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安息年和禧年

〈利未記〉25章21-22節    我必在第六年將我所命的福賜給你們,地便生三年的土產。第八年,你們要耕種,也要吃陳糧,等到第九年出產收來的時候,你們還吃陳糧。」

在〈利未記〉24章裡記載了一個不幸的例子。有個以色列但支派的婦人嫁給一個埃及人,很有可能是在埃及歌珊地時,埃及人看上以色列女子而娶來為妻。他們跟著以色列人出埃及,有可能因為在十個神蹟裡看到耶和華神的大能,因此一起跟著摩西出埃及;也可能在逾越節的神蹟之後,埃及人催趕以色列人離開,眾怒難犯,因此那個埃及丈夫不得不跟著出埃及,但是心裡並不是真的跟隨神。

他們生了一個兒子,有一天這個兒子跟一個以色列人爭鬥,這以色列婦人的兒子褻瀆了聖名,並且咒詛。因此被送到摩西那裡。想想看,這個以色列婦人的兒子為何膽敢褻瀆神的聖名,並且咒詛?會不會是在家裡聽到父親如此說話而學起來呢?父母都是兒女學習的榜樣,有好榜樣,也有壞榜樣。因此在爭鬥時,他不自覺地就褻瀆了聖名,並且咒詛。當然,也有可能是他自己不好,不能都怪父母。

我們看到摩西的謙卑和敬虔,在這樣的事上,他先把那人收在監裡,再等候神的指示。摩西的謙卑和尊神為大,永遠是我們學習的功課。我們都太著急,想要憑著自己的聰明去決定事情,不願意等候。但我們的神是不著急的神,凡事在祂永不誤時。

摩西寫下神的判決:1. 把那人帶到營外,因為營內是大家生活的地方。2. 叫聽見的人都把手放在他頭上,把這罪歸於他自己;也表示有超過兩三位的見證人,見證此事的確發生過。3. 確定了他的罪,全會眾一起用石頭打死他。這是團體執行死刑,見證他的不是;也讓大家明白犯這樣的罪之下場,因而得到警戒。褻瀆耶和華名的,必被治死。

The God of Second Chances

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Joshua 8:1-8.  Let’s go!

Joshua 8:1-8 (NIV) 
1  Then the LORD said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Take the whole army with you, and go up and attack Ai. For I have delivered into your hands the king of Ai, his people, his city and his land. 
2  You shall do to Ai and its king as you did to Jericho and its king, except that you may carry off their plunder and livestock for yourselves. Set an ambush behind the city.” 
3  So Joshua and the whole army moved out to attack Ai. He chose thirty thousand of his best fighting men and sent them out at night 
4  with these orders: “Listen carefully. You are to set an ambush behind the city. Don’t go very far from it. All of you be on the alert. ……

On verses 1-8:  Joshua hears God’s command to go attack Ai once again.  Though Ai is a relatively small town, God commands Joshua to take his whole army with him to attack it (v1).  This time they would be allowed to take plunder with them (v2).  God also gives Joshua a new strategy for attacking Ai, which is to set an ambush (v2).  Joshua chooses his 30,000 best fighting men to be part of the ambush (v3).

耶和華的節期

〈利未記〉23章1-3節    耶和華對摩西說:你曉諭以色列人說:耶和華的節期,你們要宣告為聖會的節期。六日要做工,第七日是聖安息日,當有聖會;你們甚麼工都不可做。這是在你們一切的住處向耶和華守的安息日。

咚咚咚咚,這星期有個猶太人的大節日,你猜猜看是什麼節?耶穌當年也有過此節喔! 給你一個大貼示,它的標誌也是一個燈台,但是它比聖殿裡的金燈台多了兩個燈座。

在〈約翰福音〉第十章22-23節說,在耶路撒冷有修殿節,是冬天的時候。耶穌在殿裡所羅門的廊下行走。這修殿節又稱為光明節或哈努卡節,在希伯來文是 חנוכה ( Hannukah/ Chanukah )。這是紀念馬加比一家人為真理而戰,在神的幫助下以寡擊眾,戰勝希臘人,奪回被褻瀆的聖殿,贏得將近一百年的獨立。今年的光明節從12月10日-18日,也就是這個星期四開始。但這個節期不算是耶和華的節期,它和普珥節一樣,都算是猶太人的民間節日。

哪些節日才算是耶和華的節期呢?

你能把它們的秩序按著日期排一下嗎?

1.住棚節    2.無酵節    3.初熟節   4. 吹角節     5.五旬節    6.逾越節     7.贖罪日

我們來回憶一下,摩西領以色列人出埃及前要做何事,法老才終於首肯,讓以色列人離開埃及呢?神派死亡的天使殺了埃及所有頭生的人和牲畜,卻沒有殺以色列人頭生的人和牲畜。因為神叫他們要殺一隻羊,把羊血塗在門楣和兩邊,死亡的天使看到門上有血,就越過去了。所以就訂為逾越節,死亡的天使逾越過去,不殺以色列人,保存他們性命的日子。

How to Avoid Coveting What Is Not Yours

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Joshua 7:19-26.  Let’s go!

