诗歌：补充本753首

读经：耶一1、4~8、10、18~19，四19，九1、10，十三17

Scripture Reading: Jer. 1:1, 4-8, 10, 18-19; 4:19; 9:1, 10; 13:17

　　耶一18~19 我今日使你成为坚城、铁柱、铜墙，抵挡全地，就是抵挡犹大的君王、首领、祭司、并这地的众民。他们要攻击你，却不能胜过你；因为我与你同在，要拯救你；这是耶和华说的。

　　神……呼召一个名叫耶利米的青年人，托付他为祂说话。当耶利米借口说，他是年幼的，不知怎样说，耶和华就对他说，“你不要说我是年幼的；因为我差遣你到谁那里去，你都要去；我吩咐你说什么话，你都要说。你不要惧怕他们的面，因为我与你同在，要拯救你。”（耶一7~8）耶和华继续说，祂要使耶利米成为坚城、铁柱、铜墙，抵挡全地。君王、首领、祭司并众民要攻击他，却不能胜过他（18~19）。攻击耶利米的人，实际上就是攻击耶和华。他是耶和华的一人军。没有人会击败他，因为耶和华与他同在。因此，耶利米无法逃避神的使命，乃是受困迫来接受这使命（耶利米书生命读经，七八至七九页）。

　　Jer. 1:18-19 And I am now making you today into a fortified city and into an iron pillar and into bronze walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against its princes, against its priests, and against the people of the land. And they will fight against you, but they will not prevail against you; for I am with you, declares Jehovah, to deliver you.

　　[God] called a young man named Jeremiah and commissioned him to speak for Him. When Jeremiah excused himself by saying that he was a youth and that he did not know how to speak, Jehovah said to him, “Do not say, I am a youth; / For everywhere I send you, you shall go; / And everything I command you, you shall speak. / Do not be afraid of their faces, / For I am with you to deliver you” (Jer. 1:7-8). Jehovah went on to say that He would make Jeremiah into a fortified city, into an iron pillar, and into walls of brass against the whole land. The kings, princes, priests, and people would fight against him, but they would not prevail against him (vv. 18-19). Those who fought against Jeremiah were actually fighting against Jehovah. He was Jehovah’s one-person army. No one would defeat him because Jehovah was with him. Thus, Jeremiah could not escape God’s commission but was constrained to accept it. (Life-study of Jeremiah, p. 64)

　　〔耶利米一章十节〕提醒我们耶利米这名的两个意义：“耶和华使之升高”和“耶和华使之倾覆”。拔出、拆毁、毁坏，就是耶和华使之倾覆；建造并栽植，就是耶和华使之升高。当然每件消极的事物—出于撒但、罪和世界的一切—都必须倾覆。随着就有耶和华的建造并栽植；建造并栽植都与祂的话有关。神的话是要建造基督，并栽植基督；这是为着高举基督。

　　生为祭司，却蒙召作申言者的耶利米，也许是胆怯、害怕的人。这胆怯的人受耶和华所嘱咐。……耶利米若因百姓惊惶，神就要使他在他们面前惊惶〔参17〕。……在召会聚会中尽功用的事上，……我们不该因任何人惊惶，也不该惧怕任何人。……反之，我们该尽功用为主说话。

　　为什么神需要使耶利米成为坚城、铁柱、铜墙？〔参18~19〕这是需要的，因为有争战。君王、首领、祭司并那地的众民，不仅是耶利米的仇敌，也是神的仇敌。这些仇敌抵挡神；耶利米受差遣代表神，并为祂争战。抵挡耶利米的人，就是抵挡耶和华，因为耶利米与耶和华是一。为这缘故，神要耶利米知道神与他同在，并且已使他成为坚城、铁柱、铜墙。

　　圣经告诉我们，在地上，在神与反对祂、抵挡祂的人之间，一直有争战。神不自己直接争战，乃是借着祂所差遣的仆人争战。这是耶利米时代的光景。神差遣祂的军队— 一个名叫耶利米的青年人—与那些反对祂的人争战。耶利米被神装备到一个地步，成为坚城。因为神与他同在，要拯救他，反对者就不能胜过他。

　　今天在主的恢复里，我们也面临反对、定罪和拒绝，我们也必须为神争战。我们受神差遣为祂争战，祂就借着我们争战。在这争战中，我们的武器乃是神自己，以及圣经中所启示的真理（耶利米书生命读经，四三、四五至四七页）。

　　参读：耶利米书生命读经，第一、十至十一、十五篇；李文集一九七五至一九七六年第三册，二二至二六页；真理课程一级卷一，第十二课。

　　[In Jeremiah 1:10] we are reminded of the two meanings of Jeremiah’s name: “Jehovah exalts” and “Jehovah tears down.” The plucking up, the breaking down, and the destroying are Jehovah’s tearing down. The building up and the planting are Jehovah’s exalting. Surely every negative thing—everything of Satan, sin, and the world—must be torn down. Along with this we have Jehovah’s building up and His planting, both of which involve His word. God’s word is a building up of Christ and a planting of Christ. This is for the exalting of Christ.

