箴言25:1

以下也是所羅門的箴言，是猶大王希西家的人所謄錄的。

These are more proverbs of Solomon, compiled by the men of Hezekiah king of Judah:

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    希西家是一位上帝所喜悅的王，在歷代志29章2節這樣形容他：「希西家行耶和華眼中看為正的事，效法他祖大衛一切所行的。」

    他看見先前的王不敬畏上帝，又讓聖殿的崇拜停止，他即位之後，就宣告：「現在我心中有意與耶和華─以色列的上帝立約，好使他的烈怒轉離我們。我的眾子啊，現在不要懈怠；因為耶和華揀選你們站在他面前事奉他，與他燒香。」（歷代志29:10-11）

    他這樣一宣告，就使祭司們潔淨自己和聖殿，恢復對耶和華上帝獻祭，先獻贖罪祭，之後再獻燔祭，感謝和讚美上帝！使猶大國重新成為敬拜上帝的國，如同大衛時代！

    今天做上帝僕人的教會領袖，也要向希西家一般，讓耶和華成為你的力量，使教會恢復正確的敬拜，先由主耶穌的贖罪祭為我們恢復與上帝和好的關係，在以讚美和感謝為燔祭獻給上帝，讓上帝的心得滿足，如同希西家王一般！而他之所以如此，就是來自他的祖先所羅門智慧的言語，使他敬畏上帝！

   

創世記29:31-35

29:31 耶和華見利亞失寵（原文是被恨；下同），就使她生育，拉結卻不生育。
29:32 利亞懷孕生子，就給他起名叫流便（就是有兒子的意思），因而說：「耶和華看見我的苦情，如今我的丈夫必愛我。」
29:33 她又懷孕生子，就說：「耶和華因為聽見我失寵，所以又賜給我這個兒子」，於是給他起名叫西緬（就是聽見的意思）。
29:34 她又懷孕生子，起名叫利未（就是聯合的意思），說：「我給丈夫生了三個兒子，他必與我聯合。」
29:35 她又懷孕生子，說：「這回我要讚美耶和華」，因此給他起名叫猶大（就是讚美的意思）。這才停了生育。

³¹ When the Lord saw that Leah was not loved, he enabled her to conceive, but Rachel remained childless. ³² Leah became pregnant and gave birth to a son. She named him Reuben,^[b] for she said, “It is because the Lord has seen my misery. Surely my husband will love me now.”
³³ She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Because the Lord heard that I am not loved, he gave me this one too.” So she named him Simeon.^[c]
34 Again she conceived, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “Now at last my husband will become attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” So he was named Levi.^[d]
35 She conceived again, and when she gave birth to a son she said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” So she named him Judah.^[e] Then she stopped having children.

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    說到「愛情」的力量，又要補一句經文所說：「雅各也與拉結同房，並且愛拉結勝似愛利亞，於是又服事了拉班七年。」

    雖然雅各愛拉結不愛利亞，但是上帝卻有祂奇妙的做為：「耶和華見利亞失寵（原文是被恨；下同），就使她生育，拉結卻不生育。」

    利亞就因為上帝的賜福，一連生四個小孩：流便（就是有兒子的意思）、西緬（就是聽見的意思）、利未（就是聯合的意思）、猶大（就是讚美的意思）。

     這四個兒子當中，猶大是猶大支派的祖先，是大衛王、主耶穌的出處，所以拉結會受如此記念的原因。

創世記29:15-30

29:15 拉班對雅各說：「你雖是我的骨肉（原文是弟兄），豈可白白地服事我？請告訴我，你要甚麼為工價？」
29:16 拉班有兩個女兒，大的名叫利亞，小的名叫拉結。
29:17 利亞的眼睛沒有神氣，拉結卻生得美貌俊秀。
29:18 雅各愛拉結，就說：「我願為你小女兒拉結服事你七年。」
29:19 拉班說：「我把她給你，勝似給別人，你與我同住吧！」
29:20 雅各就為拉結服事了七年；他因為深愛拉結，就看這七年如同幾天。
29:21 雅各對拉班說：「日期已經滿了，求你把我的妻子給我，我好與她同房。」
29:22 拉班就擺設筵席，請齊了那地方的眾人。
29:23 到晚上，拉班將女兒利亞送來給雅各，雅各就與她同房。
29:24 拉班又將婢女悉帕給女兒利亞作使女。
29:25 到了早晨，雅各一看是利亞，就對拉班說：「你向我做的是甚麼事呢？我服事你，不是為拉結嗎？你為甚麼欺哄我呢？」
29:26 拉班說：「大女兒還沒有給人，先把小女兒給人，在我們這地方沒有這規矩。
29:27 你為這個滿了七日，我就把那個也給你，你再為她服事我七年。」
29:28 雅各就如此行。滿了利亞的七日，拉班便將女兒拉結給雅各為妻。
29:29 拉班又將婢女辟拉給女兒拉結作使女。
29:30 雅各也與拉結同房，並且愛拉結勝似愛利亞，於是又服事了拉班七年。

