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哈巴谷书第1章 - 两个问题

即便我们无法理解神对我们的旨意,我们仍要相信祂仍然掌管万有。

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7 分钟阅读

与其他直接向人民传达信息的先知书不同,《哈巴谷书》独树一帜,它以哈巴谷与神之间的对话形式展开。

这本书的背景推测是在约西亚王去世之后。当时,巴比伦人的威胁已经显现,并迫在眉睫。这些事件使哈巴谷向神提出了两个质问。

哈巴谷的这两个质问与我们的现实并不遥远。我们也在目睹世界变得越来越邪恶、扭曲,我们或许也曾向神提出过类似的问题。

神的公义在哪里?

哈巴谷的第一个质问出现在《哈巴谷书》1:2-4。

当时,土地上似乎已没有公正可言。义人遭受恶人的欺压,法律失去了权威,无法治理人民、维持秩序。甚至连神似乎也不再关心这世上的不公义,面对哈巴谷的呼求保持沉默。

这种困惑在今天同样存在,我们眼看着世界越来越邪恶,公正被颠倒。

穷人被剥削,工作条件极其恶劣;弱者被鄙视、被轻看;义人被认为是愚昧的,受到恶人的嘲笑。

有时,我们也会疑问:神在哪里?祂难道没有看见世上的不公吗?

当我们试图理解世界上的一切邪恶时,往往感到痛苦不堪(诗篇 73:16)。唯有像哈巴谷一样进入神的圣所,我们才能更好地理解世界的败坏。

神在《哈巴谷书》1:5-11中的回答表明,巴比伦的威胁是祂计划的一部分。事实上,是神“兴起迦勒底人”(哈巴1:5),祂完全知道巴比伦人是多么“威武可畏”(哈巴1:7)。

神仍然掌管一切,即便祂允许恶人施行祂的计划,祂仍然知道自己在做什么。

这正是我们作为基督徒今天可以得到的安慰。

神仍然掌管世界。即便掌权者和世界领袖可能不合神的标准,我们仍然要相信神知道自己在做什么。

这是否意味着恶人可以逍遥法外?

不,这与神的本性相违背。

恶人的惩罚必定会到来(诗篇 37:38)。或许不是今天,也不是明天,甚至可能不会在他们有生之年。然而,当世界终结时,无论是生者还是死者,所有人都要站在神的面前,“照他们所行的受审判”(启示录 20:12)。任何 “不洁净的并那行可憎与虚谎之事的” 都不能被记录在生命册上(启示录 21:27),他们将被 “扔在火湖里”(启示录 20:15)。

为什么要使用恶人?

哈巴谷在《哈巴谷书》1:13中对神的回答提出了进一步的质问:

为什么要使用恶人?

我们今天或许也会问类似的问题。如果我们站在哈巴谷的角度,我们可能会认为神只会惩罚恶人。那么,为什么义人也要受苦呢?

但在这种情况下,如果神的答案并不是我们想要的,我们会如何回应?如果神告诉我们,原因在于我们自己也犯了罪,在祂眼中成为可憎的呢?或者,祂要我们经历火的试炼,使我们的信心得到熬炼呢?

然而,尽管哈巴谷面对困境,他并没有失去信心,也没有埋怨神。相反,他在《哈巴谷书》2:1中表现出坚定和谦卑。他没有假设自己的观点是正确的,而是认为或许是自己理解有误。他选择警醒等候,让神纠正他的误解。

今天的我们,也要向哈巴谷学习,学习他的谦卑和对神的信心。即便我们无法理解神对我们的旨意,我们仍要相信,神的道路高过我们的道路(以赛 55:8-9),祂仍然掌管万有。

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但以理书 第四章(英文)

但以理书 第四章(英文)

