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《救恩之道浅明解说:》阿奇博尔德·亚历山大所著:TheWayofSalvationFamiliarly – Archibald Alexander

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    THE WAY OF SALVATION, PART I.

    救恩之道,第一部分

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    [The names of the children were John, fifteen years of age ; Benjamin, thirteen ; Rufiis, ten; and Mary, eight.]

    [孩子们分别是:十五岁的约翰(John)、十三岁的本杰明(Benjamin)、十岁的鲁弗斯(Rufus)和八岁的玛丽(Mary)。]

    [The speakers will be designated by the initial letter of each name; the letter F, standing for father.]

    [发言者将用各自名字的首字母表示,其中字母F代表父亲(Father)。]

    F. Come, my children, as our evening meal is over, and the weather is serene and temperate, let us take our seats under the shady trees, which overhang the brook, at the back of the garden, and spend an hour in conversation.

    F. 来吧,孩子们,既然我们的晚餐已经结束,天气又如此晴朗宜人,让我们到花园后面那些垂在小溪上的树荫下坐坐,一起聊会儿天。

    M. O how I am delighted to hear you say this! I remember how many pleasant evenings we spent under those large oaks, last summer, and how many pleasant stories you told us, all out of the Bible.

    M. 哦,听您这样说我真高兴!我记得去年夏天,我们在那些大橡树下度过了多少愉快的夜晚,您给我们讲了多少圣经里的有趣故事。

    J. I have made it a practice to spend some time in that retired spot, evening and morning, for some weeks past, and I have wondered how so many people could prefer lying a-bed, to breathing the sweet air of the garden and groves, early in the morning.

    J. 这几周以来,我养成了早晚都要在那个幽静地方待一会儿的习惯,我真不明白为什么那么多人宁愿赖在床上,也不愿意一大早就到花园和树林里呼吸清新的空气。

    B. I love the place too, there are so many birds, warbling their notes in the branches; and so many gay butterflies sailing through the air, and gracefully lighting on the ground.

    B. 我也喜欢那个地方,那里有那么多鸟儿在树枝上婉转鸣叫;还有那么多美丽的蝴蝶在空中飞舞,优雅地落在地上。

    R. Father, don’t you remember what a nice summer-house we built, last summer, and how we covered it with boughs, and gathered the green soft moss for seats.

    R. 父亲,您还记得吗,去年夏天我们建造了一个多么好的凉亭,我们用树枝把它盖起来,还收集了柔软的绿色苔藓做座椅。

    M. O yes, I remember, that I gathered a basket full of wild flowers, and stuck them all around the summer-house, just as if they had grown there; but the next time we came, they were all drooping, and almost withered.
    玛丽:哦,是的,我记得,我采了一篮子野花,把它们都插在凉亭四周,就好像是它们在那里生长的一样;但是下次我们来的时候,它们都蔫了,几乎都枯萎了。

    F. And have you forgotten what I said these fading flowers were an emblem of?
    父亲:你忘记了我说过这些凋零的花是什么的象征吗?

    M. I don’t know what an emblem means.
    玛丽:我不知道象征是什么意思。

    F. An emblem, my daughter, is any natural or visible thing, which has a resemblance to some moral or spiritual thing.
    父亲:我的女儿,象征就是任何自然的或可见的事物,它与某些道德或精神上的事物有相似之处。

    J. I remember well, that father said those flowers were an emblem of youth and beauty which must soon wither and fade, as did these flowers.
    约翰:我清楚地记得,父亲说那些花是青春和美丽的象征,它们终将像这些花一样凋谢和消逝。

    B. Father, will you now tell us some pleasant story?
    本杰明:父亲,您现在能给我们讲个有趣的故事吗?

    F. My son, we must not be too fond of pleasant things. We must think of what will be profitable. Of late I have felt a great solicitude for the salvation of the souls of my dear children, and I wish now to speak to you of your need of a Saviour.
    父亲:我的儿子,我们不能过分沉迷于愉快的事物。我们必须思考什么是有益的。最近我非常关心我亲爱的孩子们灵魂的救赎,现在我想和你们谈谈你们需要救主的事。

    During this conversation, they arrived at the place, and took their seats.
    在谈话期间,他们到达了目的地,坐了下来。

    J. I am glad to hear you mention that subject, for I heard Mr. Ambrose preach, some weeks ago, on the “worth of the soul.” He said that it was more valuable than a thousand worlds, and the loss of it could never be repaired. I have been thinking much about it; and without my seeking, it comes into my mind, and all this day, my thoughts have been running upon it.
    约翰:我很高兴听到您提到这个话题,因为几周前我听安布罗斯先生讲道,讲的是”灵魂的价值”。他说灵魂比千万个世界都更有价值,一旦失去就永远无法弥补。我一直在思考这件事;即使我没有刻意去想,它也会浮现在我的脑海中,整天我的思绪都围绕着这个话题。

    M. I wish, father, you would tell me what the soul is. I never saw my own soul, or the soul of any one. I do not know what it is like.
    玛丽:父亲,我希望您能告诉我灵魂是什么。我从未见过我自己的灵魂,也没见过任何人的灵魂。我不知道它是什么样子的。

    F. On many subjects, we are all children alike. My dear daughter, I know as little of the nature of a soul as you do. A spirit cannot be seen nor felt, because it has no flesh nor bones. But we know that the soul exists, as certainly as we know anything whatever.
    父亲:在许多问题上,我们都像孩子一样。我亲爱的女儿,对于灵魂的本质,我知道的和你一样少。灵不能被看见也不能被触摸,因为它没有肉体和骨头。但是我们确信灵魂是存在的,就像我们确信任何其他事物一样。

    M. I know what I see and feel, better than that I have a soul.
    玛丽:我对我所看到和感觉到的东西的认知,比我有灵魂这件事更确定。

    This book which I hold in my hand, I can see and feel, but cannot see and feel my soul.
    我手中拿着的这本书,我能看到也能感觉到,但我看不到也感觉不到我的灵魂。

    I feel surer that I hold this book, than I can be of what 1 never saw.
    我对我手持这本书更有把握,而不是对我从未见过的东西。

    F. My child, you deceive yourself Who sees that book?
    父亲:我的孩子,你在欺骗自己。是谁在看这本书?

    M. Why I see it with my eyes, and feel it with my fingers.
    玛丽:我用眼睛看到它,用手指感觉到它。

    F. But who is this you call I. Is not that your soul?
    父亲:但你说的这个”我”是谁?这不就是你的灵魂吗?

    If you had nothing besides your body, you would know no more about that book than the stone under your feet does.
    如果你除了身体之外一无所有,你对这本书的认知就不会比你脚下的石头多。

    Your eyes, and your fingers, are only instruments that bring sight and feeling to your spiritual part; which, in mankind, is called the mind or soul.
    你的眼睛和手指只是将视觉和感觉传递给你精神部分的工具;在人类中,这被称为心智或灵魂。

    If there is any difference, we are more certain that we have a soul, or that the soul is ourself, than of any other thing; for every time we see, or feel, or hear, or taste, or smell, we are conscious, that is, we are certain in ourselves, that our soul sees, feels, hears, tastes, and smells.
    如果要说有什么不同的话,我们对拥有灵魂,或者说灵魂就是我们自己这件事,比对任何其他事情都更确定;因为每当我们看到、感觉到、听到、品尝到或闻到什么时,我们都有意识,也就是说,我们确信我们的灵魂在看、感觉、听、品尝和闻。

    Try, Mary, to stop thinking for one moment.
    玛丽,试着停止思考一会儿。

    M. I cannot, for when I try, I am all the time thinking about trying.
    玛丽:我做不到,因为当我尝试时,我一直在想着要尝试。

    F. Well, can any thing think but a soul? Every moment, therefore, you have a certainty that you have a soul.
    父亲:那么,除了灵魂之外还有什么能思考吗?因此,每一刻你都确定你有一个灵魂。

    M. But after all, I do not know what the soul is.
    玛丽:但是总的来说,我不知道灵魂是什么。

    F. No, nor do I, except that it is that which thinks, and feels.
    父亲:是的,我也不知道,只知道它是能思考和感觉的东西。

    But we know as little of what we see and feel.
    但是对于我们所看到和感觉到的东西,我们知道得也很少。

    Here is a pebble; you see it is white and round.
    这里有一块鹅卵石;你看到它是白色的,圆形的。

    You take it in your hand, and it is smooth and fills up a certain space, so that you cannot shut your hand close.
    你把它拿在手中,感觉它光滑,占据着一定的空间,以至于你无法完全握紧你的手。

    But what is that which is round and white and smooth and extended? You can tell no more about it, than you can of your soul.
    但是这个圆的、白的、光滑的、有延展性的东西到底是什么?你对它的了解,并不比对你的灵魂的了解多。

    R. Father, does the soul grow like the body! and is the soul of a man larger than that of a child ?
    孩子:父亲,灵魂会像身体一样生长吗?成人的灵魂比孩童的灵魂更大吗?

    F. You have fallen into a common error. You are endeavouring to give to a spirit the properties of a body. Size and shape belong to matter but not to spirit. But in one sense the soul grows as much as the body, and may grow long after the body has reached its full size. The soul increases or grows in two ways; first, its faculties are by degrees brought into exercise and become more vigorous from day to day; and again, the mmd is enlarged by an increase of knowledge.
    父亲:你陷入了一个常见的错误。你试图将身体的特性赋予灵魂。大小和形状属于物质,而不属于灵魂。但从某种意义上说,灵魂确实和身体一样会成长,而且在身体达到完全大小后仍可继续成长。灵魂以两种方式增长:首先,它的能力逐渐得到锻炼,日益强健;其次,心智通过知识的增长而扩展。

    J. I like to hear you converse about the nature of the soul, but what I most want to hear is about the salvation of the soul; for what good would it do me to know ever so much about my soul, if at last it should be lost? I cannot help thinking about our pastor’s text~»What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul, or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
    孩子:我喜欢听您谈论灵魂的本质,但我最想听的是关于灵魂得救的事;如果最终灵魂迷失了,那么知道再多关于灵魂的事又有什么用呢?我不禁想起我们牧师的经文:”人若赚得全世界,赔上自己的灵魂,有什么益处呢?人还能拿什么换生命呢?”

