第03章 第一次的大欺骗
§1
第03章 第一次的大欺骗
§2
Chap. 03—The First Great Deception
§3
导致今日世界一切痛苦和悲伤的大谎言是什么？是谁撒了谎？应许结束这场罪恶大灾难的希望是什么？在世界历史发端的时候，撒但就已开始欺骗人类了。这个曾在天庭发动叛变的撒但切望地上的居民与他联合，共同敌对上帝的政权。亚当和夏娃曾因顺从上帝的律法而度全然幸福的生活，这个事实乃是一个恒久的凭据，反证了撒但在天上所力陈的主张，就是他所说，上帝的律法是压迫性的，是与被造之物的利益相冲突的。此外，当撒但看到上帝为这一对无罪的夫妇所预备的美丽家乡时，他便妒火中烧，定意要使他们堕落，及至他们与上帝隔绝，而落到他的权势之下，他便可以承受全地为业，并在其上建立自己的国度，与至高者抗衡。{DD 13.1}[1]
§4
What is the great lie that has led to all the suffering and misery we see in the world today? Who told that lie? And what is the hope that promises to end this catastrophe of evil? With the earliest history of man, Satan began his efforts to deceive our race. He who had incited rebellion in heaven desired to bring the inhabitants of the earth to unite with him in his warfare against the government of God. Adam and Eve had been perfectly happy in obedience to the law of God, and this fact was a constant testimony against the claim which Satan had urged in heaven, that God’s law was oppressive and opposed to the good of His creatures. And furthermore, Satan’s envy was excited as he looked upon the beautiful home prepared for the sinless pair. He determined to cause their fall, that, having separated them from God and brought them under his own power, he might gain possession of the earth and here establish his kingdom in opposition to the Most High.{DD 13.1}[1]
§5
如果撒但在伊甸园显露了自己的真面目，势必立时被斥退，因为亚当和夏娃早已受了警告，要提防这个危险的仇敌。所以他在暗中进行工作，掩饰了自己的毒计，以便更有效地达到目的。他所利用为媒介的，乃是当时极为美丽的蛇。他对夏娃说：“上帝岂是真说，不许你们吃园中所有树上的果子吗”（创3:1）？如果夏娃当时没有和这试探者交谈，她就不至于有什么危险。但她竟冒险与他周旋，结果便陷入他的圈套，成了他的掠物。今日有许多人也是这样被魔鬼所胜。他们对于上帝的律法进行怀疑和辩论，不但不顺从祂的命令，反倒接受人的理论，而这些理论不过是撒但诡计的伪装。{DD 13.2}[2]
§6
Had Satan revealed himself in his real character, he would have been repulsed at once, for Adam and Eve had been warned against this dangerous foe; but he worked in the dark, concealing his purpose, that he might more effectually accomplish his object. Employing as his medium the serpent, then a creature of fascinating appearance, he addressed himself to Eve: “Hath God said, ‘Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”?Genesis 3:1. Had Eve refrained from entering into argument with the tempter, she would have been safe; but she ventured to parley with him and fell a victim to his wiles. It is thus that many are still overcome. They doubt and argue concerning the requirements of God; and instead of obeying the divine commands, they accept human theories, which but disguise the devices of Satan.{DD 13.2}[2]
§7
【夏娃屈从了试探】
§8
“女人对蛇说：园中树上的果子我们可以吃，惟有园当中那棵树上的果子，上帝曾说，你们不可吃，也不可摸，免得你们死。蛇对女人说，你们不一定死，因为上帝知道，你们吃的日子眼睛就明亮了，你们便如上帝能知道善恶”（创3:2-5）。他说他们会像上帝一样，比先前更有智慧，并且可以度更高尚的生活。夏娃在试探之下屈服了。由于她的影响，亚当也跟着犯罪了。他们相信了蛇的话，说上帝所讲的话不是出于诚心的。他们不信任自己的创造主，以为祂是束缚他们的自由，并以为自己可以干犯祂的律法，藉以得到大智慧并且得到超越。{DD 13.3}[3]
§9
【Eve Yielded to Temptation】
§10
“The woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: but of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said?unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: for God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”Verses 2-5. He declared that they would become like God, possessing greater wisdom than before and being capable of a higher state of existence. Eve yielded to temptation; and through her influence, Adam was led into sin. They accepted the words of the serpent, that God did not mean what He said; they distrusted their Creator and imagined that He was restricting their liberty and that they might obtain great wisdom and exaltation by transgressing His law.?{DD 13.3}[3]
