使徒行傳17:16-34

 

17:16 保羅在雅典等候他們的時候，看見滿城都是偶像，就心裡著急；
17:17 於是在會堂裡與猶太人和虔敬的人，並每日在市上所遇見的人，辯論。
17:18 還有伊壁鳩魯和斯多亞兩門的學士，與他爭論。有的說：「這胡言亂語的要說甚麼？」有的說：「他似乎是傳說外邦鬼神的。」這話是因保羅傳講耶穌與復活的道。
17:19 他們就把他帶到亞略•巴古，說：「你所講的這新道，我們也可以知道嗎？
17:20 因為你有些奇怪的事傳到我們耳中，我們願意知道這些事是甚麼意思。」
17:21 （雅典人和住在那裡的客人都不顧別的事，只將新聞說說聽聽。）
17:22 保羅站在亞略•巴古當中，說：「眾位雅典人哪，我看你們凡事很敬畏鬼神。
17:23 我遊行的時候，觀看你們所敬拜的，遇見一座壇，上面寫著『未識之神』。你們所不認識而敬拜的，我現在告訴你們。
17:24 創造宇宙和其中萬物的上帝，既是天地的主，就不住人手所造的殿，
17:25 也不用人手服事，好像缺少甚麼；自己倒將生命、氣息、萬物，賜給萬人。
17:26 他從一本（本：有古卷是血脈）造出萬族的人，住在全地上，並且預先定準他們的年限和所住的疆界，
17:27 要叫他們尋求上帝，或者可以揣摩而得，其實他離我們各人不遠；
17:28 我們生活、動作、存留，都在乎他。就如你們作詩的，有人說：『我們也是他所生的。』
17:29 我們既是上帝所生的，就不當以為上帝的神性像人用手藝、心思所雕刻的金、銀、石。
17:30 世人蒙昧無知的時候，上帝並不監察，如今卻吩咐各處的人都要悔改。
17:31 因為他已經定了日子，要藉著他所設立的人按公義審判天下，並且叫他從死裡復活，給萬人作可信的憑據。」
17:32 眾人聽見從死裡復活的話，就有譏誚他的；又有人說：「我們再聽你講這個吧！」
17:33 於是保羅從他們當中出去了。
17:34 但有幾個人貼近他，信了主，其中有亞略•巴古的官丟尼修，並一個婦人，名叫大馬哩，還有別人一同信從。

 

¹⁶ While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. ¹⁷ So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. ¹⁸ A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. ¹⁹ Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? ²⁰ You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” ²¹ (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)

²² Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. ²³ For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.

²⁴ “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. ²⁵ And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. ²⁶ From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. ²⁷ God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ²⁸ ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’^[b] As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’^[c]

²⁹ “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. ³⁰ In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. ³¹ For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”

³² When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” ³³ At that, Paul left the Council. ³⁴ Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.

 

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    保羅到了希臘哲學的重鎮雅典，但是那些人卻仍被偶像轄制，拜各樣的神還不夠，竟然還加一位「未識之神」。或許會覺得很奇怪，有理性、有思想的人，竟然還拜那麼多偶像？這也說明越有智慧的人，說感受到自己的軟弱和不足，需要有更多得倚靠！

 

    然而真正有智慧的人是要從敬畏耶和華開始，因為人受造有一個非常重要的原則，就是要倚靠上帝而活，若沒有上帝在心中，找再多的替代品都無法滿足人心。而雅典人就是未找到上帝，才會有須許多多的「安慰劑」。

 

   而人找不到上帝的根源還是因為「罪」的緣故，所以上帝透過主耶穌設立救恩，並差派傳福音的人，讓人透過主耶穌的救恩可以回到上帝面前，正如保羅所傳講的：「世人蒙昧無知的時候，上帝並不監察，如今卻吩咐各處的人都要悔改。因為他已經定了日子，要藉著他所設立的人按公義審判天下，並且叫他從死裡復活，給萬人作可信的憑據。」

 

    這位從死裡復活的人就是耶穌基督，祂已經完成了救贖的大功，這是我們唯一得倚靠，是上帝所立的，是最穩當的道路，勝過了虛謊的「未識之神」！讓我們一起來信靠祂，得上帝所賜的永生！

 

 

 

使徒行傳17:10-15

 

17:10 弟兄們隨即在夜間打發保羅和西拉往庇哩亞去。二人到了，就進入猶太人的會堂。
17:11 這地方的人賢於帖撒羅尼迦的人，甘心領受這道，天天考查聖經，要曉得這道是與不是。
17:12 所以他們中間多有相信的，又有希臘尊貴的婦女，男子也不少。
17:13 但帖撒羅尼迦的猶太人知道保羅又在庇哩亞傳上帝的道，也就往那裡去，聳動攪擾眾人。
17:14 當時弟兄們便打發保羅往海邊去，西拉和提摩太仍住在庇哩亞。
17:15 送保羅的人帶他到了雅典，既領了保羅的命，叫西拉和提摩太速速到他這裡來，就回去了。

 

¹⁰ As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. ¹¹ Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. ¹² As a result, many of them believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.

¹³ But when the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, some of them went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. ¹⁴ The believers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea. ¹⁵ Those who escorted Paul brought him to Athens and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.