    F. I am pleased, my son, to hear you speak so seriously about the worth of the soul. To secure its salvation is surely the one thing needful.
    父亲:我的孩子,听到你如此认真地谈论灵魂的价值,我很高兴。确保灵魂得救确实是最重要的事。

    B. I wish, Father, you would explain how the soul came to be in need of salvation; for our pastor said that if it were not lost, it could not be saved. Now, I thought that if it never had been lost, it would be sure to be saved. And would not man have been saved, if he had never sinned?
    孩子:父亲,我希望您能解释灵魂为什么需要得救;因为我们的牧师说,如果没有迷失,就不需要得救。我原以为如果从未迷失,就一定会得救。如果人从未犯罪,难道不是已经得救了吗?

    F. He would have been safe and happy as the angels are, but he could not with propriety be said to be saved. A man who has never been sick is well, but you cannot say he is healed. That applies only to such as have been sick. To save any one is to deliver him from ruin, into which he has fallen or to which he is exposed. None can be saved, therefore, but lost sinners.
    父亲:他本可以像天使一样安全快乐,但严格来说不能说他得救了。一个从未生病的人是健康的,但你不能说他被治愈了。治愈只适用于曾经生病的人。拯救某人就是将他从已陷入或可能陷入的毁灭中解救出来。因此,只有迷失的罪人才能得救。

    B. I understand this now ; but how did we all become sinners? A holy God could not create us sinners.
    孩子:我现在明白了;但我们是如何都成为罪人的呢?一位圣洁的上帝不可能创造我们成为罪人。

    F. No, my son, to say this would be blasphemy. God created every thing good according- to its kind. And it is declared that he made man “in his own image, and after his own likeness;” that is, he was created in knowledge and holiness.
    父亲:不,我的孩子,说这样的话是亵渎。上帝创造的万物都是按其类别而善的。而且经上说,他”照着自己的形象,按着自己的样式”造人,就是说,人被创造时具有知识和圣洁。

    I think, Benjamin, you could answer your own questions if you would only recollect your Catechism, which you repeated last evening.
    本杰明,我想如果你能回想起昨晚背诵的教理问答,你就能自己回答这些问题了。

    “Did our first parents continue in the estate wherein they were created?”
    “我们的始祖是否持续保持着他们被创造时的状态?”

    B. “Our first parents being left to the freedom of their own will, fell from the estate wherein they were created, by sinning against God.”
    本杰明:”我们的始祖被赋予了自由意志,因违背上帝而从被造的状态中堕落了。”

    F. Very well, there you have it; and what is the Scripture proof which you learn?
    父亲:很好,你说得对。那么你学到的圣经证据是什么?

    B. “As by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin, so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned.”
    本杰明:”因一人罪入了世界,死又是从罪来的,于是死就临到众人,因为众人都犯了罪。”

    B. But, Father, how could one man’s sinning make all men sinners?
    本杰明:但是,父亲,一个人的犯罪怎么会使所有人都成为罪人呢?

    F. In two ways. All Adam’s posterity are made sinners by his sinning: First, because he stood for them, and acted for them, in what is called the first covenant: that is, the agreement which God made with Adam that if he obeyed him he should live, but that if he disobeyed him, he should die.
    父亲:这有两个方面。亚当的所有后裔都因他的罪成为罪人:第一,因为他在所谓的第一个约中代表并为他们行事:这就是上帝与亚当所立的约,如果他顺服就得生命,如果他悖逆就必死。

    Thus, when Adam sinned, and so broke that covenant, all mankind sinned in him, or his sin was theirs also, because they were included in the covenant. Secondly, our first parents having lost the image of God, and corrupted their nature, their posterity are all born in the same destitute and corrupt state. What other text have you on this subject?
    因此,当亚当犯罪并违背了那个约时,全人类都在他里面犯了罪,或者说他的罪也是他们的罪,因为他们都包含在这个约中。第二,我们的始祖失去了上帝的形象,并且败坏了他们的本性,他们的后裔都生来就处于同样缺乏和败坏的状态。关于这个主题,你还记得其他经文吗?

    B. We “were by nature, children of wrath, even as others.”
    我们”生来就是可怒之子,和别人一样。”

    “I was shapen in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.”
    “我是在罪孽里生的,在我母亲怀胎的时候就有了罪。”

    M. Why, I thought some people were good and some bad.
    为什么,我以为有些人天生就是好人,有些人是坏人。

    F. No, my child, “there is none righteous, no not one.” “All have gone out of the way.” “There is none that doeth good.”
    不,我的孩子,”没有义人,连一个也没有。””都是偏离正路。””没有行善的。”

    M. Dear father, are you not good? Yes you are, I know you are.
    亲爱的父亲,您不是好人吗?是的,您是好人,我知道您是好人。

    F. No, my child, I am by nature no better than others, and if I now differ from the worst of men, it is all owing to grace.
    不,我的孩子,我本性上并不比别人好,如果我现在与最坏的人有所不同,那完全是因为恩典。

    “By the grace of God I am what I am.” I have daily evidence of the most convincing kind, that in me, that is in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing.” For every good thought and feeling, for every good word and work, I am indebted to the grace of God.
    “我今日成为何等人,是蒙神的恩才成的。”我每天都有最令人信服的证据,在我里面,就是在我肉体之中,没有良善。”每一个善念和感受,每一句善言和善行,都是我亏欠神的恩典。

    M. And our minister, was he born in sin?
    那么我们的牧师,他也是生在罪中的吗?

    F. Yes, my child, he confesses it every time he prays, and this is the doctrine which he preaches every Sabbath.
    是的,我的孩子,他每次祷告时都承认这一点,这也是他每个安息日所传讲的教义。

    J. How does it come to pass, that while all are sinners by nature, and without holiness, some men are moral and amiable from their childhood, and others are wicked all their lives’?
    既然所有人本性都是罪人,都没有圣洁,那么为什么有些人从小就道德高尚、可亲可爱,而其他人一生都很邪恶呢?

    F. It is not owing- to any essential difference in natural character, but some persons are from their youth under various restraints, which keep them from running so far astray in their actions as many others.
    F. 这并非由于天性的本质差异,而是因为有些人从年轻时就受到各种约束,使他们不会像其他许多人那样在行为上偏离太远。

    Early instruction, a fear of shame, a dread of punishment, and the absence of strong temptations, are the means of restraining many.
    早期教育、对羞耻的恐惧、对惩罚的畏惧,以及没有强烈的诱惑,这些都是约束许多人的手段。

    To all which, we may add the secret influence of the Spirit, in what are called his common operations, by which they are kept in a state of tender moral feeling, and are sometimes under strong convictions of their sin and danger.
    对此,我们还可以加上圣灵那种被称为普遍运作的秘密影响,这使他们保持着敏感的道德感受,有时也会对自己的罪和危险产生强烈的认识。

    M. Are no children good from their earliest age? May not young children be made good as well as grown people?
    M. 难道没有孩子从最早的年龄就是善良的吗?难道年幼的孩子不能像成年人一样变得善良吗?

    F. They may be sanctified from their birth, as was John the Baptist, and Jeremiah, and perhaps Samuel; but experience teaches, that few give evidence that this has been their case.
    F. 他们可能从出生就被圣化,就像施洗约翰、耶利米,也许还有撒母耳那样;但经验告诉我们,很少有人能证明这确实是他们的情况。

    M. What then becomes of young children? If they are born in sin must they not be lost?
    M. 那么年幼的孩子会怎么样呢?如果他们生来就有罪,难道不会迷失吗?

    F. Now, my child, you are indulging a vain curiosity. What good can it do you to know what becomes of those who die in infancy?God has not told us, and we ought not curiously to inquire into secret things which belong to God. We know that God can save them, and we have no evidence that he will not.
    F. 现在,我的孩子,你在放纵一种无谓的好奇心。知道那些夭折的婴儿会怎样对你有什么好处呢?上帝没有告诉我们,我们也不应该好奇地探究属于上帝的秘密事物。我们知道上帝能够拯救他们,而且我们没有证据表明他不会这样做。

    M. Perhaps it would have been better for me if I had died when my dear mother was taken away. Nurse says my life was despaired of.
    M. 也许当我亲爱的母亲离去时,如果我也死去会更好。保姆说当时大家都对我的生命不抱希望。

    F. Now, Mary, you are sinning against God, by unthankfulness for the goodness which has preserved your life, and raised you up from the borders of the grave.
    F. 玛丽,现在你正在得罪上帝,因为你对保全你生命、使你从死亡边缘复原的恩典表现出不感恩。

    It is true, if you continue in impenitence until you die, it would have been infinitely better for you to have died before you committed actual sin; but life, especially under the gospel dispensation, is a blessing for which we are bound to be thankful.
    诚然,如果你一直不悔改直到死亡,那么在你犯下实际罪行之前就死去对你来说会好得多;但生命,尤其是在福音恩典之下的生命,是我们必须感恩的恩赐。

    For now you have opportunity to hear the Gospel, and if you believe, and repent of your sins, you will be saved.
    因为现在你有机会听到福音,如果你相信并为你的罪悔改,你就会得救。

    Why then should you wish that you had died?
    那么,你为什么要希望自己已经死去呢?

