公義君王的規範

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以西結書  45:9b  以色列的王啊，你們應當知足，要除掉強暴和搶奪的事，施行公平和公義，不再勒索我的民。

閱讀經文:  以西結書45:1-25

1『你們拈鬮分地為業，要獻上一份給耶和華為聖供地，長二萬五千肘，寬一萬肘。這份以內，四圍都為聖地。 2 其中有作為聖所之地，長五百肘，寬五百肘，四面見方。四圍再有五十肘，為郊野之地。 3 要以肘為度量地，長二萬五千肘，寬一萬肘。其中有聖所，是至聖的。 4 這是全地的一份聖地，要歸於供聖所職事的祭司，就是親近侍奉耶和華的，作為他們房屋之地與聖所之聖地。 5 又有一份，長二萬五千肘，寬一萬肘，要歸於在殿中供職的利未人，作為二十間房屋之業。

在先知以西結預言即將結束的45-48章中，解釋了王國時期以色列土地的劃分原則。部分歸給神，部分歸給君王，部分歸給十二支派所屬。最早分配應許之地是在征服迦南地的時候，當時由約書亞和大祭司以利撒，還有十二支派的首領們一起在神面前拈鬮決定分地(民34:16-29; 書13-22)。到了所羅門王朝時期，他將以色列全地分成十二個分封地，每個分封地必須負責王家一個月的生活開支(王上4:7-19)。但是這些領土的界線並沒有改變。

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耶和華為祭司的產業

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以西結書  44:28  祭司必有產業，我是他們的產業。不可在以色列中給他們基業，我是他們的基業。

閱讀經文:  以西結書44:1-31

1他又帶我回到聖地朝東的外門，那門關閉了。 2 耶和華對我說：「這門必須關閉，不可敞開，誰也不可由其中進入。因為耶和華以色列的神已經由其中進入，所以必須關閉。

3 「至於王，他必按王的位分坐在其內，在耶和華面前吃餅。他必由這門的廊而入，也必由此而出。」

4 他又帶我由北門來到殿前。我觀看，見耶和華的榮光充滿耶和華的殿，我就俯伏在地。 5 耶和華對我說：「人子啊，我對你所說耶和華殿中的一切典章、法則，你要放在心上，用眼看，用耳聽，並要留心殿宇和聖地一切出入之處。

延續43章神的榮光再現之後，本章一開始就指出東門關閉了。「這門必須關閉」(2節)，理由是神從朝東的外門進入聖殿(結43:1-2)，此門已成為聖潔，同時也表示神不會再離開，所以此門不再使用。東門現稱為「金門」，是耶路撒冷目前最古老的一座城門。迄今仍然關閉，可能與此傳統有關。根據猶太人傳統，至聖者的同在，總是通過這座門顯現，當彌賽亞來臨時將再次開門進入。

聖經三次告訴我們，撒督的後裔可作為祭司(結40:46; 43:19; 44:15)。撒督是亞倫第三個兒子以利亞撒的子孫(代上6:1-8; 50-53)，他曾在大衛王的統治時期與亞比亞他同作祭司(撒下8:17; 代上15:11)。然而，亞比亞他後來背叛大衛，投入王位繼承者亞多尼雅的陣營(王上1)，因此導致後裔永不能作祭司的代價，在祭司以利和他的兒子身上被應驗(王上2:26-27)。

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Serve God’s Purpose in Your Generation

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Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 4:1-16.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, known as the “Teacher” and the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as King Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon. 

Ecclesiastes 4:1-3 (NIV)
1  Again I looked and saw all the oppression that was taking place under the sun: I saw the tears of the oppressed– and they have no comforter; power was on the side of their oppressors– and they have no comforter.
2  And I declared that the dead, who had already died, are happier than the living, who are still alive.
3  But better than both is he who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil that is done under the sun.
 
On verses 1-3:  Some who argue that Qohelet can’t be Solomon point to verses like verse 1 and say, “How can Qohelet really be King Solomon when he talks about oppression this way, like a bystander who can’t do anything about it? Surely a king wouldn’t talk this way.”  My response would be two-fold.  First, Qohelet does say that he was king of Israel (see 1:12), so whether one thinks a king would say something like this or not, the fact is Qohelet is saying it. 