After Jacob had stayed with him for a whole month, ¹⁵ Laban said to him, “Just because you are a relative of mine, should you work for me for nothing? Tell me what your wages should be.”
¹⁶ Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. ¹⁷ Leah had weak^[a] eyes, but Rachel had a lovely figure and was beautiful. ¹⁸ Jacob was in love with Rachel and said, “I’ll work for you seven years in return for your younger daughter Rachel.”
¹⁹ Laban said, “It’s better that I give her to you than to some other man. Stay here with me.” ²⁰ So Jacob served seven years to get Rachel, but they seemed like only a few days to him because of his love for her.
²¹ Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife. My time is completed, and I want to make love to her.”
²² So Laban brought together all the people of the place and gave a feast. ²³ But when evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to Jacob, and Jacob made love to her. ²⁴ And Laban gave his servant Zilpah to his daughter as her attendant.
²⁵ When morning came, there was Leah! So Jacob said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? I served you for Rachel, didn’t I? Why have you deceived me?”
²⁶ Laban replied, “It is not our custom here to give the younger daughter in marriage before the older one. ²⁷ Finish this daughter’s bridal week; then we will give you the younger one also, in return for another seven years of work.”
²⁸ And Jacob did so. He finished the week with Leah, and then Laban gave him his daughter Rachel to be his wife. ²⁹ Laban gave his servant Bilhah to his daughter Rachel as her attendant. ³⁰ Jacob made love to Rachel also, and his love for Rachel was greater than his love for Leah. And he worked for Laban another seven years.

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    在這裡看見「愛情」得力量，正如經文所說：「雅各就為拉結服事了七年；他因為深愛拉結，就看這七年如同幾天。」

    然而天不從人願，雅各以為服事七年就可以得著美貌的拉結為妻，沒想到舅舅拉班心中的算盤不同，他希望能留雅各久一點，多利用他一點，甚至盼望永久留下來，就可以和女兒們永遠在一起，就把利亞先嫁給雅各。

    這也告訴我們，人生的路不是自己決定的，環境會影響著每一個人，人常常是受制於環境，是無法完全照自己的心意來行的。雖然如此，我們還是要感謝主，因為主的做為是會使環境成為陶造我們生命的工具，我們只要心存感謝，就會發現上帝奇妙之做為！

創世記29章

                         創世記29:1-14  ,

                        創世記29:15-30   ,

                        創世記29:31-35  ,

創世記29:1-14

29:1 雅各起行，到了東方人之地，
29:2 看見田間有一口井，有三群羊臥在井旁；因為人飲羊群都是用那井裡的水。井口上的石頭是大的。
29:3 常有羊群在那裡聚集，牧人把石頭轉離井口飲羊，隨後又把石頭放在井口的原處。
29:4 雅各對牧人說：「弟兄們，你們是哪裡來的？」他們說：「我們是哈蘭來的。」
29:5 他問他們說：「拿鶴的孫子拉班，你們認識嗎？」他們說：「我們認識。」
29:6 雅各說：「他平安嗎？」他們說：「平安。看哪，他女兒拉結領著羊來了。」
29:7 雅各說：「日頭還高，不是羊群聚集的時候，你們不如飲羊，再去放一放。」
29:8 他們說：「我們不能，必等羊群聚齊，人把石頭轉離井口才可飲羊。」
29:9 雅各正和他們說話的時候，拉結領著她父親的羊來了，因為那些羊是她牧放的。
29:10 雅各看見母舅拉班的女兒拉結和母舅拉班的羊群，就上前把石頭轉離井口，飲他母舅拉班的羊群。
29:11 雅各與拉結親嘴，就放聲而哭。
29:12 雅各告訴拉結，自己是她父親的外甥，是利百加的兒子，拉結就跑去告訴她父親。
29:13 拉班聽見外甥雅各的信息，就跑去迎接，抱著他，與他親嘴，領他到自己的家。雅各將一切的情由告訴拉班。
29:14 拉班對他說：「你實在是我的骨肉。」雅各就和他同住了一個月。

Then Jacob continued on his journey and came to the land of the eastern peoples. ² There he saw a well in the open country, with three flocks of sheep lying near it because the flocks were watered from that well. The stone over the mouth of the well was large. ³ When all the flocks were gathered there, the shepherds would roll the stone away from the well’s mouth and water the sheep. Then they would return the stone to its place over the mouth of the well.

⁴ Jacob asked the shepherds, “My brothers, where are you from?”
“We’re from Harran,” they replied.
⁵ He said to them, “Do you know Laban, Nahor’s grandson?”
“Yes, we know him,” they answered.
⁶ Then Jacob asked them, “Is he well?”
“Yes, he is,” they said, “and here comes his daughter Rachel with the sheep.”
⁷ “Look,” he said, “the sun is still high; it is not time for the flocks to be gathered. Water the sheep and take them back to pasture.”
⁸ “We can’t,” they replied, “until all the flocks are gathered and the stone has been rolled away from the mouth of the well. Then we will water the sheep.”
⁹ While he was still talking with them, Rachel came with her father’s sheep, for she was a shepherd. ¹⁰ When Jacob saw Rachel daughter of his uncle Laban, and Laban’s sheep, he went over and rolled the stone away from the mouth of the well and watered his uncle’s sheep. ¹¹ Then Jacob kissed Rachel and began to weep aloud. ¹² He had told Rachel that he was a relative of her father and a son of Rebekah. So she ran and told her father.
¹³ As soon as Laban heard the news about Jacob, his sister’s son, he hurried to meet him. He embraced him and kissed him and brought him to his home, and there Jacob told him all these things. ¹⁴ Then Laban said to him, “You are my own flesh and blood.”

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    雅各和舅舅拉班見面，是要告訴我們上帝對雅各的保守，使他能平安回到母親的娘家，也開始他生命的重要階段。

    雖然這是個人的事蹟，但是上帝仍然看重，要我們從其中知道上帝是眷顧每一個屬於祂的人，不管大事或小事，在祂的眼中都是重要的事情。

    我們的一生似乎也是平淡無奇，但是都有上帝同在，見變成美好了！這也是上帝讓我們看雅各的生平，也想到上帝與我們每時每刻的同在之恩惠！