    I hope you will never again utter such a speech.
    我希望你永远不要再说出这样的话。

    Your dear mother, when dying, requested—and it was her last request—that if you lived, you should be brought up “in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,” and she, with her latest breath, commended you to God.
    你亲爱的母亲在临终时要求——这是她最后的要求——如果你活下来,你应该在”主的教养和警戒中”长大,她用最后一口气将你托付给上帝。

    And now, my dear child, it is your duty, it is for your salvation to turn unto God with all your heart.
    现在,我亲爱的孩子,这是你的责任,为了你的救赎,要全心全意地归向上帝。

    Seek the Lord early while he may be found.
    趁着可寻找的时候早早寻求主。

    J. If man had not sinned, as he would have needed no salvation, of course no Saviour would have been provided; but what I wish to know is, why God could not save sinners without sending his own Son to die.
    J. 如果人没有犯罪,他就不需要救赎,当然就不会需要救主;但我想知道的是,为什么上帝不能不派他的儿子来死就拯救罪人。

    I know that man is in a ruined state, and must perish unless he is saved from it; but why could not God, if he desired it, stretch out his omnipotent arm and rescue him?
    我知道人处于毁灭的状态,除非得救否则必定灭亡;但为什么上帝如果愿意的话,不能伸出他全能的手臂拯救他呢?

    F. God is under no obligation to save any sinner.
    上帝没有义务拯救任何罪人。

    As his law is just and good, he might let it have its course, and inflict deserved punishment on all who transgress.
    因为他的律法是公正和良善的,他可以任其自然,对所有违法者施以应得的惩罚。

    Thus he passed by the fallen angels, and left them to their doom, and thus in regard to the children of men, he shows mercy to whom he will— choosing some nations, and leaving others in the darkness of idolatry; electing some persons to life, and leaving others to pursue their own course.
    因此他越过堕落的天使,让他们承受命运,同样对于人类,他随己意施予怜悯——选择某些国家,让其他国家处于偶像崇拜的黑暗中;拣选某些人得生命,让其他人随自己的道路而行。

    But when he determines to save sinners, it must be in a way consistent with the holiness of his nature, and not derogatory to his law.
    但当他决定拯救罪人时,必须以符合他圣洁本性的方式进行,且不损害他的律法。

    Sinners cannot be saved by a mere exertion of Almighty Power.
    罪人不能仅仅通过全能力量的施展而得救。

    The hinderance cannot thus be removed.
    这样的阻碍无法被消除。

    God must be just in justifying the ungodly.
    上帝在称不敬虔的人为义时必须保持公义。

    The law of God must be satisfied, or the sinner cannot be saved.
    上帝的律法必须得到满足,否则罪人无法得救。

    This rendered it necessary that there should be a mediator; and he must be one who could make satisfaction to law and justice, for the sins of men.
    这使得必须有一位中保;而且他必须是能够为人的罪satisf律法和公义的那一位。

    None could do this, but the Son of God; and the Son of God could reconcile men to God, only by becoming man.
    除了上帝的儿子,没有人能做到这一点;而上帝的儿子只有通过成为人,才能使人与上帝和好。

    J. I always think of this with wonder.
    我总是带着惊叹思考这件事。

    It seems to me the most wonderful thing in the Bible.
    这在我看来是圣经中最奇妙的事。

    I often ask myself, “how could the Son of God become man?”
    我经常问自己:”上帝的儿子怎么能成为人?”

    M. Brother, I can tell you out of the Catechism. ” The Son of God became man by taking to himself a true body and a reasonable soul, being conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the Virgin Mary, and born of her, yet without sin.”
    弟兄,我可以从教理问答中告诉你。”上帝的儿子成为人,取了真实的身体和理性的灵魂,由圣灵的大能在童贞女马利亚的腹中成胎,从她而生,却无罪。”

    R. I never thought before that the Catechism could teach us so many things.
    我从前从未想过教理问答能教给我们这么多东西。

    F. Well, my son, I hope you will hereafter be more attentive to commit the Catechism perfectly to memory, and also some few texts of scripture which are annexed to each question to prove the doctrine; for if the Catechism did not teach according to the Holy Scriptures, it would be of no authority. It was intended to contain a short summary of what is in the Bible.
    好的,我的孩子,我希望你今后能更加用心地将教理问答完全记在心中,还有附在每个问题后用来证明教义的一些经文;因为如果教理问答不是按照圣经教导,它就没有任何权威。它的本意是包含圣经内容的简要概述。

    R. Why are there different kinds of Catechisms’? At our Sunday School some learn the Shorter Catechism, which we use, but others recite the Heidelberg Catechism ; and William Van Sickle says, that their minister hears all the children in his congregation from that Catechism every Saturday afternoon, in the lecture room.
    为什么会有不同种类的教理问答?在我们主日学校,有些人学习我们使用的小要理问答,但其他人则背诵海德堡教理问答;威廉·范西克尔说,他们的牧师每个星期六下午都在讲堂里听会众中的所有孩子背诵那个教理问答。

    F. My son, that is the Catechism which has for a long time been used in the Reformed Dutch Church in Holland, and when the Dutch settled in this country they brought it with them;
    儿子,这就是长期以来在荷兰改革宗教会使用的要理问答,当荷兰人在这个国家定居时,他们也把它带来了;

    but my ancestors were from Scotland, where the Westminster Catechisms have been long in use, and they have been adopted as the Catechisms of the Presbyterian Church.
    但我的祖先来自苏格兰,那里长期使用威斯敏斯特要理问答,这些要理问答已被长老会教会采用。

    The Shorter Catechism has always been highly valued, and much used by the Congregationalists of both Old and New England.
    简短要理问答一直备受推崇,在新英格兰和旧英格兰的公理会教徒中广泛使用。

    But the Heidelberg Catechism has been more extensively used than any one composed by the Reformers.
    但海德堡要理问答比改革家们编写的任何要理问答都使用得更广泛。

    All the reformed churches on the continent of Europe adopted this Catechism.
    欧洲大陆上所有的改革宗教会都采用了这个要理问答。

    These two Catechisms perfectly agree in doctrine, and only differ in words and method.
    这两种要理问答在教义上完全一致,只是在用词和方法上有所不同。

    J. Father, if it would not take too much time, I should like to hear you state the reasons why man needs a Saviour, and afterwards show that Christ is just such a Saviour as the sinner needs.
    父亲,如果不会花太多时间的话,我想听您说明为什么人需要救主,然后再说明基督正是罪人所需要的那样一位救主。

    F. My son, I will do my best to satisfy you.
    儿子,我会尽我所能让你满意。

    The subject is important beyond conception, and I humbly pray that I may be guided so as to hold forth the truth of God, and nothing but the truth.
    这个主题重要得难以想象,我谦卑地祈祷,愿我能被引导,只传讲上帝的真理,除此之外别无他物。

    I will enter on the task with the more pleasure, because I hope that you are beginning sincerely to inquire after the way of salvation.
    我会怀着更大的喜悦开始这项任务,因为我希望你正在真诚地寻求救恩之道。

    And I beg of you all, my dear children, to give diligent heed to the instructions of your affectionate father, or rather to the counsels of God, your Heavenly Father; for his word is able, through faith in Christ Jesus, to make you wise unto salvation.
    亲爱的孩子们,我恳请你们所有人,要专心听从你们慈爱父亲的教导,或者更确切地说,要听从上帝——你们天父的指引;因为通过在基督耶稣里的信心,祂的话语能使你们有得救的智慧。

    R. Father, when we do not understand any thing, may we ask you to explain it?
    父亲,当我们有不明白的地方时,可以请您解释吗?

    F. Certainly you may, and it will afford me pleasure to give you all the information I can.
    当然可以,为你们提供我所知道的一切信息会让我感到欣慰。

    I never feel more in the way of my duty, and no duty affords me more heart-felt pleasure than to instill divine truth into the minds of my children, especially when I find them ready to hear and eager to learn.
    我从未觉得尽责比现在更有意义,没有什么责任能比向孩子们灌输神圣真理带给我更多由衷的喜悦,尤其是当我发现他们准备好倾听并渴望学习的时候。

    J. I wish you would begin with that want of the sinner, which is most pressing and most heavily felt.
    我希望您能从罪人最迫切、最深切感受到的需要开始讲起。

    When the jailer at Philippi, asked, What must I do to be saved? what want did he feel, what kind of salvation did he inquire after?
    当腓立比的狱卒问道:”我当怎样行才可以得救?”他感受到了什么样的需要,他在寻求什么样的救恩?

    F. Your suggestion is very reasonable. Often for the sake of proceeding systematically in our instructions, we begin too far off from the feelings of distressed souls.
    你的建议很合理。为了系统地进行教导,我们经常从困扰灵魂的感受开始谈起。

    It is evident, I think, that a sense of guilt, or of exposure to condemnation, causes the most urgent of all the sinner’s wants, and is that which is usually first experienced in the conviction of sin, produced by the Holy Spirit.
    我认为很明显,罪疚感或面临谴责的感觉,是罪人最迫切的需要,也是在圣灵所产生的认罪过程中最先经历到的。

    Most people brought up under the Gospel have a general and habitual conviction that they are sinners.
    在福音教导下成长的大多数人都有一种普遍的、习惯性的认识,知道自己是罪人。

    The frequent reproofs of conscience are sufficient to keep them from denying this; and as all are ready to make this confession, no peculiar disgrace is attached to the acknowledgment.
    良心经常的谴责足以使他们不否认这一点;而且由于所有人都愿意承认这一点,承认这一点并不会带来特别的耻辱。

    But while they admit that they are sinners, they are disposed to excuse themselves, and cherish the opinion that they are better than most others; and the general conviction of sinfulness makes no impression on them.
    但是,当他们承认自己是罪人时,他们倾向于为自己开脱,并怀有一种他们比大多数人都要好的想法;对罪性的普遍认识对他们并没有影响。

    They are neither humbled nor alarmed by the thought that they are sinners; and, except when the fear of death is excited, they have no sense of their need of a Saviour.
    他们既不会因为自己是罪人而感到谦卑,也不会感到警惕;除非死亡的恐惧被激起,他们并不觉得需要救主。

