1
1Ch 21:1-13.
英文原文
1Ch 21:1-13.
DAVID SINS IN NUMBERING THE PEOPLE.
1. Satan stood up against Israel--God, by withdrawing His grace at this time from David (see on
2Sa 24:1),
permitted the tempter to prevail over him. As the result of this successful temptation was the entail of a heavy calamity as a punishment from God upon the people, it might be said that "Satan stood up against Israel."
number Israel--In the act of taking the census of a people, there is not only no evil, but much utility. But numbering Israel--that people who were to become as the stars for multitude, implying a distrust of the divine promise, was a sin; and though it had been done with impunity in the time of Moses, at that enumeration each of the people had contributed "half a shekel towards the building of the tabernacle," that there might be no plague among them when he numbered them
(Ex 30:12).
Hence the numbering of that people was in itself regarded as an undertaking by which the anger of God could be easily aroused; but when the arrangements were made by Moses for the taking of the census, God was not angry because the people were numbered for the express purpose of the tax for the sanctuary, and the money which was thus collected ("the atonement money,"
Ex 30:16)
appeased Him. Everything depended, therefore, upon the design of the census [BERTHEAU]. The sin of David numbering the people consisted in its being either to gratify his pride to ascertain the number of warriors he could muster for some meditated plan of conquest; or, perhaps, more likely still, to institute a regular and permanent system of taxation, which he deemed necessary to provide an adequate establishment for the monarchy, but which was regarded as a tyrannical and oppressive exaction--an innovation on the liberty of the people--a departure from ancient usage unbecoming a king of Israel.
3
無標題
3. 他為何要使以色列人陷在罪中呢？——或作使以色列人招致刑罰。在希伯來文，「罪」字常與「罪的刑罰」同義。在神的護理之中，百姓常常因他們的君王行事不當而受苦。
英文原文
3. why will he be a cause of trespass to Israel?--or bring an occasion of punishment on Israel. In Hebrew, the word "sin" is often used synonymously with the punishment of sin. In the course of Providence, the people frequently suffer for the misconduct of their rulers.
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無標題
5. 約押將所數點以色列人的數目奏告——以色列人中能拿兵器的人數，共計一百一十萬，其中包括那三十萬常備軍
(1Ch 27:1-9)，
他們既已編入王家的服役，便不算在內
(2Sa 24:9)；
猶大人則共有四十七萬，並未將駐紮在非利士邊界、作為監視部隊的三萬人計算在內
(2Sa 6:1)。
在這樣早的時期，便有如此龐大的人口——若考慮到那地幅員有限，並與早先的數點
(Nu 26:1-65)
相比較——乃是應許
(Ge 15:5)
應驗的有力證據。
英文原文
5. Joab gave the sum of the number of the children of Israel--It amounted to one million one hundred thousand men in Israel, capable of bearing arms, inclusive of the three hundred thousand military
(1Ch 27:1-9),
which, being already enlisted in the royal service, were not reckoned
(2Sa 24:9),
and to four hundred seventy thousand men in Judah, omitting thirty thousand which formed an army of observation stationed on the Philistine frontier
(2Sa 6:1).
So large a population at this early period, considering the limited extent of the country and comparing it with the earlier census
(Nu 26:1-65),
is a striking proof of the fulfilment of the promise
(Ge 15:5).
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6. 惟獨利未人和便雅憫人他沒有數點——若這次數點是為了徵稅，這本身就足以解釋利未人為何不被數點，因為他們不是戰士
(1Ch 21:5)（參
Nu 1:47-54）。
便雅憫的人口曾被數點過（參
1Ch 7:6-11），
名冊存放在該支派的檔案中。然而那次是在別的時候、藉着約押以外的人手進行的。這兩個支派之未被數點，可能出於神特別而恩慈的護理：一方面因為利未人是獻給神事奉的，便雅憫則已成為諸支派中最小的
(Jud 21:1-25)；
另一方面因為神預見到在支派分裂之時，他們仍會忠於大衛的家，所以不願他們被削弱〔POOLE〕。從這次巡查所採取的路線看來（參
2Sa 24:4-8），
猶大和便雅憫似乎是所要走訪的最後兩個支派；在猶大數點完畢之後，約押在進入便雅憫之前，必須回到耶路撒冷，在那裏王如今深感自己大錯，下令停止這事一切後續的行動。不僅約押起初的抗議，連他在巡查中進展的緩慢
(2Sa 24:8)，
都表明這位老將軍對這違憲的措施何等厭惡，甚至感到驚恐。
英文原文
6. Levi and Benjamin counted he not--If this census was ordered with a view to the imposition of taxes, this alone would account for Levi, who were not warriors
(1Ch 21:5),
not being numbered (see on
Nu 1:47-54).
