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A Father’s Love Like No Other

2024-01-03 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Hosea 11:1-12.  Let’s go!
 
Hosea 11:1-12 (NIV)
1  “When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son.
2  But the more I called Israel, the further they went from me. They sacrificed to the Baals and they burned incense to images.
3  It was I who taught Ephraim to walk, taking them by the arms; but they did not realize it was I who healed them.
4  I led them with cords of human kindness, with ties of love; I lifted the yoke from their neck and bent down to feed them.
5  “Will they not return to Egypt and will not Assyria rule over them because they refuse to repent?

On verses 1-12:  Earlier in Hosea the dominant picture to describe the relationship between God and Israel was that of husband and wife.  Here the view shifts to describing our relationship with God as that between a child and his father.  These are just different angles by which we can see and appreciate God’s love.  In fact, today’s passage, Hosea 11:1-12, contains one of the most tender descriptions of the fatherly heart of God that you will find in the Bible.

耶和華是我的力量

2024-01-03 in , /by

哈巴谷書 3:19  主耶和華是我的力量，祂使我的腳快如母鹿的蹄，又使我穩行在高處。

讀經文: 哈巴谷書 3:1-19

1先知哈巴谷的禱告，調用流離歌。

2 耶和華啊，我聽見祢的名聲就懼怕。耶和華啊，求祢在這些年間復興祢的作為，在這些年間顯明出來，在發怒的時候以憐憫為念。 3 神從提幔而來，聖者從巴蘭山臨到。（細拉）祂的榮光遮蔽諸天，頌讚充滿大地。

哈巴谷從充滿疑問不解到豁然開朗，這是一段等待，且充滿曲折的心路歷程。他也為我們立了一個典範，人生在世難免看到苦難和各樣的不平，但是這些都不能使我們與神的愛隔絕。因為神願意為我們解答，只要我們“抓住”祂，神願意讓我們的心得到滿足。

所以哈巴谷寫下了膾炙人口的一首短詩：“雖然無花果樹不發旺，葡萄樹不結果，橄欖樹也不效力，田地不出糧食，圈中絕了羊，棚內也沒有牛， 然而我要因耶和華歡欣，因救我的神喜樂。 主耶和華是我的力量，祂使我的腳快如母鹿的蹄，又使我穩行在高處。”

當在神面前肅敬靜默

2024-01-02 in , /by

哈巴谷書 2:20  唯耶和華在祂的聖殿中，全地的人都當在祂面前肅敬靜默。

讀經文: 哈巴谷書 2:15-20

15 「給人酒喝，又加上毒物使他喝醉，好看見他下體的有禍了！ 16 你滿受羞辱，不得榮耀。你也喝吧！顯出是未受割禮的。耶和華右手的杯必傳到你那裡，你的榮耀就變為大大的羞辱。 17 你向黎巴嫩行強暴與殘害驚嚇野獸的事，必遮蓋你，因你殺人流血，向國內的城並城中一切居民施行強暴。

在哈巴谷的第二章裡指出迦勒底人的五個大罪，其中的兩個大罪是：第四禍使鄰舍醉酒，並行淫亂(2:15)：給人酒喝，又加上毒物使他喝醉，好看見他下體（2:15）。第五禍是雕刻鑄造偶像（2:18-19）：對木偶說『醒起！』，對啞巴石像說『起來！』，那人有禍了！

給人酒喝，又加上毒物使他喝醉，以致露對方的下體，指出迦勒底人的淫亂之舉。他們以為戰勝諸國必大得榮耀，誰知卻因他們的強暴淫亂殺人，以及殘害驚嚇野獸的事，神要使他們的榮耀變為羞辱。這裡先知指出一個人未曾看重的事情，就是殘害驚嚇野獸。坊間有時會傳出有人虐待動物的新聞，小至使牠們餓死渴死，大至玩弄傷害牠們。

Sow Righteousness, Reap Unfailing Love

2024-01-02 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Hosea 10:1-15.  Let’s go!
 