    They give themselves up to worldly pursuits and pleasures, with as much eagerness as if they were sure there was no world to come, or as if they had no account to render to God for their sins.
    他们全身心投入世俗的追求和享乐,就好像确信没有来世一样热切,或者好像不需要向上帝交代他们的罪一样。

    The case which I am describing is so common, that it is often hard to find, in a whole congregation, a few persons in good earnest, seeking the salvation of their souls.
    我所描述的这种情况如此普遍,以至于在整个会众中,很难找到几个真诚地寻求灵魂得救的人。

    But sometimes, it pleases God to pour out his Spirit, and then many are awakened, and there is, for a season, a general concern about the salvation of the soul.
    但有时,上帝乐意倾倒他的灵,那时许多人就被唤醒,在一段时期内,人们普遍关心灵魂的得救。

    B. Is that what is called a revival?
    这就是所谓的复兴吗?

    F. It is; and such seasons are very precious. Many who were far off from God are brought nigh, and the wicked forsakes his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts, and returns unto God and obtains mercy.
    是的,这样的时期非常宝贵。许多远离上帝的人被带到祂面前,邪恶的人放弃他们的道路,不义的人改变他们的想法,归向上帝并获得怜悯。

    J. Does all seriousness proceed from the Spirit of God, or may we not be led to think and feel on religious subjects by awakening discourses or alarming dispensations of Providence?
    所有的严肃思考都来自上帝的圣灵吗?还是说我们也可能因为觉醒性的讲道或令人警醒的天意安排而对宗教产生思考和感受?

    F. As God works by means, we can never tell certainly, whether a serious thought or feeling is merely from the operation of God’s word and providence, or whether the Holy Spirit gives an unusual energy to the means. It is safest, however, and attended with no danger to attribute all serious impressions to the Spirit of God, giving force to considerations which before passed unheeded by us.
    因为上帝是通过各种方式工作的,我们永远无法确定一个严肃的思想或感受是仅仅来自上帝的话语和天意的运作,还是圣灵赋予了这些方式非同寻常的力量。然而,最安全且无害的做法是将所有严肃的感悟归功于上帝的圣灵,这使得我们以前忽视的思考变得有力量。

    J. How can we know that we are under conviction of sin from the Spirit?
    我们如何知道我们是在圣灵的罪责感动之下?

    F. As we cannot perceive the Spirit’s operations, but by the effect produced, so if we have an abiding and deep conviction of our sins, we know that this effect is produced by this Divine agent.
    虽然我们无法直接感知圣灵的运作,但可以通过所产生的效果来认知,因此,如果我们对自己的罪有持久且深刻的认识,我们就知道这效果是由这位神圣的代理者所产生的。

    J. I wish to know how persons feel who are under conviction. I am very sensible that I am a sinner, and I feel that I am a great sinner, but my heart remains hard.
    我想知道那些在认罪时的人有什么感受。我很清楚我是个罪人,我感觉我是个大罪人,但我的心依然刚硬。

    I have no tender feelings. Formerly, when I heard a solemn sermon, I was moved to tears; but these feelings soon passed away.
    我没有柔软的感觉。以前,当我听到庄严的讲道时,我会感动得流泪;但这些感觉很快就消失了。

    Now, I seldom shed a tear, and when I do, still my heart feels as hard as a stone. I wish to be alarmed at the terror of the Lord, but I seem incapable of fear, and when I attempt to pray, it seems like a mockery.
    现在,我很少流泪,即使流泪时,我的心仍如石头般坚硬。我希望能对主的威严感到敬畏,但我似乎无法产生畏惧,当我试图祷告时,这似乎都是在嘲弄。

    For when I am on my knees, my thoughts wander and have nothing to say; or if I go over a form of words, my heart does not go along.
    因为当我跪下时,我的思绪游离,无话可说;或者即使我说出一些话语,我的心却并不随之而动。

    I think, dear father, that mine must be the hardest and the wickedest heart that ever was lodged in any breast. I begin to fear that the Spirit of God has left me to myself, and that I am only permitted to live to fill up my cup of iniquity to the brim. Do tell me what I must do.
    亲爱的父亲,我想我的心一定是所有人中最刚硬最邪恶的。我开始担心上帝的灵已经离开了我,我被允许活着只是为了将罪恶之杯填满到边缘。请告诉我我该怎么办。

    F. My dear son, though your feelings are painful, I rejoice that you have them; and I assure you they are not peculiar to yourself. Thousands have experienced the same.
    亲爱的儿子,虽然你的感受很痛苦,但我为你有这些感受而欣慰;我向你保证,这些并非你独有的。成千上万的人都经历过相同的感受。

    I cannot express the feelings which I have in finding you so earnestly exercised about your salvation. I have been, I confess, too negligent in conversing with you about your soul’s concerns.
    看到你如此认真地思考你的救恩,我无法表达我的感受。我承认,在与你谈论关于你灵魂的事情上,我太过疏忽了。

    I lament my backwardness and unfaithfulness in this particular. But I have felt much solicitude for the salvation of my children, and have often borne you on my heart at a throne of grace, with many tears, day and night. And now, I hope that God is about to answer my poor but sincere prayers.
    我为我在这方面的退缩和不忠实感到悲痛。但我一直很关心我孩子们的救恩,我常常日夜含泪在施恩宝座前为你们祷告。现在,我希望上帝即将应允我贫乏但真诚的祷告。

    I am afraid that I have given you an entirely wrong view of the state of my mind.
    我担心我给您呈现了一个完全错误的关于我内心状态的看法。

    It is true, that for several weeks past this subject has been in my thoughts, and I have wished to experience some deep impressions, and have been willing to feel the strongest convictions.
    确实,在过去几周里,这个主题一直萦绕在我的思绪中,我希望能体验一些深刻的感受,并愿意感受最强烈的确信。

    Indeed, I have tried to produce such feelings by thinking on the most awful subjects, but instead of getting my heart softened, it has every hour been growing harder.
    事实上,我试图通过思考最可怕的事物来产生这样的感觉,但我的内心不但没有变得柔软,反而每时每刻都在变得更加坚硬。

    You lately presented me with a copy of Doddridge’s “Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul,” and requested me to read it, especially the former part; remarking that if you had ever received any spiritual blessings, you owed much, under God, to that book.
    您最近送给我一本多德里奇(Doddridge)的《灵魂中宗教的兴起与进展》,并要求我阅读它,特别是前半部分;您提到如果您曾经获得任何属灵的祝福,在上帝的带领下,您很大程度上要归功于那本书。

    Two days ago I took down the book and carefully perused several chapters; but although my understanding assented to every thing, yet I was able to feel nothing— nothing but hardness.
    两天前我取下那本书,仔细阅读了几个章节;但尽管我的理智认同其中的一切,却什么也感受不到——除了内心的刚硬之外什么都没有。

    And now what I wish above all things is, to feel conviction of sin, as I understand that to be the first step in Christian experience.
    而现在我最希望的就是能感受到对罪的确信,因为我理解这是基督徒经历的第一步。

    Do tell me how I may get conviction—I care not how painful or terrible.
    请告诉我如何才能获得这种确信——我不在乎这会有多痛苦或可怕。

    I wish to be prepared to receive Christ.
    我希望能做好准备接受基督。

    F. Your notions of conviction I think are erroneous ; and also of the end which it can accomplish.
    父亲:我认为你对罪责感的理解是错误的,对它能达到的目的的理解也是错误的。

    You seem to think that conviction of sin consists in very tender relentings, or in awful terrors of conscience, and therefore, that you now have no convictions;
    你似乎认为罪责感就是要有非常柔软的悔意,或是良心上可怕的恐惧,因此你认为你现在没有罪责感;

    but such feelings as you wish for, would not give such a true sense of your sinfulness as you already experience.
    但是你所期望的那种感受,并不会给你一个比你现在已经体验到的更真实的罪性认识。

    If you had the feelings desired, you would think your situation better than you now view it to be.
    如果你有了你所期望的那种感受,你反而会认为你的状况比你现在所认为的要好。

    Much of the depravity of the heart consists in its unyielding hardness.
    心灵的败坏很大程度上就在于它的顽固不化。

    To be deeply convinced of this is then a more real and thorough conviction of sin, than what you are wishing for.
    深刻认识到这一点才是比你所期望的更真实、更彻底的罪责感。

    And you seem to think that such feelings as you have been seeking would prepare you to come to Christ.
    而且你似乎认为你一直在寻求的那种感受会让你预备好来到基督面前。

    This is the working of a self-righteous spirit, which desires to come with something that deserves favour.
    这是一种自以为义的心态在作祟,想要带着一些值得恩惠的东西才来。

    But no feelings of distress, however keen, would in the least fit you for the reception of Christ.
    但是无论多么强烈的痛苦感受,都不会让你适合接受基督。

    You can have no fitness, but to feel your need of him.
    你不需要任何预备,只需要感受到你需要他。

    This is all the fitness he requires, and that you have now, if you feel that you need a Saviour.
    这就是他所要求的全部预备,如果你感到你需要一位救主,那么你现在就已经具备了这种预备。

    Conviction is in no other view a preparation for believing in Christ, than as it shows us that we are in a lost condition, and utterly unable to help ourselves;
    罪责感作为相信基督的预备,其唯一意义就在于让我们看到我们处于迷失的状态,完全无力自助;

    and that we must perish, unless mercy interpose: and the effect is not complete unless we see and feel that it would be just in God to cast us off forever.
    并且除非怜悯介入,否则我们必定灭亡:而且除非我们看到并感受到神永远弃绝我们是公义的,这种效果才算完整。

    This is a point, my son, on which you have not expressed your feelings.
    我的儿子,这是一个你还没有表达过你感受的要点。

