教会和以色列The Church and Israel: The Issue

作者：Cornelis Venema翻译:  骆鸿铭

https://tabletalkmagazine.com/article/2012/10/the-church-and-israel-the-issue/

http://www.reformedbeginner.net/church-and-israel/

在整个基督教会的历史中，以色列在上帝救赎计划中的地位，一直是非常重要的议题。在现代历史里，随着时代论作为一种流行的末世论观点而出现，还有以色列在1948年的复国，因此，上帝对以色列的计划这个神学问题，也变得益形迫切。在犹太人的大屠杀，即纳粹在二战中想要消灭欧洲所有的犹太人之后，教会和以色列之间的关系也受到一种反犹主义的可悲现实所牵连。许多人宣称，这种反犹主义是所有基督教神学的主张，因为所有的基督教神学都坚持无论是犹太人或外邦人，基督这条唯一的道路而得救。

Throughout the history of the Christian church, the question of Israel’s place within God’s redemptive purposes has been of special importance. In modern history, with the emergence of dispensationalism as a popular eschatological viewpoint and the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948, the theological question of God’s intention for Israel has become even more pressing. After the Holocaust, the Nazi attempt to exterminate the Jews throughout Europe during World War II, the issue of the relation between the church and Israel has also been affected anew by the sad reality of anti- Semitism, which some allege belongs to any Christian theology that insists upon one way of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, whether for Jews or Gentiles.

为了导正这个关键议题的讨论，我们必须对今日教会内对这个问题的主要几种代表性看法有清楚的认识。这些看法不仅说明了这个问题的重要性，也说明了几个立场广泛的差异。

In order to orient the discussion of this critical issue, we need to begin with a clear understanding of the major views on this question that are represented today within the church. These views illustrate not only the importance of the question, but the wide diversity of positions.

一、前千禧年时代论：上帝对以色列的特殊计划

PREMILLENNIAL DISPENSATIONALISM: GOD’S SPECIAL PURPOSE FOR ISRAEL

虽然前千禧年时代论在基督教神学的历史上是相当新的看法，但是它的立场，即上帝对以色列有一个特殊的计划，却塑造了、甚至主宰了近代福音派基督徒对教会和以色列之间的关系的辩论。

Although premillennial dispensationalism is a relatively new viewpoint in the history of Christian theology, its position on God’s special purpose for Israel has shaped, even dominated, recent debates among evangelical Christians on the relationship between the church and Israel.

「古典时代论」主张，上帝有两群独特的百姓：一群地上的百姓，以色列；以及一群天上的百姓，教会。根据这种时代论的看法，上帝乃是透过七个连续的时代（dispensations）或救赎的安排（redemptive economies），来施行救赎的历史过程。在每个时代中，上帝都透过启示祂独特的旨意，来测验人。在这七个时代中，最重要的三个时代是律法时代，福音时代，以及国度时代。虽然在这篇短文中，我们不可能描绘这些时代所有的特色，但是最重要的是时代论的坚持，是上帝对祂在地上的百姓，有一个分开的、不同的计划，上帝是以各自不同、独特的方式来对待他们的。在当前的时代，即教会时代中，上帝已然暂时地「悬置」（suspended）祂对以色列的特殊计划，而把祂的注意力转向教会，也就是透过对列国宣讲耶稣基督的福音来召聚外邦信徒。不过，当基督回来，在大灾难的七年时期之前，「提取」教会时，祂会恢复上帝对以色列的特殊规划。这个大灾难时期只是一个序奏，会开启未来在地上的千年国度时代。对时代论来说，这个千年国度会标记出一个时期，在这个时期中，上帝对祂地上的百姓（以色列）的应许会得到一个特殊的、字面上的应验。只有到这个千禧年国度时代的末了，基督才会最终征服祂所有的敌人，引进最后的状态。