The population of Benjamin had been taken (see on
1Ch 7:6-11),
and the register preserved in the archives of that tribe. This, however, was taken on another occasion, and by other agency than that of Joab. The non-numbering of these two tribes might have originated in the special and gracious providence of God, partly because Levi was devoted to His service, and Benjamin had become the least of all the tribes
(Jud 21:1-25);
and partly because God foresaw that they would remain faithful to the house of David in the division of the tribes, and therefore He would not have them diminished [POOLE]. From the course followed in this survey (see on
2Sa 24:4-8),
it would appear that Judah and Benjamin were the last tribes that were to be visited; and that, after the census in Judah had been finished, Joab, before entering on that of Benjamin, had to return to Jerusalem, where the king, now sensible of his great error, gave orders to stop all further proceedings in the business. Not only the remonstrance of Joab at the first, but his slow progress in the survey
(2Sa 24:8)
showed the strong repugnance and even horror of the old general at this unconstitutional measure.
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無標題
9. 耶和華吩咐大衛的先見迦得——大衛雖然自己也有先知的恩賜，但在關於他自己或他國家的事上，他習慣透過祭司求問耶和華；當他沒有這樣做時，便有先知在非常的時刻被差來責備或懲戒他。迦得是他的私人朋友，偶爾被用作這些預言信息的傳遞者。
英文原文
9. the Lord spake unto Gad, David's seer--Although David was himself endowed with a prophetic gift, yet, in matters relating to himself or his kingdom, he was in the habit of consulting the Lord through the medium of the priests; and when he failed to do so, a prophet was sent on extraordinary occasions to admonish or chastise him. Gad, a private friend, was occasionally employed as the bearer of these prophetic messages.
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11, 12. 你可以選擇等——對應那三樣災禍，這裏也以優美的對稱安排了：三年、三個月、三日〔BERTHEAU〕。（參
2Sa 24:13）。
英文原文
11, 12. Choose thee, &c.--To the three evils these correspond in beautiful agreement: three years, three months, three days [BERTHEAU]. (See on
2Sa 24:13).
13
無標題
13. 我願落在耶和華的手裏……不願落在人的手裏——經驗教導他，人的仇恨與報復沒有止境；而我們在天上那位智慧而滿有恩典的父，卻知道每個人所需的懲罰種類，並調節其程度。
英文原文
13. let me fall now into the hand of the Lord . . . let me not fall into the hand of man--Experience had taught him that human passion and vengeance had no bounds, whereas our wise and gracious Father in heaven knows the kind, and regulates the extent, of chastisement which every one needs.
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14, 15. 於是耶和華……差遣使者往耶路撒冷去，要滅城——此處只記載了降下瘟疫一事，卻未說明其持續的時間或肆虐的情況；而對滅命使者可見的形像與威嚇的姿態，卻有詳細的描述。
英文原文
14, 15. So the Lord . . . sent an angel unto Jerusalem to destroy it--The infliction only of the pestilence is here noticed, without any account of its duration or its ravages, while a minute description is given of the visible appearance and menacing attitude of the destroying angel.
