Entries by

诗篇七十三篇

亚萨的诗。

1 神实在恩待以色列那些清心的人。
2 至于我,我的脚几乎失闪,我的脚险些滑跌。
3 我见恶人和狂傲人享平安,就心怀不平。
4 他们死的时候没有疼痛,他们的力气却也壮实。
5 他们不像别人受苦,也不像别人遭灾。
6 所以骄傲如链子戴在他们的项上,强暴像衣裳遮住他们的身体。
7 他们的眼睛因体胖而凸出,他们所得的过于心里所想的。
8 他们讥笑人,凭恶意说欺压人的话,他们说话自高。
9 他们的口亵渎上天,他们的舌毁谤全地。
10 所以神的民归到这里,喝尽了满杯的苦水。……

著名的福音派作家杨腓力说,人类所有的疑问,都可以在《圣经》中找到答案。这不是一句随便说的大话,而是当人读《圣经》时,神就亲自开启我们的灵,赐给我们亮光和悟性可以明白许多事情。反之,你若不读《圣经》,却自以为是地批评《圣经》,那你就一直活在黑暗里,被那些不明白的事情困扰。

诗人亚萨曾经像我们一样,看到恶人和狂傲人享平安,就心怀不平。他觉得平常努力洁净自己的心思意念都是白做了,若是神不惩罚恶人,恶人在世反而财富加添,得享幸福,那么我为何不也去行恶?为何要保守自己,反而遭灾?

诗篇七十二篇

所罗门的诗。

1 神啊,求祢将判断的权柄赐给王,将公义赐给王的儿子。
2 他要按公义审判你的民,按公平审判祢的困苦人。
3 大山小山,都要因公义使民得享平安。
4 他必为民中的困苦人申冤,拯救穷乏之辈,压碎那欺压人的。
5 太阳还存,月亮还在,人要敬畏祢,直到万代。
6 他必降临,像雨降在已割的草地上,如甘霖滋润田地。
7 在他的日子义人要发旺,大有平安,好像月亮长存。
8 他要执掌权柄,从这海直到那海,从大河直到地极。
9 住在旷野的必在他面前下拜,他的仇敌必要舔土。
10 他施和海岛的王要进贡,示巴和西巴的王要献礼物。……

〈诗篇〉第72篇是第二卷〈诗篇〉的最后一篇。圣经学者把整部〈诗篇〉分成五卷,并且按著内容它们做了以下的分类:第一卷:1至41篇(诗篇的创世纪),第二卷:42至72篇(诗篇的出埃及记),第三卷:73至89篇(诗篇的利未记),第四卷: 90至106篇(诗篇的民数记),第五卷:107至150篇(诗篇的申命记)。要找出分类的原始出处并不容易,可能只是其中有几篇可以归类。

这一篇前面注明是所罗门的诗,在末后的一节却写是耶西的儿子大卫的祷告。所以一般有两种看法:一是大卫年迈时所唸,由所罗门记录下来;二是大卫为所罗门所做的祈祷。

神拣选所罗门做王(代上28:5-7),大卫因而把王位传给所罗门。其他的王子曾经觊觎王位,也都有所行动。大卫的长子暗嫩因为强奸三子押沙龙的妹妹他玛,被押沙龙设计杀死;圣经没有提到二子的去向。三子就是押沙龙,

Jesus, Priest Like No Other

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Hebrews 7:20-28.  Let’s go!

Hebrews 7:21 (NIV) 
21  but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever.'” 

On verses 20-21:  In a court of law, before a witness takes the stand, the witness makes a solemn promise, swearing to tell the truth.  This is called an oath.  The oath is meant to show that the person speaking is completely serious and sincere about the words he or she is about to speak and that his hearers can count on what he or she is saying. Likewise, when God spoke words to appoint Jesus as a priest, God swore an oath to show how serious and sincere He was about the pronouncement He was making.

Whereas others naturally became priests by being born into the tribe of Levi, Jesus supernaturally became a priest by way of God’s oath or promise.  It’s similar to what happened with Abraham’s two sons, Ishmael and Isaac.   First there was Ishmael who was conceived in an ordinary, natural, man-made way.  But then came Isaac, who was conceived supernaturally as the result of God’s promise (see Romans 9:9 and Galatians 4:23).  Jesus became a priest because of a promise.

