旧约 - 申命记(Deuteronomy)第1章

These are the words Moses spoke to all Israel in the desert east of the Jordan--that is, in the Arabah--opposite Suph, between Paran and Tophel, Laban, Hazeroth and Dizahab.
(It takes eleven days to go from Horeb to Kadesh Barnea by the Mount Seir road.)
In the fortieth year, on the first day of the eleventh month, Moses proclaimed to the Israelites all that the LORD had commanded him concerning them.
This was after he had defeated Sihon king of the Amorites, who reigned in Heshbon, and at Edrei had defeated Og king of Bashan, who reigned in Ashtaroth.
East of the Jordan in the territory of Moab, Moses began to expound this law, saying:
The LORD our God said to us at Horeb, "You have stayed long enough at this mountain.
Break camp and advance into the hill country of the Amorites; go to all the neighboring peoples in the Arabah, in the mountains, in the western foothills, in the Negev and along the coast, to the land of the Canaanites and to Lebanon, as far as the great river, the Euphrates.
See, I have given you this land. Go in and take possession of the land that the LORD swore he would give to your fathers--to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob--and to their descendants after them."
At that time I said to you, "You are too heavy a burden for me to carry alone.
The LORD your God has increased your numbers so that today you are as many as the stars in the sky.
May the LORD, the God of your fathers, increase you a thousand times and bless you as he has promised!
But how can I bear your problems and your burdens and your disputes all by myself?
Choose some wise, understanding and respected men from each of your tribes, and I will set them over you."
You answered me, "What you propose to do is good."
So I took the leading men of your tribes, wise and respected men, and appointed them to have authority over you--as commanders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens and as tribal officials.
And I charged your judges at that time: Hear the disputes between your brothers and judge fairly, whether the case is between brother Israelites or between one of them and an alien.
Do not show partiality in judging; hear both small and great alike. Do not be afraid of any man, for judgment belongs to God. Bring me any case too hard for you, and I will hear it.
And at that time I told you everything you were to do.
Then, as the LORD our God commanded us, we set out from Horeb and went toward the hill country of the Amorites through all that vast and dreadful desert that you have seen, and so we reached Kadesh Barnea.
Then I said to you, "You have reached the hill country of the Amorites, which the LORD our God is giving us.
See, the LORD your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it as the LORD, the God of your fathers, told you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."
Then all of you came to me and said, "Let us send men ahead to spy out the land for us and bring back a report about the route we are to take and the towns we will come to."
The idea seemed good to me; so I selected twelve of you, one man from each tribe.
They left and went up into the hill country, and came to the Valley of Eshcol and explored it.
Taking with them some of the fruit of the land, they brought it down to us and reported, "It is a good land that the LORD our God is giving us."
But you were unwilling to go up; you rebelled against the command of the LORD your God.
You grumbled in your tents and said, "The LORD hates us; so he brought us out of Egypt to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us.
Where can we go? Our brothers have made us lose heart. They say, 'The people are stronger and taller than we are; the cities are large, with walls up to the sky. We even saw the Anakites there.'"
Then I said to you, "Do not be terrified; do not be afraid of them.
The LORD your God, who is going before you, will fight for you, as he did for you in Egypt, before your very eyes,
and in the desert. There you saw how the LORD your God carried you, as a father carries his son, all the way you went until you reached this place."
In spite of this, you did not trust in the LORD your God,
who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp and to show you the way you should go.
When the LORD heard what you said, he was angry and solemnly swore:
"Not a man of this evil generation shall see the good land I swore to give your forefathers,
except Caleb son of Jephunneh. He will see it, and I will give him and his descendants the land he set his feet on, because he followed the LORD wholeheartedly."
Because of you the LORD became angry with me also and said, "You shall not enter it, either.
But your assistant, Joshua son of Nun, will enter it. Encourage him, because he will lead Israel to inherit it.
And the little ones that you said would be taken captive, your children who do not yet know good from bad--they will enter the land. I will give it to them and they will take possession of it.
But as for you, turn around and set out toward the desert along the route to the Red Sea."
Then you replied, "We have sinned against the LORD. We will go up and fight, as the LORD our God commanded us." So every one of you put on his weapons, thinking it easy to go up into the hill country.
But the LORD said to me, "Tell them, 'Do not go up and fight, because I will not be with you. You will be defeated by your enemies.'"
So I told you, but you would not listen. You rebelled against the LORD'S command and in your arrogance you marched up into the hill country.
The Amorites who lived in those hills came out against you; they chased you like a swarm of bees and beat you down from Seir all the way to Hormah.
You came back and wept before the LORD, but he paid no attention to your weeping and turned a deaf ear to you.
And so you stayed in Kadesh many days--all the time you spent there.
申命记第一章   第 1 章 