In classic dispensationalism, God has two distinct peoples: an earthly people, Israel, and a heavenly people, the church. According to dispensationalism, God administers the course of the history of redemption by means of seven successive dispensations or redemptive economies. During each dispensation, God tests human beings by a distinct revelation of His will. Among these seven dispensations, the three most important are the dispensation of law, the dispensation of the gospel, and the dispensation of the kingdom. While it is not possible in a short essay like this to describe all the distinctives of these dispensations, what is important is dispensationalism’s insistence that God has a separate purpose and a distinct manner of dealing with His earthly people, Israel. During the present era, the dispensation of the church, God has “suspended” His special purposes for Israel and turned His attention, in a manner of speaking, to the gathering of the Gentile peoples through the proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ to all the nations. However, when Christ returns at any moment to “rapture” the church prior to a seven-year period of great tribulation, He will resume God’s special program for Israel. This tribulation period will be a prelude to the commencement of the future dispensation of a one thousand-year kingdom upon the earth. For dispensationalism, the millennium marks the period during which God’s promises to Israel, His earthly people, will receive a distinct, literal fulfillment. Only at the end of the dispensation of the millennial kingdom will Christ finally vanquish all of His enemies and introduce the final state.

虽然时代论承认所有的人，无论是犹太人或外邦人，都是因信唯一的中保耶稣基督而得救的，但是它主张以色列和教会在上帝的计划里有清楚而永恒的区别。旧约的应许并未透过从地上的万族召聚耶稣基督的教会而得着应验。这些应许乃是给一个地上的、独特的民族，以色列的；而且这些应许只会以一种字面的方式，在国度时代得着应验，而这个国度时代是紧跟着目前这个福音时代之后到来的。

Though dispensationalism acknowledges that all people, whether Jews or Gentiles, are saved by faith in the one Mediator, Jesus Christ, it maintains a clear and permanent distinction between Israel and the church within the purposes of God. The promises of the Old Testament are not fulfilled through the gathering of the church of Jesus Christ from among all the peoples of the earth. These promises are given to an earthly, ethnically distinct people, Israel, and they will be fulfilled in a literal manner only during the dispensation of the kingdom that follows the present dispensation of the gospel.

二、传统改革宗看法：上帝的同一群百姓

THE TRADITIONAL REFORMED VIEW: ONE PEOPLE OF GOD

时代论把上帝的百姓截然分成两个群体：以色列和教会。在这点上，历史性的改革宗神学和时代论的看法形成了强烈的对比。改革宗神学坚持上帝在整个历史中的救赎计划是统一的。当亚当这个人，作为与上帝的盟约中的元首和代表堕入罪中时，所有的人都受到了咒诅和死亡（罗五12-21）。因着亚当的罪，以及罪对整个人类所具有的意涵，所有的人都要受到律法的咒诅，并且承继了犯罪堕落的本性。

Contrary to dispensationalism’s sharp demarcation between God’s two peoples, Israel and the church, historic Reformed theology insists on the unity of God’s redemptive program throughout history. When Adam, the covenant head and representative of the human race, fell into sin, all human beings as his posterity became liable to condemnation and death (Rom. 5:12–21). By virtue of Adam’s sin and its implications for the entire human race, all people became subject to the curse of the law and heirs of a sinfully corrupt nature.

根据传统改革宗对圣经的诠释，上帝在亚当堕落之后，便启动了「恩典之约」，以便让祂的选民恢复与祂的团契相交。虽然恩典之约在救赎历史中，有各种不同的施行方法，但是它的本质始终是不变的——从正式与亚伯拉罕立约，直到在时候满足，基督降生时为止。在恩典之约里的各种不同的施行方法中，上帝都是通过选民信靠耶稣基督，即恩典之约唯一的中保，来救赎祂的百姓。所有的选民都借着信靠基督而领受永生的恩赐，并恢复与永生上帝的相交（见伯克富，系统神学，293-95）。

According to the traditional Reformed interpretation of Scripture, God initiated the covenant of grace after the fall in order to restore His chosen people to communion and fellowship with Himself. While the covenant of grace is administered diversely throughout the course of the history of redemption, it remains one in substance from the time of its formal ratification with Abraham until the coming of Christ in the fullness of time. In all of the various administrations of the covenant of grace, God redeems His people through faith in Jesus Christ, the one Mediator of the covenant of grace, through whom believers receive the gift of eternal life and restored communion with the living God (see Berkhof, Systematic Theology, pp. 293–5).