　　Jeremiah, who was born a priest but was called to be a prophet, might have been a timid, fearful person. This timid person was given a charge by Jehovah….If Jeremiah had been dismayed before the people, God would have dismayed him [cf. v. 17]. In the matter of functioning in the church meetings,…we should not be dismayed by anyone, and we should not be afraid of anyone….Rather, we should function to speak for the Lord.

　　Why was it necessary for God to make Jeremiah into a fortified city, into an iron pillar, and into bronze walls [cf. vv. 18-19]? This was necessary because a battle was raging. The kings, the princes, the priests, and the people of the land were enemies not only to Jeremiah but also to God. These enemies were fighting against God, and Jeremiah was sent to represent God and fight for Him. Those who fought against Jeremiah fought against Jehovah because Jeremiah and Jehovah were one. For this reason, God wanted Jeremiah to know that He was with him and that He had made him into a fortified city, into an iron pillar, and into brass walls.

　　The Bible tells us that on earth there is always a battle raging between God and those who oppose Him and fight against Him. God does not fight by Himself directly but through His servants who have been sent by Him. This was the situation in Jeremiah’s time. God sent His army—a young man named Jeremiah—to fight against those who opposed Him. Jeremiah was equipped by God to such an extent that he became a fortified city. Because God was with him to deliver him, the opposers would not prevail over him.

　　In the Lord’s recovery today, we also face opposition, condemnation, and rejection, and we also must fight for God. As we are sent by God to fight for Him, He fights through us. In this fighting our weapons are God Himself and the truth revealed in the Bible. (Life-study of Jeremiah, pp. 35, 37-38)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Jeremiah, msgs. 1, 10-11, 15; CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 3, pp. 21-24; Truth Lessons—Level One, vol. 1, lsn. 12

　　耶一9~10 于是耶和华伸手触我的口；耶和华对我说，我已将我的话放在你口中。看哪，我今日立你在列邦列国之上，为要拔出并拆毁，毁坏并倾覆，建造并栽植。

　　神的召会荒凉，神的百姓大体失败，失去了地位，不能应付神的需要；但在这二千年来一再地、不间断地都有少数得胜者兴起来，作主忠信的见证人，一直维持神的见证。……历世历代得胜者的线从未间断（李文集一九五四年第一册—中文尚未出书）。

　　Jer. 1:9-10 Then Jehovah stretched out His hand and touched my mouth; and Jehovah said to me, Now I have put My words in your mouth. See, I have appointed you this day over the nations and over the kingdoms to pluck up and to break down, to destroy and to tear down, to build up and to plant.

　　The church of God is desolate, and the majority of God’s people have failed, have lost their position, and are unable to meet God’s need. However, throughout the past two thousand years a small number of overcomers have always been raised up to be God’s faithful witnesses to maintain His testimony….Throughout the ages the line of the overcomers has never ceased. (CWWL, 1954, vol. 1, p. 437)

　　当众人说，平安了，无事了，我们可以抵抗巴比伦；耶利米却起来说，不平安，不能抵抗，你们要跟他们去（耶二七1~15）。……以利亚是作定罪的相反见证，耶利米则是作哀哭的相反见证。……以利亚站起来说，以色列人所事奉的不是耶和华，乃是巴力；这需要定罪。……〔但〕耶利米所作相反的见证是另外一种，他告诉以色列人，……神已经命定要把他们交给敌人了，他们却还相信神要拯救他们。所以耶利米为他们哀哭而不定罪。

　　当神的百姓荒凉时，我们需要起来作相反的见证，一面是指责、定罪他们，给他们看见，他们不是在清心事奉神，乃是体贴肉体，随从世界，为着自己的名，以巴力为中心。另一面是因着他们不认识神的光景而哀痛，他们明明失去神的同在，还说神与他们同在；已经失去了神的恩典，还以为神施恩给他们。

　　今天在神的子民中需要这样的得胜者。……路德马丁起来定罪罗马天主教是拜偶像的；这是以利亚一面所代表定罪的相反见证。还有人常常在神面前为着荒凉的召会以及无知的基督徒流泪，告诉他们，他们已经失去神的同在，没有神的恩典，却没有感觉，还以为仍蒙神的恩典；这是耶利米一面所代表哀哭的相反见证（李文集一九五四年第一册—中文尚未出书）。

　　耶利米和那些说假预言的申言者相反，……只有耶利米说神要管教他们，使他们被掳。他是哭泣的申言者（耶十四17，哀一16），为以色列人的麻木哭泣，为他们大祸临头还以为平安而哭泣。他一面哭泣，一面向他们申言，要叫他们厌恶罪恶、归向真神，使真实的平安临到。然而，以色列人听不进这真实的话，反而厌弃他并逼迫他（耶十五15，十一19，十八18~23，二十1~2、7~10）；甚至将他囚禁起来（三二1~5），就在他被囚期间，以色列人被掳了。