诗篇七十一篇

1耶和华啊,我投靠祢,求祢叫我永不羞愧。
2 求祢凭祢的公义搭救我,救拔我;侧耳听我,拯救我。
3 求祢做我常住的磐石,祢已经命定要救我,因为祢是我的岩石,我的山寨。
4 我的神啊,求祢救我脱离恶人的手,脱离不义和残暴之人的手。
5 主耶和华啊,祢是我所盼望的,从我年幼祢是我所倚靠的。
6 我从出母胎被你扶持,使我出母腹的是祢,我必常常赞美祢。
7 许多人以我为怪,但祢是我坚固的避难所。
8 祢的赞美,祢的荣耀,终日必满了我的口。
9 我年老的时候,求祢不要丢弃我;我力气衰弱的时候,求祢不要离弃我。
10 我的仇敌议论我,那些窥探要害我命的彼此商议,……

这诗篇显然是大卫王年老时所写,虽然没有作者名字,但是犹太人认为这诗的作者是大卫王。大卫王把他在母腹时蒙神扶持,一直到年迈时的光景,用这样短短的诗篇来记念来感恩,更附上年迈时的需求,他真是一位写诗高手。

大卫在年迈时再一次向神祈求:“耶和华啊,我投靠祢,求祢叫我永不羞愧。”大卫年轻时纵横战场,经过了人世间许多坎坷,在软弱时也曾求神让他不致羞愧;现在年老,没有力气,万事不由人,他依然希望活得灿烂,让人能从他身上看到,一个投靠神的人必永不羞愧。我相信这也是许多年老基督徒的心态。我们虽然老了,但是求主让我们活得有主的光采,让我们的生命依然能彰显神的丰盛和能力。

A Better Hope Through Jesus

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Hebrews 7:11-19.  Let’s go!

Hebrews 7:18-19 (NIV) 
18  The former regulation is set aside because it was weak and useless
19  (for the law made nothing perfect), and a better hope is introduced, by which we draw near to God.

On verses 11-19:  In approximately 15th century B.C., Moses introduces laws to govern the people of Israel.  These laws are found in the first five books of the Old Testament, also known as the Pentateuch, and are sometimes called the law of Moses, or simply “the law”.  The law of Moses stipulated that Israel’s priests, beginning with the first high priest Aaron, must come from the tribe of Levi.  Yet along comes Jesus who breaks this mold in that:

Jesus is not a descendant of the tribe of Levi, but from the tribe of Judah (v13-14)
Jesus becomes a priest not because of his family ancestry but because of the indestructible life he lived (v16);
Jesus is named a priest not in the typical order of Aaron as stipulated in the law, but in the order of Melchizedek as prophesied in Psalm 110 (v11).

诗篇七十篇

大卫的纪念诗,交于伶长。
1 神啊,求祢快快搭救我!耶和华啊,求祢速速帮助我!
2 愿那些寻索我命的抱愧蒙羞,愿那些喜悦我遭害的退后受辱。
3 愿那些对我说「啊哈!啊哈!」的,因羞愧退后。
4 愿一切寻求祢的因祢高兴欢喜,愿那些喜爱祢救恩的常说:「当尊神为大!」
5 但我是困苦穷乏的,神啊,求祢速速到我这里来!祢是帮助我的,搭救我的,耶和华啊,求祢不要耽延!

这首诗为何称为记念诗呢?当你读完它时,可能觉得它更像一首求救诗或请愿诗。从希伯来文和英文的翻译 lehazkir (להזכיר),这个字本身就是记念 remind或提及mention之意,但也因为其内容,所以有的英文圣经的翻译也用A petition(请愿)。

大卫做王,他的生活有两个方面,一是对外公开的,一是对内私人的。我们的生活又何尝不是这样?大家表面上都很好,开开心心的,好像脸书的世界,许多人把各种节日或旅游的相片放上去,有的人就因而被迷惑了,以为别人的日子都过得鲜亮有趣,只有自己什么都没有。事实上,他们不会把旅行或生活里所碰到的糟糕透顶的经历告诉别人。

大卫做王似乎很荣耀,可是他要面对的攻击也是多得不得了。他一当王,非利士人就来攻击;他善意地想安慰死了父亲的亚扪,结果使者去了却惨遭羞辱;除了军事还有政治。现在我们看新闻,哪个当政者不是天天被批评被攻击?在表面看他是个荣耀的君王,但是他的内心却充满了挣扎和恐惧。

Who is Melchizedek?

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Hebrews 7:1-10.  Let’s go!

Hebrews 7:3 (NIV) 
3  Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God he remains a priest forever. 

On verses 1-4:  A few times already the writer of Hebrews has mentioned Melchizedek, saying that Jesus is a priest “in the order of Melchizedek” (for example, Hebrews 5:10; 6:20).  Now who is Melchizedek?  Melchizedek is a mysterious figure who is first mentioned in Genesis 14 where Abram has just returned from victoriously battling a number of kings.  All of a sudden, Melchizedek king of Salem appears, bringing bread and wine (v18).  In addition to being a king, Melchizedek is also called “priest of God Most High” (v18) and blesses Abram (v19).  Did you notice the parallels between Melchizedek and Jesus Christ?  For example:

Melchizedek is simultaneously a king and a priest, just like Jesus.  In fact the first mention of “priest” in the Bible is with reference to Melchizedek.  Similarly, it can be said that Jesus the eternal Son of God was and is the first ever priest. 

