創造的終點/目的：歸榮耀與神
The End of Creation: Soli Deo Gloria
作者：David Steele
誠之譯自：
https://davidsteele.blog/2020/03/21/the-end-of-creation-soli-deo-gloria-3/
https://www.h-land.us/blog/e16d9cc0-1ca9-11eb-8da9-cd4e28c
 
一言以蔽之
The Sum of the Matter
 
《聖經》的第一節經文是個劃時代的陳述，對基督教世界觀的形成具有驚天動地的意涵：「起初，上帝創造天地」（創一1）。不要錯失了這句陳述的重要性，也不要輕忽這個重大啟示的意涵，而且要小心接受聖經所肯定的東西。歸根結底，無視上帝真理的明確啟示，已證明是個代價高昂的錯誤，其後果將延續到永恆。
The first verse in the Bible is a monumental statement that reverberates with earth-shattering implications for the formation of a Christian worldview: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Gen. 1:1, ESV). Do not miss the magnitude of this statement. Do not downplay the significance of this vital piece of revelation. And be careful to embrace what the Scriptures affirm. Ignoring the clear revelation of God’s truth, in the final analysis, proves to be a costly mistake that will have consequences that extend into eternity.
 
德國天文學家開普勒（Johannes Kepler）接受了聖經的啟示，並明白了實話實說（giving credit where credit is due）的重要性：「對外在世界的所有調查的主要目的，都應該是發現上帝賦予它的合理秩序與和諧。」（注1）如果不這樣做，就等於神學上的叛逆。因此，開普勒並沒有將上帝的創造活動貶到最低，而是將它高舉。他並沒有將創造的奇跡邊緣化，反而為之驚歎！
The German astronomer, Johannes Kepler, accepted biblical revelation and understood the importance of giving credit where credit is due: “The chief aim of all investigations of the external world should be to discover the rational order and harmony which has been imposed on it by God.”1To do any less would be tantamount to theological treason. So Kepler does not minimize God’s creative activity; he magnifies it. He does not marginalize the miracle of creation; he marvels at it!
 
悲慘的轉折
A Tragic Turn
 
可悲的是，一些思想家並沒有追隨開普勒的步伐。這些懷疑論者藐視創世記一章1節，把上帝的啟示扔進了宇宙垃圾箱。達爾文（Charles Darwin）在他的《物種起源》一書中普及了「自然選擇」的概念，他也拒絕接受創世記的明確記載。諷刺的是，他如今被埋在了威斯敏斯特修道院裏。達爾文也許已經不在人世，但他的無神論思想卻仍然主導著許多人的思想，尤其是在大學裏。
Tragically, some thinkers have not followed Kepler’s lead. These skeptics have discounted Genesis 1:1 and cast the revelation of God into the cosmic rubbish bin. Charles Darwin, who popularized the notion of “natural selection” in his book, Origin of Species also rejected the clear account of creation. Ironically, he is buried in Westminster Abbey. Darwin may be gone but his atheistic ideology continues to dominate the thoughts of many minds, especially in the university.
 
薩根（Carl Sagan）曾極力擁護達爾文的進化論，他寫下了這些著名的話：「宇宙是所有存在的或曾經存在的或將要存在的東西的總和。只要一想起宇宙，我們就難以平靜——我們心情激動，感歎不己，如同回憶起許久以前的一次懸崖失足那樣令人暈眩顫慄。我們知道我們正在探索最深奧的秘密。」（注2 ）他繼續說道，「進化是事實，而不是理論。」（注3）這樣的戲謔可能會吸引進化論者發癢的耳朵，但在真理的法庭上審視時卻站不住腳。
Carl Sagan, who was a great champion of Darwinian evolutionary theory penned these well-known words: “The Cosmos is all that is or was or ever will be. Our feeblest contemplations of the Cosmos stir us – there is a tingling in the spine, a catch in the voice, a faint sensation, as if a distant memory, of falling from a height. We know we are approaching the greatest of mysteries.”2 He continues, “Evolution is a fact, not a theory.”3 Such banter may appeal to the itching ears of evolutionists but fails to hold up when scrutinized at the tribunal of truth.
 
