[今日經文 Today’s Reading: 創世記 Genesis 19-21]
24 當時，耶和華把硫磺與火，從天上耶和華那裏降與所多瑪和蛾摩拉， 25 把那些城和全平原，城裏所有的居民和土地上生長的，都毀滅了。 26 羅得的妻子在他後邊回頭一看，就變成了一根鹽柱。… 29 當 神毀滅平原諸城的時候，他記念亞伯拉罕；在傾覆羅得所住之城的時候，就把羅得從傾覆中帶出來。
創世記 genesis 19:24-29
24 Then the Lord rained on Sodom and Gomorrah sulfur and fire from the Lord out of heaven. 25 And he overthrew those cities, and all the valley, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and what grew on the ground. 26 But Lot’s wife, behind him, looked back, and she became a pillar of salt…. 29 So it was that, when God destroyed the cities of the valley, God remembered Abraham and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow when he overthrew the cities in which Lot had lived.
所多瑪和蛾摩拉是什麼？ 有一次對高中畢業生的調查顯示，超過 50% 的人認為所多瑪和蛾摩拉是一對夫妻：丈夫和妻子。 （《聖經文盲醜聞：這是我們的問題》作者：阿爾伯特·莫勒）這表明聖經文盲在美國是一個多麼嚴重的問題，包括在我們的教會和基督徒家庭中。
為什麼神要毀滅所多瑪和蛾摩拉？ 許多基督徒試圖不冒犯 LGBTQ+ 的支持者，並解釋說這是因為居民不熱情好客或發生了輪姦事件。 但從上下文來看，顯然這不是正確的解釋。
我們讀到「所多瑪城的人，連老帶少所有的人，個個都來圍住那屋子城裡的人」（《創世記》 19:4）都想「親近」(合和修訂本) 以人的形式向他們顯現的兩位天使。
希伯來語。 動詞「知道」（希伯來文 yada）有時表示性交（例如 4:1, 17, 25；19:8；參考士師記 19:22）。 上下文暗示所多瑪的男人打算與這兩位訪客發生同性戀關係，因此「雞姦 Sodom」一詞的由來。ESV Study Bible 學習聖經
新約聖經《猶大書》清楚地告訴我們所多瑪和蛾摩拉的罪是什麼：「7 同樣，所多瑪、蛾摩拉和周圍城鎮的人也跟着他們一樣犯淫亂，隨從逆性的情慾，以致遭受永不熄滅之火的懲罰，作為眾人的鑒戒。」
但即使在如此嚴峻的情況下，上帝仍然慈愛地為羅得和他的家人提供了一條出路。 天使不斷催促羅得逃跑，甚至抓住他和他家人的手。
艾伯特·莫勒博士在文章的最後強烈提醒人們了解聖經所說的重要性：
我們不會相信超越我們所知的東西，我們也不會活得比我們的信仰更高。 ……這一代人必須非常嚴肅地對待聖經文盲問題，否則大量美國人——包括基督徒——將繼續認為所多瑪和蛾摩拉從此過著幸福快樂的生活。
願我們堅定地堅持真理，並殷勤和忠實地向我們的孩子教導上帝的話語，將其傳遞給下一代，以便他們可以教導他們的孩子，包括非常重要的有關所多瑪和蛾摩拉的事實。
禱告：親愛的上帝，請幫助我們和我們的孩子，從聖經中了解所多瑪和蛾摩拉的真實記載。 願我們從這件事中吸取教訓，從而逃脫祢神聖的審判。 奉耶穌的名，阿們！
What are Sodom and Gomorrah? Once a survey of graduating high school seniors revealed that over 50 percent thought that Sodom and Gomorrah were a couple: a husband and wife. (The Scandal of Biblical Illiteracy: It’s Our Problem by Albert Mohler) This demonstrates how BIG a problem biblical illiteracy is in America, including in our churches and Christian homes.
Why did God destroy Sodom and Gomorrah? Many Christians try to not offend supporters of LGBTQ+ and explain that it was because the inhabitants had been inhospitable or because gang rape had occurred. Yet from the context it is clear that this is not the correct explanation.
We read that “the men of the city… both young and old, all the people to the last man” (Gen. 19:4) wanted to “know” the two angels who appeared to them in the form of men.
In Hebrew. the verb “to know” (Hb. yada‘) sometimes denotes sexual intercourse (e.g., 4:1, 17, 25; 19:8; cf. Judges 19:22). The context implies that the men of Sodom intended to have homosexual relations with the two visitors, hence the origin of the term “sodomy.”ESV Study Bible
The New Testament book of Jude tells us clearly what the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was: “…just as Sodom and Gomorrah and the surrounding cities, which likewise indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire, serve as an example by undergoing a punishment of eternal fire.”
But even given such a dire situation, God still lovingly provided a way out for Lot and his family. The angels continually urged Lot to escape and even seized his and his family members’ hands.
Dr. Albert Mohler concluded his article with a strong reminder of the importance of knowing what the Bible says:
We will not believe more than we know, and we will not live higher than our beliefs. … This generation must get deadly serious about the problem of biblical illiteracy, or a frighteningly large number of Americans——Christians included——will go on thinking that Sodom and Gomorrah lived happily ever after.
May we hold firmly to the Truth and pass it down to the next generations by diligently and faithfully teaching the Word of God to our children so they may teach their children, including very importantly the facts about Sodom and Gomorrah.
Prayer: Dear God, please help us, and help our children, to know the true account of Sodom and Gomorrah from the Bible. May we learn the lesson from that account well so that we will escape Your divine judgment. In Jesus’ name, Amen!
希伯來語單字 Hebrew words:
- עִיר ʿîr (n) = city 城
- מָלַט mālaṭ (v) = to escape 逃
- זָכַר zāḵhair (v) = to remember 記念
