創世記14:1-12

14:1 當暗拉非作示拿王，亞略作以拉撒王，基大老瑪作以攔王，提達作戈印王的時候，
14:2 他們都攻打所多瑪王比拉、蛾摩拉王比沙、押瑪王示納、洗扁王善以別，和比拉王；比拉就是瑣珥。
14:3 這五王都在西訂谷會合；西訂谷就是鹽海。
14:4 他們已經事奉基大老瑪十二年，到十三年就背叛了。
14:5 十四年，基大老瑪和同盟的王都來在亞特律‧加寧，殺敗了利乏音人，在哈麥殺敗了蘇西人，在沙微‧基列亭殺敗了以米人，
14:6 在何利人的西珥山殺敗了何利人，一直殺到靠近曠野的伊勒‧巴蘭。
14:7 他們回到安‧密巴，就是加低斯，殺敗了亞瑪力全地的人，以及住在哈洗遜‧他瑪的亞摩利人。
14:8 於是所多瑪王、蛾摩拉王、押瑪王、洗扁王，和比拉王（比拉就是瑣珥）都出來，在西訂谷擺陣，與他們交戰，
14:9 就是與以攔王基大老瑪、戈印王提達、示拿王暗拉非、以拉撒王亞略交戰；乃是四王與五王交戰。
14:10 西訂谷有許多石漆坑。所多瑪王和蛾摩拉王逃跑，有掉在坑裡的，其餘的人都往山上逃跑。
14:11 四王就把所多瑪和蛾摩拉所有的財物，並一切的糧食都擄掠去了；
14:12 又把亞伯蘭的姪兒羅得和羅得的財物擄掠去了。當時羅得正住在所多瑪。

 At the time when Amraphel was king of Shinar,^[a] Arioch king of Ellasar, Kedorlaomer king of Elam and Tidal king of Goyim, ² these kings went to war against Bera king of Sodom, Birsha king of Gomorrah, Shinab king of Admah, Shemeber king of Zeboyim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar). ³ All these latter kings joined forces in the Valley of Siddim (that is, the Dead Sea Valley). ⁴ For twelve years they had been subject to Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.

⁵ In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer and the kings allied with him went out and defeated the Rephaites in Ashteroth Karnaim, the Zuzites in Ham, the Emites in Shaveh Kiriathaim ⁶ and the Horites in the hill country of Seir, as far as El Paran near the desert. ⁷ Then they turned back and went to En Mishpat (that is, Kadesh), and they conquered the whole territory of the Amalekites, as well as the Amorites who were living in Hazezon Tamar.
⁸ Then the king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboyim and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) marched out and drew up their battle lines in the Valley of Siddim ⁹ against Kedorlaomer king of Elam, Tidal king of Goyim, Amraphel king of Shinar and Arioch king of Ellasar—four kings against five. ¹⁰ Now the Valley of Siddim was full of tar pits, and when the kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled, some of the men fell into them and the rest fled to the hills. ¹¹ The four kings seized all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food; then they went away. ¹² They also carried off Abram’s nephew Lot and his possessions, since he was living in Sodom.

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    戰爭是人類社會不可避免的事，尤其是在古時候，更是如此！割地為王，互相爭權奪利，就如這段經文所說的，四個王和五個王打戰，大家廝殺個你死我活，非得得勝利不行！

    在今日的國與國之間雖然沒有明顯戰事，軍隊依然不能撤除，至少要有保衛的能力在，才不會被別國消滅與併吞，好使國民可以安居樂業，得到妥善的照顧，因為政治的目的就是照顧。

    然而許多政治者常常以利益為先，忘記上帝賦予他們的使命，自己設立權柄，照自己的意志行事，沒有敬畏上帝愛護國民的心，於是戰事連連，沒有和平的一日，這樣是不蒙上帝喜悅的！

箴言23:6-8

23:6 不要吃惡眼人的飯，也不要貪他的美味；
23:7 因為他心怎樣思量，他為人就是怎樣。他雖對你說，請吃，請喝，他的心卻與你相背。
23:8 你所吃的那點食物必吐出來；你所說的甘美言語也必落空。

⁶ Do not eat the food of a begrudging host,
    do not crave his delicacies;
⁷ for he is the kind of person
    who is always thinking about the cost.
“Eat and drink,” he says to you,
    but his heart is not with you.
⁸ You will vomit up the little you have eaten
    and will have wasted your compliments.

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    「惡人」有小氣的意思，這等人請人吃飯是有目地的，是希望能透過一頓飯來控制人，來指使人做他要做的事情，所以不會白請人吃飯的。也因此《箴言》坐者提醒我們：「不要吃惡眼人的飯，也不要貪他的美味」。

    俗話說：「吃人嘴軟，拿人手短」！也因此，我們不要隨便受邀吃飯，也不要隨便收人得餽贈。更要記得，「沒有白吃的午餐」。對於物品和餐局的收受，更是需要智慧，尤其是教會的傳道人，更是要在此小心。不要讓這些事情還影響教會的治理，這是非常重要的功課。

    因此，傳道人不可以因為受到某位弟兄姊妹較多的「照顧」，就不敢責備他或勸誡他，這是有違背做上帝所揀選的牧者的原則，反而為了他們的靈命健康，更需要責備語提醒他們，使他們不要偏離正道！