Hosea 10:1-15 (NIV)
1  Israel was a spreading vine; he brought forth fruit for himself. As his fruit increased, he built more altars; as his land prospered, he adorned his sacred stones.
2  Their heart is deceitful, and now they must bear their guilt. The LORD will demolish their altars and destroy their sacred stones.
3  Then they will say, “We have no king because we did not revere the LORD. But even if we had a king, what could he do for us?”
4  They make many promises, take false oaths and make agreements; therefore lawsuits spring up like poisonous weeds in a plowed field.

On verses 1-15:  Here are four lessons I learned from Hosea 10.

1.  Hosea 10 describes Israel’s situation as well as our own.  God made us to live righteously and to obey His commands (“sow righteousness” – v12).  In return, God would give us His unfailing love (“reap unfailing love” – v12) and “shower righteousness” on us (v12).  But we did not live up to our end of the relationship.  Instead of living righteously, we “planted wickedness” (v13), depending on our own strength and worshiping other people, places and things.  We have deceitful motives (v2).  We have made promises we couldn’t keep (“false oaths”) and hurt people in the process (v4), ending up in all kinds of disputes and fighting.

認識耶和華的榮耀

2024-01-01 in , /by

哈巴谷書 2:14   認識耶和華榮耀的知識要充滿遍地，好像水充滿洋海一般。

讀經文: 哈巴谷書 2:9-14

9 為本家積蓄不義之財，在高處搭窩，指望免災的有禍了！ 10 你圖謀剪除多國的民，犯了罪，使你的家蒙羞，自害己命。 11 牆裡的石頭必呼叫，房內的棟梁必應聲。12 以人血建城，以罪孽立邑的有禍了！

哈巴谷向神發出兩個問題：第一個問題： 為什麼神不懲罰惡人 （1:1-4）？神說，要派迦勒底人來懲罰猶大。哈巴谷對神的回答不滿意，又問了第二個問題，想到迦勒底人的凶殘和暴虐，他反過來要捍衛猶大子民，反對神透過迦勒底人將帶來的嚴酷審判。但是神回答哈巴谷，不管神的審判是用怎樣的方法，全世界的人只有一種保存自己性命的方法，那就是義人因信得生。

哈巴谷從異象中指出了迦勒底人也在神的審判之中，並指出其中的五禍，也可以算是五罪。第一禍是給醉酒的和掠奪的 (2:5)：迦勒底人因酒詭詐、狂傲，不住在家中，擴充心欲好像陰間。他如死不能知足，聚集萬國，堆積萬民，都歸自己。

7 Results of Rebelling Against God

2024-01-01 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Hosea 9:1-17.  Let’s go!
 
Hosea 9:1-17 (NIV)
1  Do not rejoice, O Israel; do not be jubilant like the other nations. For you have been unfaithful to your God; you love the wages of a prostitute at every threshing floor.
2  Threshing floors and winepresses will not feed the people; the new wine will fail them.
3  They will not remain in the LORD’s land; Ephraim will return to Egypt and eat unclean food in Assyria.
4  They will not pour out wine offerings to the LORD, nor will their sacrifices please him. Such sacrifices will be to them like the bread of mourners; all who eat them will be unclean. This food will be for themselves; it will not come into the temple of the LORD.

However, as we hear about over and over in the book of Hosea, the Israelites lived in persistent rebellion against God and repeatedly broke God’s heart.

God’s broken heart is not the only result of the Israelites’ rebellion.  As Pastor Jon Courson wisely notes, Hosea 9 shows us a number of problems that the Israelites would experience as a result of continually rebelling against God.  These are the same problems we experience when we keep ignoring or forgetting about God. 

唯義人因信得生

2023-12-31 in , /by

哈巴谷書 2:4   迦勒底人自高自大，心不正直，唯義人因信得生。

讀經文: 哈巴谷書 2:1-8

1我要站在守望所，立在望樓上觀看，看耶和華對我說什麼話，我可用什麼話向他訴冤。 2 他對我說：「將這默示明明地寫在版上，使讀的人容易讀。 3 因為這默示有一定的日期，快要應驗，並不虛謊。雖然遲延，還要等候，因為必然臨到，不再遲延。

〈哈巴谷書〉雖然只有三章，但是它裡面有一些經文都是經常被引用，被人看重的，所以我們要分別來看它們的重要性，好好地理解它們。在今天這段短短的經文裡，你猜得到哪一節是中心經節嗎？我想你一定猜到了，因為它就是今天的標題：唯義人因信得生。