因此，在改革宗对救赎历史的认识里，以色列和教会是不会永远分离的。上帝正式认可恩典之约时，对亚伯拉罕所作的应许（创12，15，17）——亦即他要成为多国的父，以及地上的万族都要在他的「后裔」里得福——都在耶稣基督里得着了应验。在恩典之约里所应许给亚伯拉罕的那位后裔，就是耶稣基督，那「真以色列」，而所有借着信心与祂联合的人，都会成为圣约应许的后嗣（加三16，29）。在改革宗神学的观点里，耶稣基督的福音直接为所有的信徒，无论是犹太人或外邦人，成全了恩典之约的应许。以色列和教会并不是两群不同的百姓，反而，教会是上帝真正的以色列，是「被拣选的族类，是有君尊的祭司，是圣洁的国度，是属神的子民」（彼前二9）。（译按：彼得把旧约对以色列百姓的称呼，直接套用在教会上。这是以色列和教会是同一个群体的很好的证明。）

In the Reformed understanding of the history of redemption, therefore, there is no ultimate separation between Israel and the church. The promise God made to Abraham in the formal ratification of the covenant of grace (Gen. 12; 15; 17), namely, that he would be the father of many nations and that in his “seed” all the families of the earth would be blessed, finds its fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The seed promised to Abraham in the covenant of grace is Jesus Christ, the true Israel, and all who through faith are united to Him and, thus, heirs of the covenant promises (Gal. 3:16, 29). In the Reformed view, the gospel of Jesus Christ directly fulfills the promises of the covenant of grace for all believers, whether Jews or Gentiles. Israel and the church are not two distinct peoples; rather, the church is the true Israel of God, “a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession” (1 Peter 2:9).

三、「两约」神学“

TWO-COVENANT” THEOLOGY

对以色列和教会的议题所作的反思，在近代历史上出现了一个新的、更极端的立场。这个立场经常和一个人的名字连在一起，那就是Franz Rosenzweig。他是一位犹太作家，在第一次世界大战后写了一本书，书名是：《救赎之星》（The Star of Redemption）。「两约神学」的教导是：圣经里有两个独立的约，一个约是上帝和以色列立的，另一个约是上帝和耶稣基督的教会立的。与其说对犹太信徒和外邦信徒一样，都只有一条透过相信耶稣基督的救赎之路，这个观念认为，上帝与以色列百姓所拥有的原始的圣约关系，与祂和借着主耶稣基督和外邦人建立的新的圣约的关系，是截然不同、完全分离的。

In the recent history of reflection upon the issue of Israel and the church, a new and more radical position has emerged. Often linked with the name of Franz Rosenzweig, a Jewish author of a work written shortly after World War I entitled The Star of Redemption, two-covenant theology teaches that there are two separate covenants, one between God and Israel and the other between God and the church of Jesus Christ. Rather than there being one way of redemption through faith in Jesus Christ for Jew and Gentile believers alike, God’s original covenant relationship with His ancestral people, Israel, remains separate from His new covenant relationship with the Gentile nations through the Lord Jesus Christ.

在二战后的处境里，对基督教会内所遗留下的对反犹主义的关注，使得「两约神学」在主流的基督新教教会内，变得越来越受欢迎。即使在罗马天主教会内，有些神学家也诉诸第二次梵蒂冈会议和教皇约翰保禄二世的Redemptoris Missio (1991)的宣告。这两个宣告都提倡基督徒和犹太人进行对话，以便阻挠不断向犹太人传福音的努力。在两约神学的观点中，基督徒有关基督的位格和工作的信仰告白，即基督是唯一的中保或救赎主的告白，只有在上帝与教会立的约的这个骨架里，才算是真理。然而，既然上帝和以色列所立的约是另一个不同的约，而这个约并没有在耶稣基督的降生当中得着应验，基督徒就不应当把上帝与教会所立的约的条件强加在以色列身上。

Within the setting of a post-World War II concern over the legacy of anti-Semitism in the Christian church, the two-covenant-theology position has become increasingly popular among many mainline Protestant churches. Even within the Roman Catholic Church, some theologians have appealed to the pronouncements of the Second Vatican Council and Pope John Paul II’s Redemptoris Missio (1991), which advocate dialogue between Christians and Jews, in order to oppose continued efforts to evangelize Jews. In the two-covenant viewpoint, the Christian confession regarding the person and work of Christ as the only Mediator or Redeemer holds true within the framework of God’s covenant with the church. However, since God’s covenant with Israel is a separate covenant, which is not fulfilled in the coming of Jesus Christ in the fullness of time, Christians may not impose upon Israel the terms of God’s covenant with the church.

