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民数记生命读经 · 第25篇

行程（十）

Journeying (10)
1读经：民数记十七章。民数记十七章记载神的表白。在我们来看这事以前，我愿意附加一段话，论到可拉的后裔。
1Scripture Reading: Num. 17 In Numbers 17 we have God’s vindication. Before we consider this matter, I would like to add a word concerning the descendants of Korah
2民数记十六章似乎指明，可拉所有的家人，包括他的儿女，都灭亡了。但民数记二十六章十一节告诉我们，可拉的众子并没有死。也许他们没有参与那次的阴谋和背叛，或是他们听从了摩西在十六章二十六节的话，离开了他们，父亲的帐棚，因而在地开口吞下可拉和他家人的时候，得以逃避那场悲剧。在代上六章三十三至三十七节所记载撒母耳的家谱中，那里告诉我们，撒母耳是可拉的后代。可拉渴望在祭司职分中得到更高的地位。他没有得到，于是背叛了。然而，他后裔中的一个却成了祭司，不过不是藉著争权，乃是藉著奉献作拿细耳人。（见本书信息第八至十篇，关于成为圣别—作拿细耳人。）撒母耳不仅是祭司，也是大申言者。不仅如此，诗篇八十八篇的标题指明，这篇诗篇是可拉的后裔，撒母耳的孙子希幔（代上六33）写的。希幔不仅是诗人，也是大卫所安排、圣殿里的歌者。
2Numbers 16 seems to indicate that all of Korah’s family, including his children, perished. But Numbers 26:11 tells us that the sons of Korah did not die. Either they did not take part in that conspiracy and rebellion, or they took Moses’ word in 16:26 and departed from the tent of their father and thereby escaped the tragedy that took place when the earth opened and swallowed Korah and his company. In 1 Chronicles 6:33-37, a record of the genealogy of Samuel, we are told that Samuel was a descendant of Korah. Korah aspired to have a higher position in the priesthood. He did not attain it and he became rebellious. However, one of his descendants became a priest, not by struggling for power but by being offered as a Nazarite. (See Messages Eight through Ten on being sanctified to be a Nazarite.) Samuel was not only a priest but also a great prophet. Furthermore, as the title of Psalm 88 indicates, this psalm was written by Heman, a descendant of Korah and a grandson of Samuel (1 Chron. 6:33). Heman was not only a psalmist but also a singer in the temple under David’s arrangement
3从神宽宥可拉的后裔，我们可以看到祂的怜悯。可拉的一个后裔成了大申言者，并且有分于祭司职分。另一个成了诗人，写了一篇最好的诗篇，并且成了圣殿的歌者和乐司。因此，我们从记载在旧约的历史，可以看到神对某些人是严厉的，对某些人却是怜悯的。我们究竟是经历祂的怜悯，或是经历祂的严厉，这是在于我们的行为如何。
3In God’ss paring Korah’s descendants, we can see His mercy. One of Korah’s descendants became a great prophet and took part in the priesthood. Another became one of the psalmists, a writer of one of the best psalms and a temple singer and musician. Thus, from the history recorded in the Old Testament, we can see that God is severe to some but merciful to others. Whether we experience His mercy or His severity depends on how we behave ourselves
五神的表白
e God’s vindication
4民数记十七章说到神的表白。神的表白总是随著祂的审判。因此，祂的审判和祂的表白无法分开。事实上，神的审判就是一种表白。但审判主要是在消极一面，表白主要是在积极一面。在消极一面，神在十六章审判了可拉、大坍、亚比兰、和其他背叛者，不仅包括二百五十个会众的首领，也包括可拉的一伙。神在执行这审判的时候，施行了祂的公义。在十七章，神进一步在积极一面表白祂的代表权柄，就是亚伦和摩西。
4Numbers 17 is a chapter on God’s vindication. God’s vindication always goes along with His judgment. Hence, His judgment and His vindication cannot be separated. Actually, God’s judgment is a form of vindication. But judgment is mainly on the negative side, and vindication is mainly on the positive side. On the negative side, in chapter sixteen God judged Korah, Dathan, Abiram, and the other rebels, including not only the two hundred fifty leaders of the assembly but also the company of Korah. In carrying out this judgment, God exercised His righteousness. In chapter seventeen God went further to vindicate Aaron and Moses, His deputy authority, in a positive way.