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無標題
15. 站在耶布斯人阿珥楠的打麥場上——阿珥楠大概是他的希伯來或猶太名字，亞勞拿則是他的耶布斯或迦南名字。無論他是否就是耶布斯的舊王——因為
2Sa 24:23
給了他那個稱號——他已歸信敬拜真神，並且既有財產，也有影響力。
英文原文
15. stood by the threshing-floor of Ornan the Jebusite--Ornan was probably his Hebrew or Jewish, Araunah his Jebusite or Canaanitish, name. Whether he was the old king of Jebus, as that title is given to him
(2Sa 24:23),
or not, he had been converted to the worship of the true God, and was possessed both of property and influence.
16
無標題
16. 大衛和長老……穿上麻衣，俯伏在地——他們以謙卑悔罪者的裝束和姿態出現，承認自己的罪，懇求神止息他的怒氣。
英文原文
16. David and the elders . . . clothed in sackcloth, fell upon their faces--They appeared in the garb and assumed the attitude of humble penitents, confessing their sins, and deprecating the wrath of God.
18
1Ch 21:18-30.
1Ch 21:18-30.
他築了一座壇。
18. 耶和華的使者吩咐迦得說——關於築壇的命令，以及壇址的指示，
2Sa 24:18
描述為迦得直接帶來的。此處則告訴我們先知從何處得到這項使命。只有在以色列歷史的較後階段，我們才看見天使被用來向先知傳達神的旨意。
英文原文
1Ch 21:18-30.
HE BUILDS AN ALTAR.
18. the angel of the Lord commanded Gad to say--The order about the erection of an altar, as well as the indication of its site, is described
(2Sa 24:18)
as brought directly by Gad. Here we are informed of the quarter whence the prophet got his commission. It is only in the later stages of Israel's history that we find angels employed in communicating the divine will to the prophets.
20
無標題
20, 21. 阿珥楠正在打麥子——若數點百姓是在秋季——即民事年的開始——着手的，那麼它所歷時的九個半月便正好到麥收時結束。打穀的常用方法，是把穀物鋪在高而平坦的場地上，趕着兩頭牛拉着一架笨重的、裝有三個滾筒和一些尖刺的橇，在其上來回輾壓。趕牛的人跪在箱子上，另有一人負責將稻草撥回，使之與底下的穀粒分開。經過這番操作，糠秕被弄得細碎，穀粒也被打了出來。
英文原文
20, 21. Ornan was threshing wheat--If the census was entered upon in autumn, the beginning of the civil year, the nine and a half months it occupied would end at wheat harvest. The common way of threshing corn is by spreading it out on a high level area, and driving backwards and forwards upon it two oxen harnessed to a clumsy sledge with three rollers and some sharp spikes. The driver sits on his knees on the box, while another person is employed in drawing back the straw and separating it from the grain underneath. By this operation the chaff is very much chopped, and the grain threshed out.
23
無標題
23. 我將……打糧的器具當柴——即用來焚燒那些牛作為祭物。在我國（英國），很難體會這禮物所含的迫切與價值的真正意義。這獻祭是為了即刻使用的。阿珥楠希望能一瞬間終止瘟疫，「將一切都獻上」——牛、那架大型打穀機、以及麥子。
英文原文
23. I give thee . . . the threshing instruments for wood--that is, to burn the sacrifice of the oxen. Very little real import--the haste and the value of the present offered--can be understood in this country. The offering was made for instant use. Ornan, hereby hoping to terminate the pestilence without a moment's delay, "gave all," oxen, the large threshing machine, and the wheat.
25
無標題
25. 大衛為那塊地給了……六百舍客勒金子——起初他只買了牛和打穀的器具，為此他付了五十舍客勒銀子
(2Sa 24:24)；
後來他買下了整塊地產，即摩利亞山，未來聖殿所在之地。在山頂平台的中央，高聳着一塊奇特的磐石，如今被「薩克拉」圓頂所覆蓋。它形狀不規則，一個方向約六十呎，另一個方向約五十呎。它是摩利亞山的天然表面，許多人認為它就是亞勞拿打麥場的磐石，為大衛所選定，並由所羅門和所羅巴伯延用為建造祭壇的「未鑿的石頭」〔BARTLETT，《耶路撒冷漫步》；STANLEY〕。
英文原文
25. David gave . . . for the place six hundred shekels of gold--At first he bought only the cattle and the threshing instruments, for which he paid fifty shekels of silver
(2Sa 24:24);
afterwards he purchased the whole property, Mount Moriah, on which the future temple stood. High in the center of the mountain platform rises a remarkable rock, now covered by the dome of "the Sakrah." It is irregular in its form, and measures about sixty feet in one direction and fifty feet in the other. It is the natural surface of Mount Moriah and is thought by many to be the rock of the threshing-floor of Araunah, selected by David, and continued by Solomon and Zerubbabel as "the unhewn stone" on which to build the altar [BARTLETT, Walks about Jerusalem; STANLEY].
