2020年8月1日 星期六
士師記13:1-25
13:1 以色列人又行耶和華眼中看為惡的事，耶和華將他們交在非利士人手中四十年。
13:2 那時，有一個瑣拉人，是屬但族的，名叫瑪挪亞。他的妻不懷孕，不生育。
13:3 耶和華的使者向那婦人顯現，對她說：「向來你不懷孕，不生育，如今你必懷孕生一個兒子。
13:4 所以你當謹慎，清酒濃酒都不可喝，一切不潔之物也不可吃。
13:5 你必懷孕生一個兒子，不可用剃頭刀剃他的頭，因為這孩子一出胎就歸上帝作拿細耳人。他必起首拯救以色列人脫離非利士人的手。」
13:6 婦人就回去對丈夫說：「有一個神人到我面前來，他的相貌如上帝使者的相貌，甚是可畏。我沒有問他從哪裡來，他也沒有將他的名告訴我，
13:7 卻對我說：『你要懷孕生一個兒子，所以清酒濃酒都不可喝，一切不潔之物也不可吃；因為這孩子從出胎一直到死，必歸上帝作拿細耳人。』」
13:8 瑪挪亞就祈求耶和華說：「主啊，求你再差遣那神人到我們這裡來，好指教我們怎樣待這將要生的孩子。」
13:9 上帝應允瑪挪亞的話；婦人正坐在田間的時候，上帝的使者又到她那裡，她丈夫瑪挪亞卻沒有同她在一處。
13:10 婦人急忙跑去告訴丈夫說：「那日到我面前來的人，又向我顯現。」
13:11 瑪挪亞起來跟隨他的妻來到那人面前，對他說：「與這婦人說話的就是你嗎？」他說：「是我。」
13:12 瑪挪亞說：「願你的話應驗！我們當怎樣待這孩子，他後來當怎樣呢？」
13:13 耶和華的使者對瑪挪亞說：「我告訴婦人的一切事，她都當謹慎。
13:14 葡萄樹所結的都不可吃，清酒濃酒都不可喝，一切不潔之物也不可吃。凡我所吩咐的，她都當遵守。」
13:15 瑪挪亞對耶和華的使者說：「求你容我們款留你，好為你預備一隻山羊羔。」
13:16 耶和華的使者對瑪挪亞說：「你雖然款留我，我卻不吃你的食物，你若預備燔祭就當獻與耶和華。」原來瑪挪亞不知道他是耶和華的使者。
13:17 瑪挪亞對耶和華的使者說：「請將你的名告訴我，到你話應驗的時候，我們好尊敬你。」
13:18 耶和華的使者對他說：「你何必問我的名，我名是奇妙的。」
13:19 瑪挪亞將一隻山羊羔和素祭在磐石上獻與耶和華，使者行奇妙的事；瑪挪亞和他的妻觀看，
13:20 見火焰從壇上往上升，耶和華的使者在壇上的火焰中也升上去了。瑪挪亞和他的妻看見，就俯伏於地。
13:21 耶和華的使者不再向瑪挪亞和他的妻顯現，瑪挪亞才知道他是耶和華的使者。
13:22 瑪挪亞對他的妻說：「我們必要死，因為看見了上帝。」
13:23 他的妻卻對他說：「耶和華若要殺我們，必不從我們手裡收納燔祭和素祭，並不將這一切事指示我們，今日也不將這些話告訴我們。」
13:24 後來婦人生了一個兒子，給他起名叫參孫。孩子長大，耶和華賜福與他。
13:25 在瑪哈尼‧但，就是瑣拉和以實陶中間，耶和華的靈才感動他。
Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, so the Lord delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.
2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was childless, unable to give birth. 3 The angel of the Lord appeared to her and said, “You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. 4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. 5 You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”
6 Then the woman went to her husband and told him, “A man of God came to me. He looked like an angel of God, very awesome. I didn’t ask him where he came from, and he didn’t tell me his name. 7 But he said to me, ‘You will become pregnant and have a son. Now then, drink no wine or other fermented drink and do not eat anything unclean, because the boy will be a Nazirite of God from the womb until the day of his death.’”
8 Then Manoah prayed to the Lord: “Pardon your servant, Lord. I beg you to let the man of God you sent to us come again to teach us how to bring up the boy who is to be born.”
9 God heard Manoah, and the angel of God came again to the woman while she was out in the field; but her husband Manoah was not with her. 10 The woman hurried to tell her husband, “He’s here! The man who appeared to me the other day!”