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耶和華的榮光充滿了殿

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以西結書  43:7a  他對我說：人子啊，這是我寶座之地，是我腳掌所踏之地。我要在這裡住，在以色列人中，直到永遠。

閱讀經文:  以西結書43:1-27

1以後，他帶我到一座門，就是朝東的門。 2 以色列神的榮光從東而來，他的聲音如同多水的聲音，地就因他的榮耀發光。 3 其狀如從前他來滅城的時候我所見的異象，那異象如我在迦巴魯河邊所見的異象，我就俯伏在地。 4 耶和華的榮光從朝東的門照入殿中。 5 靈將我舉起，帶入內院，不料，耶和華的榮光充滿了殿。

6 我聽見有一位從殿中對我說話，有一人站在我旁邊。 7 他對我說：「人子啊，這是我寶座之地，是我腳掌所踏之地。我要在這裡住，在以色列人中，直到永遠。以色列家和他們的君王必不再玷汙我的聖名，就是行邪淫，在錫安的高處葬埋他們君王的屍首。 8 使他們的門檻挨近我的門檻，他們的門框挨近我的門框，他們與我中間僅隔一牆，並且行可憎的事，玷汙了我的聖名，所以我發怒滅絕他們。 9 現在他們當從我面前遠除邪淫和他們君王的屍首，我就住在他們中間直到永遠。

第43章是繼40-42章之後的高潮，因為神的榮耀回到了聖殿。它將本書中沉悶的氣氛一掃而光，與書中向少數得以存留下來的百姓發出的所有祝福交相呼應，留下一個光明的結尾。神最終將得榮耀，並永遠住在百姓中間。所有真正的信徒都在渴望著這一時刻的到來。

在11章23節裡，神的榮耀將要離開耶路撒冷的時候，停在了聖城東部的橄欖山上。這個預言說，神的榮耀要從東邊來。

當神的榮耀離開了聖殿，耶路撒冷就遭到了破壞。所以當以西結在異象中看見神的榮耀回來的時候，表示神將重建聖城和聖殿，那種敬畏和歡樂真是無法形容。

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Don’t Just Rely on Your Own Observation, but also on God’s Revelation

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Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 3:14-22.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, known as the “Teacher” and the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon.

Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (NIV)
14  I know that everything God does will endure forever; nothing can be added to it and nothing taken from it. God does it so that men will revere him.
15  Whatever is has already been, and what will be has been before; and God will call the past to account.

On verses 14-15:  These two verses carry with them the same kind of peace, profundity and depth that verses 1 to 13 carry.  In particular verse 14 speaks of the sovereignty of God, how whatever God does endures and you can’t change it.  Verse 15 speaks of how from God’s perspective, since God stands outside of time and space, to God everything is already done.

The last part of verse 15 – “God will call the past to account” – is the toughest to understand.  Does it mean, as some scholars suggest, that God tends to repeat the past, or that God looks to make right what has happened is in the past, or something else?  It’s not entirely clear, though right now I tend to favour the second option.

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建殿的異象

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以西結書  40:4  那人對我說：「人子啊，凡我所指示你的，你都要用眼看，用耳聽，並要放在心上。我帶你到這裡來，特為要指示你。凡你所見的，你都要告訴以色列家。」

閱讀經文:  以西結書40-42章

在以西結被擄第二十五年，耶路撒冷城攻破後十四年，正在年初，月之初十日，是應該守逾越節的時候。耶和華的靈降在以西結身上，把他帶到以色列地。在神的異象中，以西結到了以色列地，被安置在至高的山上，在山上的南邊有彷彿有一座城建立。 他看到有一個顏色如銅的人，手拿麻繩和量度的竿，站在門口。麻繩可量長距離，竿用來量短距離。如同撒迦利亞見一人拿準繩量度聖城，預表聖城將被重建(亞2)；啟示錄中神命令使徒約翰在聖城毀於外邦人之前先行量度(啟11)。

那人對以西結說：「人子啊，凡我所指示你的，你都要用眼看，用耳聽，並要放在心上。我帶你到這裡來，特為要指示你。凡你所見的，你都要告訴以色列家。」正如當年以色列人出埃及後，在曠野建造會幕。神對摩西說：“都要照著在山上指示你的樣式”。當我們敬拜神時，也要照著神所定的所安排的，不要用自己的方式去敬拜神。

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He Makes Everything Beautiful In Its Time

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Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 3:1-13.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, known as the “Teacher” and the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NIV)
1  There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
2  a time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to uproot,
3  a time to kill and a time to heal, a time to tear down and a time to build,
4  a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance,
5  a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them, a time to embrace and a time to refrain,
6  a time to search and a time to give up, a time to keep and a time to throw away,
7  a time to tear and a time to mend, a time to be silent and a time to speak,
8  a time to love and a time to hate, a time for war and a time for peace.
 
