以賽亞書49:1-7

49:1 眾海島啊，當聽我言！遠方的眾民哪，留心而聽！自我出胎，耶和華就選召我；自出母腹，他就提我的名。
49:2 他使我的口如快刀，將我藏在他手蔭之下；又使我成為磨亮的箭，將我藏在他箭袋之中；
49:3 對我說：你是我的僕人以色列；我必因你得榮耀。
49:4 我卻說：我勞碌是徒然；我盡力是虛無虛空。然而，我當得的理必在耶和華那裡；我的賞賜必在我上帝那裡。
49:5 耶和華從我出胎，造就我作他的僕人，要使雅各歸向他，使以色列到他那裡聚集。原來耶和華看我為尊貴；我的上帝也成為我的力量。
49:6 現在他說：你作我的僕人，使雅各眾支派復興，使以色列中得保全的歸回尚為小事，我還要使你作外邦人的光，叫你施行我的救恩，直到地極。
49:7 救贖主─以色列的聖者耶和華對那被人所藐視、本國所憎惡、官長所虐待的如此說：君王要看見就站起，首領也要下拜；都因信實的耶和華，就是揀選你─以色列的聖者。

Listen to me, O coastlands,

pay attention, you peoples from far away!

The Lord called me before I was born,

while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.

2

He made my mouth like a sharp sword,

in the shadow of his hand he hid me;

he made me a polished arrow,

in his quiver he hid me away.

3

And he said to me, “You are my servant,

Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”

4

But I said, “I have labored in vain,

I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;

yet surely my cause is with the Lord,

and my reward with my God.”

5

And now the Lord says,

who formed me in the womb to be his servant,

to bring Jacob back to him,

and that Israel might be gathered to him,

for I am honored in the sight of the Lord,

and my God has become my strength—

6

he says,

“It is too light a thing that you should be my servant

to raise up the tribes of Jacob

and to restore the survivors of Israel;

I will give you as a light to the nations,

that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

7

Thus says the Lord,

the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One,

to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nations,

the slave of rulers,

“Kings shall see and stand up,

princes, and they shall prostrate themselves,

because of the Lord, who is faithful,

the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.”

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    先知以賽亞在此說出了上帝僕人的心聲：「我勞碌是徒然；我盡力是虛無虛空。然而，我當得的理必在耶和華那裡；我的賞賜必在我上帝那裡。」

    這樣的情形正如保羅所說：「反倒在各樣的事上表明自己是上帝的用人，就如在許多的忍耐、患難、窮乏、困苦、鞭打、監禁、擾亂、勤勞、警醒、不食、廉潔、知識、恆忍、恩慈、聖靈的感化、無偽的愛心、真實的道理、上帝的大能；仁義的兵器在左在右；榮耀、羞辱，惡名、美名；似乎是誘惑人的，卻是誠實的；似乎不為人所知，卻是人所共知的；似乎要死，卻是活著的；似乎受責罰，卻是不至喪命的；似乎憂愁，卻是常常快樂的；似乎貧窮，卻是叫許多人富足的；似乎一無所有，卻是樣樣都有的。」（哥林多後書6:4-10）

 

    所以，既然蒙上帝揀選成為祂的僕人，就要將盼望和滿足放在上帝本身，不要求是上的財富與權力，這是世人所看為滿足的，看為重要的！但是上帝的僕人，要以基督為我們的滿足，為我們的至寶！再次借用保羅的話：「只是我先前以為與我有益的，我現在因基督都當作有損的。不但如此，我也將萬事當作有損的，因我以認識我主基督耶穌為至寶。我為他已經丟棄萬事，看作糞土，為要得著基督。」（腓立比書3:7-8）