１ 神审判后，吩咐
1. After His Judgment, God Commanding
5将十二根杖放在见证柜前神在审判之后，吩咐将十二根杖放在见证（约柜里的十条诫命）柜前，这见证柜是基督的豫表，也是神与人相会的地方。（民十七1～7。）这表明一切事必须带到神面前，让神藉著祂的表白，对所有百姓说真实的话，而对付实际的光景。在豫表里，杖表征权柄。（参林前四。）在民数记十七章，杖代表十二支派的首领，（民十七2，）亚伦的杖代表利未支派。（民十七3。）耶和华说，『我所拣选之人的杖必发芽。这样，我就使以色列人向你们所发的怨言止息，不再达于我了。』（民十七5。）杖是一根枯木，不但被砍了下来，并且也枯槁了。然而这样一根枯槁的木头竟然会发芽。芽乃是生机的东西，生命的东西。神的心意是要藉这根枯杖的发芽，使百姓的怨言止息。
5That Twelve Rods Be Laid before the Testimony After His judgment, God commanded that twelve rods be laid before the testimony (the Ten Commandments in the ark), which typified Christ and was the place where God met with His people (vv. 1-7). This signifies that everything had to be brought into the presence of God to let God deal with the real situation by speaking the truth to all the people through His vindication. In typology a rod signifies authority (cf. 1 Cor. 4:21). In Numbers 17 the rods represented the leaders of the 21 twelve tribes (v. 2), and Aaron’sr od represented the tribe of Levi (v. 3). Jehovah said, ‘‘The rod of the man whom I choose shall bud; thus I will make to cease from Me the murmurings of the sons of Israel, which they murmur against you’’ (v. 5). A rod is a piece of dead wood. It has not only been cut, but it is also dead and dried up. Yet such a dead and dried up piece of wood would bud. A bud is something organic, something of life. It was God’sin tent i on that this budding of a dead rod would cause the murmurings of the people to cease.
6这些杖要在会幕里放在神面前一整夜。那一夜亚伦也许没有睡好。他也许在想他的杖是否会发芽。对亚伦来说，那一夜真是个黑夜。有的时候，神为著祂的表白，把我们放在必经的黑夜、黑暗的隧道里。
6The rods were to lie before God in the tent of meeting through a whole night. It is not likely that Aaron slept well that night. He probably thought about his rod, wondering if it would bud. For Aaron that night was truly a dark night. Sometimes, for His vindication, God puts us into a dark night, a dark tunnel, through which we must pass
２ 亚伦的杖发了芽
2. Aaron’sR od Budding
7摩西必定是第一个看到发芽的杖的人。『次日摩西进入见证的会幕；看哪，属利未族系亚伦的杖发了芽，生了花苞，开了花，结了熟杏。』（民十七8。）这是何等的神迹！亚伦那死的、枯干的杖发了芽。这是个生机的神迹。
7Moses must have been the first person to see the budding rod. ‘‘On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony; and behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi had budded and put forth buds and produced blossoms, and it bore ripe almonds’’ (v. 8). What a miracle that was! Aaron’s dead, dried up rod budded. This was an organic miracle
8摩西把所有的杖带到以色人那里，他们就都看见了。（民十七9。）这记载指明，没有人为主的表白说话或赞美主，各人把自己的杖拿去了。
8Moses brought all the rods to all the sons of Israel, and they all looked (v. 9). The record indicates that, without saying a word and without praising the Lord for His vindication, each man took his rod.
３ 亚伦发芽的杖放回见证柜前
3. The Budding Rod of Aaron Being Put Back before the Testimony
ａ正如神所吩咐摩西的
a. As God Commanded Moses
9亚伦发芽的杖放回见证柜前。（民十七10。）这是照著神吩咐摩西的而行。（民十七11。）ｂ给背叛之子留作记号
9The budding rod of Aaron was put back before the testimony (v. 10). This was done according to God’s commandment to Moses (v. 11). b. To Be Kept as a Sign for the Sons of Rebellion
10亚伦发芽的杖要给背叛之子留作记号，好叫他们向神发的怨言停止，5免得他们死亡。（民十七10。）五节说那怨言是向摩西发的，十节却说是向神发的。在民数记十六、十七章，以色列人的背叛产生了两个记号。一个是消极的记号，由受了审判之人的香炉作成。（民十六36～40。）一个是积极的记号，由亚伦发芽的杖产生。发芽的杖与两个别的项目，隐藏的吗哪和神的见证（律法），一同摆在约柜里。这三项都是基督的豫表。发芽的杖、隐藏的吗哪、和神的见证（律法），都表征基督。我们由此可见，凡在积极一面发生在旧约的事，都与基督有关。
10The budding rod of Aaron was to be kept as a sign for the sons of rebellion, that their murmurings against God might be ended, lest they die (v. 10). Verse refers to the murmurings as being against Moses, but verse 10 refers to them as being against God. In Numbers 16 and 17 two signs were produced through the rebellion of the sons of Israel. One was a negative sign, made of the censers of those who had been judged (16:36-40). One was a positive sign, produced by the budding rod of Aaron. The budding rod was contained in the ark with two other things— the hidden manna and the testimony of God, the law. All three items are types of Christ. The budding rod, the hidden manna, and the testimony, the law, of God all signify Christ. By this we can see that whatever happened in the Old Testament on the positive side was related to Christ.
