20 英翻中 Enjoying life (9:8–17) 享受生命 (9:8–17) 28/3/2025

20 英翻中                     Enjoying life (9:8–17)                   享受生命 (9:8–17)                 28/3/2025

Enjoying life (9:8–17)                                                                                                                                享受生活（9:8-17）                                                                                                                                This section is what theologians call “The Noahic Covenant.” Though God spoke especially to Noah and his sons, this covenant includes all of Noah’s descen dants (v. 9) and “all generations to come” (v. 12 niv). The covenant doesn’t stop there, however, for it also includes every living creature (vv. 10, 12) and “all living creatures of every kind” (v. 15 niv). Humans, birds, beasts, and wild animals are encompassed in this wonderful covenant.                                                                                                  這部分就是神學家所說的「挪亞之約」。雖然上帝特別對挪亞和他的兒子們說話，但這個盟約包括挪亞的所有後裔（第 9 節）和「萬代」（第 12 節）。然而，盟約不止於此，因為它也包括每一種活物（10、12節）和「各類中的一切活物」（15節）。人類、鳥類、野獸類和野生動物類都包含在這個奇妙的盟約中。                                                                                                                         In this covenant, God promised unconditionally that He would never send another flood to destroy all life on the earth. As though to make it emphatic, three times He said “never again” (vv. 11, 15 nkjv, niv). He didn’t lay down any conditions that men and women had to obey; He simply stated the fact that there would be no more universal floods. From that day on, Noah and his family could enjoy life and not worry every time the rain began to fall.                                                                                                           在這個盟約中，上帝無條件地應許他們, 祂不再降下洪水來毀滅地球上的所有生命。好像是為了強調這一點，祂說了三次「從此不再」（11、15節，新欽定本，新國際版）。祂沒有規定任何男人和女人必須遵守​​的條件；祂只是簡單地陳述了這事實：不會再出現洪災。從那天起，諾亞和他的家人就可以享受生活，不再為每次下雨而煩惱。                                                                          A covenant with creation. At least four times in this covenant, the Lord mentioned “every living creature.” He was speaking about the animals and birds that Noah had kept safe in the ark during the flood (v. 10). Once again, we’re reminded of God’s special concern for animal life.                                            有關創造之盟約。在這盟約中，主至少四次提到「各樣的活物」。祂說的是洪水期間挪亞在方舟中安全保存的動物和鳥類（10節）。我們再次想起上帝對動物生命的特別關心。                         When the apostle John beheld the throne room of heaven, he saw four unusual “living creatures” worship ping before God’s throne, each one having a different face (Rev. 4:6–7). The first had a face like a lion, the second like a calf, the third like a man, and the fourth like an eagle. These four faces parallel the four kinds of creatures with whom God made this covenant: wild beasts, cattle, humans, and birds (see Gen. 9:9–10). These creatures are represented perpetually before the throne of God, because the Lord is concerned about His creation. They remind us that all creation worships and praises the God who provides for His creatures and rejoices in their worship.  6                                                                              當使徒約翰看到天上的寶座時，他看到四個不尋常的「活物」在上帝的寶座前敬拜，每一個都有不同的面孔（啟4：6-7）。第一個臉像獅子，第二個像牛犢，第三個像人，第四個像鷹。這四個面對應於上帝與之立約的四種生物：野獸、牲畜、人類和鳥類（參考創世記 9：9-10）。這些生物永遠出現在上帝的寶座前，因為上帝關心祂的受造物。它們提醒我們，所有受造物都敬拜和讚美為祂的受造物提供食物的上帝，並因他們的敬拜而喜樂。  6                                         Acovenant sign.To help His people remember His covenants, God would give them a visible sign. His covenant with Abraham was sealed with the sign of circumcision (Gen. 17:11; Rom. 4:9–12), and the Mosaic Covenant at Sinai with the sign of the weekly Sabbath (Ex. 31:16–17). God’s covenant with Noah and the animal creation was sealed with the sign of the rain bow. Whenever people saw the rainbow, they would remember God’s promise that no future storm would ever become a worldwide flood that would destroy humanity.                                                                                                                         