或者考慮一下道金斯（Richard Dawkins），達爾文進化論的另一個捍衛者。他對創世記的拒絕導致他對上帝的看法充其量來說只是褻瀆：「《舊約》的上帝可以說是所有小說中最讓人痛恨的角色：嫉妒且引以為豪；一個可憐蟲，不公正、無情的控制狂；好鬥氣、嗜血的種族清洗者；一個惡毒的、害怕同性戀的、種族主義的、殺嬰的、種族滅絕的、殺害子女的、發出瘟疫的，自大的，施虐受虐，反復無常的惡霸。」（注4） 神的話語對這種不信的思想提出了嚴厲的指責。
Or consider Richard Dawkins, another defender of Darwin’s evolutionary theory. His rejection of the creation account leads him to a view of God which is blasphemous at best: “The God of the Old Testament is arguably the most unpleasant character in all fiction: jealous and proud of it; a petty, unjust, unforgiving control-freak; a vindictive, bloodthirsty ethnic cleanser; a misogynistic, homophobic, racist, infanticidal, genocidal, filicidal, pestilential, megalomaniacal, sadomasochistic, capriciously malevolent bully.”4 The Word of God offers a stern rebuke to this kind of unbelieving thought.
 
基督徒的理性回應
A Rational Christian Response
 
用不了多久就能看出對上帝的啟示投下「不信任票」，會帶來怎樣的災難性後果。薛華（Francis Schaeffer）明白創世記一章1節的重要性。他知道，如果我們拋開創造的事實，我們的世界觀就會崩塌。他寫道：「除非我們的認識論是正確的，否則一切都會出錯。」（注5）認識論這門學科解決的是知識的問題。也就是說，它有助於解開我們對我們的知識的瞭解。薛華繼續說道：「那無限的有位格的上帝是存在的，而且祂並非靜默不語；這改變了整個世界。」（注6） 薛華幫助我們明白，上帝是存在的，祂已經啟示了自己，也就是說，祂已經說話了。或者用薛華的話來說，「祂並非靜默不語。」
It doesn’t take long to discern some of the catastrophic consequences of giving God’s revelation a vote of “no-confidence.” Francis Schaeffer understood the vast importance of Genesis 1:1. He understood that if we set aside the reality of creation, our worldview collapses. He writes, “Unless our epistemology is right, everything is going to be wrong.”5 The discipline of epistemology addresses the matter of knowledge. That is, it helps unpack what we know about what we know. Schaeffer continues, “The infinite-person God is there, but also he is not silent; that changes the whole world.”6Schaeffer helps us understand that God exists and he has revealed himself, that is, he has spoken. Or to use Schaeffer’s words, “He is not silent.”
 
上帝創造世界的目的
The End for Which God Created the World
 
上帝不僅存在，而且還將自己啟示出來，這是每個人都必須接受的一個巨大現實。這一驚人的事實應該讓我們雙膝著地，伸出雙手。它應該促使我們謙卑地向永生上帝獻上感恩。不僅如此——愛德華茲（Jonathan Edwards）明白上帝創造作為背後的動機。他認為，上帝創造世界的目的是自我溝通（self-communication）。「既然基督創造世界只是為了傳達祂的卓越和幸福，因此我們瞭解到，敬虔者所有的卓越、美德和幸福都是由耶穌基督在他們身上創造的。」（注7） 愛德華茲的這一創造觀具有深遠的影響，並具有重要的實踐意義。
That fact that God not only exists but has also revealed himself is a massive reality that every person must come to terms with. This stunning truth should find us on our knees with outstretched arms. It should prompt a humble offer thanksgiving to the living God. But there’s more – Jonathan Edwards understands the motive behind God’s act of creation. He argues that the end for which God created the world was self-communication: ”Seeing that Christ created the world only to communicate his excellency and happiness, hence we learn, that all the excellency, virtue and happiness of the godly is wrought in them by Jesus Christ.”7 The implication of this Edwardian vision of creation are far-reaching and have important practical implications.
 
所以，創造的終點是獨特地集中在上帝身上。也就是說，創造是以上帝為導向的。創造是以上帝為中心的。愛德華茲在其最偉大的文學成就之一〈論上帝創造世界的目的〉的論文中，展示了這種以上帝為中心的態度：「上帝在祂的話語中所說的，很自然地讓我們認為，祂在祂的工作中，使自己成為他的目的，祂為自己的緣故所做的工作，就是使祂的榮耀成為祂的目的......上帝向受造物的理解力傳達自己，使他認識祂的榮耀；也向被造物的意志傳達自己，賜給他聖潔，這主要是在於對上帝的愛；也賜予被造物幸福，這主要是在於以上帝為樂。這些都是聖經中所說的上帝的豐盛，其流溢的總和（the sum of that emanation of divine fulness），也就是神的榮耀。」（注8）
So the end of creation is uniquely focused upon God. That is, creation is Godward. Creation is God-centered. In one of his greatest literary achievements, A Dissertation Concerning the End For Which God Created the World, Jonathan Edwards demonstrates this God-centeredness: “What God says in his word, naturally leads us to suppose, that the way in which he makes himself his end in his work or works, which he does for his own sake, is in making his glory his end … God communicates himself to the understanding of the creature, in giving him the knowledge of his glory; and to the will of the creature, in giving him holiness, consisting primarily in the love of God; and in giving the creature happiness, chiefly consisting in joy in God. These are the sum of that emanation of divine fulness called in Scripture, the glory of God.
 