§11
但亚当在犯罪之后，对于“你吃的日子必定死”这句话，发现什么意思呢？是否真如撒但所言，使他达到更高的生存境地呢？如果真是这样，那么，犯罪就可大得利益，而撒但也必证明为人类的福星了。然而亚当对于上帝那一句话的体验却不是这样的。上帝宣布说，人类犯罪所必须受的刑罚乃是归回他所从之而出的尘土，“你本是尘土，仍要归于尘土”（创3:19）。撒但所说“你们吃的日子眼睛就明亮了”这句话只有在这一方面是对的。在亚当和夏娃违背上帝之后，他们的眼睛果然开了，但所看到的乃是自己的愚蠢。他们果然知道了恶事，并尝到了犯罪的苦果。{DD 14.1}[4]
§12
But what did Adam, after his sin, find to be the meaning of the words, “In the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die”? Did he find them to mean, as Satan had led him to believe, that he was to be ushered into a more exalted state of existence? Then indeed there was great good to be gained by transgression, and Satan was proved to be a benefactor of the race. But Adam did not find this to be the meaning of the divine sentence. God declared that as a penalty for his sin, man should return to the ground whence he was taken: “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”?Verse 19. The words of Satan, “Your eyes shall be opened,” proved to be true in this sense only: After Adam and Eve had disobeyed God, their eyes were opened to discern their folly; they did know evil, and they tasted the bitter fruit of transgression.{DD 14.1}[4]
§13
【犯罪取消了永生】
§14
在伊甸园当中长着生命树，它的果子有使人长生不老之功。亚当若顺从上帝，便可一直自由享用这棵树的果子，并可生存到永远。但在他犯罪之后，他便与这棵生命树隔绝，而成为必死的人了。那神圣的判语，“你本是尘土，仍要归于尘土，”说明了生命的全然灭绝。{DD 14.2}[5]
§15
【Immortality Forfeited by Transgression】
§16
In the midst of Eden grew the tree of life, whose fruit had the power of perpetuating life. Had Adam remained obedient to God, he would have continued to enjoy free access to this tree and would have lived forever. But when he sinned he was cut off from partaking of the tree of life, and he became subject to death. The divine sentence, “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return,” points to the utter extinction of life.{DD 14.2}[5]
§17
上帝曾应许人在顺从的条件之下，可以长生不老。但人类因犯罪而丧失了这个权利。亚当不能把自己所没有的传给子孙。所以上帝若没有牺牲自己的儿子，使人可以恢复永生，堕落犯罪的人类就毫无指望了。在“死就临到众人，因为众人都犯了罪”的时候，基督“藉着福音，将不能坏的生命彰显出来”（罗5:12;提后1:10）。唯有藉着基督，我们才能得永生。耶稣说：“信子的人有永生，不信子的人得不着永生”（约3:36）。只要人肯顺从这个条件，他们都可以得到这个无上的幸福。“凡恒心行善，寻求荣耀尊贵，和不能朽坏之福的，”都可以得到永生（罗2:7）。{DD 14.3}[6]
§18
Immortality, promised to man on condition of obedience, had been forfeited by transgression. Adam could not transmit to his posterity that which he did not possess; and there could have been no hope for the fallen race had not God, by the sacrifice of His Son, brought immortality within their reach. While “death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned,” Christ “hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel.”?Romans 5:12;?2 Timothy 1:10. And only through Christ can immortality be obtained. Said Jesus: “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life.”?John 3:36. Every man may come into possession of this priceless blessing if he will comply with the conditions. All “who by patient continuance in well-doing seek for glory and honor and immortality,” will receive “eternal life.”?Romans 2:7.{DD 14.3}[6]