11亚伦发芽的杖不是豫表死了的基督，乃是豫表复活的基督，发芽的基督，就是把生命分赐给人的基督。基督总是流出生命来点活人。基督是宇宙中最大的发芽的杖。今天祂仍在发芽，我们乃是祂发芽的果子—熟杏—的一小部分。
11The budding rod of Aaron typifies not a dead Christ but the resurrected Christ, the budding Christ, who imparts life to others. Christ always flows out life to enliven others. Christ is the greatest budding rod in the universe. Today He is still budding, and we are a small part, the fruit, the almonds, of His budding
４ 以色列百姓背叛的天性，被暴露到极点
4. The Rebellious Nature of the People of Israel Being Exposed to the Uttermost
12以色列百姓背叛的天性，被暴露到了极点。神藉著亚伦发芽的杖表白之后，他们说，『我们灭亡喇，我们败灭喇，都败灭喇。凡靠近耶和华帐幕的，都必死。难道我们都要灭亡么？』（民十七12～13。）这指明百姓即使看见了神的审判和表白，仍然没有被征服。在一天之内，地开口将可拉和他一伙的人吞下去，有火从神那里出来烧灭了那二百五十人，并且百姓中有一万四千七百人被疫病击杀。这一切都是消极一面的神积。次日，神行了一件神迹，不是大规模的，乃是小规模的，就是使亚伦的杖发芽、开花、结果、甚至结出熟果。这完全是积极的，是神的怜悯和恩典，不带审判的思想。这乃是个表白，指明谁并甚么才是属神的、站在神这边的。人人都该相信并被征服，但以色列人仍然说背叛摩西的话。
12The rebellious nature of the people of Israel was exposed to the uttermost. After God’s vindication through Aaron’s budding rod, they said, ‘‘Behold, we perish, we are undone, we are all undone. Everyone shall die who comes near at all to the tabernacle of Jehovah. Shall we not all end up perishing?’’ (vv. 12-13). This indicates that even after seeing God’s judgment and vindication, the people were not subdued. The earth had opened to swallow Korah and his company, fire had come down from God to consume the two hundred fifty leaders, and fourteen thousand seven hundred of the people had been slain by the plague in one day. All these were miracles on the negative side. The next day, God did a miracle not on a large scale but on a small scale, causing Aaron’sr od to bud, blossom, and bear fruit, even ripe fruit. This was altogether positive, a matter of mercy and grace, with no thought of judgment. It was a vindication to indicate who and what were of God and on God’s side. Everyone should have been convinced and subdued, but the people of Israel still spoke words of rebellion to Moses.
