撒上十25　　撒母耳将国法告诉百姓，又记在书上，放在耶和华面前。然后撒母耳遣散众民，各回各家去了。

　　太六10　　愿你的国来临，愿你的旨意行在地上，如同行在天上。

　　撒母耳…开始了一个新的时代，由祭司的时代转为君王的时代。祭司仅仅是事奉神，还不能把神的国度和神的权柄带下来。要等神的国度设立了，神的权柄才能通行；神的权柄通行，神的荣耀才得以彰显。马太六章十三节的祷告说，“国度、能力、荣耀，都是你的，直到永远。”先有国度，后有掌权，然后才有荣耀的彰显。（从利未记至尼希米记看生命的路线，一○九页。）

　　1 Sam. 10:25 Then Samuel told the people the practice of the kingdom, and he wrote it in a book and laid it before Jehovah. And Samuel sent all the people away, every man to his house.

　　Matt. 6:10 Your kingdom come; Your will be done, as in heaven, so also on earth.

　　Samuel initiated a new age. He turned the age from the age of the priests to the age of the kings. Priests can serve God, but they cannot bring in God’s kingdom and God’s authority. When God’s kingdom is established, His authority can be exercised, and then His glory can be expressed. The prayer in Matthew 6:13 says, “Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever.” First, there is the kingdom and the exercise of authority, and then there is the expression of glory. (CWWL, 1954, vol. 4, p. 527)

　　要使神的选民成为祂的家，成为祂的彰显，神圣三一是必需的。以色列人进入了美地，但美地上满了仇敌。士师记这卷书启示三一，因为需要三一，才能击败仇敌。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。〔二一25。〕那时所需要的，就是建立一个国度。

　　撒母耳是带进国度的人。在带进国度的事上，撒母耳记是极其重要的。神要成就祂的心愿，得着一个彰显，就需要国度。神的国是一个范围，神在其中得着彰显。当主教导门徒如何祷告时，开头就说，“我们在诸天之上的父，愿你的名被尊为圣，愿你的国来临。”（太六9~10。）新约开始于马太福音，这卷福音是国度的福音。在三章二节，施浸者约翰宣告：“你们要悔改，因为诸天的国已经临近了。”今天许多基督徒传天堂的福音，但新约是传国度的福音。（参四23，九35，二四14。）

　　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。

　　在士师记里，神使用了底波拉；而在撒母耳记，神所使用带进祂国度的第一个人，是另一位女性，就是撒母耳的母亲哈拿。她生了撒母耳，撒母耳带进了君王连同国度。…大卫被带进来，并被引进君王的地位和功用里，是借着撒母耳；而撒母耳是一位寻求神的女性迫切祷告的结果。

　　由于士师记中悲惨的光景，所以急切并迫切需要一个像撒母耳这样的人。…撒母耳是拿细耳人、祭司、申言者和士师。这四重身分，使他够资格成为带进君王并设立国度的人。要使这样的一位得以兴起并完成托付，极其需要神圣三一。只有三一能够作成这事。为此，撒母耳记详细、细致的启示神圣三一。士师记所发生的事还有些粗略，但在撒母耳记里，神圣三一的应用是非常细致的。（李文集一九八三年第三册，三七七至三八○页。）

　　参读：圣言中所启示的神圣三一，第一、三、八至十章。

　　In order for God’s chosen people to be His house, His expression, the Trinity was needed. The children of Israel entered into the good land, but the good land was filled with enemies. The book of Judges reveals the Trinity because the Trinity was needed to defeat the 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 [21:25]. What was needed at that time was for a kingdom to be set up.

　　Samuel was one who brought in the kingdom. First and 2 Samuel are crucial for the bringing in of the kingdom. In order for God to fulfill His intention to have an expression, He needed to have a kingdom. The kingdom of God is a sphere in which God is expressed. When the Lord taught His disciples how to pray, He began, “Our Father who is in the heavens, Your name be sanctified; Your kingdom come” (Matt. 6:9-10). The New Testament opens with the Gospel of Matthew, which is the Gospel of the kingdom. In Matthew 3:2 John the Baptist declared, “Repent, for the kingdom of the heavens has drawn near.” Many Christians today preach the gospel of a heavenly mansion, but the New Testament preaches the gospel of the kingdom (cf. Matt. 4:23; 9:35; 24:14).

　　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.

　　In Judges God used Deborah. In 1 and 2 Samuel the first person God used to bring in His kingdom was another female, Samuel’s mother, Hannah. She bore Samuel, who brought in the king with the kingdom…. David was brought in and initiated into his position and function through Samuel, who was the issue of the desperate prayer of a female seeker of God.

　　Because of the miserable situation in Judges, there was an urgent and desperate need for one like Samuel…. Samuel was a Nazarite, a priest, a prophet, and a judge. This fourfold status qualified Samuel to be the one who could bring in the king and set up the kingdom. In order for such a one to be raised up and carry out his commission, there was a crucial need of the Divine Trinity. Only the Trinity could work this out. For this reason, in 1 and 2 Samuel there is a detailed, fine revelation of the Divine Trinity. What happened in Judges is somewhat rough, but in Samuel the application of the Divine Trinity is very fine. (CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” pp. 289-291)

　　Further Reading: CWWL, 1983, vol. 3, “The Divine Trinity as Revealed in the Holy Word,” chs. 1, 3, 8-10