§19
只有那大骗子撒但曾应许亚当可以在悖逆之中接受永生。蛇在伊甸园中对夏娃说：“你们不一定死，”这一句话乃是第一个主张灵魂不死的讲章。这种说法虽是完全以撒但的权威为根据，但各基督教会的讲台上都随声附和，并且大多数人也像我们的始祖一样，立即加以接受。上帝的判决乃是，“犯罪的，他必死亡”（结18:20）。但人却把它改成犯罪的必不死亡，反要永远存活。这不可思议的迷惑竟使人那么轻易相信撒但的话，而不相信上帝的话，真足令人惊异万分。{DD 14.4}[7]
§20
The only one who promised Adam life in disobedience was the great deceiver. And the declaration of the serpent to Eve in Eden—“Ye shall not surely die”—was the first sermon ever preached upon the immortality of the soul. Yet this declaration, resting solely?upon the authority of Satan, is echoed from the pulpits of Christendom and is received by the majority of mankind as readily as it was received by our first parents. The divine sentence, “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezekiel 18:20), is made to mean: The soul that sinneth, it shall not die, but live eternally. We cannot but wonder at the strange infatuation which renders men so credulous concerning the words of Satan and so unbelieving in regard to the words of God.?{DD 14.4}[7]
§21
如果人在犯罪堕落之后仍得自由享用生命树的果子，他就可以永远生存，而罪恶也就永远存在了。但有基路伯和发火焰的剑“把守生命树的道路”（创3:24），亚当家庭中的人就没有一个可以越过这道关口，去摘取生命树的果子了。因此，世上就没有一个永远不死的罪人。{DD 15.1}[8]
§22
Had man after his fall been allowed free access to the tree of life, he would have lived forever, and thus sin would have been immortalized. But cherubim and a flaming sword kept “the way of the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24), and not one of the family of Adam has been permitted to pass that barrier and partake of the life-giving fruit. Therefore there is not an immortal sinner.{DD 15.1}[8]
§23
但在人类犯罪堕落之后，撒但吩咐他的使者特别努力以灵魂不死的道理教训人。及至他引诱人类相信这个异端之后，他便要进一步使他们相信罪人必永远活在痛苦之中。这样，黑暗之君利用他的爪牙工具诬蔑上帝为一个性好报复的暴君，说祂要把一切祂所不喜悦的人投入地狱，使他们永远受祂的忿怒；并说，当他们在永远的火焰中因极度的痛苦而挣扎哀哭时，创造主便要隔岸观火得意扬扬了。{DD 15.2}[9]
§24
But after the Fall, Satan bade his angels make a special effort to inculcate the belief in man’s natural immortality; and having induced the people to receive this error, they were to lead them on to conclude that the sinner would live in eternal misery. Now the prince of darkness, working through his agents, represents God as a revengeful tyrant, declaring that He plunges into hell all those who do not please Him, and causes them ever to feel His wrath; and that while they suffer unutterable anguish and writhe in the eternal flames, their Creator looks down upon them with satisfaction.{DD 15.2}[9]
§25
【撒但的残忍和上帝的爱】
§26
藉着这种方法，这位大魔王就把自己的特性加在那创造并赐福与人类的主身上。撒但的特性就是残忍暴虐。但上帝却是爱。凡祂所创造的，尽是纯全、圣洁、可爱的。及至那第一个大叛徒把罪恶带进来之后，情形就不是这样了。撒但自己才是人类的仇敌，他先引诱人犯罪，随后又尽他所能的去毁灭那人，及至他确知那人已在掌握之中，他便要因自己所行的毁灭而欢欣鼓舞。如果上帝许可的话，他恨不得把全人类一网打尽。若不是上帝的权能阻挡他，亚当的子孙便没有一个能逃出他的魔掌。{DD 15.3}[10]
§27
【Satanic Cruelty vs. Divine Love】
§28
Thus the archfiend clothes with his own attributes the Creator and Benefactor of mankind. Cruelty is satanic. God is love; and all that He created was pure, holy, and lovely, until sin was brought in by the first great rebel. Satan himself is the enemy who tempts man to sin, and then destroys him if he can; and when he has made sure of his victim, then he exults in the ruin he has wrought. If permitted, he would sweep the entire race into his net. Were it not for the interposition of divine power, not one son or daughter of Adam would escape.{DD 15.3}[10]