26
無標題
26. 大衛在那裏築了一座壇——他帶着他的首領們從王宮出發，下錫安山，穿過城中的街道。雖然他自己的產業上有足夠的空間，他卻在明確的指示之下，被命令離家相當遠，上摩利亞山，在他必須購買的地業上築壇。那正是在或靠近亞伯拉罕獻以撒的地方。
從天上降火來應允他——（參
Le 9:24; 1Ki 18:21-23; 2Ki 1:12; 2Ch 7:1）。
英文原文
26. David built there an altar--He went in procession with his leading men from the royal palace, down Mount Zion, and through the intervening city. Although he had plenty of space on his own property, he was commanded, under peremptory direction, to go a considerable distance from his home, up Mount Moriah, to erect an altar on premises which he had to buy. It was on or close to the spot where Abraham had offered up Isaac.
answered him by fire from heaven--(See
Le 9:24; 1Ki 18:21-23; 2Ki 1:12; 2Ch 7:1).
28
無標題
28. 大衛見耶和華應允他……就在那裏獻祭——或作「他便繼續在那裏獻祭」。他既看見自己的祭物蒙了悅納，便繼續在那裏獻上更多的祭物，並藉着禱告和贖罪的禮儀尋求恩典；因為那滅命的使者威脅耶路撒冷、而他卻不在城中、反在基遍敬拜中心時的恐懼，尤其是對神的敬畏，促使他繼續在那個為神
(2Ch 3:1)
以其同在與悅納的記號所分別為聖的地方敬拜。
英文原文
28. when David saw that the Lord had answered him . . ., he sacrificed there--or, "he continued to sacrifice there." Perceiving his sacrifice was acceptable, he proceeded to make additional offerings there, and seek favor by prayer and expiatory rites; for the dread of the menacing angel destroying Jerusalem while he was absent in the center of worship at Gibeon, especially reverence for the Divine Being, led him to continue his adorations in that place which God
(2Ch 3:1)
had hallowed by the tokens of His presence and gracious acceptance.
1Ch 21:1-13.
大衛數點百姓之罪
1. 撒但起來攻擊以色列人——神此時撤回了對大衛的恩典
(參
2Sa 24:1),
任憑那試探者勝過他。由於這一成功的試探所帶來的結果,是神降下重災懲罰百姓,因此可以說「撒但起來攻擊以色列人」。
數點以色列人——就普查人口而言,不僅沒有邪惡,反而大有裨益。但數點以色列——這一將如眾星般繁多的百姓,暗含對神應許的不信,便成了罪;雖然在摩西時代曾安然行之,但當時每次人口統計中,百姓各獻「半舍客勒作為建造會幕之用」,使數點他們時不致有災禍
(Ex 30:12)。
因此,數點這百姓本身就被視為易惹動神怒的舉動;但當摩西安排人口統計時,神並不發怒,因為數點百姓是專為聖所稅捐而設,這樣收取的錢(「贖罪銀」
Ex 30:16)
平息了神的怒氣。因此,一切都取決於統計的目的[BERTHEAU]。大衛數點百姓之罪,在於此舉或為滿足其驕傲,要查明自己為某一籌劃中的征服計畫所能調集的戰士人數;或更可能的是,要建立一套經常而永久的徵稅制度,他視此為供給王室充足經費所必需,卻被視為暴政與苛索——是對百姓自由的侵犯——是有失以色列君王身分、背離古制的創新之舉。