When a Man is at His Best

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Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 26:1-15.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 26:5 (NIV) 
5  He sought God during the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God. As long as he sought the LORD, God gave him success. 

On verses 1-5:  Uzziah, also known as Azariah, becomes king of Judah in place of his father Amaziah.  Here in these verses we see Uzziah at the prime of his reign as king.  It’s no coincidence that the period of time when Uzziah was at his best was the period of time when Uzziah was seeking the Lord and remaining teachable toward his pastor Zechariah (v5).  What can we learn from this?  You are at your best and your strongest when you seek the Lord and have a teachable attitude toward your God-given leaders. 

2 Chronicles 26:10 (NIV) 
10  He also built towers in the desert and dug many cisterns, because he had much livestock in the foothills and in the plain. He had people working his fields and vineyards in the hills and in the fertile lands, for he loved the soil.
 

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诗篇四十五篇

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可拉后裔的训诲诗，又是爱慕歌，交于伶长。调用百合花。

1 我心里涌出美辞，我论到我为王做的事，我的舌头是快手笔。
2 你比世人更美，在你嘴里满有恩惠，所以神赐福给你，直到永远。
3 大能者啊，愿你腰间佩刀，大有荣耀和威严。
4 为真理、谦卑、公义赫然坐车前往，无不得胜，你的右手必显明可畏的事。
5 你的箭锋快，射中王敌之心，万民仆倒在你以下。
6 神啊，祢的宝座是永永远远的，祢的国权是正直的。
7 你喜爱公义，恨恶罪恶，所以神，就是你的神，用喜乐油膏你，胜过膏你的同伴。
8 你的衣服都有没药、沉香、肉桂的香气，象牙宫中有丝弦乐器的声音使你欢喜。
9 有君王的女儿在你尊贵妇女之中，王后佩戴俄斐金饰站在你右边。
10 女子啊，你要听，要想，要侧耳而听！不要记念你的民和你的父家，……

这是一首有很多争议和猜测的诗篇，历来的圣经学者有许多不同的看法。首先，大家大致上同意，这是一首描写君王迎娶外国公主的婚礼之歌；但是主角是谁呢？

在19世纪，德国神学家Franz Delitzsch认为这首诗是犹大的约兰王与亚她利雅(以色列王亚哈和耶洗别的女儿)结婚的时候写的，而亚历山大.柯克帕特里克和约翰·加尔文则认为它所指的是所罗门王与埃及公主的婚姻，近东学者Charles R. Krahmalkov认为可能是耶洗别(西顿王谒巴力的女儿)和亚哈王的婚礼。

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诗篇四十四篇

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可拉后裔的训诲诗，交于伶长。

1 神啊，祢在古时我们列祖的日子所行的事，我们亲耳听见了，我们的列祖也给我们述说过。
2 祢曾用手赶出外邦人，却栽培了我们列祖；祢苦待列邦，却叫我们列祖发达。
3 因为他们不是靠自己的刀剑得地土，也不是靠自己的膀臂得胜，乃是靠祢的右手、祢的膀臂和祢脸上的亮光，因为祢喜悦他们。
4 神啊，祢是我的王，求祢出令使雅各得胜。
5 我们靠祢要推倒我们的敌人，靠祢的名要践踏那起来攻击我们的人。
6 因为我必不靠我的弓，我的刀也不能使我得胜。
7 唯祢救了我们脱离敌人，使恨我们的人羞愧。
8 我们终日因神夸耀，还要永远称谢祢的名。（细拉）…….

今天可拉后裔的诗篇道尽了犹太人的心痛，也是许多犹太人今天不相信有神的原因：为什么有那么多骄傲的历史，而如今的犹太人却饱经苍桑，受尽欺侮，他们不觉得先祖的神与他们同在，他们也不相信爱他们的神会忍心把他们丢到万国中，让他们吃尽苦头。但是还有一些犹太人坚定地相信，因而让神的计划在历史中再一次见证祂自己，就是以色列的复国，以色列支派和犹大支派的联合。

在1-8节里，作者记念神在历史中的作为，使以色列人发达，令雅各得胜，神的名也因而远扬。9-16节，诗人提到犹太人在敌人面前转身后退，被抢夺，被分散在列邦。17-21节，诗人阐明自己的无辜和对神的忠心；23-26节是诗人呼求，求神拯救。

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God’s Plans for You Are Always the Best

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Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 25:1-28.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 25:1-4 (NIV) 
1  Amaziah was twenty-five years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem twenty-nine years. His mother’s name was Jehoaddin; she was from Jerusalem. 
2  He did what was right in the eyes of the LORD, but not wholeheartedly. 
3  After the kingdom was firmly in his control, he executed the officials who had murdered his father the king. 
4  Yet he did not put their sons to death, but acted in accordance with what is written in the Law, in the Book of Moses, where the LORD commanded: “Fathers shall not be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their fathers; each is to die for his own sins.”

On verses 1-4:  Amaziah takes over the throne of Judah after the death of his father Joash.  One of his first orders of business is to execute the officials who had murdered his father.  He does not put their sons to death because in Deuteronomy 24:16 it says that children are not to be put to death for their fathers’ sins, and vice versa, and that each is die for his own sins. 