　　以利亚的见证是反偶像，耶利米的见证是反假平安。以利亚是刚强的人（参王下一10、12），耶利米是柔软的人。不要以为柔软的人就不能作相反的见证。……在以利亚的时候，要出来作反假神的见证，非要刚强的人不可。在耶利米的时候，以色列人是可怜的，快被牵去宰杀，却仍说平安无事，这时就需要一个柔软的人为他们哭泣。耶利米不能叫天降雨，但他的眼睛会“下雨”，他多多流泪，在哭泣里申言。这样的人能叫人柔软下来（李文集一九五四年第四册—中文尚未出书）。

　　参读：启示录生命读经，第十二篇。

　　When the people said that all was peaceful and well and that they could resist Babylon, Jeremiah rose up and said that all was not peaceful and that they would not be able to resist (Jer. 27:1-15)….Elijah was a condemning anti-testimony; Jeremiah was a weeping anti-testimony….Elijah told the Israelites that they were serving Baal, not Jehovah; this matter needs condemnation….However, the anti-testimony of Jeremiah was different….He told them that…they would be handed over to the enemy, but they believed that God would save them. Therefore, Jeremiah wept for them and did not condemn.

　　When God’s people are desolate, we need to rise up to be an anti-testimony. On the one hand, we should rebuke and condemn them to show that they are not serving God with a pure heart but are caring for the flesh and following the world for the sake of their own name, taking Baal as their center. On the other hand, we should mourn for their condition of not knowing God, for they have clearly lost God’s presence although they say that God is with them, and they have lost God’s grace although they think that God is being gracious to them.

　　Today we need such overcomers among God’s people….Martin Luther rose up to condemn the Catholic Church as idolatrous; this is the aspect of the condemning anti-testimony represented by Elijah. There are also those who weep before God for the desolate church and the ignorant Christians, telling them that they have already lost God’s presence and do not have God’s grace, although these Christians have no feeling and still think that they are graced by God. This is the aspect of the weeping anti-testimony represented by Jeremiah. (CWWL, 1954, vol. 1, pp. 432-433)

　　Jeremiah was contrary to the prophets who spoke false prophecies: …Only Jeremiah said that God would discipline them and cause them to be captured. He was a weeping prophet (Jer. 14:17; Lam. 1:16), who wept over Israel’s stupor, weeping because they thought they had peace when great calamity was about to come upon them. While weeping, he prophesied so that they might detest sin and return to the true God in order to have true peace. However, the children of Israel did not listen to his words; instead, they abhorred and persecuted him (Jer. 15:15; 11:19; 18:18-23; 20:1-2, 7-10) and even imprisoned him (32:1-5). During his imprisonment the Israelites were taken captive.

　　Elijah’s testimony was against idols, whereas Jeremiah’s testimony was against false peace. Elijah was a strong person (cf. 2 Kings 1:10, 12), whereas Jeremiah was a soft person. We should not think that a soft person cannot be an anti-testimony….At the time of Elijah one had to be strong in order to be an anti-testimony against false gods. At the time of Jeremiah, however, the Israelites were pitiful; they were about to be led to slaughter, yet they still said that all was well. At such a time, there was the need for a soft person to weep for them. Jeremiah could not cause the heavens to rain, but “rain” came from his eyes. He shed many tears and prophesied in tears. Such a person is able to soften others. (CWWL, 1954, vol. 4, p. 551)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1954, vol. 1, pp. 428-437; CWWL, 1954, vol. 4, pp. 550-551; Life-study of Revelation, msg. 12; CWWL, 1975-1976, vol. 3, pp. 21-24

　　耶九17~19 万军之耶和华如此说，你们应当思想，将唱哀歌的妇女召来，又打发人召灵巧的妇女来；叫她们速速为我们举哀，使我们眼泪汪汪，使我们的眼皮涌出水来。因为听见哀声出于锡安，说，我们是怎样的败落！我们大大的地蒙羞！……

　　圣经里头有一个哭的申言者叫作耶利米，他说，“我的眼睛泪水直流”（哀一16），又说，“我就眼泪流下如河”（三48）。他是一个会哭的申言者，他哭的感觉非常重。但是你去读耶利米书的时候，你会觉得，他虽然哭，他的情感还是受过训练的。他那忧伤的情感，会哭的情感，是受过约束的，所以神能临到他，用他来发表神心中伤痛的感觉。虽然神对祂的百姓是多忧伤，多痛苦，但是祂必须在地上找着一个有这种情感的人，然后当神的灵临到他，把这些感觉放在他灵里的时候，他才能从他的情感里把神那个伤痛的感觉发表出来。假使耶利米是个欢欢乐乐的申言者，神就没有法子用他。所以要让神能借着你得着充分的发表，你的情感必须属灵（祷告，一○九页）。

　　Jer. 9:17-19 Thus says Jehovah of hosts, Consider, and call for the mourning women to come, and send for the skillful women to come; let them hasten and take up a wailing for us, that our eyes may shed tears and our eyelids may pour forth water. For a voice of wailing was heard from Zion: How we are ruined! We are utterly put to shame!…