    J. I am glad you mentioned it. Last evening- I walked in the grove, and was meditating on my lost and miserable condition, and the thought came into my mind, that my day of grace was past, and that my sins were too great to be forgiven.
    很高兴你提到这一点。昨晚,我在树林里散步,思考着自己迷失和悲惨的处境,突然想到我获得恩典的日子已经过去,我的罪过大得无法被宽恕。

    This suggestion appeared so much like an evident truth, that, for the time, I fully believed it. I was, however, calm, and felt no peculiar terrors, but began deliberately to think what my condition would be in the world of woe.
    这个想法看起来如此真实,以至于当时我完全相信了。然而,我很平静,没有感到特别的恐惧,而是开始认真思考在痛苦的世界中我的处境会是怎样。

    I had often heard that lost sinners in hell would for ever blaspheme God, but I thought that I never could join in their blasphemies. I thought that God had not only been just, but kind towards me.
    我经常听说地狱中迷失的罪人会永远亵渎上帝,但我认为我永远不会加入他们的亵渎。我认为上帝对我不仅是公正的,而且是仁慈的。

    I was fully convinced that he was in no degree to blame for my perdition, but that all the blame would lie on myself. And I had, at that moment, such a sense of the righteousness of God, in my condemnation, that I seemed to acquiesce in my being sent to hell, as a thing that a holy God must do.
    我完全确信他对我的沉沦毫无责任,所有的责任都在我自己。在那一刻,我如此深刻地感受到上帝在谴责我时的公义,以至于我似乎默许了自己被送入地狱,这是一个圣洁的上帝必须做的事。

    P. I am satisfied on this point, and I see nothing to hinder you from immediately committing “your soul into the hands of Jesus, who is waiting to receive you.
    对此我很满意,我看不到有什么能阻止你立即将”你的灵魂交到等待接纳你的耶稣手中”。

    He is able to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them.” “any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but for the sins of the whole world.”
    他能够完全拯救那些通过他来到上帝面前的人,因为他永远活着为他们代求。”若有人犯罪,在父那里我们有一位中保,就是那义者耶稣基督。他为我们的罪作了挽回祭,不是单为我们的罪,也是为普天下人的罪。”

    He invites sinners to come unto him, and promises, “Him that cometh unto me, I will in no wise cast out.” And he requires no preparation—no previous cleansing, no particular degree of conviction.
    他邀请罪人来到他面前,并应许说:”到我这里来的,我总不丢弃他。”他不要求任何准备—不需要事先洁净,不需要特定程度的信念。

    Come helpless, come just as you are, come as a self-condemned sinner—and come now. “Behold now is the accepted time, and now is the day of salvation.” Lay hold of eternal life, for by accepting Christ, you have life.
    无助地来吧,保持本来的样子来吧,作为一个自我谴责的罪人来吧—现在就来。”看哪,现在正是悦纳的时候,现在正是拯救的日子。”紧握永生,因为接受基督,你就有了生命。

    The sceptre of his mercy is extended towards you—touch, and your soul shall live.
    他慈悲的权杖已经向你伸展—触摸它,你的灵魂就会获得生命。

    J. Oh Lord! I would believe—”help thou my unbelief.”
    主啊!我愿意相信——”求你帮助我的不信。”

    [Here a shower of tears prevented further utterance, and the distressed child fell upon his father’s bosom, and for a long time continued to weep profusely.]
    [这时泪如雨下使他无法继续说下去,这个痛苦的孩子倒在父亲的怀中,长时间地痛哭不已。]

    M. Dear father, let us return to the house. Is brother John sick? Why does he cry so?
    亲爱的父亲,让我们回家吧。约翰哥哥病了吗?他为什么哭得这样伤心?

    F. Be still, my daughter; I hope God is dealing graciously with your elder brother, and I wish from my heart that all my dear children were affected as he is.
    安静,我的女儿;我希望上帝正在恩待你的哥哥,我由衷地希望我所有亲爱的孩子都能像他这样受感动。

    [Here the conversation ended for this time. The other boys were much affected, partly with a lively religious impression, and partly with tender sympathy.]
    [这次谈话到此结束。其他的男孩都深受触动,一部分是因为强烈的宗教感受,一部分是出于温柔的同情。]

    THE WAY OF SALVATION. PART II.

    得救之道·第二部分

    The father having agreed to spend the next evening in the same sequestered and delightful spot, the children were all punctually there by the appointed hour.
    父亲同意在同一个僻静而怡人的地方度过第二个晚上,孩子们都准时到达了约定的时间。

    John no longer appeared dejected; the dark clouds, which had shaded his youthful countenance, were dispersed, and a calm serenity rested on his brow, while hope and joy seemed to speak through his eyes.
    约翰不再显得沮丧;那曾笼罩着他年轻面庞的阴云已经消散,平和的宁静停驻在他的眉间,希望和喜悦似乎通过他的眼睛在诉说。

    His heart was indeed at rest, for ho seemed to lean gently on his Saviour’s bosom.
    他的心确实得到了安宁,因为他似乎温柔地依偎在救主的怀抱中。

    But he did not appear forward to speak; he seemed rather to wish to be left undisturbed to the sweet repast of love and joy with which he had been favoured.
    但他并不急于说话;他似乎更希望能不受打扰地享受着他所得到的爱与喜悦的甜美滋养。

    The other children were overawed and were still.
    其他孩子都敬畏地保持着安静。

    The father, who had had a long interview with John, was unable to conceal his swelling emotions.
    父亲与约翰进行了一次长谈,此时已无法掩饰内心涌动的情感。

    Tears of joy trickled down his cheeks, and he looked around upon the little circle of his children with a tenderness and a solicitude, which he had never before felt in an equal degree.
    喜悦的泪水顺着他的面颊流下,他环顾着围坐成小圈的孩子们,怀着前所未有的温柔与关切。

    After some time of tender silence, Benjamin ventured to speak.
    在一段温情的沉默之后,本杰明鼓起勇气开口说话。

    B. Father, I wished to hear you explain more fully why it was necessary for God to send his own beloved Son into the world to save sinners.
    B. 父亲,我希望您能更详细地解释为什么上帝必须派遣他自己的爱子来到世上拯救罪人。

    F. I told you that God is so holy that he cannot suffer sin in any of his creatures to go unpunished.
    F. 我告诉过你,上帝是如此圣洁,以至于他不能容忍他所造之物的任何罪过不受惩罚。

    The sinner, therefore, must die, or some one must die in his place.
    因此,罪人必须死,或者必须有人代替他死。

    And the law of God is holy, just and good, and cannot be set aside.
    而上帝的律法是神圣的、公正的、良善的,不能被搁置一旁。

    It must be honoured and fulfilled, which could not be if sinners escaped the deserved penalty.
    律法必须得到尊重和履行,如果罪人逃脱应得的惩罚,这就无法实现。

    God had threatened death as the punishment of every sin This awful word includes every kind and form of death, and every evil which ever shall come upon man.
    上帝以死亡作为每一种罪的惩罚,这可怕的词包括各种形式的死亡,以及将降临到人类身上的一切邪恶。

    No angel could be permitted to be a mediator between God and man, for angels are dependent creatures, and can perform no works which are not required of them by the law under which they are placed.
    任何天使都不能被允许成为上帝与人之间的中保,因为天使是依赖性的受造物,他们只能履行他们所处律法之下要求他们做的事。

    An angel could not endure the curse due to so great a multitude.
    一个天使无法承受如此众多的诅咒。

    A person of infinite power and dignity was requisite; and where could such a one be found but in the Godhead?
    需要一个具有无限能力和尊严的位格;除了在神性中,还能在哪里找到这样的一位?

    For though God is one in essence, yet he exists in three persons, united and distinguished in a manner which can neither be expressed nor understood.
    因为虽然上帝本质上是一位,但他以三个位格存在,以一种无法表达也无法理解的方式既合一又有区别。

    This glorious mystery is made known in connexion with the plan of redemption.
    这个荣耀的奥秘是在与救赎计划的联系中显明的。

    The eternal Father agreed to give his only begotten Son to become man and to die for sinners.
    永恒的父同意将他的独生子赐下,成为人并为罪人而死。

    The coequal Son consented to be made flesh and to dwell among us, and bear our sins in his own body on the cross.
    同等的子同意道成肉身住在我们中间,并在十字架上用自己的身体担当我们的罪。

    The Holy Spirit entered into the counsel of peace, and undertook to prepare the human nature of the Mediator pure and spotless, by a miraculous birth, and to fill and consecrate this sacred but peculiar nature, with the immeasurable fullness of his grace; and also to apply the redemption purchased to all the chosen sons of God, and to prepare them and preserve them for the heavenly inheritance.
    圣灵进入和平的计划中,承担起通过奇迹般的诞生预备中保纯洁无瑕的人性,并以他无限丰盛的恩典充满和圣化这个神圣但特殊的本性;同时也将所购买的救赎应用于上帝所有的选民,并预备他们、保守他们承受天上的基业。

    In the fullness of time, the Son of God was manifested in the flesh, and having brought in an everlasting righteousness by his obedience and death, he returned to heaven, where he is now enthroned in glory.
    在时机成熟之时,上帝之子以肉身显现,通过他的顺服和死亡带来永恒的义,之后回到天堂,如今在荣耀中登上宝座。

    R. Father, most of what you have said is in the Catechism. I have been reviewing my questions almost the whole day.
    鲁弗斯:父亲,您所说的大部分内容都在教理问答中。我几乎整天都在复习我的问题。

    F. Well, Rufus, let us hear what you can remember on this subject.
    父亲:好的,鲁弗斯,让我们听听你对这个主题记住了什么。

    R. “Christ’s humiliation consisted in his being born, and that in a low condition; made under the law, undergoing the miseries of this life, the wrath of God, and the cursed death of the cross; in being buried and continuing under the power of death for a time.”
    鲁弗斯:”基督的降卑包括他以卑微的身份降生;生在律法之下,经历今生的苦难,承受上帝的震怒,以及十字架上被咒诅的死亡;被埋葬并在死亡权势之下一段时间。”