四、极端的替代神学

EXTREME REPLACEMENT THEOLOGY

最后一个有关以色列和教会的议题的立场，是需要我们加以批注的，我们姑且称之为「极端替代神学」。虽然时代论者坚持说传统的改革宗神学肯定上帝的百姓只有一群，是由犹太信徒和外邦信徒所组成的，是一种「替代」神学的形式，但是改革宗神学并不认为福音「取代」了上帝与以色列古老的圣约治理（covenant economy），而是「应验」了这个治理。极端替代神学的教导是：因为许多犹太人不承认耶稣基督是应许的弥赛亚，上帝就用外邦人教会取代了以色列。耶稣基督的福音呼召世上的万国和民族相信和悔改，但是福音否认上帝对救赎祂古老的百姓，以色列，还有特别的关注。既然教会是真正的、属灵的以色列，探讨上帝对以色列的得救是否还有特殊的意念这个议题，就不再有必要的。

The final position on the issue of Israel and the church that requires comment is what we might term “extreme replacement theology.” While dispensationalists often insist that the traditional Reformed affirmation of one people of God comprised of Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ is a form of “replacement” theology, the Reformed view does not regard the gospel as “replacing” the older covenant economy with Israel but “fulfilling” it. Extreme replacement theology is the teaching that, because many of the Jews did not acknowledge Jesus Christ to be the Messiah of promise, God replaced Israel with the Gentile church. The gospel of Jesus Christ calls all nations and peoples to faith and repentance, but it leaves no room for any particular focus upon God’s redemptive purpose for His ancestral people, Israel. Because the church is the true, spiritual Israel, any peculiar focus upon the question of God’s saving intention for Israel is no longer permitted.

极端替代神学乃是代表两约神学立场的另一个极端。与其说上帝和以色列之间有一个独特的圣约关系，而且这个关系会在耶稣基督降生、对万国宣讲福音之后仍会继续存在，替代神学的主张是：上帝对以色列的计划和兴趣已经完全终止了。

Extreme replacement theology represents the opposite end of the spectrum from the two-covenant position. Rather than speaking of a distinct covenant relationship between God and Israel that continues even after the coming of Christ and the proclamation of the gospel to the nations, replacement theology maintains that God’s program for and interest in Israel has ended.

结论

CONCLUSION

在以色列和教会的这个议题上有如此众多不同的立场，证明了这个题目的重要性。上帝是否对以色列和教会有不同的、分开的目的和救赎规划呢？还是耶稣基督的福音应验了、成全了上帝要从各族、各民、各方、各国当中，无论是犹太人还是外邦人，召聚一群百姓，进入一个普世的大家庭呢？当使徒保罗在罗马书第一章宣告，福音是「上帝的大能，要救一切相信的，先是犹太人，后是希腊人」（罗一6），他是在宣告所有相信耶稣基督的人，只有一种得救之路。然而他也同时肯定，这条得救之路并没有取代或替代上帝救赎犹太人的目的，而是成全这个目的。有关以色列和教会这个持续进行的辩论，需要维护使徒的这个平衡，不要分开以色列和教会，也不要用教会来取代以色列。

The diversity among these various positions on the issue of Israel and the church testifies to the importance of this issue. Does God have a separate purpose and redemptive program for Israel and the church? Or, does the gospel of Jesus Christ fulfill God’s purpose to gather a people from every tribe, tongue, and nation, Jews and Gentiles alike, into one worldwide family? When the Apostle Paul declares in Romans 1 that the gospel is the “power of God unto salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Gentile” (Rom. 1:16), he declares that there is one way of salvation for all who believe in Jesus Christ. Yet he simultaneously affirms that this salvation does not displace or supersede God’s redemptive purpose for the Jews but, rather, fulfills it. The ongoing debate about Israel and the church needs to maintain the Apostle’s balance, neither separating Israel and the church nor displacing Israel with the church.