　　In the Bible there is a weeping prophet…He said, “My eye runs down with water” (Lam. 1:16), and, “My eye runs down with streams of water” (Lam. 3:48)….The feeling to weep was very heavy in him. But when you read the book of Jeremiah, you can sense that, although he wept, his emotion had been disciplined. His sorrowful and weeping emotion had been restricted so that God could come to him and use him to express the sorrowful feelings that were in God’s heart. Although God was grieved and hurt because of His people, He had to find someone on this earth who had these feelings. Then when His Spirit came upon that particular one and put those feelings in his spirit, he would then express the sorrowful feeling of God out of his emotion. If Jeremiah had been a merry and cheerful prophet, God would not have been able to use him. Hence, in order that God may be fully expressed through you, you need a spiritual emotion. (CWWL, 1959, vol. 4, “Lessons on Prayer,” p. 88)

　　耶利米书说到神柔细的心加上神的公义，这是本书特别的性质和地位。我们的神是心里柔细的，也是全然公义的。祂满了怜恤、同情和柔细的关切。

　　这卷书也是一本自传，耶利米告诉我们他的情形、他这个人和他的感觉，显示他柔细的心。耶和华是心里柔细的神；在心里柔细这点上，耶利米与神完全是一。……耶利米在他的哭泣上代表神。因此，神能使用耶利米这样的申言者，在地上彰显祂，为祂说话，并代表祂。

　　按照耶利米书，神的爱包含祂柔细的关切、怜恤和同情。甚至在惩治祂的选民以色列时，祂向他们也是怜恤的。关于这点，神好比一位父亲，因着爱孩子，所以在管教孩子时哭泣。……耶利米替神哭泣；他的哭泣表达神的感觉。我们可以说，神在耶利米的哭泣里哭泣，因为耶利米在他的哭泣里与神是一。

　　在九章，我们不仅看见耶和华对以色列这虚伪敬拜者的管教，也看见祂对以色列受祂管教的感觉。……耶和华说，祂要为山岭哭泣举哀，为旷野的草场扬声哀号。祂这样作，因为这些都已烧尽，甚至无人经过，人也听不见牲畜鸣叫；空中的飞鸟和地上的野兽，都已逃去（10）。然后耶和华说，“我必使耶路撒冷变为乱堆，为野狗的住处；也必使犹大的城邑变为荒场，无人居住。”（11）这指明虽然耶和华惩罚以色列，但祂对他们仍是同情的。一面，祂惩罚以色列；另一面，祂也同情祂受惩罚的百姓。

　　〔在十七至十九节〕耶和华提议唱哀歌的妇女，就是专业的哀哭者，该来“为我们”举哀。在这些经文里，“我们”和“我们的”这些辞，指明耶和华将自己联于受苦的百姓，并在他们的受苦中与他们是一。施惩罚又同情的神，也在受祂惩罚的百姓中间。……至终，举哀的人不仅为以色列举哀，也为耶和华举哀。耶和华自己因同情祂的百姓而哭泣。祂像一位母亲，在责打孩子时，与孩子一同哭泣（耶利米书生命读经，一至二、六、九七至九八页）。

　　参读：祷告，第七篇；真理课程三级卷四，第五十九课。

　　The book of Jeremiah has as its particular nature and standing God’s tenderheartedness plus God’s righteousness. Our God is a tenderhearted God, and He is absolutely righteous. He is full of compassion, sympathy, and tender care.

　　This book is also an autobiography in which Jeremiah tells us of his situation, his person, and his feeling, revealing his tender heart. Jehovah is the tenderhearted God, and in being tenderhearted Jeremiah is absolutely one with God….In his weeping Jeremiah represented God. Thus, God could use a prophet like Jeremiah to express Him, speak for Him, and represent Him on earth.

　　According to the book of Jeremiah, God’s love is a composition of His tender care, compassion, and sympathy. Even while He chastises His elect people Israel, He is compassionate toward them. Regarding this, God can be compared to a father who weeps as he disciplines his child because he loves the child….Jeremiah wept on God’s behalf; his weeping expressed God’s feeling. We may say that God wept within Jeremiah’s weeping, for in his weeping Jeremiah was one with God.

　　In Jeremiah 9 we see not only Jehovah’s correction to Israel, His hypocritical worshippers, but also His feeling concerning Israel’s suffering of His correction….Jehovah said that for the mountains He would take up a weeping and wailing, and for the pastures of the wilderness, a lamentation. He would do this because they had been burned up so that no one passed through, and the sound of cattle was not heard. Both the birds of the sky and the beasts had fled and gone (v. 10). Then Jehovah said, “I will make Jerusalem a heap of ruins, / A habitation of jackals; / And I will make the cities of Judah / A desolation without inhabitant” (v. 11). This indicates that although Jehovah was punishing Israel, He was still sympathetic toward them. On the one hand, He was punishing Israel; on the other hand, He was sympathizing with His punished people.