The story in Daniel Chapter 4 is perhaps not unfamiliar to many of us. King Nebuchadnezzar, ruler of the great Babylonian empire, the king of kings, being turned into a beast, how spectacular is that? It's not until we read through this chapter for ourselves that we realise something even more spectacular: this whole chapter is told by King Nebuchadnezzar himself. Daniel Chapter 4 is King Nebuchadnezzar's own personal testimony! Isn't King Nebuchadnezzar the infamous evil king? How is it that in this chapter he gives praise to the almighty God? Perhaps the first thing that should catch our attention from today's chapter is the repeated phrase in verses 17 and 32. The Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He wills. This phrase can even be said to be the theme of the whole Book of Daniel. This book is mostly set in the time of exile, when there seemingly was no longer any king over the people of God. Yet, in the Book of Daniel we see that though there was no earthly king ruling over Israel, God made it clear to these foreign kings that He is the almighty God. He was still the one who was truly the King. The outcome of this is that the evil king Nebuchadnezzar, probably the greatest and most powerful man during his time, writes this testimony for all peoples, nations, and languages to hear (Daniel 4:1-3). Imagine being a subject in the Babylonian empire, and receiving this declaration from king Nebuchadnezzar praising and glorifying the God of Israel. Though God's people sin against Him and are punished by being taken into exile, the name of God is still magnified. God is not put to shame. Today through baptism we have entered into the Kingdom of God. Yet, it is key for us to consider whether God truly is the King of our lives. It's natural to make many plans for our future, out of a desire to lead our dream lives. But for us Christians, the sovereignty and authority of God is something that we must be well-aware of and fully willing to submit to. If God doesn't let me get that job, are we able to accept it? If God closes the path towards our dreams, are we will to say "Let Thy will be done"? If God takes away all that we have, are we able to be like Job and say "Blessed be the name of the Lord"? If all this is causing us to struggle, remember this: God loves us. He knows what's best for us, He knows what we need. He has already given His life for us, and given us His precious Spirit to dwell within us. Having faith in God's love towards us gives us strength to submit to our King with full assurance that this is the best path for us, this is the way to blessing and to eternal life. Since our God is the highest and rules over the kingdom of man, what then should our response ought to be? Nebuchadnezzar begins and ends his testimony by praising and glorifying God. Giving praises to God is something that we have been often taught but perhaps we have not given enough thought to or taken seriously enough. Yet, throughout the Bible, it's clear that praises are a key part of our worship to God (just read the Book of Psalms). What might we praise God for? Like Nebuchadnezzar, we can praise God for His greatness and His almightiness. Just consider the stars, or the intricacies of the human body. We can praise God for His love and wisdom as seen in His creation as well as in His word. The more we study into the holy scriptures, the more we are filled with awe at how complete, connected, and wonderful these life-giving words are. We can also glorify God for His salvation which He has so freely given to us. Imagine how different our lives might be today if not for His grace and mercy! It's when we decide to finally take the importance of praising God seriously and intentionally set aside some time in our daily prayers to praise God, that we truly experience the blessing that comes along with it. We go through life being filled with joy and gratitude, knowing that we have such a great and powerful Heavenly Father who loves us. In fact, it was when Nebuchadnezzar took the glory for Himself rather than giving all glory to God, that the infamous transformation into a beast took place. This brings us nicely to the final point of reflection for this devotional. Pride - when we take glory for ourselves rather than giving glory to God. Nebuchadnezzar's testimony serves as a stark warning for us. Even just a sentence or thought of pride can greatly displease God. How often have we unknowingly taken credit for ourselves for any achievements we have, or for any divine work that we do? Being puffed up with pride and not keeping to one's proper domain is precisely the sin of satan (1 Tim 3:6, Jude 6-7). If we are filled with pride, what difference is there between us and satan? In fact, while satan exalted himself, God on the contrary lowered Himself, coming in the likeness of man and humbling Himself even to the point of death (Phil 2:5-8). Whose example do we want to follow, that of God or of satan? Let us take warning from the story of Nebuchadnezzar and carefully consider who's example we want to follow. Indeed, God opposes the proud while giving grace to the humble. He blesses the meek, that they might inherit the earth .

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