诗篇六十九篇

大卫的诗,交于伶长。调用百合花。

1 神啊,求祢救我!因为众水要淹没我。
2 我陷在深淤泥中,没有立脚之地;我到了深水中,大水漫过我身。
3 我因呼求困乏,喉咙发干;我因等候神,眼睛失明。
4 无故恨我的,比我头发还多;无理与我为仇,要把我剪除的,甚为强盛;我没有抢夺的,要叫我偿还。
5 神啊,我的愚昧祢原知道,我的罪愆不能隐瞒。
6 万军的主耶和华啊,求祢叫那等候祢的不要因我蒙羞。以色列的神啊,求祢叫那寻求祢的不要因我受辱。
7 因我为祢的缘故受了辱骂,满面羞愧。
8 我的弟兄看我为外路人,我的同胞看我为外邦人。
9 因我为祢的殿心里焦急,如同火烧,并且辱骂祢人的辱骂都落在我身上。
10 我哭泣,以禁食刻苦我心,这倒算为我的羞辱。……

这篇“弥赛亚诗篇”里有很多在新约被引用的经文,这些经文都直接指向主耶稣在十字架上的经历。当大卫在苦难中时,他向神发声求援,但是圣灵却使他说出许多预言,论及弥赛亚要受到的迫害。在1-6节里,大卫形容他的苦难有可能来自他的愚昧或罪愆,他深陷淤泥中,没有立脚之地;又到了深水中,大水漫过他身。前者指站都站不住,后者指已经没顶,快没命了。他曾呼救,直到喉咙发干,因为等候神,眼睛失明。这是一场在黑暗里的争战,看不见任何亮光。

仇敌比头发还多,那时大卫应该还有很多头发,仇敌多到像头发那样数算不了;想剪除他的,比他强盛;他没有抢夺,人却要他偿还。这是个不合理的世界,没有任何理由可讲。主耶稣在最后的晚餐时,就是这样跟门徒说的:“这要应验他们律法上所写的话说:他们无故地恨我。(约15:25)”当时的以色列人、罗马军兵真是无缘无故地恨耶稣,要置祂于死地。但是大卫的祈祷不是为了自己,更为了神的荣耀,这就是大卫祷告最高明的地方:“万军的主耶和华啊,求祢叫那等候祢的不要因我蒙羞。以色列的神啊,求祢叫那寻求祢的不要因我受辱。”

You Can Trust Who God Is and What God Says

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is Hebrews 6:13-20.  Let’s go!

On verses 13-17:  As an example of “those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised” (v12), the writer of Hebrews mentions the story of Abraham.  Despite Abraham’s old age and his wife Sarah’s inability to have children, God promises to Abraham and Sarah that “I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.” (v14)   To show how serious God is about fulfilling that promise, God “swore by himself” (v13) because “there was no one greater for him to swear by” (v13) and people usually swear on something that is greater than themselves (v16).  The specific wording can be found in Genesis 22:16-17:

16  …”I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son,
17  I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies,

In addition to swearing by himself, God did one more thing:  He gave an oath.  By making this oath (promise), God was trying to make it “very clear” to Abraham and his descendants that God was serious about doing what He said He would do (v17).  As verse 16 says, “the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.”

诗篇六十八篇

大卫的诗歌,交于伶长。

1 愿神兴起,使祂的仇敌四散,叫那恨祂的人从祂面前逃跑。
2 他们被驱逐,如烟被风吹散;恶人见神之面而消灭,如蜡被火熔化。
3 唯有义人必然欢喜,在神面前高兴快乐。
4 你们当向神唱诗,歌颂他的名,为那坐车行过旷野的修平大路——祂的名是耶和华,要在祂面前欢乐!
5 神在祂的圣所做孤儿的父,做寡妇的申冤者。
6 神叫孤独的有家,使被囚的出来享福,唯有悖逆的住在干燥之地。

7 神啊,祢曾在祢百姓前头出来,在旷野行走。(细拉)

8 那时地见神的面而震动,天也落雨,西奈山见以色列神的面也震动。
9 神啊,祢降下大雨,祢产业以色列疲乏的时候,祢使他坚固。
10 祢的会众住在其中,神啊,祢的恩惠是为困苦人预备的。……

这首诗歌因为保罗引用了这诗篇里的第18节:“他升上高天的时候,掳掠了仇敌(弗4:8)”来指证基督,所以被列为“弥赛亚诗篇”之一。有圣经学者认为,这首诗篇的背景是〈历代志上〉第15章,大卫把约柜从俄别以东的家运到锡安山时所写的。它不仅提及离开埃及、西乃山的约和旷野的圣所,更提到“弥赛亚国度”的建立,因而被称为历史和预言的剪影。在这首诗歌里也有神的应许,祂要做孤儿的父,为寡妇申冤,又叫孤独的有家,被囚的得自由,使人读了甚感安慰。当郑果牧师的家人从中国出来与他团圆时,他就曾经提到过神的应许,叫他这个孤独的终于和家人团聚了。