11 Manoah got up and followed his wife. When he came to the man, he said, “Are you the man who talked to my wife?”
“I am,” he said.
12 So Manoah asked him, “When your words are fulfilled, what is to be the rule that governs the boy’s life and work?”
13 The angel of the Lord answered, “Your wife must do all that I have told her. 14 She must not eat anything that comes from the grapevine, nor drink any wine or other fermented drink nor eat anything unclean. She must do everything I have commanded her.”
15 Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, “We would like you to stay until we prepare a young goat for you.”
16 The angel of the Lord replied, “Even though you detain me, I will not eat any of your food. But if you prepare a burnt offering, offer it to the Lord.” (Manoah did not realize that it was the angel of the Lord.)
17 Then Manoah inquired of the angel of the Lord, “What is your name, so that we may honor you when your word comes true?”
18 He replied, “Why do you ask my name? It is beyond understanding.[a]” 19 Then Manoah took a young goat, together with the grain offering, and sacrificed it on a rock to the Lord. And the Lord did an amazing thing while Manoah and his wife watched: 20 As the flame blazed up from the altar toward heaven, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flame. Seeing this, Manoah and his wife fell with their faces to the ground. 21 When the angel of the Lord did not show himself again to Manoah and his wife, Manoah realized that it was the angel of the Lord.
22 “We are doomed to die!” he said to his wife. “We have seen God!”
23 But his wife answered, “If the Lord had meant to kill us, he would not have accepted a burnt offering and grain offering from our hands, nor shown us all these things or now told us this.”
24 The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the Lord blessed him, 25 and the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him while he was in Mahaneh Dan, between Zorah and Eshtaol.
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「參孫」這名字的意義是「像太陽一樣」！然而他的出生也十分特別，就是上帝先藉由使者向他的母親顯現，然後再向他的父親顯現。而且耶和華的使者是很清晰的展現自己，表現得十分大方，不神祕和曖昧，真是上帝使者的泱泱大風，讓人讀了之後，心裡的眼睛一亮！正如祂宣告自己的時候說：「你何必問我的名，我名是奇妙的。」
說到上帝的奇妙，使者不僅引導這對夫妻獻燔祭和素祭給上帝，還讓他們認識到自己就是「道成肉身」向人顯現的上帝，可以在他們面前升天！而當他們警覺自己與上帝相遇時，瑪挪亞對他的妻說：「我們必要死，因為看見了上帝。」
但是，參孫的媽媽似乎比爸爸更清楚上帝向他們顯現的目的，對瑪挪亞說：「耶和華若要殺我們，必不從我們手裡收納燔祭和素祭，並不將這一切事指示我們，今日也不將這些話告訴我們。」
說到這裡，讓我們感受到姊妹的屬靈生命不見的比弟兄差，許多家庭是太太先信主，然後才是先生信主，正如參孫的父母之情形！求主堅定要帶領全家信主的姊妹之信心，讓她們的全家因她成為上帝賜福的管道！
2020年7月31日 星期五
詩篇121:1-8
121:1 （上行之詩。）我要向山舉目；我的幫助從何而來？
121:2 我的幫助從造天地的耶和華而來。
121:3 他必不叫你的腳搖動；保護你的必不打盹！
121:4 保護以色列的，也不打盹也不睡覺。
121:5 保護你的是耶和華；耶和華在你右邊蔭庇你。
121:6 白日，太陽必不傷你；夜間，月亮必不害你。
121:7 耶和華要保護你，免受一切的災害；他要保護你的性命。
121:8 你出你入，耶和華要保護你，從今時直到永遠。
A song of ascents.