    F. Very good. Let us hear now whether Mary can tell us wherein Christ’s exaltation consists.
    父亲:很好。现在让我们听听玛丽是否能告诉我们基督的升高包含什么。

    M. No, father, I can’t remember it unless you ask me from the beginning.
    玛丽:不,父亲,除非您从头开始问我,否则我记不住。

    F. Rufus, you can give it to us, as you have just been over it.
    父亲:鲁弗斯,你可以告诉我们,因为你刚刚复习过。

    R. “Christ’s exaltation consisteth in his rising again from the dead on the third day; in ascending up into Heaven; in sitting at the right hand of God the Father; and in coming to judge the world at the last day.”
    鲁弗斯:”基督的升高包括他在第三天从死里复活;升天;坐在父上帝的右边;并在末日来审判世界。”

    B. You did not finish telling us why God could not forgive our sins without an atonement.
    B:您还没有说完为什么上帝不能不通过赎罪就赦免我们的罪。

    F. True, my son, I was led away from the subject by the interesting inquiries of your brother John; but I think from what has been said, it must be evident to every impartial mind that the holiness and justice of God can never suffer sin to be pardoned, except on account of a full satisfaction.
    确实,我的孩子,我被你哥哥约翰有趣的询问带离了主题;但从我们所讨论的内容来看,对于任何公正的头脑而言,都必须明白上帝的圣洁和公义绝不允许罪得赦免,除非有完全的补偿。

    No other person was qualified to render such a satisfaction but the Son of God; his atonement therefore is the only ground on which a sinner can rationally or scripturally hope for the forgiveness of his sins.
    除了上帝之子,没有其他人有资格提供这样的补偿;因此,他的赎罪是罪人合理或符合圣经地盼望罪得赦免的唯一基础。

    But not only the holiness and justice of God, but his truth and faithfulness are pledged to punish sin; and there is no way by which the veracity of God can be vindicated and honoured if the sinner escape the punishment of his sins, unless some one step into his place and die for him.
    不仅是上帝的圣洁和公义,他的真实和信实也承诺要惩罚罪;除非有人代替罪人的位置为他而死,否则如果罪人逃脱了罪的惩罚,上帝的真实性就无法得到维护和尊重。

    The curse of the law must be endured, either by the transgressor, or by his surety. “Cursed is every one that continueth not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.”
    律法的咒诅必须承受,要么由违法者承受,要么由他的担保人承受。”凡不持续遵行律法书上所记一切之人,都是被咒诅的。”

    This, God hath solemnly spoken, and if he fail to execute his own threatenings, where is his truth? Such a failure in a man would be considered very wrong, and shall man be more true than God?
    这是上帝庄严宣告的,如果他不执行自己的威胁,他的真实性何在?这样的失信在人看来都是非常错误的,难道人会比上帝更真实吗?

    B. But, father, did not God say to Adam, “in the day that thou eatest thereof, thou shalt surely die?” and yet he lived almost a thousand years.
    但是,父亲,上帝不是对亚当说”你吃的日子必定死”吗?然而他却活了将近一千年。

    F. My son, there are more kinds of death than one.
    父亲:我的孩子,死亡不只有一种。

    The word “die” in that place includes all kinds of punishment.
    在那种情况下,”死亡”一词包含了所有类型的惩罚。

    And in the most important sense of all, Adam did die immediately upon sinning; for he was separated from his union and communion with God, in which spiritual life consisted, and he became dead in sin, and dead in law, and in due time his body also died.
    最重要的是,亚当在犯罪的那一刻就死了;因为他与上帝的联合与交通被隔绝了,而这正是属灵生命所在,他在罪中死了,在律法中死了,最终他的身体也死了。

    J. I love to think of Christ on the cross, bearing our sins in his own body.
    约翰:我喜欢想象基督在十字架上,用自己的身体承担我们的罪。

    “He who knew no sin was made sin for us.”
    “那无罪的,替我们成为罪。”

    He came to redeem his people from the curse of the law, by being made a curse for them.
    他来是要把他的子民从律法的咒诅中救赎出来,为他们成为咒诅。

    If I did not see the holy law of God completely fulfilled in Christ, I could have no hope.
    如果我没有看到上帝的圣律法在基督里完全实现,我就毫无希望。

    Now God can be just and justify the ungodly that believeth in Jesus, because he hath found a ransom.
    现在上帝可以既公义又称信耶稣的不虔之人为义,因为他找到了赎价。

    Christ is the propitiation for our sins, and his blood cleanseth from all unrighteousness.
    基督是我们罪的挽回祭,他的血洗净一切不义。

    I wish that the whole world could see the excellency of Christ as I now see it.
    我希望全世界都能像我现在这样看到基督的卓越。

    He is indeed the chief among ten thousand, and one altogether lovely.
    他确实是万人之上的元首,全然可爱。

    F. John, you speak with feeling and energy, because you speak from the heart.
    父亲:约翰,你说得很有感情和力量,因为你是发自内心地说。

    I rejoice in your comfortable views and feelings, but I must forewarn you that this sunshine will not be uninterrupted.
    我为你舒适的观点和感受而欢喜,但我必须提醒你这阳光不会一直持续。

    Cloudy days, if not dark and stormy nights, must be expected by Zion’s pilgrims, as long as they are journeying through this wilderness.
    锡安的朝圣者在穿越这旷野时,必须预料到阴天,甚至漆黑狂风的夜晚。

    And you will find that you will greatly need a skilful guide to direct you in the right way, and to bring you back when you have strayed.
    你会发现你非常需要一个熟练的向导来指引你走正确的道路,在你迷失时把你带回来。

    The need of Christ’s atoning blood and justifying righteousness is first felt and always felt; but it is not long before he becomes precious to the believer, in his prophetical office also.
    对基督赎罪之血和称义之义的需要是首先感受到的,也是永远感受到的;但不久之后,信徒也会珍视他先知的职分。

    No want is more sensibly experienced than the want of spiritual knowledge, which none can supply but Christ, by his Spirit.
    没有比缺乏属灵知识更明显的缺乏了,这只有基督能够通过他的灵来供应。

    We need instruction every day and every hour.
    我们每天每时都需要指导。

    We need a spiritual discernment, without which nothing is known aright.
    我们需要属灵的辨别力,没有它就无法正确认识任何事物。

    We need wisdom to comprehend the things which are freely given to us of God, and to enable us to order our conduct aright.
    我们需要智慧来理解上帝白白赐给我们的事物,并使我们能够正确地规范我们的行为。

    We need a meek and docile spirit, that we may be apt to learn, and we need such a measure of Divine knowledge as may make us useful to others.
    我们需要温顺受教的心,使我们易于学习,我们也需要足够的神圣知识来使我们对他人有益。

    Mary, can you tell us how Christ executes the office of a prophet?
    玛丽,你能告诉我们基督是如何执行先知的职分的吗?

    M. “In revealing to us, by his word and Spirit, the will of God for our salvation.”
    通过他的话语和圣灵向我们揭示上帝对我们救赎的旨意。

    J. O father, how briefly and plainly this is expressed. I shall begin now to love the Catechism. I will go over it all, without delay.
    噢,父亲,这表达得多么简明扼要啊。我现在开始喜欢要理问答了。我要立刻把它全部学完。

    F. Suppose, my son, you begin to commit to memory the Larger Catechism; it contains the same doctrines as the Shorter, but it is much fuller, and there are many points treated more satisfactorily. It is in my opinion, the best system of theology, for the size of it, in the world.
    我的孩子,建议你开始记忆大要理问答;它包含与小要理问答相同的教义,但内容更加丰富,许多要点也讲解得更加令人满意。在我看来,就其篇幅而言,这是世界上最好的神学体系。

    R. What, father, better than the Bible?
    什么,父亲,它比圣经还要好吗?

    F. We never compare any human composition with the Bible. The excellence of this Catechism is, that it embodies, in a short space, the most important doctrines and duties inculcated in the Bible.
    我们从不将任何人类著作与圣经相比较。这本要理问答的优秀之处在于,它在短小的篇幅中,包含了圣经中所教导的最重要的教义和责任。

    J. I do not see so clearly as I wish, why the Mediator should be a King. I wish, father, you would make some remarks on this subject.
    父亲,我还不能像我希望的那样清楚地理解,为什么中保必须是一位君王。我希望您能就这个问题做些解释。

    The work of redemption is a great and complicated work.
    救赎的工作是一项伟大而复杂的工作。

    None could accomplish it but one possessed of Almighty power.
    除了拥有全能力量的那位,没有人能完成这项工作。

    Man had fallen under the dominion of an enemy whom it was necessary to conquer, in order to his deliverance.
    人已堕落在一个必须征服的敌人统治之下,为要获得解救。

    His own sinful passions and propensities must be subdued, and a victory must be obtained over the world, which he has hitherto served.
    他自己的罪恶情欲和倾向必须被制服,且必须战胜他一直以来所服侍的世界。

    When he is brought into a state of reconciliation, still he remains, while in the body, in an enemy’s country, where he is liable to be assailed by numerous foes.
    当他被带入和好的状态时,只要仍在肉体中,他就仍然处在敌人的国度里,随时可能遭受众多仇敌的攻击。

    To oppose these, he has no power in himself.
    要对抗这些,他自己没有能力。

    He would fall, if left to himself, by the hands of the weakest of his enemies.
    若是被遗弃,他会被最弱小的敌人击倒。

    He needs a Captain of salvation to protect him, to teach him low to carry on this spiritual warfare, and to give him the victory over his enemies.
    他需要一位救恩的元帅来保护他,教导他如何进行这场属灵争战,并使他战胜仇敌。