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诗篇四十三篇

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1神啊，求祢申我的冤，向不虔诚的国为我辨屈，求祢救我脱离诡诈不义的人！
2 因为祢是赐我力量的神。为何丢弃我呢？我为何因仇敌的欺压时常哀痛呢？
3 求祢发出祢的亮光和真实，好引导我，带我到祢的圣山，到祢的居所。
4 我就走到神的祭坛，到我最喜乐的神那里。神啊，我的神，我要弹琴称赞祢。
5 我的心哪，祢为何忧闷？为何在我里面烦躁？应当仰望神，因我还要称赞祂，祂是我脸上的光荣，是我的神。

这篇是可拉后裔写的诗篇之一。在旧约里的“可拉”有两个可能的来源：第一个是以扫和阿何莉巴玛的儿子可拉；以扫也有一个孙子亦名叫可拉，是以扫和另一个妻子亚大生的儿子以利法的儿子；以利法的后裔中就有一个可拉族。

另一个可拉是雅各的儿子利未的曾孙。利未生哥辖，哥辖生以斯哈，以斯哈生可拉。他是利未的曾孙，摩西和亚伦的堂兄弟。因为旧约记载的事蹟多是雅各家族的事蹟，所以相信这诗篇是利未的后裔可拉之后裔之一所写。

有位犹太拉比注解，在这诗篇里作者形容他们跟随神的会幕从旷野到应许之地，随后有14年在吉甲，369年在示罗，还有54年在基遍；大约经过了440年，以色列(雅各)的儿女们，在所罗门的带领下终于在耶路撒冷为神建立了永久的休息之所，也就是圣殿。

希伯来文的会幕Tabernacle，其字根的意思是“居住dwell”，所以在第三节的结尾所说的“居所”，就是指神的会幕。神的会幕在沙漠旷野时是一个临时的居所，经常要迁移，后来大卫立国后把会幕迁到耶路撒冷大卫城。所罗门建了圣殿之后，约柜放到圣殿里，会幕就不再被人提起了。

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Be Proactive And Get Godly Advice

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Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 24:17-27.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 24:17-22 (NIV) 
17  After the death of Jehoiada, the officials of Judah came and paid homage to the king, and he listened to them. 
18  They abandoned the temple of the LORD, the God of their fathers, and worshiped Asherah poles and idols. Because of their guilt, God’s anger came upon Judah and Jerusalem. 
19  Although the LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, and though they testified against them, they would not listen. 
20  Then the Spirit of God came upon Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the LORD’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.'” 
21  But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the LORD’s temple. 
22  King Joash did not remember the kindness Zechariah’s father Jehoiada had shown him but killed his son, who said as he lay dying, “May the LORDsee this and call you to account.”

On verses 17-22:  Jehoiada the priest was like a father to Joash.  While Jehoiada was alive, Joash did what was right in the eyes of the Lord (see verse 2).  But after Jehoiada dies, Joash stops getting advice from, and stops aligning himself with, people who trusted the Lord.  

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诗篇四十二篇

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可拉后裔的训诲诗，交于伶长。

1 神啊，我的心切慕祢，如鹿切慕溪水。
2 我的心渴想神，就是永生神，我几时得朝见神呢？
3 我昼夜以眼泪当饮食，人不住地对我说：「你的神在哪里呢？」
4 我从前与众人同往，用欢呼称赞的声音，领他们到神的殿里，大家守节。我追想这些事，我的心极其悲伤。
5 我的心哪，你为何忧闷？为何在我里面烦躁？应当仰望神，因祂笑脸帮助我，我还要称赞祂。
6 我的神啊，我的心在我里面忧闷，所以我从约旦地，从黑门岭，从米萨山，记念祢。
7 祢的瀑布发声，深渊就与深渊响应，祢的波浪洪涛漫过我身。
8 白昼，耶和华必向我施慈爱；黑夜，我要歌颂、祷告赐我生命的神。
9 我要对神我的磐石说：「祢为何忘记我呢？我为何因仇敌的欺压时常哀痛呢？」
10 我的敌人辱骂我，好像打碎我的骨头，不住地对我说：「你的神在哪里呢？」
11 我的心哪，你为何忧闷？为何在我里面烦躁？应当仰望神，因我还要称赞祂，祂是我脸上的光荣，是我的神。

〈诗篇〉第42-49篇是可拉的后代写的，42篇也是〈诗篇〉第二份的开始。雅各的儿子利未有三个儿子，是革顺、哥辖、米拉利。哥辖有四个儿子，是暗兰、以斯哈、希伯伦、乌薛。暗兰的后代就是亚摩、摩西和米利暗，三个都成了以色列的领袖。哥辖诸族以乌薛的儿子以利撒反为宗室的首领。以斯哈族和希伯仑族都没有担当到领袖的位置，可想而知，其中必有人不满。以斯哈的后代可拉在旷野中带领其他宗室起来反叛摩西和亚伦，被神除灭（民16:1-35）。

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God’s House, My Home

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Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is 2 Chronicles 24:1-16.  Let’s go!

2 Chronicles 24:4 (NIV) 
4  Some time later Joash decided to restore the temple of the LORD.

On verses 1-14:   When Athaliah was ruling Judah, she abandoned the temple of the Lord and allowed it to go into disrepair.  Not just that, during that time worshipers of Baal, the idol that Athaliah worshiped, would break into the temple of the Lord and steal its sacred objects for use in their worship of Baal (v7).  Athaliah looked down on the temple of the Lord.  In contrast, King Joash comes into power and has a heart for the temple.  To finance the temple repairs, Joash orders the priests and Levites to collect monies that the law of the Lord required the people to give.  When the priests and Levites are slow to act, Joash rebukes Jehoiada the lead priest and decides to institute another way to collect the funds:  he issues a proclamation in all Judah and Jerusalem that everyone is to bring in the tax that Moses required.  The people responded gladly, pouring so many offerings into the collection chest that after the temple was repaired and rebuilt, there was money left over to make new articles for the temple (v10-14). 

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