神的异象
聆听与观看
经文
约伯记四十二1-17
1约伯回答耶和华说:
2我知道,你万事都能作;你的旨意不能拦阻。
3谁用无知的言语使你的旨意隐藏呢?
我所说的是我不明白的;这些事太奇妙,是我不知道的。
4求你听我,我要说话;我问你,求你指示我。
5我从前风闻有你,现在亲眼看见你。
6因此我厌恶自己(或译:我的言语),在尘土和炉灰中懊悔。
7耶和华对约伯说话以后,就对提幔人以利法说:我的怒气向你和你两个朋友发作,因为你们议论我不如我的仆人约伯说的是。
8现在你们要取七只公牛,七只公羊,到我仆人约伯那里去,为自己献上燔祭,我的仆人约伯就为你们祈祷。我因悦纳他,就不按你们的愚妄办你们。你们议论我,不如我的仆人约伯说的是。
9于是提幔人以利法、书亚人比勒达、拿玛人琐法照着耶和华所吩咐的去行;耶和华就悦纳约伯。
10约伯为他的朋友祈祷。耶和华就使约伯从苦境(原文是掳掠)转回,并且耶和华赐给他的比他从前所有的加倍。
11约伯的弟兄、姊妹,和以先所认识的人都来见他,在他家里一同吃饭;又论到耶和华所降与他的一切灾祸,都为他悲伤安慰他。每人也送他一块银子和一个金环。
12这样,耶和华后来赐福给约伯比先前更多。他有一万四千羊,六千骆驼,一千对牛,一千母驴。
13他也有七个儿子,三个女儿。
14他给长女起名叫耶米玛,次女叫基洗亚,三女叫基连哈朴。
15在那全地的妇女中找不着像约伯的女儿那样美貌。他们的父亲使他们在弟兄中得产业。
16此后,约伯又活了一百四十年,得见他的儿孙,直到四代。
17这样,约伯年纪老迈,日子满足而死。
信息分享
也许对我们过去几天来一直在讨论「不明白神的公义」的这个问题,能够作一个最清楚解释的人,就是神的仆人约伯。
在承受撒但的折磨后,约伯相信生命整体都是不公平的。他在二十七章2节对神说:「神夺去我的理,全能者使我心中愁苦。我指着永生的神起誓……」神有甚么回应?祂以这些话与约伯对质:「我立大地根基的时候,你在哪里呢?你若有聪明,只管说吧!你若晓得就说,是谁定地的尺度?」(伯三十八4-5)。接着,在花了很长时间聆听神讲述祂的伟大和威严后,约伯以今天的经文那了不起的话回应神说:「我从前风闻有你,现在亲眼看见你。」约伯开始明白,任何对抗神的公义的行为都是罪。想到自己是那么不公地看全能者的时候,他便忘记了自己以前受到苦待这个问题了。
接着约伯为那些没有怎样帮上忙的朋友祈祷,当他将焦点从自己转向别人的时候,他里面发生了一些重大和美好的改变──他的叛逆消除了,他脱离了一切困难。约伯按神的本性,而不是他的喜好看神。让我肯定地告诉你,如果我们要正确地崇拜和事奉神,我们必须领受同样的启示。
「约伯把焦点从自己转向他人」
进深研究
诗十七1-15 ;诗三十四5;诗一二三1
1. 大卫要求神兑现甚么承诺?
2. 大卫确信会有甚么结果?
祈祷
天父啊,风闻有您实在美好,但亲眼「看见您」更是无可比拟的喜乐。您把您的仆人约伯带到甚么地方去,求您也把我带到那里,不论中间会存在甚么阻挡。奉主耶稣的名求。阿们。
The Vision of God
Hearing and seeing!
Bible reading:
Job 42:1-17
1 Then Job replied to the Lord:
2 "I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
3 You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?' Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know.
4 "You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.'
5 My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you.
6 Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes."
7 After the Lord had said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, "I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has.
8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken the truth about me, as my servant Job has."
9 So Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite and Zophar the Naamathite did what the Lord told them; and the Lord accepted Job's prayer. 10 After Job had prayed for his friends, the Lord restored his fortunes and gave him twice as much as he had before.
11 All his brothers and sisters and everyone who had known him before came and ate with him in his house. They comforted and consoled him over all the trouble the Lord had brought on him, and each one gave him a piece of silver[a] and a gold ring.
12 The Lord blessed the latter part of Job's life more than the former part. He had fourteen thousand sheep, six thousand camels, a thousand yoke of oxen and a thousand donkeys.
13 And he also had seven sons and three daughters.
14 The first daughter he named Jemimah, the second Keziah and the third Keren-Happuch.
15 Nowhere in all the land were there found women as beautiful as Job's daughters, and their father granted them an inheritance along with their brothers.
16 After this, Job lived a hundred and forty years; he saw his children and their children to the fourth generation.
17 And so Job died, an old man and full of years.
Message
Perhaps the person who best illustrates what we have been talking about over the past few days - a failure to understand God's justice - is God's servant Job.
Following his suffering received at the hands of Satan, Job came to believe that the whole of life was unfair. He makes this point to God in chapter 27 verse 2: "As surely as God lives, who has denied me justice, the Almighty, who has made me taste bitterness of soul..." What is God's response to this? He confronts Job with these words: "Where were you when I laid the earth's foundation? Tell me, if you understand. Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!" (Job 38:4-5). Then, after listening for a long time to God outlining His greatness and His majesty, Job responds with the marvellous words that form our text for today: "My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you." Job begins to see that any movement against God's justice is sin. His previous problem of being mistreated is forgotten in the light of the greater problem that he had misjudged the Almighty.
Then came the moment when Job prayed for the friends who hadn't been much help to him, and as he turned the focus from himself to others something big and beautiful took place within him his rebellion dissolved and he was delivered from all his problems. Job came to see God as He is, not as he wanted Him to be, and with all the conviction of which I am capable I tell you that same revelation must come to us if we are to worship God and serve Him correctly.
"Job turned the focus from himself to others"
Prayer
O Father, to hear of You by car is indeed wonderful, but to "see" You is bliss beyond compare. Bring me to the same place You brought Your servant Job - no matter what lies in between. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Further study
Psalm 17:1-15; 34:5; 123:1
1. What was David asking God to honour?
2. What result was David convinced of?
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