A Pre-Matthean Origin

• Does the Book of Mormon sustain the important idea that the Sermon on the Mount was actually given by Jesus and not created or compiled later by Matthew or some other writer? Consider (a) the characteristic words of Jesus, (b) the pre-Matthean elements in the text, (c) the temple settings and private audiences for parallels from the Sermon on the Mount in Mark and Luke, (d) the selection of texts used in the public setting in the Sermon on the Plain in Luke 6, and (e) Jesus’ overall attitude toward the Temple. See Welch, "Jesus and the Composition of the Sermon on the Mount," in Illuminating the Sermon, 211–237.

A Ritual Text

• Might the Sermon on the Mount have been used as a ritual text in preparing proselytes for baptism and to renew their covenantal commitments as Christians?
• How does the Sermon on the Mount compare with other rituals or ceremonies of conversion, initiation, or admission into such groups as (a) Apostolic Christianity, (b) the Qumran community, (c) Talmudic Judaism, or (d) the Greek mystery religions or utopian groups? See Welch, "The Sermon in Light of Ritual Studies," in Illuminating the Sermon, 239–250.

Face to Face

• As you imagine Jesus speaking the words of the Sermon at the Temple, how do you imagine the expressions on his face?
• How many "faces" of Jesus do you see here? Consider its faces or expressions of direct verbal instruction, of moral and ethical persuasion, of enlightenment with allegorical illustrations, of authority with promises and consequences, and of loving invitation.

Reality and Practicality

• In this text, a faithful reader will see the face of sincerity, wisdom, and truth. The answer to the urgent question, "Master, what shall I do to obtain eternal life?" (Luke 10:25) is found here in abundance, clarity, and sensitivity, every step of the way.

Further Reading

John W. Welch, Illuminating the Sermon at the Temple and the Sermon on the Mount (Provo, UT: FARMS, 1999).