　　[In Jeremiah 9:17-19] Jehovah proposed that the mourning women, professional wailers, come and wail “for us.” In these verses the words us and our indicate that Jehovah joined Himself to the suffering people and was one with them in their suffering. The sympathetic God who punished was also among His punished people….Eventually, those who wailed were wailing not only for Israel but also for Jehovah. Jehovah Himself was weeping in sympathy for His people. He was like a mother who, while spanking her child, weeps along with her child. (Life-study of Jeremiah, pp. 1, 5, 78-79)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1959, vol. 4, “Lessons on Prayer,” ch. 7; Truth Lessons—Level Three, vol. 4, lsn. 59

　　耶九1 但愿我的头为众水，我的眼为泪的泉源，我好为我百姓中被杀的人，昼夜哭泣！

　　徒二十19 服事主，凡事谦卑，常常流泪，又因犹太人的谋害，历经试炼。

　　没有一个好好为主作工的人，是能够不哭的。……凡有心的，把工作放在心上的，就不能不哭。有的时候对付一个人，什么方法都用过了，都是失败。……有时你无论怎么劝，都没有用处，眼泪是末了一个的劝。

　　没有一个爱主的人，是不哭的。要为着罪人痛心甚至流泪，要为着神的荣耀发生问题而流泪，也要为着不能克制敌人而愤恨切心，以致痛哭。……凡有心在主工作上的，就必定哭。耶利米在旧约中是顶被主所用的申言者之一，他所以能到这样地位，就是因着他的流泪。他为着神的儿女挂念、负责，甚至昼夜哭泣（倪柝声文集第一辑第十九册，八三页）。

　　Jer. 9:1 Oh that my head were waters, and my eye a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people!

　　Acts Serving the Lord as a slave with all humility 20:19 and tears and trials which came upon me by the plots of the Jews.

　　No proper worker of the Lord can be without tears….All those who have a heart for their work cannot help weeping. Many times when we try to deal with someone and exhaust all means, there is no result….Sometimes when no persuasion works, tears become the last persuasion.

　　There is no lover of the Lord who does not cry. We should ache for sinners to the point of weeping for them. We should weep because God’s glory is challenged, and we should weep in anguish that the enemy is not yet bound….All those whose hearts are in the Lord’s work surely weep. Jeremiah was a prophet who was greatly used by the Lord. He was such because of his tears. He was anxious and felt responsible for God’s children, and he wept for them day and night. (CWWN, vol. 19, p. 494)

　　流泪是作工的好方法。我再说，没有一个不流泪的，是完全的。虽然他在好多事上都好，但若没有流泪，就算不得好。我们事奉主，必须要加上眼泪（在主和人的面前）才好。可是这并不是故意装出来的，乃是心先有所深感，然后眼泪自然随之而出的。

　　保罗在行传二十章三十一节说，“记念我三年之久，昼夜不住地流泪劝戒你们各人。”请问，你有没有这样地为工作流泪呢？要知道一个人热心否，对主的工作专一否，事奉主的心完全否，只要问他有没有流泪。我顶直地说，没有眼泪，工作永远不会兴旺。若缺了这样一件在暗地里的东西，就会使工作受拦阻（倪柝声文集第一辑第十九册，八五页）。

　　我们越属灵，就越富有情感。事实上，我们若不知道哭泣流泪，我们就不是那么属灵。然而，……如果我们以魂作人位而流泪，就不是活基督。……当我开始活在灵里，在我的新人里，以魂作我的器官，我开始流泪。这时我流泪是以魂作器官，不是以魂作人位。流泪的人位是我的灵。……我们以魂为人位去爱人，是错的。那可能是爱，但那爱是属于旧人，是仍然与肉体有关联的。以我们的魂为人位去爱，是错的。以我们的灵为人位，以魂为器官去爱，才是对的。没有魂，我们不可能爱人。我们的灵，严格地说没有爱的功能。我们若要爱，就必须有爱的器官。爱的器官是情感，就是我们魂的一部分。

　　我们的灵本身无法哭泣流泪。在福音书里主耶稣哭了（约十一35，路十九41）。祂是从作祂人位的灵，用祂的魂作器官而流泪。祂不是以魂作祂的人位去爱，乃是以灵作人位，魂作器官去爱。今天，我们既是基督徒，就与主耶稣一样。在我们基督徒生活中，我们必须拒绝魂作人位；但我们的魂作为器官仍然很有用处。什么时候我们的魂要起来作人位，我们应当告诉我们的魂：“亲爱的魂，你已往是我的人位，但如今不是了。你如今是在复活中作我的器官，我的人位乃是我重生的灵，有主耶稣为其生命，这灵就是新人，而这新人乃是我的人位。亲爱的魂啊，你如今只是我的器官。你要留在你的地位上，不要向我建议什么。当我爱或思想的时候，你必须是我爱与思想的器官。”（生命的经历与长大，二四至二五页）

　　参读：倪柝声文集第一辑第十九册，眼泪；生命的经历与长大，第三篇；以弗所书生命读经，第四十八篇。

　　Tears are a good way to work. I say again, no one can be complete without tears. A person may be good at many things, but if he does not weep, he cannot be considered as complete. In serving the Lord, we must have tears, both before the Lord and before men. Of course, such tears cannot be fabricated. They must flow spontaneously out of our deep feelings.

