1 May 2017, Ex 1 出1 章, The “Problem” of Blessing 祝福的“问题”

Posted on Apr 28, 2017 in Devotions, Exodus |

Scripture Reading        : Ex 1

Theme                             : The “Problem” of Blessing

 

The nation growing.

God promised that the descendants of Abraham would multiply greatly, and they did (Gen. 13:16; 15:5). God keeps His word and accomplishes His purposes in His time. Over the centuries, nations have tried to destroy Israel but have not succeeded. God gave Israel a special promise in Genesis 12:3, and He is keeping it. God’s children today should pray for Israel (Ps. 122:6), share the gospel with them (Rom. 1:16), and minister to them in practical ways (Rom. 15:25–27).

The nation groaning.

God told Abraham that his people would experience suffering (Gen. 15:13–14). It is easy for nations and local churches to forget the heroes of yesterday (Heb. 13:7–8). Although we must not “embalm” the past, we certainly must not forget those who helped to make our future possible.

The new Pharaoh was more concerned about national security than human decency. When people become a means to an end instead of an end in themselves, we are not treating them as God wants us to. Enslaving the men was Egypt’s solution to “the Jewish problem.”

The nation facing distinction.

The new king not only enslaved the Jewish people, he planned to annihilate the race of Jewish people by instructing the midwives to kill the new born baby boys. However the midwives believed and obeyed God rather than men (Acts 5:29). Thank God for concerned people who will courageously defend the little ones![1]

 

Praying the Scripture

  1. God promised Abraham that He will multiply Abraham’s descendants greatly and it is amazing to watch how God did it. It grew from 70 men (Gen. 46:27) to 603,000 males (Num 1:46), who were 20 years of age and older, thus allowing for a total population of about 2 million departing from Egypt. The seed of Abraham was no longer an extended family, but a nation. The promise that his descendants would be fruitful and multiply (Gen. 35:11, 12) had indeed been fulfilled in Egypt. Do you trust God’s promises? Let’s pray that you do.
  2. A new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph. (Ex. 1:8) This is probably refers a Hyksos king (1730–1570 b.c.) who arose against Pharaoh during a period of political disintegration after Joseph. The term “arose” signifies “rose against,” which accords well with a foreign seizure of the Egyptian throne. Without Joseph and the blessing of God, Egypt has deteriorated into such a pitiful stage where it was over taken by a foreign king. Without God and His blessing we will be overcome by pride, lust and self-centeredness. Let’s pray that we constantly walk with God and ask God to help us to live in a healthy fear of Him.
  3. The midwives feared and obeyed God, not man. And the Lord blessed them. Do you fear God and obey him?

[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, With the Word Bible Commentary (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1991), Ex 1:1.

 
 
 

经文：出1 章

主题：祝福的“问题”

 

民族的增长

神应许亚伯拉罕的后裔将繁衍，这确实成就了（创13:16; 15:5）。神绝无食言，祂按着自己的时间来完成祂的旨意。几个世纪以来，许多国家试图摧毁以色列，但都没有成功。神在创世记12:3给了以色列一个承诺，至今祂仍然守着。今天神的儿女应该为以色列祷告（诗122:6）、向他们传福音（罗1:16）。

民族的哀声

神已经告诉亚伯拉罕，他的子民必会经历痛苦（创15:13-14）。身为一个国家和教会，我们常常很容易就会忘记过去的英雄（希13:7-8）。虽然我们不应该“停留在”过去，但我们一定不能忘记那些为我们创造未来的人。

比起人类的尊严，新法老更关心的是国家安全而藐视人。他把人看作为达到目的的一种手段，他没有按神要的方式待人。把犹太人当成奴役是埃及对“犹太人问题”的解决方案。

民族面临灭绝

新法老不仅使犹太人成为奴隶，他也计划消灭犹太民族，并指示收生婆把新生男婴都杀掉。然而，收生婆敬畏并顺服神而不是人（徒5:29）。感谢神有这些人勇敢地捍卫这些婴儿！

 

用经文祷告

  1. 神应许亚伯拉罕他的后裔将繁衍，看神如何实现祂的应许真是叫人惊讶。从70名男子（创46:27），增长至603,000名男子（民1:46），而这些指的是20岁以上的男子。所以，从埃及出发的总人口应该有约200万人。亚伯拉罕的后裔不再是一个大家庭，它已成为一个民族。他的后裔要生养众多的应许，已经在埃及实现了（创35:11，12）。你相信神的应许吗？让我们祷告，你确实相信祂。
  2. 一位不认识约瑟的新埃及国王兴起了。（出1:8）这可能是在指希克索斯王（公元前1730年至1570年），他在约瑟后的政治解体期间对抗法老。“兴起”的原文是“起来反对”，意味着一个外来的人抢夺了埃及王位。没有约瑟和神的祝福，埃及已经沦落到如此可怜的地步；一个被外来国王占领的国家。如果没有神和他的祝福，我们将被骄傲、淫欲和自我为中心给占据。让我们祷告，我们不断与神同行，并祈求神帮助我们每一天以一种健康的态度来敬畏祂。
  3. 收生婆敬畏并顺服神而不是人，神就厚待她们。你敬畏并顺服神吗？