創世記13:14-18

13:14 羅得離別亞伯蘭以後，耶和華對亞伯蘭說：「從你所在的地方，你舉目向東西南北觀看；
13:15 凡你所看見的一切地，我都要賜給你和你的後裔，直到永遠。
13:16 我也要使你的後裔如同地上的塵沙那樣多，人若能數算地上的塵沙才能數算你的後裔。
13:17 你起來，縱橫走遍這地，因為我必把這地賜給你。」
13:18 亞伯蘭就搬了帳棚，來到希伯崙幔利的橡樹那裡居住，在那裡為耶和華築了一座壇。

¹⁴ The Lord said to Abram after Lot had parted from him, “Look around from where you are, to the north and south, to the east and west. ¹⁵ All the land that you see I will give to you and your offspring forever. ¹⁶ I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth, so that if anyone could count the dust, then your offspring could be counted. ¹⁷ Go, walk through the length and breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.”
¹⁸ So Abram went to live near the great trees of Mamre at Hebron, where he pitched his tents. There he built an altar to the Lord.

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    亞伯拉罕在上帝的帶領之下，不是祭壇就是帳棚，這耶就是說上帝雖然沒有嗣給亞伯拉罕土地，卻是賜下祂的同在，讓亞伯拉罕不論到那裡都可以敬拜上帝，都可以榮耀上帝的名。

    然而上帝並非讓亞伯拉罕白白奔走，上帝應許他說：「從你所在的地方，你舉目向東西南北觀看；凡你所看見的一切地，我都要賜給你和你的後裔，直到永遠。我也要使你的後裔如同地上的塵沙那樣多，人若能數算地上的塵沙才能數算你的後裔。你起來，縱橫走遍這地，因為我必把這地賜給你。」

    也因為這樣，亞伯拉罕的後裔以色列人，上帝賜他們迦南地為業。雖然他們曾經在埃及當奴隸，受埃及人壓迫，但是他們卻在摩西和約書亞的引導，出埃及通過曠野，進入迦南美地！

創世記13章

       創世記13:1-13  , 創世記13：10-11  ,

      創世記13:14-18   ,

創世記13:1-13

13:1 亞伯蘭帶著他的妻子與羅得，並一切所有的，都從埃及上南地去。
13:2 亞伯蘭的金、銀、牲畜極多。
13:3 他從南地漸漸往伯特利去，到了伯特利和艾的中間，就是從前支搭帳棚的地方，
13:4 也是他起先築壇的地方；他又在那裡求告耶和華的名。
13:5 與亞伯蘭同行的羅得也有牛群、羊群、帳棚。
13:6 那地容不下他們；因為他們的財物甚多，使他們不能同居。
13:7 當時，迦南人與比利洗人在那地居住。亞伯蘭的牧人和羅得的牧人相爭。
13:8 亞伯蘭就對羅得說：「你我不可相爭，你的牧人和我的牧人也不可相爭，因為我們是骨肉（原文是弟兄）。
13:9 遍地不都在你眼前嗎？請你離開我：你向左，我就向右；你向右，我就向左。」
13:10 羅得舉目看見約旦河的全平原，直到瑣珥，都是滋潤的，那地在耶和華未滅所多瑪、蛾摩拉以先如同耶和華的園子，也像埃及地。
13:11 於是羅得選擇約旦河的全平原，往東遷移；他們就彼此分離了。
13:12 亞伯蘭住在迦南地，羅得住在平原的城邑，漸漸挪移帳棚，直到所多瑪。
13:13 所多瑪人在耶和華面前罪大惡極。

So Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, with his wife and everything he had, and Lot went with him. ² Abram had become very wealthy in livestock and in silver and gold.

³ From the Negev he went from place to place until he came to Bethel, to the place between Bethel and Ai where his tent had been earlier ⁴ and where he had first built an altar. There Abram called on the name of the Lord.
⁵ Now Lot, who was moving about with Abram, also had flocks and herds and tents. ⁶ But the land could not support them while they stayed together, for their possessions were so great that they were not able to stay together. ⁷ And quarreling arose between Abram’s herders and Lot’s. The Canaanites and Perizzites were also living in the land at that time.
⁸ So Abram said to Lot, “Let’s not have any quarreling between you and me, or between your herders and mine, for we are close relatives. ⁹ Is not the whole land before you? Let’s part company. If you go to the left, I’ll go to the right; if you go to the right, I’ll go to the left.”
¹⁰ Lot looked around and saw that the whole plain of the Jordan toward Zoar was well watered, like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt. (This was before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.) ¹¹ So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and set out toward the east. The two men parted company: ¹² Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived among the cities of the plain and pitched his tents near Sodom. ¹³ Now the people of Sodom were wicked and were sinning greatly against the Lord.

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    亞伯拉罕是一個追求和睦的人，雖然他和羅得是親戚，他也不佔羅得的便宜，寧可讓羅得選好的地方，自己往不好的地方去，於是叔姪兩人就此分開，而這一分開就帶來不同的命運。

    羅得雖然選了富饒之地，卻是充滿罪惡的地方，就是後來被上帝降火所滅的所多瑪、蛾摩拉。而羅得最後與亞伯拉罕越來越遠竟然定居到所多瑪。聖經描述這兩個地方如下：「那地在耶和華未滅所多瑪、蛾摩拉以先如同耶和華的園子，也像埃及地」、「所多瑪人在耶和華面前罪大惡極」。

    所以，我們不可以用人的眼光來判定什麼是「正面」？什麼是「負面」？而是要我們用與上帝的關係來判定，不然會像羅得一般，雖然往人所認為「正面」的方向來走，以至於最後落到上帝所看的「負面」，後悔莫及！