　　Paul said that for three years he was in tears for them night and day [Acts 20:31]. Have you shed tears this way for your work? All we have to ask a person is whether or not he has shed tears to find out whether or not he is zealous, if he is single for his work, and if his heart of service is complete. I must say honestly that without tears no work can become prosperous. If we do not do this one thing in secret, the progress of our work will be hindered. (CWWN, vol. 19, pp. 495-496)

　　The more spiritual we are, the more emotional we are. Actually, if we do not know how to weep or shed tears, we are not very spiritual. However,…if we shed tears from our soul as our person, this is not to live Christ. When I began to live in the spirit, in my new man, taking the soul as my organ, I began to shed tears. At these times I shed tears by the soul as my organ, not as my person. The person who shed tears was my spirit….When we love someone by our soul as a person, that is wrong. It may be love, but it is of the old man and is still related to the flesh. To love by our soul as our person is wrong, but to love by our spirit as our person with our soul as our organ is right. It is impossible to love someone without our soul. Our spirit, strictly speaking, does not have the loving ability. In order to love, we must have a loving organ. The loving organ is our emotion, a part of our soul.

　　Our spirit by itself cannot weep or shed tears. In the Gospels the Lord Jesus wept (John 11:35; Luke 19:41). He wept from His spirit as His person with His soul as His organ. He did not love by the soul as His person; rather, He loved by His spirit as His person with His soul as His organ. Today, as Christians, we are the same as the Lord Jesus. In our Christian life our soul must be denied as our person, yet our soul is still very useful as an organ. When our soul rises up to be our person, we should tell our soul, “Dear soul, you were my person in the past but not today. Today you are my organ in resurrection, and my person is my regenerated spirit with the Lord Jesus as its life. This spirit is the new man, and this new man is my person. You, dear soul, are now only my organ. Stay in your position, and do not propose anything to me. When I love or think, you must be my loving and thinking organ.” (CWWL, 1989, vol. 3, “The Experience and Growth in Life,” pp. 20-21)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 19, issue no. 48; CWWL, 1989, vol. 3, “The Experience and Growth in Life,” ch. 3; Life-study of Ephesians, msg. 48

　　林后十二15 我极其喜欢为你们花费，并完全花上自己。难道我越发爱你们，就越发少得你们的爱么？

　　林后七3 ……我先前说过，你们是在我们的心里，以至同死同活。

　　我们若有才能执行一项工作，但缺少亲密的关切，我们的工作就不会结果子。要建立美好的家庭生活和召会生活，需要亲密的关切。我们能结多少果子，……乃在于我们是否有亲密的关切。

　　只要我们对人有合式的关切，我们就会渐渐够资格被神使用，使别人得救。这一点在《见与闻》一书中，有非常好的见证。作者麦雅各（Dennis McKendrick）在这本书中告诉我们，他站在一群不信者面前只是痛哭流涕，一句话也说不出来，然而却有许多人得救，因为他有深挚的关切。口才、恩赐、能力，都不能像你对人的关切那样深深地摸着人（哥林多后书生命读经，四五○至四五一页）。

　　2 Cor. 12:15 But I, I will most gladly spend and be utterly spent on behalf of your souls. If I love you more abundantly, am I loved less?

　　7:3 …I have said before that you are in our hearts for our dying together and our living together.

　　If we have ability to carry on a work but lack an intimate concern, our work will be fruitless. What is needed to establish a good family life and church life is intimate concern. How fruitful we are, how much fruit we bear,…depends on whether or not we have an intimate concern.

　　As long as we have the proper concern for people, we are well on our way to be qualified to be used of God for their salvation. A very good testimony of this is in the book Seen and Heard. In that book, the writer, James M’Kendrick, tells us of standing in front of a group of unbelievers and weeping, without saying a word. Nevertheless, a number were saved, for he had a deep concern. Eloquence, gift, and power can never touch people as deeply as your concern for them. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, pp. 382-383)

　　假如我们有亲密的关切，我们对人就会很柔和。一个粗鲁、感觉迟钝的人，对人不会有亲密的关切。作丈夫的对妻子若没有合式的关切，就可能只会严厉地对待她、要求她。但他若有亲密的关切，就会柔软下来。我们一旦是柔软的，连我们说话的方式也是柔和、甜美的（哥林多后书生命读经，四五九页）。

　　林后二章四节：“我先前由于许多的患难，和心中的困苦，多多地流泪，写信给你们，不是要叫你们忧愁，乃是要叫你们知道，我对你们的爱是格外充盈的。”我们知道，哥林多前书是因为保罗听见革来氏家里的人说到哥林多信徒的情形而写的。其中保罗指出了他们种种的错处，用顶直、顶严厉的话责备他们。现在哥林多后书这地方，就是说保罗怎么写前书。他说，我是由于许多的患难，和心中的困苦，多多地流泪而写的。