 

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    保羅到庇哩亞去傳福音的時候，作者說道：「這地方的人賢於帖撒羅尼迦的人，甘心領受這道，天天考查聖經，要曉得這道是與不是。」

 

    這也提醒我們，對所聽見的道，要回到聖經去查驗，才不致落入異端之中，正如彼得說：「從前在百姓中有假先知起來，將來在你們中間也必有假師傅，私自引進陷害人的異端，連買他們的主他們也不承認，自取速速地滅亡。」(彼得後書2:1)

 

     查驗「假師傅」就是要透過聖經來鑑別，這是非常重要的原則！

使徒行傳17章

      使徒行傳17:1-9  ,

      使徒行傳17:10-15  ,

      使徒行傳17:16-34  ,  使徒行傳17:32 ,

使徒行傳17:1-9

 

17:1 保羅和西拉經過暗妃坡里、亞波羅尼亞，來到帖撒羅尼迦，在那裡有猶太人的會堂。
17:2 保羅照他素常的規矩進去，一連三個安息日，本著聖經與他們辯論，
17:3 講解陳明基督必須受害，從死裡復活；又說：「我所傳與你們的這位耶穌就是基督。」
17:4 他們中間有些人聽了勸，就附從保羅和西拉，並有許多虔敬的希臘人，尊貴的婦女也不少。
17:5 但那不信的猶太人心裡嫉妒，招聚了些市井匪類，搭夥成群，聳動合城的人闖進耶孫的家，要將保羅、西拉帶到百姓那裡。
17:6 找不著他們，就把耶孫和幾個弟兄拉到地方官那裡，喊叫說：「那攪亂天下的也到這裡來了，
17:7 耶孫收留他們。這些人都違背凱撒的命令，說另有一個王耶穌。」
17:8 眾人和地方官聽見這話，就驚慌了；
17:9 於是取了耶孫和其餘之人的保狀，就釋放了他們。

 

When Paul and his companions had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where there was a Jewish synagogue. ² As was his custom, Paul went into the synagogue, and on three Sabbath days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures, ³ explaining and proving that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Messiah,” he said. ⁴ Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas, as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and quite a few prominent women.

⁵ But other Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city. They rushed to Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.^{[a] 6} But when they did not find them, they dragged Jason and some other believers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world have now come here, ⁷ and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.” ⁸ When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. ⁹ Then they made Jason and the others post bond and let them go.

 

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    保羅和西拉到帖撒羅尼迦，剛好有猶太會堂，保羅照他素常的規矩進去，一連三個安息日，本著聖經與他們辯論，講解陳明基督必須受害，從死裡復活；又說：「我所傳與你們的這位耶穌就是基督。」

 

    而這樣的福音，在聖靈的感動下，他們中間有些人聽了勸，就附從保羅和西拉，並有許多虔敬的希臘人，尊貴的婦女也不少。

 

    然而上帝工作，撒但也工作！那不信的猶太人心裡嫉妒，招聚了些市井匪類，搭夥成群，聳動合城的人闖進耶孫的家，要將保羅、西拉帶到百姓那裡。也因為這樣連累到接待保羅的耶孫和幾個弟兄。

 

    然而我們相信福音是上帝的大能，就不要擔心與害怕魔鬼的作為，因為上帝必保守我們的，要靠主剛強！

 

 

 

 

尼希米記2:11-20

 

2:11 我到了耶路撒冷，在那裡住了三日。
2:12 我夜間起來，有幾個人也一同起來；但上帝使我心裡要為耶路撒冷做甚麼事，我並沒有告訴人。除了我騎的牲口以外，也沒有別的牲口在我那裡。
2:13 當夜我出了谷門，往野狗井去（野狗：或譯龍），到了糞廠門，察看耶路撒冷的城牆，見城牆拆毀，城門被火焚燒。
2:14 我又往前，到了泉門和王池，但所騎的牲口沒有地方過去。
2:15 於是夜間沿溪而上，察看城牆，又轉身進入谷門，就回來了。
2:16 我往哪裡去，我做甚麼事，官長都不知道。我還沒有告訴猶大平民、祭司、貴冑、官長，和其餘做工的人。
2:17 以後，我對他們說：「我們所遭的難，耶路撒冷怎樣荒涼，城門被火焚燒，你們都看見了。來吧，我們重建耶路撒冷的城牆，免得再受凌辱！」
2:18 我告訴他們我上帝施恩的手怎樣幫助我，並王對我所說的話。他們就說：「我們起來建造吧！」於是他們奮勇做這善工。
2:19 但和倫人參巴拉，並為奴的亞捫人多比雅和阿拉伯人基善聽見就嗤笑我們，藐視我們，說：「你們做甚麼呢？要背叛王嗎？」
2:20 我回答他們說：「天上的上帝必使我們亨通。我們作他僕人的，要起來建造；你們卻在耶路撒冷無分、無權、無紀念。」

 

  ¹¹ I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days ¹² I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on.

¹³ By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal^[a] Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire. ¹⁴ Then I moved on toward the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but there was not enough room for my mount to get through; ¹⁵ so I went up the valley by night, examining the wall. Finally, I turned back and reentered through the Valley Gate. ¹⁶ The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because as yet I had said nothing to the Jews or the priests or nobles or officials or any others who would be doing the work.

¹⁷ Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” ¹⁸ I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me.

They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work.

¹⁹ But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?”

²⁰ I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.”

 

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    尼希米對同胞的呼召是：「我們起來建造吧！」

 

    同樣今日我們看到教會的光景是荒涼，我們所餅受的一句話也是：「我們起來建造吧！」

 

    讓我們與其批評，倒不如「我們起來建造吧！」

 

 

 

 

尼希米記2章

        尼希米記2:1-10  ,

        尼希米記2:11-20 , 尼希米記2:18 ,