Some of the most famous words from the book of Ecclesiastes can be found here.  Verses 1-8 would become the basis for one of the most popular 1960s American folk and pop songs (just look up “Turn! Turn! Turn!” by The Byrds).  Since there is a time for everything, may we have wisdom like Jesus to know what time it is, that is, to know what we are to do with each season and moment we are in (John 7:6).   Since there is a time for everything, may we wait patiently when the times we are looking forward to are not yet happening. 

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This is a Gift from God

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Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 2:12-16.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 2:12-16 (NIV)
12  Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom, and also madness and folly. What more can the king’s successor do than what has already been done?
13  I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.
14  The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both.
15  Then I thought in my heart, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said in my heart, “This too is meaningless.”
16  For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die!
 
On verses 12-16:  In the book of Proverbs, a younger Solomon was so sure that wisdom was supreme and worth chasing after, even if it cost everything a person have.  As verses 13-14 say, Solomon saw that “wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.  The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness”.  Yet here an older Solomon is now struck by the realization that both the wise and the foolish die just the same, “the same fate overtakes them both” (v14).  Both will be forgotten one day (v16).  So why bother being wise, older Solomon wonders? (v15)   

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你們就知道我是耶和華

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以西結書  39:22  這樣，從那日以後，以色列家必知道我是耶和華他們的神。

閱讀經文：以西結書  39:1-29

1「人子啊，你要向歌革發預言攻擊他，說：『主耶和華如此說：羅施、米設、土巴的王歌革啊，我與你為敵。 2 我必調轉你，領你前往，使你從北方的極處上來，帶你到以色列的山上。 3 我必從你左手打落你的弓，從你右手打掉你的箭。 4 你和你的軍隊並同著你的列國人，都必倒在以色列的山上，我必將你給各類的鷙鳥和田野的走獸做食物。 5 你必倒在田野，因為我曾說過。這是主耶和華說的。 6 我要降火在瑪各和海島安然居住的人身上，他們就知道我是耶和華。 7 我要在我民以色列中顯出我的聖名，也不容我的聖名再被褻瀆，列國人就知道我是耶和華，以色列中的聖者。

本章繼續針對歌革發出預言。第9和12節說，歌革軍隊戰敗後所留下的槍械需要花七年才能銷毀，戰士的屍體需要花七個月才能掩埋完畢，由此可知歌革軍隊之龐大；然而世間的軍隊無論如何強大，都不可能是耶和華全能神的對手，此番耶和華親自為以色列出戰，神佔了絶對的優勢，擊敗歌革是易如反掌之事。

23-29節可說是整本以西結書的撮要：以色列因為自己的罪孽而被懲罰，但因耶和華的恩典和憐憫而得復興，神必將祂的靈澆灌以色列家，這是耶和華與祂的子民永遠同在的象徵。無論是以色列的被擄與復興，或是歌革的強大與傾覆，目的是為了叫神的選民與萬國列邦都知道「耶和華是全地的主」(參V.6,7,22,28)。

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Do We All Really Share the Same Fate?

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Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Ecclesiastes 2:12-16.  In case you’re wondering, since I believe that Qohelet, the main speaker in Ecclesiastes, is best identified as Solomon, I will refer to him interchangeably as Qohelet or Solomon.  Let’s go!

Ecclesiastes 2:12-16 (NIV)
12  Then I turned my thoughts to consider wisdom, and also madness and folly. What more can the king’s successor do than what has already been done?
13  I saw that wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.
14  The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness; but I came to realize that the same fate overtakes them both.
15  Then I thought in my heart, “The fate of the fool will overtake me also. What then do I gain by being wise?” I said in my heart, “This too is meaningless.”
16  For the wise man, like the fool, will not be long remembered; in days to come both will be forgotten. Like the fool, the wise man too must die!
 
On verses 12-16:  In the book of Proverbs, a younger Solomon was so sure that wisdom was supreme and worth chasing after, even if it cost everything a person have.  As verses 13-14 say, Solomon saw that “wisdom is better than folly, just as light is better than darkness.  The wise man has eyes in his head, while the fool walks in the darkness”.  Yet here an older Solomon is now struck by the realization that both the wise and the foolish die just the same, “the same fate overtakes them both” (v14).  Both will be forgotten one day (v16).  So why bother being wise, older Solomon wonders? (v15)   

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