§29
今日撒但正在设法要胜过人类，正如他胜过我们的始祖一样。他所用的手段就是摇动世人对于创造主的信任，并引诱他们怀疑上帝政权的智慧和祂律法的公正。撒但和他的使者把上帝形容得比他们更坏，藉以掩护他们自己的恶毒和叛逆。那大骗子尽力把自己极度残忍的性格加在我们天父的身上，藉以显明他自己是因为不顺服这极不公正的统治者而被逐出天庭的。如此，他表明自己是大受冤屈的。他向世人说明他们服在他的宽大政策之下所必能享受的自由，并以此与耶和华严酷之命令所加在他们身上的束缚作个对照。这样，他便很成功地引诱许多人不效忠上帝。{DD 15.4}[11]
§30
Satan is seeking to overcome men today, as he overcame our first parents, by shaking their confidence in their Creator and leading them to doubt the wisdom of His government and the justice of His laws. Satan and his emissaries represent God as even worse than themselves, in order to justify their own malignity and rebellion. The great deceiver endeavors to shift his own horrible cruelty of character upon our heavenly Father, that he may cause himself to appear as one greatly wronged by his expulsion from heaven because he would not submit to so unjust a governor. He presents before the world the liberty which they may enjoy under his mild sway, in contrast with the bondage imposed by the stern decrees of Jehovah.?Thus he succeeds in luring souls away from their allegiance to God.?{DD 15.4}[11]
§31
有人说，恶人死后要在地狱里受永远不灭之硫磺火的苦刑。他们犯罪的时间虽然短暂──顶多不过是今世的一生──但将来竟要永永远远受苦，象上帝的生命一样长久；这种道理是多么不符合上帝的爱心与怜悯啊！就是我们的正义感也不能容忍这事吧？然而这种道理现今还是到处流行，并且还列在许多教会的信条之中。……{DD 16.1}[12]
§32
How repugnant to every emotion of love and mercy, and even to our sense of justice, is the doctrine that the wicked dead are tormented with fire and brimstone in an eternally burning hell; that for the sins of a brief earthly life they are to suffer torture as long as God shall live. Yet this doctrine has been widely taught and is still embodied in many of the creeds of Christendom....{DD 16.1}[12]
§33
有许多人对于永久痛苦的道理起了反感，但他们却矫枉过正地犯了反面的错误。他们看出圣经所显示的上帝是一位仁爱怜悯的神，所以他们不相信祂会把祂所造的人投在永久的地狱中焚烧。同时他们既相信人的灵魂是永远不死的，所以他们便不得不作出结论说，到了最后，全体人类都必得救。许多人以为圣经上所有的严厉的话，其目的无非是要恫吓人去顺从而已，而实际上是不会实现的。这样，罪人就能在自私的宴乐中生活，不顾上帝的要求，而还能希望最后蒙祂悦纳。这种道理妄测上帝的慈悲，忽视祂的公正，徒快私欲之心，使恶人在罪孽中胆大妄为。……{DD 16.2}[13]
§34
A large class to whom the doctrine of eternal torment is revolting are driven to the opposite error. They see that the Scriptures represent God as a being of love and compassion, and they cannot believe that He will consign His creatures to the fires of an eternally burning hell. But holding that the soul is naturally immortal, they see no alternative but to conclude that all mankind will finally be saved. Many regard the threatenings of the Bible as designed merely to frighten men into obedience, and not to be literally fulfilled. Thus the sinner can live in selfish pleasure, disregarding the requirements of God, and yet expect to be finally received into His favor. Such a doctrine, presuming upon God’s mercy, but ignoring His justice, pleases the carnal heart and emboldens the wicked in their iniquity....{DD 16.2}[13]
§35
如果一个人在断气之时真能直接升天，我们现在尽可以贪爱死亡过于生存了。真有不少人被这种信仰所迷惑，结束了自己的性命。每遇困难、烦恼、失望的打击时，人若要割断自己的命脉，而翱翔于永生的极乐世界，这似乎不是一种难事。{DD 16.3}[14]