13难怪神不准许这些以色列人进入应许之地。他们背叛得太过分了。有些背叛者对摩西和亚伦说，『你们太过分了！』（民十六3。）摩西对他们说了同样的话：『利未的子孙阿，你们太过分了！』（民十六。）实际上，是背叛者太过分了，然而他们却控告摩西和亚伦太过分了。他们以自己的所作所为来控告摩西和亚伦。历代以来同样的事不断的发生，就是有野心的人诬告别人有野心。在民数记十六、十七章，神的审判和表白清楚的指明，太过分的是背叛者，不是摩西和亚伦。十七章启示，这事件结束时受惩罚的人还没有被征服。所以，甚至神都只好放弃他们，让他们去。当时我们若是在场，并且对那情况能作些甚么，我们可能会因百姓所说背叛的话，进一步惩罚他们。但神是神，祂没有再作甚么。摩西或亚伦也没有作甚么。他们只是任凭百姓那样。在豫表里有这样一幅图画真好。不要期望风波会结束。每一次的『风暴』都必有结束。历史上从来没有不结束的风暴。虽然某次风暴会结束，但卷入那次风暴的人却不会停止他们的背叛。
13It is no wonder that these children of Israel were not permitted to enter the promised land. In their rebellion, they had gone too far. Some of the rebels had said to Moses and Aaron, ‘‘You have gone too far!’’ (16:3). Moses said the same thing to them: ‘‘You have gone too far, sons of Levi!’’ (16:7). Actually, the rebellious ones had gone too far, yet they accused7 Moses and Aaron of going too far. They condemned Moses and Aaron for doing what they themselves were doing. Similar things have happened through the generations, with the ambitious ones falsely accusing others of being ambitious. In Numbers 16 and 17 God’s judgment and vindication clearly indicated that the rebels, not Moses and Aaron, had gone too far. As chapter seventeen reveals, this case ends with the punished people not being subdued. Therefore, even God gave them up and let them go. If we had been there and had been able to do something about the situation, we probably would have punished the people further for their rebellious words. But God was God, and He did not do anything. Neither did Moses or Aaron do anything. They simply let the people be as they were. It is good to have such a picture in typology. Do not expect to see an ending of turmoil. Every ‘‘storm’’ will surely come to an end. In history there has never been an endless storm. Although a particular storm will end, those who become involved in that storm may not cease their rebellion.
14人里面背叛的天性乃是撒但自己。撒但一直是背叛的，他现在还是背叛的，并且他的背叛不会停止，直到他被扔到火湖里。（启二十10。）即使他被扔到火湖里，也不会被征服。不要忘记这背叛者是在我们里面，并且我们在自己里面无法胜过他。只有一位，耶稣基督，祂是神的儿子，也是人的儿子，祂能击败这恶者，并且已经击败了他。（来二14。）
14The rebellious nature in man is Satan himself. Satan has been rebellious, he is rebellious, and his rebellion will not end until he is thrown into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10). He may not be subdued even when he is in the lake of fire. Do not forget that this rebellious one is in us, and in ourselves we do not have a way to overcome him. Only one person, Jesus Christ, who is the Son of God and also the Son of Man, can defeat this evil one, and He has defeated him (Heb. 2:14).
15我们需要藉著儆醒并祷告，不断的受警惕。我们不仅有魔鬼在外面作仇敌，而且有撒但在里面作对头。我们该记住主耶稣对彼得所说的话：『西门，西门，看哪，撒但想要得著你们，好筛你们像麦子一样。』（路二二31。）有一次，彼得对主说，祂是基督，是活神的儿子，主称赞他，说他是父所祝福的。（太十六16～17。）就在这事之后不久，主耶稣却责备彼得，称他为撒但。（太十六23。）在很短的时间之内，原本为父所祝福的人竟为魔鬼所得著，甚至成了撒但。这既是堕落人类的光景，我们就不该期望看见人类背叛的天性会有了结。这是不会结束的。当保罗将要殉道的时候，他写信给提摩太，在他这最后一封书信里，他说所有在亚西亚的人都离弃了他。（提后一15。）这是提摩太后书里令人忧伤、黑暗的描述。然而，保
15We need to be continually on the alert by watching and praying. We have not only the Devil as the enemy on the outside but also Satan as the adversary on the inside. We should remember the word of the Lord Jesus to Peter: ‘‘Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded to have you to sift you as wheat’’ (Luke 22:31). On one occasion, Peter told the Lord that He was the Christ, the Son of the living God, and the Lord praised him, saying that he had been blessed by the Father (Matt. 16:16-17). Immediately after that, the Lord Jesus rebuked Peter, calling him Satan (Matt. 16:23). Within a very short period of time, a person who had been blessed by the Father became possessed by the Devil, and even became Satan. Since this is the situation with fallen human beings, we should not expect to see the ending of man’s rebellious nature. There is no end. When Paul was about to be martyred, he wrote to Timothy, in his last Epistle, saying that all the people in Asia had left him (2 Tim. 1:15). This is the sad, dark portrait in 2 Timothy. Nevertheless, Paul was triumphant (2 Tim. 4:17-18
16罗是得胜的。（提后四17～18。）
16
17我们己经强调一个事实：即使在神的审判和表白之后，以色列人还是说背叛的话。民数记十七章对这次的背叛，描绘出一幅令人忧伤的图画。我们看了这样的图画之后，只能敬拜神，敬拜祂是主。
17We have emphasized the fact that, even after God’s judgment and vindication, the children of Israel continued to speak words of rebellion. Numbers 17 portrays a sad picture concerning this rebellion. After seeing such a picture, we can only worship God, and worship Him as the Lord