盟約的記號。上帝為了幫助祂的子民記得祂的盟約，祂會給他們可見的記號。祂與亞伯拉罕所立的約,  以割禮為記號（創 17:11；羅 4:9-12），而在西乃山所立的摩西之約,  則以每週安息日為記號（出 31:16-17）。上帝與諾亞和動物所立的約,  以彩虹的標誌為印記。每當人們看到彩虹時，他們就會想起上帝的應許，即未來的風暴永遠不會成為毀滅人類的世界性洪水。                     Mark Twain and his friend William Dean Howells stepped out of church just as a violent rainstorm began. Howells said, “I wonder if it will stop,” and Mark Twain replied, “It always has.” He was right; it always has! Why? Because God made a covenant and He always keeps His word.                                            就在一場猛烈的暴雨開始時，馬克·吐溫和他的朋友威廉·迪恩·豪厄爾斯走出教堂。 豪厄爾斯說：「我想知道它是否會停止?」馬克吐溫回答：「它總是會停止。」.  他是對的；雨總是會有的！為什麼？因為上帝立了約，祂總是信守諾言。                                                                                      God spoke of the rainbow as though Noah and his family were familiar with it, so it must have existed before the flood. Rainbows are caused by the sunlight filtering through the water in the air, each drop becoming a prism to release the colors hidden in the white light of the sun. Rainbows are fragile but beautiful, and nobody has to pay to see them! Their lovely colors speak to us of what Peter called “the manifold grace of God” (1 Peter 4:10). The Greek word translated “manifold” means “various, many colored, variegated.” The rainbow reminds us of God’s gracious covenant and the “many-colored” grace of God.                                                                                                                                           上帝談到彩虹時，就好像挪亞和他的家人很熟悉它一樣，所以它一定在洪水之前就已經存在了。彩虹是陽光透過空氣中的水汽而形成的，水汽都變成一個棱鏡，釋放出隱藏在太陽白光中的顏色。彩虹雖然脆弱,  但美麗，沒有人需要花錢就能看到它們！它們可愛的顏色向我們講述了彼得所說的「上帝百般的恩典」（彼得前書 4:10）。希臘文翻譯為「manifold」,  它的意思是「各種各樣的、多種顏色的、雜色的」。彩虹讓我們想起上帝仁慈的聖約和祂「多彩」的恩典。                                                                                                                                                                         Let’s pursue that thought. If the rainbow reminds us of God’s faithfulness and grace, then why do we fret and worry? God hasn’t promised that we’ll never experience storms, but He has promised that the storms won’t destroy us. “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you” (Isa. 43:2 nkjv). When the clouds appear and the sun is hidden, we have nothing to fear.                                                                                                                                                 讓我們繼續這個想法。如果彩虹讓我們想起上帝的信實和恩典，那我們為什麼還要煩惱呢？祂沒有應許我們永遠不會經歷風暴，但祂應許風暴不會毀滅我們。 「你渡水的時候，我必與你同在；你渡河的時候，水必不漫過你」（以賽亞書 43:2 新欽定版）。當烏雲出現、陽光隱藏時，我們就沒有什麼好害怕的。                                                                                                                    Let’s think about the bow. A bow is an instrument of war, but God has transformed it into a picture of His grace and faithfulness, a guarantee of peace. God could certainly turn the bow of judgment upon us, because we’ve broken His law and deserve judgment. But He has turned the bow toward heaven and taken the punish ment for us Himself! When Jesus died on the cross, it was the Just One suffering for the unjust (1 Peter 3:18) and bearing the suffering that rightfully belonged to us.                                                 我們來考慮一下弓。弓是一種戰爭工具，但上帝已將其轉化為祂恩典和信實的象徵，是和平的保證。祂當然可以將審判的弓轉向我們，因為我們違反了祂的律法，應該受到審判。但祂已經把弓轉向天堂，親自為我們承受了懲罰！當耶穌死在十字架上時，正義的那一位為不義的人受苦（彼得前書 3:18），並承擔了理應屬於我們的痛苦。                                                                        Rainbows are universal; you see them all over the world. God’s many-colored grace is sufficient for the whole world and needs to be announced to the whole world. After all, God loves the world (John 3:16), and Christ died for the sins of the world (1 John 4:10, 14).                                                                         彩虹是普遍存在的；你在世界各地都能看到它們。上帝的多彩恩典夠全世界人用，需要向全世界宣告。畢竟，祂愛世人（約翰福音 3:16），基督為世人的罪而死（約翰一書 4:10, 14）。           