§36
If it were true that the souls of all men passed directly to heaven at the hour of dissolution, then we might well covet death rather than life. Many have been led by this belief to put an end to their existence. When overwhelmed with trouble, perplexity, and disappointment, it seems an easy thing to break the brittle thread of life and soar away into the bliss of the eternal world.{DD 16.3}[14]
§37
上帝在祂的圣经中已经给人明确的凭据，说明祂必刑罚一切干犯祂律法的人。但有一些人以虚言自欺自慰，以为上帝非常慈悲，不会向罪人执行报应的。他们只要一看髑髅地的十字架，便可明白真相了。上帝无瑕无疵之圣子的死证明“罪的工价乃是死”。每一个干犯上帝律法的人必然受到公正的报应。无罪的基督为人类成了罪，担当了干犯律法的罪债，被上帝掩面不看，直到祂的心碎肠断，生命断绝，这一切的牺牲原是要使罪人能以得救。除此之外，别无方法使世人脱离罪的刑罚。凡拒绝这附有重大代价的赎罪救恩的人，就必须自己担当罪的刑罚。……{DD 16.4}[15]
§38
God has given in His word decisive evidence that He will punish the transgressors of His law. Those who flatter themselves that He is too merciful to execute justice upon the sinner, have only to look to the cross of Calvary. The death of the spotless Son of God testifies that “the wages of sin is death,” that every violation of God’s law must receive its just retribution. Christ the sinless became sin for man. He bore the guilt of transgression, and the hiding of His Father’s face, until His heart was broken and His life crushed out. All this sacrifice was made that sinners might be redeemed. In no other way could man be freed from the penalty of sin. And every soul that refuses to become a partaker of the atonement provided at such a cost must bear in his own person the guilt and punishment of transgression....{DD 16.4}[15]
§39
【人类决定自己的命运】
§40
难道那些一生反抗上帝的人能立即变化升天，眼见那里常存着崇高、圣洁、完美的景象吗？──那里人人心中充满着爱，个个脸上焕发着喜乐的光辉，又有美妙的音乐颂赞上帝和羔羊。坐宝座者的圣颜不断放射荣光在得救者的身上，──难道那些满心恨恶上帝，恨恶真理和圣洁的人们，能够混杂在天庭群众之中，并同声歌唱赞美吗？他们见到上帝与羔羊的荣耀，能忍受得住吗？──断乎不能。上帝已经赐给他们许多年的恩典时期，使他们可以造就合乎天庭的品格，他们却一直没有训练自己去爱慕纯洁，一直没有学习天国的语言，此时是悔之晚矣。他们那种反抗上帝的人生，使他们不配居住天上。那里的纯全，圣洁与和平只能使他们坐立不安，极端苦恼，在他们，上帝的荣耀要成为可怕的烈火。他们要速速逃离那圣洁的地方。他们要欢迎灭亡，以便逃避那为救赎他们而舍命的主。恶人的命运乃是出于他们自己的选择。他们的远离天庭乃是出于他们的自愿；在上帝一方面，这也是公正而慈悲的。……{DD 16.5}[16]
§41
【Man Fixes His Own Destiny】
§42
Could those whose lives have been spent in rebellion against God be suddenly transported to heaven and witness the high, the holy state of perfection that ever exists there,—every soul filled with love, every countenance beaming with joy, enrapturing music in melodious strains rising in honor of God and the Lamb, and ceaseless streams of light flowing upon the redeemed from the face of Him who sitteth upon the throne,—could those whose hearts are filled with hatred of God, of truth and holiness, mingle with the heavenly throng and jointheir songs of praise? Could they endure the glory of God and the Lamb? No, no; years of probation were granted them, that they might form characters for heaven; but they have never trained the mind to love purity; they have never learned the language of heaven, and now it is too late. A life of rebellion against God has unfitted them for heaven. Its purity, holiness, and peace would be torture to them; the glory of God would be a consuming fire. They would long to flee from that holy place. They would welcome destruction, that they might be hidden from the face of Him who died to redeem them. The destiny of the wicked is fixed by their own choice. Their exclusion from heaven is voluntary with themselves, and just and merciful on the part of God....?{DD 16.5}[16]
