约十10　 ……我来了，是要叫羊得生命，并且得的更丰盛。

　　启二二1~2 天使又指给我看在城内街道当中一道生命水的河，明亮如水晶，从神和羔羊的宝座流出来。在河这边与那边有生命树……。

　　生命树的原则和善恶知识树的原则，可在全本圣经中看到。圣经中一切消极的事物都在知识树的线上，一切积极的事物都在生命树的线上。我称第一条线为知识线，第二条线为生命线。我们若顺着这两条线，就贯通全本圣经。

　　人受引诱去吃知识树，结果人堕落了。堕落之人的后裔全然不倚靠神，他们依赖自己的知识。……严格地说，生命线是由堕落而蒙救赎的亚当开始，再继续经过亚伯、以诺、挪亚、亚伯拉罕、以撒、雅各和许多以色列人。在这条生命线上有挪亚的帐棚、亚伯拉罕的帐棚、帐幕和圣殿。知识线是由该隐开始，继续经过所有不敬虔的人。在知识线上有以诺城、巴别城、所多玛城、法老的积货城以及将生命线上的事物掳去的巴比伦城（创世记生命读经，二一一至二一二页）。

　　John 10:10 …I have come that they may have life and may have it abundantly.

　　Rev. 22:1-2 And he showed me a river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb in the middle of its street. And on this side and on that side of the river was the tree of life…

　　The principle of the tree of life and the principle of the tree of knowledge of good and evil are realized throughout the whole Bible. All the negative things in the Bible are on the line of the tree of knowledge, and all the positive things are on the line of the tree of life. I call the first line the line of knowledge and the second line, the line of life. If we follow these two lines, they carry us through the entire Scripture.

　　Man was induced to eat of the tree of knowledge. As a result, man fell. The descendants of fallen man did not depend upon God at all. They relied upon their knowledge… Strictly speaking, the line of life began with Adam, who was fallen and redeemed, and continued through Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and so many Israelites. On this line of life we have the tent of Noah, the tent of Abraham, the tabernacle, and the temple. The line of knowledge began with Cain and continued through all the ungodly people. On the line of knowledge we have the city of Enoch, Babel, Sodom, the treasure cities of Pharaoh, and Babylon, which captured the things on the line of life. (Life-study of Genesis, p. 172)

　　在新约中我们看到同样的两条线。虽然旧约和律法原初是在生命线上，但是犹太宗教徒只把它们当作知识对待，将它们放在知识线上。……当主耶稣来时，那些宗教首领全都在知识线上，只有主耶稣自己是在生命线上。然后主把祂的门徒带到生命线上。在五旬节那天，祂的门徒把许多人带到生命线上。因此，在那时，犹太宗教是在知识线上，而召会是在生命线上。然而不久以后，召会堕落了，从活的基督落到死的圣经知识中，并且成了基督教。召会是在生命线上，基督教却是在知识线上。……历世历代基督徒中的得胜者，从未从生命线移到知识线。他们留在生命线上，直到末了；那时这条线要终结于新耶路撒冷。大巴比伦和一切神之外的事物要被火河（但七10）扫入火湖里（启二十10、14~15，二一8）。而历世历代圣经中一切积极的事物，都要被生命水的河（二二1）带进新耶路撒冷。……在启示录的末了，我们看到知识树和生命树这两粒种子的收成。

　　基督徒的许多书籍给我们作事的作法和方法。……例如，关于与基督同钉十字架的事，这些书告诉我们要算自己是死的。如果我们只把这个当作一个作法或方法，这就属于知识树。……知识或宗教的意思就是作好人，行好事，敬拜神或为神作工，却没有神活的同在。一切为神所作的好事，若没有祂的同在，就是宗教。一件事情对我们可能是生命，也可能是知识。我们在作的时候，若是经历到活神的同在，那就是生命；若是没有神的同在，那就只是死的知识。一切的作法或方法，都不能帮助我们。我们需要活的神。

　　生命就是神自己。……生命的原则就是在每一件事上倚靠神。你若倚靠神，就每一件事都是生命（创世记生命读经，二一二至二一三、二一六至二一七页）。

　　参读：倪柝声文集第三辑第十册，两种生活的原则；生命长大的路线，第一篇；倪柝声文集第一辑第八册，人第一次的罪。

　　We find the same two lines in the New Testament. Although the Old Testament and the law were originally on the line of life, the Jewish religionists treated them as mere knowledge and put them on the line of knowledge… When the Lord Jesus came, the religious leaders were altogether on the line of knowledge. Only the Lord Jesus Himself was on the line of life. Then He brought His disciples to the line of life. On the day of Pentecost, His disciples put many other people on the line of life. Thus, at that time, there was the Jewish religion on the line of knowledge and the church on the line of life. However, not long afterward, the church was degraded, falling from the living Christ to dead scriptural knowledge, and became Christianity. The church was on the line of life, but Christianity was on the line of knowledge… The overcomers among the Christians through all the centuries never have shifted from the line of life to the line of knowledge. They will remain on the line of life until the end when it ultimately issues in the New Jerusalem. The great Babylon and all things apart from God will be swept away by the stream of fire (Dan. 7:10) into the lake of fire (Rev. 20:10, 14-15; 21:8). All the positive things in the Bible throughout the ages will be carried on by the river of the water of life (Rev. 22:1) into the New Jerusalem… At the end of the book of Revelation we find the harvest of the seed of the tree of knowledge and of the tree of life.

　　In many of the Christian books we are given ways and methods of doing things… For example, regarding the matter of being crucified with Christ we are told by the books to reckon ourselves dead. If we make this merely a way or a method, it belongs to the tree of knowledge… Knowledge or religion means to be good and to do good, to worship God or to work for God without having the living presence of God. Anything good done for God without His presence is religion. A certain thing may be both life and knowledge to us. If we experience the presence of the living God while doing it, it is life. However, if we do it without God’s presence, it is simply dead knowledge. No way or method can help us. We need the living God.

　　Life is God Himself… The principle of life is to be dependent on God for everything. If you depend on God, everything is life. (Life-study of Genesis, pp. 173, 176-177)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 56, “Two Principles of Living,” pp. 418-432; CWWL, 1950-1951, vol. 3, “The Path of Our Growth in Life,” ch. 1; CWWN, vol. 8, pp. 25-35