    On ail these accounts, his Redeemer must be an all-powerful King.
    基于所有这些原因,他的救赎主必须是全能的君王。

    Again, the promises of God to his people, in the covenant of grace, require, that he who undertakes to accomplish them should have dominion over all the elements, all the laws of nature, and all the creatures of God, intelligent as well as irrational.
    再者,神在恩典之约中向祂子民的应许要求,承担完成这些应许的那位必须统管一切元素、一切自然法则和神所造的一切受造物,包括有理性的和非理性的。

    So we read, that principalities are subject to Christ, and all the angels are his messengers—” ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation.”
    因此我们读到,执政的都服从基督,所有天使都是祂的使者——”服役的灵,奉差遣为那将要承受救恩的人效力。”

    Christ also must be gloriously exalted as Mediator, as a reward for his deep humiliation.
    基督作为中保也必须得到荣耀的升高,这是对祂深深自卑的奖赏。

    “Who being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men.
    “祂本有神的形像,不以自己与神同等为强夺的,反倒虚己,取了奴仆的形像,成为人的样式。

    And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross.
    既有人的样子,就自己卑微,存心顺服,以至于死,且死在十字架上。

    Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name, which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in Heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth.” Ph. ii. 6—10.
    所以神将祂升为至高,又赐给祂那超乎万名之上的名,叫一切在天上的、地上的和地底下的,因耶稣的名无不屈膝。”腓立比书二章6-10节。

    J. What wonderful wisdom shines in the plan of salvation; and not only wisdom, but love and mercy, beyond all human thought! And what is most wonderful, justice shines as brightly in the salvation of a sinner as mercy.
    J. 在救恩计划中闪耀着何等奇妙的智慧;不仅有智慧,还有超越人类思维的爱与怜悯!最为奇妙的是,在罪人得救的过程中,公义与怜悯同样光彩夺目。

    F. The method by which grace reigns through righteousness unto eternal life, is, I believe, the most glorious exhibition of the Divine attributes which has ever been made in the universe. While man reaps the benefit of it directly, all holy beings must be benefitted to all eternity by this wonderful display of the Divine attributes; for their dignity and happiness depend on the clearness of the knowledge of God to which they can attain.
    F. 我相信,恩典通过公义掌权直到永生的方式,是宇宙中最荣耀的神圣属性展现。虽然人类直接获得其益处,但所有圣洁的生命也将因这神圣属性的奇妙展现而永远受益;因为他们的尊严和喜乐取决于他们所能达到的对上帝认识的清晰程度。

    B. Father, I should like to hear you, in a few words, give a view of the way of salvation.
    B. 父亲,我想听您用简短的话语描述一下救恩之道。

    F. I scarcely know how to comply with your request. I hardly know where to begin, or having begun, where to end. Paul has given it in one sentence. “For by grace are ye saved through faith, and that not of yourselves—it is the gift of God.” The whole is a plan of mere mercy and grace. It originated in pure love. “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son,” The undertaking of the work of redemption by the Son was of unmerited favour—”As Christ also hath loved us and hath given himself for us.” “As Christ also loved the Church and gave himself for it.”
    F. 我几乎不知道如何回应你的请求。我不知从何说起,开始后又该在何处结束。保罗用一句话就说明了这点:”你们得救是本乎恩,也因着信,这并不是出于自己,乃是神所赐的。”整个计划完全是怜悯和恩典。它源于纯粹的爱。”神爱世人,甚至将他的独生子赐给他们,”圣子承担救赎之工是出于无功之恩—”正如基督爱我们,为我们舍了自己,””正如基督爱教会,为教会舍己。”

    “While we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” The work performed by Christ was,

    “当我们还作罪人的时候,基督就为我们死了。”基督所成就的工作是:

    1:A revelation of the truth.

    真理的启示。

    2:A perfect obedience to the law, rendered in behalf of his people.

    代表他的子民完全顺服律法。

    3:A full atonement for their sins, when he bore them in his own body on the cross, and was made a curse, to deliver his people from the curse of the law.

    为他们的罪作完全的赎罪,当他在十字架上亲身担当他们的罪,并成为咒诅,将他的子民从律法的咒诅中释放出来。

    4:His resurrection, and his continual intercession for all that were given him of the Father.

    他的复活,以及为天父所赐给他的人持续不断地代求。

    5:The mission of the Holy Spirit to convince them of sin, to regenerate them, and bring them by faith unto Christ.

    差遣圣灵使他们为罪自责,重生他们,并借着信心引导他们归向基督。

    6:The progressive sanctification and conservation of believers; by defending and protecting them from all enemies, and keeping their graces alive; by reclaiming them when they go astray; chastening them for their improvement in holiness; supporting and comforting them in all their afflictions, and finally giving them a victory over death, and ministering to them an abundant entrance into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

    信徒渐进的成圣和保守;藉着保护他们免受一切仇敌的伤害,保持他们恩典的活力;在他们偏离时将他们寻回;管教他们使其在圣洁上长进;在一切苦难中支持和安慰他们,最终使他们胜过死亡,引领他们丰丰富富地进入我们主救主耶稣基督永远的国。

    7:

    Christ has also given assurance by repeated promises, that he will come again to receive his people, and openly acknowledge them before the assembled universe;
    基督也通过反复的应许给予保证,他将再次来临接收他的子民,并在集结的宇宙面前公开承认他们;

    when their bodies shall be raised from the dust, and shall be fashioned like unto his glorious body.
    当他们的身体将从尘土中复活,并将被改变得像他荣耀的身体一样。

    Then shall they be caught up into the air with him, and shall ascend with him to Heaven, where they shall ever be with the Lord.
    那时他们将与他一同被提到空中,并与他一同升入天堂,在那里他们将永远与主同在。

    The riches of that inheritance which Christ has purchased and prepared for them that love him, far exceed all human conceptions.
    基督为爱他的人所购买和预备的那份基业的丰富,远超人类所有的想象。

    But we know that it is “incorruptible, undefiled, and fadeth not away.”
    但我们知道它是”不能朽坏的、没有玷污的、不会衰残的”。

    Then the redeemed shall stand distinguished on Mount Zion, as “they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb;”
    那时得赎的人将在锡安山上卓然而立,作为”那些经历大患难,在羔羊的血中洗净自己袍子并使之洁白的人;”

    and freed from all sin, and filled with gratitude, they will never cease from praising God and the Lamb.
    他们脱离了一切罪恶,充满感恩,将永不停止赞美神和羔羊。

    And they shall go no more out, but shall be as pillars in the temple of God.
    他们将不再出去,而要像神殿中的柱子。

    Blessed is every one that shall be privileged to join in the hosannahs and hallelujahs of the temple above.
    凡有幸参与天上圣殿中和散那与哈利路亚颂赞的人,都是有福的。

    B. What I wish more particularly to know is, the way in which God brings a sinner back to himself, or what are the views and feelings of a sinner returning to God by faith and repentance.
    B. 我特别想知道的是,上帝如何使罪人回归自身,或者说,罪人通过信仰和忏悔回归上帝时的观点和感受是什么。

    F. The ways of God’s dealings with those whom he effectually calls, are exceedingly various in many respects, but as to substance, the result is the same. Rufus, let us hear you give the answer to the question, “What is effectual calling?”
    F. 上帝对那些他有效呼召的人的处理方式在许多方面都极为多样,但就实质而言,结果是相同的。鲁弗斯,让我们听听你对”什么是有效呼召”这个问题的回答。

    R. “Effectual calling is the work of God’s Spirit, whereby convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ and renewing our wills, he doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the Gospel.”
    R. “有效呼召是上帝圣灵的工作,通过使我们认识到自己的罪与苦难,在基督的知识中启迪我们的心智,更新我们的意志,他说服并使我们能够接受福音中freely赐予我们的耶稣基督。”

    F. The first step in a religious life is serious consideration; the next is a sincere desire to escape from the danger of perishing eternally. At first, outward sins and great sins affect the conscience; but as light and knowledge increase, the affections of the heart are discerned and felt to be sinful.
    F. 宗教生活的第一步是认真的思考;下一步是真诚地希望摆脱永恒毁灭的危险。起初,外在的罪和重大的罪会影响良知;但随着光明和知识的增长,人们开始辨识并感觉到内心的情感也是罪恶的。

    The convinced sinner’s first thought is to satisfy the broken law by reformation, or by prayer and penances; but when he sees that “the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked,” he despairs of help from the law.
    悔悟的罪人最初的想法是通过改革,或通过祈祷和忏悔来满足被违背的律法;但当他看到”人心比万物都诡诈,坏到极处”时,他对从律法得到帮助就绝望了。

    The light of conviction is so strong in some, that they are cut off from all legal hope almost instantly; while others may be months and years striving to work out a righteousness of their own.
    有些人的悔悟之光如此强烈,以至于他们几乎立即就断绝了所有通过律法得救的希望;而其他人可能需要数月乃至数年的时间努力建立自己的义。

    Nothing is harder, than for a man to give up all hope of saving himself; he catches like a drowning man at every thing within his reach.
    没有什么比一个人放弃自救的所有希望更难的了;他就像一个溺水的人抓住伸手可及的一切。

    But when this hope is dead, he feels as if he were sinking, and begins to cry in good earnest for mercy and help.
    但当这希望消失时,他感觉自己正在下沉,开始真诚地呼求怜悯和帮助。

    He is taught and made to acknowledge, that though he can do nothing good, yet his inability is his sin, and not his apology.
    他被教导并被迫承认,虽然他不能做任何善事,但他的无能正是他的罪,而不是他的辩解。

    He is deeply convinced of the sinfulness of his nature, and of the exceeding sinfulness of sin, and that in him dwelleth no good thing; that he deserves to be made forever miserable; and that if he is saved, it must be by mere grace; yet he is resolved to die seeking for mercy, if die he must.
    他深深认识到自己本性的罪恶,以及罪的极度邪恶,并且在他里面没有善良;他应该永远痛苦;如果他要得救,那必须完全靠恩典;然而,即使必须死去,他也决心寻求怜悯而死。