§43
灵魂不死的神学理论乃是罗马教从异教迷信中拿来混合在基督信仰里的谬论之一。马丁.路德把它列在“那组成罗马教皇谕旨的粪堆的许多荒唐虚谈”之中（E. Petavel,《永生问题》255页）。论到所罗门在《传道书》中所说死人毫无知觉的话，这位宗教改革家评注说：“这又是一个凭据，证明死人是毫无知觉的。他说那里没有知识，没有智慧。所罗门认定死人都是在睡觉，是没有知觉的。他们躺下，不知时日岁月，及至醒了，只觉得是假寐片时而已”（马丁.路德《传道书》注释152页）。{DD 17.1}[17]
§44
The theory of the immortality of the soul was one of those false doctrines that Rome, borrowing from paganism, incorporated into the religion of Christendom. Martin Luther classed it with the “monstrous fables that form part of the Roman dunghill of decretals.”—E. Petavel,The Problem of Immortality, page 255. Commenting on the words of Solomon in Ecclesiastes, that the dead know not anything, the Reformer says: “Another place proving that the dead have no ... feeling. There is, saith he, no duty, no science, no knowledge, no wisdom there. Solomon judgeth that the dead are asleep, and feel nothing at all. For the dead lie there, accounting neither days nor years, but when they are awaked, they shall seem to have slept scarce one minute.”—Martin Luther,?Exposition of Solomon’s Booke Called Ecclesiastes, page 152.{DD 17.1}[17]
§45
圣经中无论何处，都找不出话来说在人死时，义者得报赏，恶者受刑罚。先祖与先知都没有留下这一类的话。基督与使徒们也没有这样的提示。圣经很清楚地教训人说，死人并非立刻升天。他们乃是象睡觉一样，一直睡到复活（帖前4:14;伯14:10-12）。在“银链折断，金罐破裂”之日（传12:6），人的思想就消灭了。凡下到坟墓的，乃是在寂静之中。日光之下的一切事物，他是毫无所知的（伯14:21）。对于疲劳的义人，这是可幸的安睡，时日或久或暂，在他们只觉得是瞬息之间。他们睡着了，并要被上帝的号筒所唤醒，以便承受光荣的永生。“因号筒要响，死人要复活成为不朽坏的，……这必朽坏的，既变成不朽坏的，这必死的，既变成不死的，那时经上所记，死被得胜吞灭的话就应验了”（林前15:52-54）。当他们从深沉的睡眠中被唤醒时，他们的思想也必恢复先前断气时所停止的潮流。他们最后的感觉是临死的痛苦，最后的思想是自己正落到坟墓的权势之下。及至他们从坟墓中出来，他们第一个快乐的思想，将要流露于那胜利的喊声：“死啊，你得胜的权势在哪里？死啊，你的毒钩在哪里”（林前15:55）？ {DD 17.2}[18]
§46
Nowhere in the Sacred Scriptures is found the statement that the righteous go to their reward or the wicked to their punishment at death. The patriarchs and prophets have left no such assurance. Christ and His apostles have given no hint of it. The Bible clearly teaches that the dead do not go immediately to heaven. They are represented as sleeping until the resurrection.?1 Thessalonians 4:14;?Job 14:10-12. In the very day when the silver cord is loosed and the golden bowl broken (Ecclesiastes 12:6), man’s thoughts perish. They that go down to the grave are in silence. They know no more of anything that is done under the sun.?Job 14:21. Blessed rest for the weary righteous! Time, be it long or short, is but a moment to them. They sleep; they are awakened by the trump of God to a glorious immortality. “For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible.... So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.”?1 Corinthians 15:52-54. As they are called forth from their deep slumber they begin to think just where they ceased. The last sensation was the pang of death; the last thought, that they were falling beneath the power of the grave. When they arise from the tomb, their first glad thought will be echoed in the triumphal shout: “O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory?”?Verse 55.{DD 17.2}[18]