考慮一下要是忽視了聖經創世記載，所可能造成的三個重要含義：
Consider three important implications of discounting the biblical creation account:
 
首先，忽視聖經創造的事實會導致認識論的歪曲。而根據定義，一個歪曲的認識論，會影響我們對其他一切事物的思考方式。當上帝被排除在整幅圖畫之外或從每天的生活中被移走時，我們就會在一片荒原上徘徊，尋找答案。陀思妥耶夫斯基寫道：「如果上帝不存在，那麼還有什麼不可以。」（If God does not exist, then everything is permitted.）上帝消失蹤影會讓我們感到無助、無望，且迷失在無意義的泥沼中。
First, discounting the reality of biblical creation leads to a skewed epistemology. And a skewed epistemology, will by definition, influence the way we think about everything else. When God is taken out of the picture or removed from the marketplace, we are left wandering in a wasteland in search of answers. “If God does not exist,” writes Dostoevsky, “then everything is permitted.” The eclipse of God leaves us helpless, hopeless, and lost in a quagmire of meaninglessness.
 
其次，藐視聖經創造的事實，是對上帝的品格和可信度的質疑。聖經對創世的記載非常清楚：
Second, discounting the reality of biblical creation impugns the character and trustworthiness of God. Scripture is clear about the creation account:
 
因為萬有都是靠祂造的，無論是天上的，地上的；能看見的，不能看見的；或是有位的，主治的，執政的，掌權的；一概都是藉著祂造的，又是為祂造的。祂在萬有之先；萬有也靠祂而立。（西一16-17）
For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:16–17, ESV)
 
你發出你的靈，他們便受造；你使地面更換為新。（詩一〇四30）
When you send forth your Spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the ground. (Psalm 104:30, ESV)
 
我立大地根基的時候，你在哪裏呢？你若有聰明，只管說吧！ 你若曉得就說，是誰定地的尺度？是誰把準繩拉在其上？地的根基安置在何處？地的角石是誰安放的？（伯卅八4-6）
Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. Who determined its measurements—surely you know! Or who stretched the line upon it? On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, (Job 38:4–6, ESV)
 
凡棄絕上帝明明說過的話的人，都會使上帝的品格受到質疑，使祂的名的價值受到極大的侮辱。任何敢於質疑上帝品格的人，都會站在永恆審判的懸崖邊上。
Anyone who discards what God has made plain calls God’s character into question and heaps a great insult upon the worth of his name. Anyone who dares impugn the character of God stands on the precipice of eternal judgment.
 
第三，輕視聖經創造的現實，並不能榮耀上帝，而上帝就是創造的終點/目的。以賽亞書四十三章7節說：「凡稱為我名下的人，是我為自己的榮耀創造的，是我所做成，所造作的。」想一想，拒絕接受創世記載的悲慘諷刺。為了榮耀上帝而被創造出來的受造物，卻蔑視並嘲笑賜給他氣息的那一位。
Third, discounting the reality of biblical creation fails to glorify God, which is the end of creation. Isaiah 43:7 says, “Everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made.” Think about the tragic irony of rejecting the creation account. The creature who was created to glorify God stands in defiance and mocks the One who gave him breath.
 
上帝的榮耀是創造的終點/目的。諸天述說上帝的榮耀（詩十九1）。有罪的人努力想要歪曲上帝在聖經中明確表述的內容，這有什麼好奇怪的呢？
The glory of God is the end of creation. The heavens declare his glory (Ps. 19:1). Is it any wonder that sinful men seek to distort what God has made plain in Scripture?
 
唯獨歸榮耀給上帝！
Soli Deo Gloria!
 
注：
1. Johannes Kepler, Cited in Charles Colson and Nancy Pearcey, How Now Shall We Live? (Wheaton: Tyndale House, 1999), 51.
2. Carl Sagan, Cosmos (New York: Ballantine Books Trade, 1980), 1.
3. Ibid, 27.
4. Richard Dawkins, The God Delusion (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2006), 31.
5. Francis A. Schaeffer, The Complete Works of Francis A. Schaeffer: A Christian Worldview, Volume One, A Christian View of Philosophy and Culture (Wheaton: Crossway Books, 1982), 275-276.
6. Ibid, 276.
7. Jonathan Edwards, The Works of Jonathan Edwards, vol. 13, The “Miscellanies,” ed. Thomas A. Schaefer, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1994), 277.
8. The Works of Jonathan Edwards, vol. 1, A Dissertation Concerning the End For Which God Created the World, ed. Edward Hickman (Carlisle: The Banner of Truth, 1834), 107, 119.