使徒保羅用這節經文寫信給羅馬的教會，也寫給加拉太的教會；〈希伯來書〉的作者也引用這節經文。〈羅馬書〉1:17“因為神的義正在這福音上顯明出來，這義是本於信以至於信，如經上所記：‘義人必因信得生’。” 〈加拉太書〉3:11“沒有一個人靠著律法在神面前稱義，這是明顯的，因為經上說：‘義人必因信得生’。” 〈希伯來書〉10:38“只是義人必因信得生；他若退後，我心裡就不喜歡他。”

Are You Sowing the Wind?

2023-12-31 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Hosea 8:1-14.  Let’s go!
 
Hosea 8:1-14 (NIV)
1  “Put the trumpet to your lips! An eagle is over the house of the LORD because the people have broken my covenant and rebelled against my law.
2  Israel cries out to me, ‘O our God, we acknowledge you!’
3  But Israel has rejected what is good; an enemy will pursue him.
4  They set up kings without my consent; they choose princes without my approval. With their silver and gold they make idols for themselves to their own destruction.
On verses 1-14:  In these verses, Hosea gives his people a word of warning for breaking their covenant with God and rebelling against His law (v1).  The images in verse 1 of sounding a trumpet and an eagle hovering over the house of the Lord are meant to communicate a sense of urgency and warning.

What does it mean when verse 7 says, “They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind”?  In this case “the wind” represents vain pursuits, anything that doesn’t have any eternal value.  When I sow the wind, it means I’m chasing after vain things that don’t last.  Are you sowing the wind?

Two Crowds You Should Not Let Influence You Too Much

2023-12-29 in /by

Hi GAMErs!

Today’s passage is Hosea 7:1-16.  Let’s go!

Hosea 7:1-2 (NIV)
1  “Whenever I would restore the fortunes of my people, whenever I would heal Israel, the sins of Ephraim are exposed and the crimes of Samaria revealed. They practice deceit, thieves break into houses, bandits rob in the streets;
2  but they do not realize that I remember all their evil deeds. Their sins engulf them; they are always before me.
 
On verses 1-2: These verses describe how every time God would restore and heal Israel, Israel (also known as Ephraim) would take God’s mercy for granted and go back to its same old sins again.  Examples of those sins include deceit, thievery, robbery (v1), lying (v3), adultery (v4), and one more sin we will describe below.   

公理顛倒的世界

2023-12-29 in , /by

哈巴谷書 1:3a  祢為何使我看見罪孽？祢為何看著奸惡而不理呢？

讀經文: 哈巴谷書 1:1-17

1先知哈巴谷所得的默示。

2 他說：耶和華啊，我呼求你，你不應允，要到幾時呢？我因強暴哀求你，你還不拯救。 3 你為何使我看見罪孽？你為何看著奸惡而不理呢？毀滅和強暴在我面前，又起了爭端和相鬥的事。 4 因此律法放鬆，公理也不顯明。惡人圍困義人，所以公理顯然顛倒。

〈哈巴谷書〉列在〈那鴻書〉之後，這兩卷小先知書的性質很相似，都說到神對祂子民的仇敵之審判。〈那鴻書〉預言亞述的結局，〈哈巴谷書〉預言迦勒底（巴比倫）的結局。本書中對作者的交代甚少，但是從本書的最後一節說：“這歌交於伶長，用絲弦的樂器”，可以猜測他可能是個祭司或利未人，在聖殿裡以音樂服侍，並且住在猶大，因為聖殿在耶路撒冷。從本章第一節可以知道，他本身也有先知的職份。

哈巴谷此名含有“擁抱”的意義，“擁抱”同時也包含“抓住”，像雅各一樣，緊緊地抓住神的使者，不給祝福就不讓離開；哈巴谷則是緊緊地抓住神，要神解答他的疑問。人很有限，很多問題得不到解答，有的答案還引人入歧途，迷失方向。所以能抓住神問問題的人最有福，因為神的答案才能滿足人心的饑渴，使人尋到人生的方向。