But the rainbow isn’t only for us to see, for the Lord said, “I will look upon it” (Gen. 9:16). Certainly God doesn’t forget His covenants with His people, but this is just another way of assuring us that we don’t need to be afraid. When we look at the rainbow, we know that our Father is also looking at the rainbow, and therefore it becomes a bridge that brings us together.                                                                 但彩虹不只是給我們看的，因為主說：「我要看它」（創 9:16）。當然，上帝不會忘記祂與祂的子民所立的約，但這只是另一種向我們保證不需要害怕的方式。當我們看著彩虹時，我們知道我們的父親也在看著彩虹，因此它成為將我們聚集在一起的橋樑。                                                     Three rainbows. Three men in Scripture saw sig nificant rainbows. Noah saw the rainbow after the storm, just as God’s people see it today. But the prophet Ezekiel saw the rainbow in the midst of the storm when he had that remarkable vision of the wheels and the throne (Ezek. l:28). Ezekiel also saw living creatures and each one had four faces! One was like a man, one like a lion, one like an ox, and one like an eagle—the same faces John saw (Rev. 4:6–7).                                                                                     三道彩虹。聖經中的三個人看到了美麗的彩虹。諾亞在風雨過後看到了彩虹，正如上帝今天的子民所看到的。但先知以西結在看到輪子和寶座的非凡異象時，在暴風雨中看到了彩虹（以西結書 1:28）。以西結還看到了活物，每個活物都有四張臉！一個像人，一個像獅子，一個像牛，一個像鷹－約翰看到的都是同樣的面孔（啟4:6-7）。                                                                             Of course, the apostle John saw the rainbow before the storm of judgment broke loose (v. 3). In fact, John saw a complete rainbow around the throne of God! On earth, we see “in part,” but one day in heaven, we will see things fully as they really are (1 Cor. 13:12).                                                                         當然，使徒約翰在審判風暴爆發之前就看到了彩虹（第3節）。事實上，約翰在上帝的寶座周圍看到了一條完整的彩虹！在地上，我們只能看到“部分”，但有一天在天上，我們會看到事物的全部真相（哥林多前書 13:12）。                                                                                                                   The personal lesson for God’s people is simply this: in the storms of life, always look for the rainbow of God’s covenant promise. Like John, you may see the rainbow before the storm; like Ezekiel, you may see it in the midst of the storm; or like Noah, you may have to wait until after the storm. But you will always see the rainbow of God’s promise if you look by faith. That’s the Old Testament version of Romans 8:28.上帝子民的個人教訓很簡單：在生命的風暴中，始終尋找上帝聖約應許的彩虹。就像約翰一樣，你可能會在暴風雨前看到彩虹；就像以西結一樣，你可能會在暴風雨中看到它；或者像諾亞一樣，你可能要等到暴風雨過後。但如果你憑著信心去看，你總會看到神應許的彩虹。這是羅馬書 8:28 的舊約版本。                                                                                                                  God’s covenant with creation affects every living creature on earth. Without it, there would be no assured continuity of nature from day to day and from season to season. We would never know when the next storm was coming and whether it would be our last.                                                                                       上帝與受造物所立的約影響著地球上的每一個生物。沒有它，自然就無法保證日復一日、季復一季的連續性。我們永遠不知道下一場風暴何時到來，也不知道這是否是我們的最後一場風暴。                                                                                                                                                                        God wants us to enjoy the blessings of natural life and spiritual life, because He “gives to us richly all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17). When you know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, the world of nature around you becomes much more wonderful, because the Creator has become your Father.                                 上帝希望我們享受自然生命和屬靈生命的祝福，因為祂「豐富地賜給我們一切可以享受的東西」（提摩太前書 6:17）。當你認識耶穌基督為主和救主時，你周圍的自然世界就會變得更加美妙，因為創造者已成為你的父親。                                                                                                            When in later years the American evangelist D. L. Moody talked about his conversion as a teenager, he said, “I was in a new world. The next morning the sun shone brighter and the birds sang sweeter … the old elms waved their branches for joy, and all Nature was at peace. [It] was the most delicious joy that I had ever known.”   