  申 1:1-2> 只要十一天的路程,神为何要他们走四十年?属灵路,挺漫长,如何过?我主,你…… 

  1:1-2 以色列人用了四十年,才走完实际上只需要走十一天的路程。不是由于他们与应许之地距离太远,而是他们的内心出了问题。神不但要把这一大群人安置到新的地方,祂的旨意其实是预备他们,在进入应许之地以后过顺服的生活。假使以色列人跟当地的人一模一样邪恶不仁,祂应许把地赐给他们又有什么益处呢?长途跋涉实在使他们苦不堪言,对磨炼他们的心志却是不可少的。神藉这事教导他们,要认识祂是怎样的一位神──祂乃是永生神,是全民的领袖。祂也教导百姓认识自己是败坏、犯罪、又悖逆又怀疑神的人。祂将律法赐给这些悖逆之民,使他们晓得应该怎样敬畏神、与人相处。你的属灵旅程虽然漫长,可能有痛苦失望与艰难,但是请你切记,神不但要使你存活,祂更要你过事奉祂、敬爱祂的生活。 

  申 1:1-5> 以色列人在旷野四十年,申命记所记载的却只有…… 

  1:1-5 以色列人在旷野飘流四十年,本书只记载他们在这最后一年的第十一个月之中 一两 个礼拜的经历( 1:3 )。第十二个月,就是最后一个月,他们为摩西哀哭( 34:8 )。他们在出埃及以后第四十一年的正月,进入应许之地(参书 4:19 )。 

  申 1:6-7> 摩西从何烈山说起,此山必定意义重大,是──如果神也要我面对以色列人所面对的…… 

  1:6-7 请留意看摩西述说以色列人四十年行程的摘要,不是从埃及而是从何烈(西奈)山开始。他为什么将出埃及的头一部分略去?因为他并不是要列出详尽的行程,只是摘述民族的发展。他认为,以色列族不是在埃及,乃是在西奈山下开始形成的,因为神在那里与祂百姓立约(参出 19 , 20 )。他们与神立约后,就有了全备的知识与责任。他们既自愿选择信服神,就必须知道怎样信从祂。因此神赐下详细的律法与原则,说明祂期望百姓过怎样的生活(这些律例典章记载在出埃及记、利未记和民数记中),从此他们不能再推诿,说不懂得分辨是非。他们既答应顺从神,也知道该怎样做,就有责任谨守遵行。神若吩咐你拔营起程,面对祂所赐的新挑战,你是否准备顺命呢? 

  申 1:9-13> 千斤担子,独自一人,怎能当?摩西能找人帮忙,我们还站着犹豫什么? 

  1:9-13 摩西若独力引领全族,确是个极大的重担,他一个人难以完成任务。好像其他民族、机构与教会的增长一样,以色列民中的事务变得越来越复杂。纷争时起,意见纷纭,一位领导人已无法决断全局。你可能像摩西一样倾向独揽一切工作,不敢或者不好意思请人帮助。摩西作了明智的决定,叫别人与他一同担负领导工作。不要一个人负起全部的责任,当找别人共同负担,使他们也可以运用神所赐的才干与能力。 

  申 1:13-18> 有智慧、有见识、为众人所认识?啊,在今天的领袖选举中,这些素质怎么都不见了? 

  1:13-18 摩西列出卓越领袖必备的内在素质:( 1 )有智慧;( 2 )有见识;( 3 )为众人所尊敬。这些特点跟现在人常用以遴选领袖的资格,有显着的差别。现代人注重仪表、财富、声望,有出人头地的抱负。身为领导的,应当令人看出具有摩西所列的素质,在选举贤能的时候,也要物色这类才德之士。 

  申命记中发生的事件 

  申 1:22> 探子回报,应许之地不宜攻取──他们很小信不是?你我呢? 

  1:22 摩西打发探子去窥探迦南地,不是决定应否进入应许之地,而是察探应当从何处进入。但是探子回来以后,大多数皆认为不值得付代价去冒险犯难。神必定赐攻地的能力,但是他们不敢冒险,决定放弃。神虽然赐我们能力以胜过一切障碍,但是我们常常像以色列人一样满怀疑惧,让困难控制一生。顺从神,不理会诸般艰难,必能因信而英勇得胜。 

  申 1:23-40> 前有困阻,惧而不敢前进──你说他们是小信,我就说他们谨慎,你说…… 

  1:23-40 摩西讲述探子侦察应许之地的情形(参民 13-14 章)。探子回来报告那地有巨人(亚衲族人),城市墙垣高大,百姓就惧怕而不敢前进,开始怨天尤人,陷入进退两难的困境。但是约书亚与迦勒二人指出,这地不仅肥沃,而且敌人脆弱,是可以击败的,因为有神帮助他们。我们若只消极地专注难处,就会畏首畏尾,不敢行动。尽量专注于正面──那是神的指示与应许。在你面对重要抉择并明白当做的事时,要凭信心迈步向前,别让困难阻碍你得胜。 

  申 1:28> 心都消化了!他们怕什么? 

  1:28 迦南地有巨人和高大的坚固城邑。巨人就是亚衲族人,可能身高 2.1 到 2.7 公尺。那地有许多坚固城,城墙约有 9 公尺高。以色列人的惧怕虽然可以理解,但却不成理由,因为全能的神已经应许他们能胜过那里的人。──《灵修版圣经注释》