盟約的詛咒 Covenant Curses
譯者/校對者:Maria Marta/誠之
「但如果你們不聽從我，不遵行這一切誡命；如果你們棄絕我的律例，你們的心厭棄我的典章，不遵行我的一切誡命，違背我的約，我就要這樣待你們：我必命驚慌臨到你們，癆病熱病使你們眼目昏花，心靈憔悴；」（利廿六14–16a新譯本）
-----利未記廿六14-39
既然上帝與人所立的約是有條件的，那麼遵守盟約與違背盟約都有其後果。因為舊約先知生活在舊約時代，所以他們所宣讀的守約或違約的後果，在摩西之約裡都有具體的闡述。正如昨天我們所查看的，忠心守約者的祝福包括地生出土產，樹木結果，戰勝仇敵，還有更多的祝福等（利廿六1–13）。這些祝福預期新天新地的生活面貌（賽六十五17–25；啟一至四章），當古代以色列人信靠上帝時，他們享受這些祝福。真正的信靠表現在愛上帝，力求順服上帝，當違反上帝的律法時，悔改回轉，並且盼望造物主有一天會差派彌賽亞來到，代表他們完美地遵守盟約。
祝福並不是附屬於摩西之約的唯一後果。在利未記第二十六章14至39節中，列舉出違背盟約的種種詛咒（見申廿八15–68），這些詛咒包括疾病、不孕不育、和戰爭失敗等等。此外，盟約的詛咒清單亦指出，當人們執迷不悟、不信、和不順服的時間越長，詛咒便愈來愈猛烈。我們看到，上帝會把詛咒加在不忠心的百姓身上，促使以色列人再次聆聽祂的說話，然後評估他們的回應。如果以色列人不願聽從上帝，七倍的懲罰將會降臨。之後，如果以色列人仍然不聽從上帝的話，另一個七倍的懲罰再次降臨。當人們照舊死不悔改，詛咒會惡化，最終，盟約的詛咒達致最惡劣的高峰-----流亡，從上帝特別祝福的地方被放逐出來。
注意盟約詛咒是如何證明上帝寬容忍耐的耐性。聖經教導我們，上帝「不輕易發怒」（出三十四6；民十四18；拿四2），這並不是指上帝向來容忍邪惡，而是指祂願意手下留情。上帝通常不會把祂滿載的憤怒一次性傾倒，但是祂會把困難加在立約的百姓身上，以示警告，從而叫他們悔改。當百姓（男人和女人被困難欄阻）停下來歇口氣時，上帝叫他們悔改歸向祂，並且應許當惡人離棄自己的道路時，祂隨時轉意不降災禍（珥二13）。不過，祂不會永遠容忍下去，而那些濫用祂的恩典，從來沒有離開過自己的罪的人，同樣地發現自己被排除在祂的祝福之外（太廿五31–46）。
活在上帝的面光中（Coram Deo）
正如上帝把盟約的詛咒降在舊約的教會身上，為的是叫它悔改，同樣地，祂也會容許新約的教會遇到困境，這些困境是管教我們犯罪的一種手段。然而，我們不能把每一個我們所面對的艱難困苦等同於上帝所施行的懲罰，但是當上帝容許我們承擔犯罪後果時，祂是在管教我們，呼召我們回轉歸向祂。願我們總是留心聽從這個呼召。
延伸閱讀：撒下二十四章；詩一四五8；羅二1–11；彼後三9
Covenant
Curses
“If
you will not listen to me … if you spurn my statutes, and if your soul abhors
my rules, so that you will not do all my commandments, but break my covenant,
then I will do this to you: I will visit you with panic, with wasting disease”
(vv. 14–16a).
-
Leviticus 26:14-39
Since
God’s covenants with His people have conditions, there are consequences for
keeping and for breaking the covenants. Because the Old Testament prophets
lived during the old covenant era, the consequences they preached for breaking
or keeping covenant are those laid out in the Mosaic law. As we saw yesterday,
the blessings for covenant faithfulness included fruitfulness of womb and
field, safety from one’s enemies, and much more (Lev. 26:1–13). These blessings
anticipated what life will be like in the new heaven and earth (Isa. 65:17–25;
Rev. 21:1–4), and the ancient Israelites enjoyed them when they trusted Yahweh.
Authentic trust manifested itself in love for the Lord, a striving after
obedience, repentance when God’s law was broken, and hope that the Creator
would one day send the Messiah to keep covenant perfectly in their behalf.
Blessings
were not the only consequences attached to the Mosaic covenant. Leviticus
26:14–39 lists curses for breaking covenant (see also Deut. 28:15–68), curses
including disease, infertility, and defeat in war. Moreover, in this list of
covenant curses, the curses grow in intensity the longer the people remain
impenitent, faithless, and disobedient. We see that God would send certain
curses on His unfaithful people to prompt the Israelites to listen to Him once
more and then evaluate their response. If the Israelites would not heed Yahweh,
a sevenfold punishment would follow. If, after that, the Israelites still would
not listen to Him, another sevenfold punishment would follow. The curses would
worsen as the people remained impenitent, culminating in the worst covenant
curse of all—exile, the banishment from God’s special place of blessing.
Note
how the covenant curses prove the long-suffering patience of the Lord.
Scripture teaches that God is “slow to anger” (Ex. 34:6; Num. 14:18; Jonah
4:2), not in that He ever tolerates wickedness but in His willingness to stay
His hand. The Lord does not typically pour out the fullness of His wrath all at
once, but He sends trouble to warn His covenant people of their waywardness and
call them to repent. While men and women draw breath, the Lord calls them to repent
and turn to Him, promising to relent from disaster when the wicked forsake
their ways (Joel 2:13). Still, He will not be patient forever, and those who
presume upon His grace and never turn from their sin will likewise find
themselves exiled from His blessings—for all eternity (Matt. 25:31–46).
Coram
Deo
Just
as the Lord sent covenant curses on the old covenant church to call it to
repentance, He will also allow His new covenant church to feel trouble as a
means of disciplining us for our sin. We cannot equate every hardship that we
face with the Lord’s hand of chastisement, but when God allows us to suffer the
consequences of our sin, He is disciplining us and calling us to return to Him.
May we always heed this call.
Passages
for Further Study
2 Samuel
24
Psalm
145:8
Romans
2:1–11
2
Peter 3:9