7                                                                                                                 後來，當美國福音傳道者 D. L. 穆迪 (D. L. Moody) 談到他青少年時期的皈依時，他說：「我身處一個新世界。第二天早上，陽光更加明亮，鳥兒的歌聲更加甜美…老榆樹歡欣鼓舞地揮舞著枝條，整個大自然都很平靜。[這是] 我所知道的最美妙的喜樂。」 7                                                      The God of creation is the god of salvation. Trust Jesus Christ and you can then truly sing, “This is my Father’s world.”     創造之上帝是拯救之神。相信耶穌基督，你就能真正唱出：“這是我天父的世界。”                                                                                                                                                                                                  

Notes  筆記

1 See Precious in His Sight: Childhood and Children in the Bible, by Roy B. Zuck (Baker, 1996), 71. This book ought to be read by every parent, pastor, children’s worker, and teacher of children.                1 請參閱《在他眼中珍貴：聖經中的童年與兒童》，羅伊·B·扎克 (Roy B. Zuck)（貝克，1996 年），71。每位家長、牧師、兒童工作者和兒童教師都應該閱讀這本書。                                        2 “But you must not eat flesh from a still-living animal” is the way Stephen Mitchell translates Genesis 9:4 in Genesis: A New Translation of the Classic Biblical Stories (New York: HarperCollins, 1996), 17. Since the blood is the life, then flesh with blood still in it is considered living flesh.                                  2 史蒂芬‧米切爾 (Stephen Mitchell) 在《創世記：經典聖經故事新譯本》（紐約：哈珀柯林斯，1996 年）第 17 章中對創世記 9:4 的翻譯是：「但你不可吃仍然活著的動物的肉」。既然血就是生命，那麼仍然帶有血的肉就被認為是活的肉。                                                                                    3 The issue at the Acts 15 Jerusalem consultation was not health but theology: must a Gentile become a Jew in order to become a Christian? The answer, of course, was a resounding no. The related question Paul dealt with in Romans 14—15 was, “Must a Christian live like a Jew in order to be a good Christian?” This was a matter of personal love: do nothing that would cause weaker Christians to stumble, but don’t let them stay weak. Help them to see the truth and have the faith to obey it.                3 使徒行傳第 15 章耶路撒冷諮詢的問題不是健康而是神學：外邦人必須成為猶太人才能成為基督徒嗎？答案當然是否定的。保羅在羅馬書 14-15 章中處理的相關問題是：「基督徒必須像猶太人一樣生活才能成為一個好基督徒嗎？」這是個人愛的問題：不要做任何會讓軟弱的基督徒跌倒的事，但不要讓他們保持軟弱。幫助他們看見真理並有信心去服從它。                                           4 According to the law of Moses, if an animal killed a human, the animal was to be killed. If the animal was known to be dangerous but wasn’t penned up, then the owner of the animal was in danger of losing his life. See Exodus 21:28–32.                                                                                                                      4 根據摩西律法，如果動物殺死了人，動物就應該被殺死。如果已知該動物是危險的但沒有將其圈起來，那麼該動物的主人就有生命危險。參閱出埃及記 21：28-32。                                              5 For a biblical study of capital punishment, see On Capital Punishment, by William H. Baker (Chicago: Moody Press, 1985). See also C. S. Lewis’ masterful essay “The Humanitarian Theory of Punishment” in God in the Dock: Essays on Theology and Ethics, edited by Walter Hooper (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970), 287–94.                                                                                                                                              5 有關死刑的聖經研究，請參閱 William H. Baker 所著的《論死刑》（芝加哥：穆迪出版社，1985 年）。另請參見 C. S. Lewis 的傑作“懲罰的人道主義理論”，載於《上帝在碼頭：神學與倫理學論文》，沃爾特·胡珀編輯（大急流城：Eerdmans，1970），287-94。      6 Psalm 104 emphasizes that all creation depends on God and worships God, including the beasts of the field (vv. 11, 21), the fowl (vv. 12, 17), the cattle (v. 14), and mankind (vv. 14, 23).                                  6 詩篇 104 篇強調萬物都依賴神並敬拜神，包括田野的走獸（11、21節）、飛鳥（12、17節）、牲畜（14節）和人類（14、23節）。                                                        7 Richard K. Curtis. They Called Him Mr. Moody (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1967),  53                          7 理查‧K‧柯蒂斯。他們稱他為穆迪先生（大急流城：Eerdmans，1967），53