1 I
lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He
will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord watches over you—
the Lord
is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will
watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
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在迦南地有許多的邱壇是建築於山崗之上，所以向山舉目讓人覺得是要尋求神明的幫助，尤其是在人生的困境和不如意的時候，總是希望能透過敬拜神明尋求希望與方向，讓自己度過困境！
但是詩人並不向一般人尋找邱壇上的神明，因為這些神明都是人為了自己需要所產生的，是人造的神！詩人清楚找這些神明是無濟於事的，他反而靠信心宣告：「我的幫助從造天地的耶和華而來。」
在詩人的心中清楚上帝是智慧的源頭，是創造天地萬物的主，萬有既然為祂所造，必然在祂的管理之下，所以「白日，太陽必不傷你；夜間，月亮必不害你。耶和華要保護你，免受一切的災害；他要保護你的性命。你出你入，耶和華要保護你，從今時直到永遠。」
上帝這些作為是一般人造的神明無法做到的，因為這些神明既是人想出來的、造出來的，就比人更軟弱，怎能勝過「造天地的耶和華」！也因此，我們要勇敢的信靠上帝，祂也是我們的賞賜者，我們當存敬畏的心來敬拜祂、歌頌祂，歸榮耀給祂！
2020年7月30日 星期四
士師記12:1-15
12:1 以法蓮人聚集，到了北方，對耶弗他說：「你去與亞捫人爭戰，為甚麼沒有招我們同去呢？我們必用火燒你和你的房屋。」
耶弗他對他們說：「我和我的民與亞捫人大大爭戰；我招你們來，你們竟沒有來救我脫離他們的手。
我見你們不來救我，我就拚命前去攻擊亞捫人，耶和華將他們交在我手中。你們今日為甚麼上我這裡來攻打我呢？」
於是耶弗他招聚基列人，與以法蓮人爭戰。基列人擊殺以法蓮人，是因他們說：「你們基列人在以法蓮、瑪拿西中間，不過是以法蓮逃亡的人。」
基列人把守約旦河的渡口，不容以法蓮人過去。以法蓮逃走的人若說：「容我過去。」基列人就問他說：「你是以法蓮人不是？」他若說：「不是」，
就對他說：「你說『示播列』。」以法蓮人因為咬不真字音，便說「西播列」。基列人就將他拿住，殺在約旦河的渡口。那時以法蓮人被殺的有四萬二千人。
耶弗他作以色列的士師六年。基列人耶弗他死了，葬在基列的一座城裡。
耶弗他以後，有伯利恆人以比讚作以色列的士師。
他有三十個兒子，三十個女兒；女兒都嫁出去了。他給眾子從外鄉娶了三十個媳婦。他作以色列的士師七年。
以比讚死了，葬在伯利恆。
以比讚之後，有西布倫人以倫，作以色列的士師十年。
西布倫人以倫死了，葬在西布倫地的亞雅崙。
以倫之後，有比拉頓人希列的兒子押頓作以色列的士師。
他有四十個兒子，三十個孫子，騎著七十匹驢駒。押頓作以色列的士師八年。
比拉頓人希列的兒子押頓死了，葬在以法蓮地的比拉頓，在亞瑪力人的山地。
The Ephraimite forces were called out, and they crossed over to Zaphon. They said to Jephthah, “Why did you go to fight the Ammonites without calling us to go with you? We’re going to burn down your house over your head.”
2 Jephthah answered, “I and my people were engaged in a great struggle with the Ammonites, and although I called, you didn’t save me out of their hands.
4 Jephthah then called together the men of Gilead and fought against Ephraim. The Gileadites struck them down because the Ephraimites had said, “You Gileadites are renegades from Ephraim and Manasseh.”
7 Jephthah led
Ibzan, Elon and Abdon
8 After him, Ibzan of Bethlehem led Israel.
11 After him, Elon the Zebulunite led Israel ten years.
13 After him, Abdon son of Hillel, from Pirathon, led Israel.
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以法蓮人好像很喜歡出風頭，可是卻又不肯付代價，在基甸的時代鬧過一次，現在又出來鬧一次！上次基甸沒有對他們做甚麼，這次耶弗他可沒有善待他們！他招聚基列人，與以法蓮人爭戰。基列人擊殺以法蓮人，是因他們說：「你們基列人在以法蓮、瑪拿西中間，不過是以法蓮逃亡的人。」
而這樣的兄弟殘殺，以法蓮可是大大的損失了他們的男丁四萬二千人。這也告訴我們，不可以好大喜功或好出風頭，最後惹來爭端，造成兄弟鬩牆，真是一大悲劇！
最近遇見三位自以為信仰很「優」的弟兄，讓我覺得像以法蓮之派的人，也感謝主藉這個事件，提醒我不要與他們做無謂的爭論！其中一人我勸他不要做這些討論，花時間去傳福音給未信者更好！其實基督徒中，有些人不好好的「讀書」去明白過去信仰的爭辯，還把那些問題拿來和我爭辯，把清楚的神學和教義告訴它們也不聽，讓我覺得很累、很浪費時間！求主保守，讓這樣的事不要一直來攪擾我！
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