　　当你听见一个弟兄，或是一个姊妹跌倒了，你有没有像保罗那样的痛哭流泪呢？……弟兄！你有没有力量来流泪呢？我们看见，保罗写信给哥林多人，他的话说得多么严厉，真是如刀刺似的。……一件事是定规的，就是若要你所说的话能伤人，必须先伤了你自己；若自己没有先被刺的，必定不会刺别人。保罗真是这样的人，他在前书说最重最难受的话时，他是一面流泪，一面说话的。在他话还没有说出，别人没有感觉痛苦之先，他自己已经先感觉痛苦了。所以若要叫人难受，自己必须先要照样难受过。若是单要叫别人伤心的，永远不成。因此每一个为主作工的人，不能不在流泪上有经历。换句话说，凡看见弟兄跌倒、失败，自己不流泪的，他就不配作主的工，更不配去指摘或劝勉人。你要去责备一个弟兄，或是姊妹，或是告诉他有什么事错了，自己必须先感觉到那难受，和话语的尖利，才能有资格。说人短处容易，流泪着说难。但是，唯有流泪的，才配说。

　　感谢神，祂儿子的血落在地上没有回去，可以使人因之得着救恩。感谢神，祂儿子的眼泪也没有回去，说出祂思念的心，叫我们在神和人的面前，也会流泪。所以让我们在祷告和工作上，效法我们的主所作的，多滴下一些泪吧！（倪柝声文集第一辑第十九册，八五至八七页）。

　　参读：哥林多后书生命读经，第四十四至四十五篇；对同工长老们以及爱主寻求主者爱心的话，第二章。

　　If we have an intimate concern, we shall be tender with others. A crude, insensitive person does not have an intimate concern. If a husband does not have a proper concern for his wife, he may be very strict and demanding of her. But having an intimate concern will cause him to be tender. Once we become tender, our way of speaking will be soft and sweet. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, p. 389)

　　Second Corinthians 2:4 says, “For out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote to you through many tears, not that you would be made sorrowful but that you would know the love which I have more abundantly toward you.” We know that Paul wrote the first Epistle to the Corinthians when he heard from the household of Chloe about the condition of the Corinthian believers. Paul pointed out all their mistakes and rebuked them with the most severe and frank word. Now in the second Epistle he told them how he wrote the first Epistle. He said that he did it out of much affliction and anguish of heart and through many tears.

　　When you hear of a brother or a sister backsliding, would you weep like Paul did?…Brothers, do you have the strength to weep? You saw how severe Paul’s words to the Corinthians were; they were like sharp knives….One thing is sure: if you want your words to pierce others, they must first pierce you. If they have never pierced you, they can never pierce others. Paul was indeed such a person. While he was writing the strongest words in the first Epistle, he was doing it in tears. Before he spoke, and before others felt the pain, he felt the pain. Therefore, if you want others to feel the pain, you must first feel the pain. It will never work if you only want others to be sorrowful. For this reason, every worker of the Lord must be experienced in the matter of tears. In other words, all those who do not shed tears when they see their brothers falling and failing are not worthy to do the Lord’s work, and they are not qualified to rebuke or exhort others. If you want to rebuke a brother, or if you want to tell him about something that he has done wrong, you must first feel the pain and the sharpness of the words before you are qualified to rebuke. It is easy to point out others’ shortcomings, but it is difficult to say it with tears. However, only those who have tears are qualified to speak.

　　Thank the Lord that the blood of His Son was shed on earth and was not retracted. Man can receive salvation through this blood. Thank the Lord that the tears of His Son were also not retracted. They tell us that He is mindful of us, and they also induce us to shed tears before God and before men. May we imitate our Lord in our prayers and in our work, and may we shed more tears! (CWWN, vol. 19, pp. 496-497)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of 2 Corinthians, msgs. 44-45; CWWL, 1994-1997, vol. 5, “A Word of Love to the Co-workers, Elders, Lovers, and Seekers of the Lord,” ch. 2

　　林后十一28　 ……为众召会的挂虑，天天压在我身上。

　　诗八四5~6 因你有力量，心中想往锡安大道的，这人便为有福。他们经过流泪谷，叫这谷变为泉源之地；并有秋雨之福，盖满了这谷。

　　保罗在林后七章二至三节说，“你们要容纳我们，我们未曾亏负谁，未曾败坏谁，未曾占谁的便宜。我说这话，不是为定罪你们，因我先前说过，你们是在我们的心里，以至同死同活。”保罗在这里的话启示出他对哥林多人深挚、亲密的关切。这段话并不是仅仅所谓伦理、宗教、属灵甚至爱心的话。你有时可以对人说些爱心的话，表达你的爱意，但你对他们仍然没有很多的关切。……保罗对哥林多的信徒就有这样的关切。

　　母亲对自己的孩子不仅有爱，还有深挚的关切。……一个作母亲的，也许没有受过多少教育，但只要她对自己的孩子有极深的关切，她就有资格成为一个好母亲。当然，有知识和能力是有助益的，但这些不是先决条件。成为好母亲唯一的先决条件，是必须关切儿女。在照顾召会的事上，原则也是一样。长老对召会只有爱还不够，这种爱必须成为一种关切，深深地关切一切年幼、软弱的弟兄姊妹。这种关切会使我们的劳苦有果效。我们都需要对人有这种亲密的关切（哥林多后书生命读经，四五六至四五七页）。

　　2 Cor. 11:28 …The crowd of cares pressing upon me daily, the anxious concern for all the churches.

　　Psa. 84:5-6 Blessed is the man whose strength is in You, in whose heart are the highways to Zion. Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring; indeed the early rain covers it with blessings.