Joshua 7:19 (NIV) 
19  Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and give him the praise. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.”

On verse 19:  “Give glory to the Lord” was a Jewish way of saying, “Tell the truth”.  For another example, see John 9:24.   May we give glory to God by living lives of integrity.

Joshua 7:20-23 (NIV) 
20  Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the LORD, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: 
21  When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia, two hundred shekels of silver and a wedge of gold weighing fifty shekels, I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.” 
22  So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. 
23  They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the LORD.

祭司要自潔成聖

〈利未記〉21:22   神的食物,無論是聖的、至聖的,他都可以吃,

在舊約裡,祭司是指亞倫沒有殘疾的男性後裔;在新約裡,彼得說:「你們來到主面前,也就像活石,被建造成為靈宮,作聖潔的祭司,藉著耶穌基督奉獻 神所悅納的靈祭。(彼前2:5)」句首的「你們」是指當時的受信人,也就是分散在本都、加拉太、加帕多家、亞細亞、庇推尼寄居的信徒(彼前1:1)。當然,現在這個「你們」就變成「我們」了,就是照父 神的先見被揀選,藉著聖靈得成聖潔,以致順服耶穌基督,又蒙祂血所灑的人(彼前1:2)。

那麼,以前的祭司該守的聖潔條例,我們是不是也要遵守呢?不要害怕,因為在〈使徒行傳〉15章的耶路撒冷會議裡,己經決定不把「我們祖宗和我們所不能負的軛」加在外邦使徒身上,所以我們大可不必驚慌。但是從這一章裡,我們又可以明白一些舊約的事蹟。

例如在亞倫和四個兒子承接祭司之職的第八天,亞倫的兩個兒子拿答和亞比戶各拿自己的香爐,盛上火,加上香,在耶和華面前獻上凡火,是耶和華沒有吩咐他們的。有火從耶和華面前出來,把他們燒滅,他們就死在耶和華面前(利10:1-2)。

事情發生後,摩西對亞倫和他兒子以利亞撒、以他瑪說:「不可蓬頭散髮,也不可撕裂衣裳,免得你們死亡,又免得耶和華向會眾發怒;只要你們的弟兄以色列全家為耶和華所發的火哀哭。 你們也不可出會幕的門,恐怕你們死亡,因為耶和華的膏油在你們的身上。」

摩西所說的便是按著神的律法去提醒亞倫,因為「在弟兄中作大祭司、頭上倒了膏油、又承接聖職,穿了聖衣的,不可蓬頭散髮,也不可撕裂衣服。不可挨近死屍,也不可為父母沾染自己。不可出聖所,也不可褻瀆神的聖所,因為神膏油的冠冕在他頭上。我是耶和華。(利21:10-12)」

You Can’t Hide From God Forever

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Joshua 7:10-18.  Let’s go!

Joshua 7:10-18 (NIV) 
10  The LORD said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? 
11  Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions.
12  That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction. ……

On verses 10-18:  Earlier God had specifically commanded that the Israelites were not to take any loot from the city of Jericho for themselves (Joshua 6:18).  However, God tells Joshua that Israel violated God’s command by taking for themselves some of Jericho’s riches (v11).  Until this sin was confessed and dealt with, the Israelites could not be victorious in battle (v12).  So God tells Joshua to present all of Israel before Him and initiate a process by which Israel’s population would be widdled down tribe by tribe, clan by clan, family by family, until eventually they came to the man who was responsible for this sin.  They go through this process and find that Achan is chosen.

找到真正的價值

登山寶訓:找到真正的價值(太6:25-32)

從一個社會現象看起__關於行乞

  這段經文很大篇幅地提到我們生活基本的吃喝與穿著。人的吃喝與穿著並不是生命中最重要,而是非常次要的事情。計志文牧師說:「一個人不能供應自己生活需要的人,連螞蟻都不如,因為連螞蟻都能供應自己生活的需要。」他把人的價值、責任與需要配合起來,跟螞蟻做一個重要的對比,他說:「有上帝形象的人有智慧、知識、計畫、工作的能力,可以好好解決我們生活的需要,但如果人連這一點都達不到,要怎樣好好做人呢?」

  有時候你看人在路邊行乞,便伸出手來幫助他們,這些幫助使你感到自己做了善事,覺得自己在社會上有貢獻,從另一方面來看,你是幫助人更懶惰、不做工,變成社會的寄生蟲,變成拖累別人的人。貧富懸殊是人間最大的困難之一。你到舊金山的市政廳,會發現周圍都是無家可歸的遊民。有一次我經過那邊,心想:「連美國路上都有這麼多乞丐」。但有些社會現象是我們難以理解的,正像有些舊金山的遊民在銀行有上萬美金的存款,既然他有這麼多的存款,為什麼需要透過行乞來供應生活的所需?(並不是每個遊民都是如此)

