士二11~12　　以色列人行耶和华眼中看为恶的事，…离弃了…耶和华他们列祖的神，去随从跪拜别神，就是四围众民的一些神，惹耶和华发怒。

　　二一25　　那些日子，以色列中没有王，各人行自己眼中看为正的事。

　　以色列人进入了美地，但美地上满了仇敌。…然而，神对祂子民的定旨不是仅仅击败仇敌，完全占有美地，乃是要他们建立国度。因着这定旨尚未成就，士师记的结语说，…以色列人行自己眼中看为正的事，因为他们没有君王或国度。

　　神需要一个国度，使祂可以得着彰显。以色列人被领出埃及，经过旷野，他们在那里为神建造帐幕。然后他们进入美地，每一支派都分得一部分美地。在士师记里，仇敌被击败到某种程度，使以色列人可以享受美地。虽然如此，士师记没有神的彰显，因为士师记中没有王，各人都行自己眼中看为正的事（李文集一九八三年第三册，三七七至三七八页）。

　　Judg. 2:11-12 And the children of Israel did what was evil in the sight of Jehovah…. And they forsook Jehovah, the God of their fathers,…and they followed after other gods from among the gods of the peoples who surrounded them; and they worshipped them and provoked Jehovah to anger.

　　21:25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.

　　The children of Israel entered into the good land, but the good land was filled with enemies…. However, God’s purpose for His people was not merely to defeat the enemies and take full possession of the land but for them to set up a kingdom. Because this purpose had not been fulfilled, the conclusion of Judges says…[that] the children of Israel did whatever was right in their own eyes because there was no king or kingdom.

　　God needs a kingdom so that He may have an expression. The children of Israel were brought out of Egypt and through the wilderness, where they built the tabernacle for God. Then they entered into the good land, and every tribe was allotted a portion of the land. In Judges the enemies were defeated to some extent so that the children of Israel could enjoy the good land. Nevertheless, there was no expression of God in Judges because there was no king. Everyone acted according to what was right in his own eyes. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” p. 290)

　　从以色列人出埃及，一直到申言者撒母耳，就是到大卫作以色列全国的王为止（撒下五3~4），约有四百五十年（徒十三17~20，参士十一26，王上六1）。这段时期的大部分，可称为士师时代。在这时代内，以色列人因为不能驱尽、灭尽留在迦南地的七族，必然的结果就是：渐渐离弃神，随从外邦的风俗，与外邦人通婚，又拜别神。所以神照着祂以前多次警告的话，把他们交在外邦人手中。但他们一悔改，神就俯允他们的祷告，借着士师拯救他们。…这样循环重复有七次之多。

　　以色列人离弃了领他们出埃及地的耶和华他们列祖的神，去随从跪拜四围之民的一些神，惹耶和华发怒。神就把他们交在抢夺他们的人手中，又将他们交付在仇敌的手中，甚至使他们再不能站立得住。他们无论何时出去，主的手都以灾祸攻击他们（士二11~15）。

　　就是神兴起士师，来拯救他们脱离抢夺他们之人的手，他们也不肯听从，…偏离他们列祖所行的道路。他们行恶比他们的列祖更甚，而且总不断绝顽梗的恶行（16~19）。

　　士师时期可以说是以色列历史中最黑暗的一段，因为在以色列人中满了背叛神、拜偶像（十七~十八）、内战（九）、支派间的对立和争执（二十~二一）、淫乱（十九）、污秽、残酷的杀戮、以及种种恶行，并且各人任意而行（十七6，二一25）。这也是一段惨痛的时期。以色列人因着不信，以致倒毙旷野，在旷野飘流了四十年之久（来三7、19）。他们进迦南以后，因离弃神、拜偶像所带来的失败、灾祸，则不只是四十年，甚至是十倍于四十年（真理课程一级卷一，一五一至一五三页）。

　　参读：真理课程一级卷一，第十课；士师记生命读经，第一、三至四、六至七、九至十篇；圣言中所启示的神圣三一，第九章。

　　From the time the children of Israel left Egypt to the time of the prophet Samuel when David was king of the whole nation of Israel (2 Sam. 5:3-4), it was about 450 years (Acts 13:17-20; Judg. 11:26; 1 Kings 6:1). A major section of this period may be called the age of the judges. During this age, the children of Israel could not utterly drive out and destroy the seven tribes in Canaan. Consequently, they gradually forsook God, followed the customs of the nations, had mixed marriages with the nations, and worshipped other gods. Therefore, God delivered them into the hands of the nations according to His warnings. But whenever they repented, God would listen to their prayers and would deliver them through the hand of a judge….This cycle was repeated, as many as seven times.

　　The children of Israel forsook the Lord God of their fathers who brought them out of the land of Egypt, and they followed the gods of the people that were around them. They bowed themselves down to them, and provoked Jehovah to anger. So God delivered them into the hands of spoilers, and He sold them into the hands of their enemies so that they could no longer stand. Whenever they went out, the hand of the Lord was against them for evil (Judg. 2:11-15).

　　Even though God raised up judges to deliver them out of the hands of those who spoiled them, they would not hearken…; they turned quickly out of the way in which their fathers walked. They corrupted themselves more than their fathers and did not cease from their own doings nor from their stubborn way (2:16-19).

　　The age of the judges may be considered the darkest period in the history of Israel. At that time, among the children of Israel there were rebellions against God, idolatry (Judg. 17—18), infighting (ch. 9), hostility and controversy among the tribes (chs. 20—21), fornication (ch. 19), filthiness, brutal killings, and all manner of evil doing. Every man did that which was right in his own eyes (17:6; 21:25). It was also a period of tragedy. The unbelief of the children of Israel caused them to wander for forty years so that even their carcasses fell in the wilderness (Heb. 3:7, 19). But their forsaking God and their idolatry after they entered the land issued in a situation of defeat and tragedy that lasted not merely forty years, but ten times forty years. (Truth Lessons—Level One, vol. 1, pp. 119-120)

　　Further Reading: Truth Lessons—Level One, vol. 1, lsn. 10; Life-study of Judges, msgs. 1, 3-4, 6-7, 9-10; CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” ch. 10