　　In [2 Corinthians] 7:2 and 3 Paul says, “Make room for us; we have wronged no one, we have corrupted no one, we have taken advantage of no one. I do not say this to condemn you, for I have said before that you are in our hearts for our dying together and our living together.” Paul’s word here reveals his deep, intimate concern for the Corinthians. This utterance is not merely something ethical, religious, spiritual, or even loving. It is possible to say a word of love and feel love for others, but still not have much concern for them….Paul had such a concern for the believers at Corinth.

　　A mother has not only love for her child; she also has a deep concern….A woman may be lacking in education, but if she has a deep concern for her children, she is qualified to be a good mother. Of course, knowledge and ability are helpful, but they are not prerequisites. The unique prerequisite for being a good mother is concern. The same principle is true regarding caring for the church. It is not adequate for the elders simply to love the church. This love must become a deep concern, a concern for all the young ones and weaker ones. This concern causes our labor to be fruitful. We all need this kind of intimate concern for others. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, p. 387)

　　〔保罗〕在林后七章二节说，“要容纳我们”，……保罗所渴望的是，哥林多人怎样是在他的心里，他也能照样在哥林多人的心里。哥林多的信徒是在保罗的心里，以至同死同活〔3〕。这样的话，的确表达出一种亲密的关切（哥林多后书生命读经，四五七页）。

　　诗篇八十四篇六节上半说到经过流泪谷（巴迦谷）。……“巴迦”原文意“流泪”。一面，当我们有意进入召会生活时，就在神里面得着加强；另一面，我们也受到撒但的反对；他使许多圣徒遭受逼迫。撒但所引起的难处和逼迫，会使我们的大道成为流泪谷。……我们若走大道往神的殿去，难处和逼迫会临到我们，这样的事使我们流泪。但神要将我们的眼泪变为泉源。唯有流泪的人会有泉源。我们流泪越多，泉源就越大。

　　六节下半说，“并有秋雨之福，盖满了这谷。”按我们的经历，这意思是我们的眼泪成为泉源，这泉源成为盖满全谷的秋雨之福。秋雨就是那灵，那灵是我们的福。……烟台有一位弟兄的情形正是如此。他在相信主耶稣以前是回教徒。他得救并进入召会生活以后，遭受许多逼迫。这些逼迫几乎叫他丧命，他也流了许多眼泪。但那些眼泪成了泉源，泉源成了如秋雨的那灵；结果这位弟兄变得非常的活。……经过流泪谷而进入召会生活的人，会发觉这样流泪至终对他们成为大福。这福就是那灵。他们所流的眼泪是自己的，但这些眼泪带来泉源，成为秋雨，就是那灵作福分。

　　那些正往锡安大道上的人，叫流泪谷变为泉源之地（6中）。这泉源就是那灵。何等美妙！……秋雨表征那灵。这指明我们越在锡安大道上流泪，就越接受那灵。我们流泪时，就被那灵充满，那灵也就成为我们的泉源（诗篇生命读经，四五九至四六○、四七二至四七三页）。

　　参读：诗篇生命读经，第三十三篇。

　　In 2 Corinthians 7:2 Paul says, “Make room for us.”…Paul’s longing was that just as he had the Corinthians in his heart, so he would be in their heart. The believers at Corinth were in Paul’s heart both to live together and to die together [7:3]. This surely is a word expressing an intimate concern. (Life-study of 2 Corinthians, p. 388)

　　[In Psalm 84:6a] “Baca” means “weeping.” On the one hand, when we had the intention to come into the church life, we were strengthened in God; on the other hand, we were opposed by Satan, who has caused many saints to suffer persecution. The trouble and persecution caused by Satan can make our highway a valley of weeping. If we take the highway to go to God’s house, trouble and persecution will come to us, and such things will cause us to weep. But God will turn our tears into a spring [cf. v. 6b]….The more tears we shed, the greater will be the spring.

　　Verse 6c says, “Indeed the early rain covers it with blessings.” According to our experience, this means that our tears become a spring and that this spring becomes the early rain that covers the valley with blessings. This early rain is the Spirit, and the Spirit is our blessing. This was the situation with a certain brother in Chefoo. Before he believed in the Lord Jesus, he was a Muslim. After he was saved and came into the church life, he suffered a great deal of persecution. This persecution nearly killed him, and he shed many tears. But those tears became a spring; the spring became the Spirit as the early rain; and as a result this brother was very living. Those who come into the church life by passing through the valley of weeping will find that this weeping eventually becomes a great blessing to them. This blessing is the Spirit. The tears they shed are their own, but these tears become a spring, which becomes the early rain, the Spirit as the blessing.

　　Those on the highways to Zion make the valley of weeping a spring (v. 6b). This spring is just the Spirit. How wonderful! The early rain signifies the Spirit. This indicates that the more we weep on the highways to Zion, the more of the Spirit we receive. While we are weeping, we are being filled with the Spirit, and the Spirit becomes our spring. (Life-study of the Psalms, pp. 374-375, 386)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of the Psalms, msgs. 32-33