不要輕重不分、本末倒置

  耶穌在這段經文提到花、鳥、樹木有令人欣賞漂亮的地方,最後不存在了,究竟要講什麼呢?每段《聖經》都有不同的地方,這段經文是很難解釋。特別在新冠肺炎蔓延全球的時代,很多人死了、破產了、失業了,不能重操舊業,特別是音樂家的生活變得相當困難,因為多數人認為音樂與果腹沒有多大關係,也不認為音樂是生命的必需。耶穌在這裡所要說的,是貴賤、本末、輕重的價值排列。

  

Rely on God in the Little Things

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Joshua 7:1-9.  Let’s go!

Joshua 7:1-6 (NIV) 
1  But the Israelites acted unfaithfully in regard to the devoted things; Achan son of Carmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the LORD’s anger burned against Israel. 
2  Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai. 
3  When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the people will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary all the people, for only a few men are there.” ……

On verses 1-6:  Riding the wave of their great victory at Jericho, Joshua uses the same strategy when attacking the next city, Ai. Joshua first sends spies to spy out Ai.  Based on the spies’ report about Ai’s small population, Joshua decides not to send so many troops to Ai (v3).  However, Joshua’s army is routed by the small town of Ai.  It’s the first defeat Israel has experienced under Joshua’s leadership.  The defeat leads Joshua and Israel’s elders to humble themselves before God.

Make Your Heart Jesus’ Hiding Place

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Joshua 6:15-27.  Let’s go!

Joshua 6:15-27 (NIV) 
15  On the seventh day, they got up at daybreak and marched around the city seven times in the same manner, except that on that day they circled the city seven times. 
16  The seventh time around, when the priests sounded the trumpet blast, Joshua commanded the people, “Shout! For the LORD has given you the city! 
17  The city and all that is in it are to be devoted to the LORD. Only Rahab the prostitute and all who are with her in her house shall be spared, because she hid the spies we sent. ……

On verses 15-27:  On the seventh day in accordance with God’s instructions, Joshua commands his army to march around the city of Jericho seven times and then, at the sound of a trumpet blast, to shout.  The army does so, and at their shouts the city walls of Jericho come down and the Israelite army charge in and take the city, sparing only Rahab the prostitute and her family “because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho” (v25).

與萬民有別

〈利未記〉20章26節    你們要歸我為聖,因為我─耶和華是聖的,並叫你們與萬民有分別,使你們作我的民。

在古老的中國有個傳說,大約是主前五世紀,有個人名叫西門豹。因為他很有才能,被派往黃河旁的一個地方鄴地作縣令。當地有個傳說,黃河裡住著河神,若不給河神娶媳婦,黃河就會發大水。百姓苦不堪言,因為替河神娶媳婦要強徵民女,又徵收額外的稅捐,但是稅捐卻由官府和巫婆們私分。那年又到了河神娶媳婦的時候了,西門豹帶了士兵也去參加。城裡有權勢的富人、官府裡的衙役及被選中的女孩都到了,還有一個七十多歲的老巫婆和她的弟子們。

西門豹說:「把河神的老婆帶過來,看看她漂亮不漂亮。」有人把女孩帶過來,站在西門豹面前。西門豹看了一眼,就回頭對眾人說:「這個女孩不漂亮, 夠不上做河神的老婆。可是河神今天一定等著迎親,就請大巫婆走一趟,到河裡通知河神,等找到一個漂亮的女子,過一天再來。」說著,還沒等眾人明白是怎麼回事,就命令士兵抬起老巫婆,拋進河裡去了。隔了一會兒,西門豹說:「巫婆怎麼走了這麼長時間還沒有回話,叫個徒弟去催催她。」於是又命令士兵把巫婆的一個徒弟扔進河裡,這樣前前後後,扔了三個徒弟到河裡。

河邊站著的富人們、官府裡的人和圍觀的人都驚呆了,再看西門豹,卻是畢恭畢敬,一幅虔誠的樣子,像是專心等待河神的回話。又過了一會兒,西門豹說 :「看來河神太好客了,留住了這些使者不讓回來,還是再去一個人去催催吧。」說完,他向那些操辦這件事的地方富紳和官吏看去,這些人從驚嚇中回神過來 ,全都跪在地上求饒,生怕西門豹把自己也扔下河。西門豹宣告:「河神娶媳婦本是騙人的把戲,以 後如果誰再操辦這件事,就把誰扔到河裡去見河神。」從此,鄴地河神娶媳婦的鬧劇就絕跡了。