路加福音1:57-66

 

1:57 伊利莎白的產期到了，就生了一個兒子。
1:58 鄰里親族聽見主向她大施憐憫，就和她一同歡樂。
1:59 到了第八日，他們來要給孩子行割禮，並要照他父親的名字叫他撒迦利亞。
1:60 他母親說：「不可！要叫他約翰。」
1:61 他們說：「你親族中沒有叫這名字的。」
1:62 他們就向他父親打手式，問他要叫這孩子甚麼名字。
1:63 他要了一塊寫字的板，就寫上，說：「他的名字是約翰。」他們便都希奇。
1:64 撒迦利亞的口立時開了，舌頭也舒展了，就說出話來，稱頌上帝。
1:65 周圍居住的人都懼怕；這一切的事就傳遍了猶太的山地。
1:66 凡聽見的人都將這事放在心裡，說：「這個孩子將來怎麼樣呢？因為有主與他同在。」

 

⁵⁷ When it was time for Elizabeth to have her baby, she gave birth to a son. ⁵⁸ Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.

⁵⁹ On the eighth day they came to circumcise the child, and they were going to name him after his father Zechariah, ⁶⁰ but his mother spoke up and said, “No! He is to be called John.”

⁶¹ They said to her, “There is no one among your relatives who has that name.”

⁶² Then they made signs to his father, to find out what he would like to name the child. ⁶³ He asked for a writing tablet, and to everyone’s astonishment he wrote, “His name is John.” ⁶⁴ Immediately his mouth was opened and his tongue set free, and he began to speak, praising God. ⁶⁵ All the neighbors were filled with awe, and throughout the hill country of Judea people were talking about all these things. ⁶⁶ Everyone who heard this wondered about it, asking, “What then is this child going to be?” For the Lord’s hand was with him.

 

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    施洗約翰出生了，這對當時的人是大消息，真是阿婆生小孩！

 

    「約翰」的意思是：「耶和華是恩慈的給予者」！

 

    而這個名子是天使取的，等同是上帝取的名字，要人紀念「耶和華是恩慈的給予者」！

 

    是的！上帝是永遠的施恩者，我們是永遠的受恩者！這個順序永不改變，我們不可以用敬虔為由改變這次序，因為改變這次序是不可能，也是人自以為是的表現，是上帝所恨惡的！