    One of the most common feelings of a convinced sinner, is a deep sense of the dreadful hardness of his heart and blindness of his mind, which he often thinks is peculiar to himself.
    一个悔悟的罪人最常见的感受之一,是深深感到自己内心的可怕冷硬和心智的盲目,他常常认为这是他独有的。

    J. Dear father, how exactly you describe my feelings.
    亲爱的父亲,您是多么准确地描述了我的感受。

    F. Well, my son, tell us how you felt when you hoped that you had received Christ.
    好的,我的孩子,告诉我们当你希望自己接受了基督时的感受。

    J. I am afraid to say that I have believed—it seems too great a good to be mine.
    我害怕说出我已经相信了——这似乎是太大的恩典,不该属于我。

    I am sometimes afraid that I am deceiving myself; but I cannot doubt that I have viewed Christ as lovely and as a Saviour suited to me.
    我有时害怕我是在欺骗自己;但我无法否认我已经看到基督是如此可爱,是最适合我的救主。

    After giving up all hope of salvation, while you were conversing with me, and repeating God’s gracious promises, I felt my hard heart begin to melt—I began to think that God could save me through Christ, and the mere possibility of being saved, filled me with such emotion as I never felt before.
    在放弃了所有得救的希望之后,当您与我交谈并重复上帝仁慈的应许时,我感到我坚硬的心开始融化——我开始相信上帝可以通过基督拯救我,仅仅是得救的可能性就让我充满了前所未有的情感。

    This morning when I awoke from a sweet sleep, my thoughts were raised to God, and I believed that he was my reconciled Father in Christ.
    今天早晨当我从甜美的睡眠中醒来时,我的思绪升向上帝,我相信他在基督里已经成为我和解的父。

    Humble joy filled my soul. I arose, and before I had finished dressing, I took up my Bible and opened at the eighteenth chapter of John.
    谦卑的喜悦充满了我的灵魂。我起身后,还没穿好衣服,就拿起圣经翻到约翰福音第十八章。

    I read this chapter and the next, and it was as if a new book had been put into my hand. The sacred pages appeared to be illuminated with beauty and glory.
    我读了这一章和下一章,就好像一本全新的书被放在我手中。这些神圣的经文似乎闪耀着美丽和荣光。

    I knew then most assuredly that this was the truth of God; and while tears of penitence flowed, at a view of the sufferings of Christ, I felt confident that I trusted in Him, and that He had become my Saviour.
    那时我确信这就是上帝的真理;当我看到基督的苦难时,忏悔的泪水流下,我确信我信靠他,他已成为我的救主。

    If I ever loved anything, I experienced love to Christ, and his love seemed to be shed abroad in my heart.
    如果说我曾经爱过什么,那就是我经历了对基督的爱,他的爱似乎充满了我的心。

    After this season of joy and sorrow sweetly mingled, a delightful peace seemed to be diffused through my soul, which still continues, but I am afraid is decreasing.
    在这甜蜜交织着喜乐与悲伤的时期之后,一种愉悦的平安似乎弥漫在我的灵魂中,这种感觉仍在持续,但我担心正在减弱。

    My strongest desire was to show my gratitude to my dying Saviour for his love.
    我最强烈的愿望就是向为我舍命的救主表达我对他的爱的感激之情。

    The language of my heart was, “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?”
    我内心的话语是:”主啊,你要我做什么?”

    And immediately I was conscious of a most enlarged benevolence to my fellow creatures, and a strong desire to invite the whole world to come to Christ, that they might be saved; and also a tender affection to the people of God, and to the ministers of Christ’s Gospel.
    我立即意识到对同胞们的博大仁爱之心,以及强烈地想邀请全世界来归向基督使他们得救的愿望;同时也对上帝的子民和基督福音的传道者产生了温柔的情感。

    And my heart firmly resolved and vowed to spend all my days in the service of God my Saviour.
    我的心坚定地立志并发誓要将余生都奉献给我的救主上帝的事工。

    F. I do not know, Benjamin, that I need say anything more. If God draws you to himself, as I hope he has begun to do, you will understand these things in another manner than you can now by any description. “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good ; blessed is the man, that trusteth in him.”
    父亲:本杰明,我想我不需要再多说什么了。如果上帝吸引你靠近他,就像我希望他已经开始做的那样,你会以一种不同于现在任何描述的方式来理解这些事。”啊,你们要尝尝主恩的滋味,便知道他是美善;投靠他的人有福了。”

    M. Was not my dear mother pious? Is she not gone to heaven?
    玛丽:我亲爱的母亲不是很虔诚吗?她不是去天堂了吗?

    F. I hope so, my dear daughter. I believe she was a true Christian from her youth.
    父亲:我希望是这样,亲爱的女儿。我相信她从年轻时就是一位真正的基督徒。

    M. How old was she when she joined the Church?
    玛丽:她加入教会时多大?

    F. I was not acquainted with her then, but I have heard her say that she thought she loved Christ when she was a little child. But she was not permitted to go to the Communion, till she was fourteen years of age.
    父亲:那时我还不认识她,但我听她说她在小时候就爱基督。不过直到她十四岁才被允许参加圣餐。

    M. Would it be wrong for me to wish that she would pray for me, now she is in heaven?
    玛丽:如果我希望她在天堂为我祈祷,这样做错了吗?

    F. We read nothing in the Bible of departed saints praying for their friends on earth. We know not whether they pray at all. All their work is to praise. But you need no other mediator to intercede for you but Christ only, and He is willing to be your advocate and to ask God to forgive your sins, and adopt you as his child.
    父亲:圣经中没有提到离世的圣徒为在世的朋友祈祷。我们不知道他们是否祈祷。他们所做的一切就是赞美。但你不需要其他中保为你代求,只需要基督,他愿意做你的中保,请求上帝赦免你的罪,收你为他的孩子。

    M. Well, father, I wish to be a Christian, and I am sorry that I have often been a naughty child. I hope God will forgive me. Do, father, pray for me, and for us all, that we may get to heaven and be for ever with our dear mother—and what is far better, be with Christ who loved us better than any father or mother could do.
    玛丽:好的,父亲,我想成为一个基督徒,我很抱歉我经常做个淘气的孩子。我希望上帝能原谅我。父亲,请为我祷告,为我们所有人祷告,让我们能够上天堂,永远和亲爱的母亲在一起——更重要的是,和基督在一起,他爱我们胜过任何父母。

    [The father knelt down on the ground and the little group beside him, and he poured forth the effusions of a full and paternal heart in behalf of his beloved children.]
    [父亲跪在地上,孩子们围在他身边,他为他心爱的孩子们倾诉着充满父爱的心声。]

    HYMNS.赞美诗、圣歌

    A MORNING HYMN.
    晨间赞美诗

    Christ, whose glory fills the skies, Christ, the true, the only light,
    基督啊,你的荣光充满天际,基督,真实的,唯一的光,

    Sun of righteousness, arise. Triumph o’er the shades of night;
    正义之阳,请升起。战胜黑夜的阴影;

    Day-spring from on high be near, Day-star in my heart appear.
    来自高处的晨光靠近,让晨星在我心中显现。

    Dark and cheerless is the morn,
    黎明暗淡而忧郁,

    Unaccompanied by thee;
    若是没有你相伴;

    Joyless is the day’s return,
    黎明的重临毫无欢喜,

    Till thy mercy’s beams I see:
    直到我看见你慈悲的光芒:

    Till thou inward light impart,
    直到你赐予内心之光,

    Glad mine eyes, and warm my heart.
    使我双眼欢喜,温暖我心。

    Visit then this soul of mine,
    请造访我这灵魂,

    Pierce the gloom of sin and grief;
    刺穿罪恶与悲伤的阴霾;

    Fill me, radiancy divine,
    以神圣的光辉充满我,

    Scatter all my unbelief;
    驱散我所有的疑惑;

    More and more thyself display,
    愈发显现你自己,

    Shining to the perfect day.
    闪耀直至完美的日子。

    DIVINE INFLUENCE.上帝对人的精神感化和影响力。

    O SAVIOUR, I thy word believe, My unbelief remove;
    哦救主,我信你的话语,消除我的不信;

    Now thy quickening Spirit give, The unction from above:
    现在赐予你使人复苏的圣灵,来自天上的恩膏:

    Show me, Lord, how good thou art,
    主啊,向我显明你的美善,

    My soul with all thy fulness fill,
    用你的丰盛充满我的灵魂,

    Send the witness, in my heart
    差遣见证者,在我心中

    The Holy Ghost reveal.
    显明圣灵。

    Blessed Comforter, come down,
    蒙福的安慰者,降临吧,

    And live and move in me;
    在我里面生活和运行;

    Make my every deed thine own,
    使我的每一个行为都属于你,

    In all things led by thee:
    在一切事上都由你引导:

    Bid my sins and fears depart,
    命令我的罪恶与恐惧离开,

    And with me O vouchsafe to dwell;
    哦,应允与我同住;

    Faithful witness, in my heart
    忠实的见证者,在我心中

    Thy perfect light reveal.
    显明你完美的光。

    Whom the world cannot receive,
    这世界不能接受的主,

    Lord, manifest in me;
    请在我里面显现;

    Son of God, I cease to live,
    神的儿子,我不再为己而活,

    Unless I live to thee:
    除非我为你而活:

    Make me choose the better part,
    使我选择更美好的道路,

    Display thy love, my pardon seal,
    显明你的爱,印证我的赦免,

    Send the witness, in my heart
    差遣见证者,在我心中

    The Holy Ghost reveal.
    显明圣灵。

    RESTORING AND PRESERVING GRAGS.
    恢复与保守恩典。

    All, give me, Lord, myself to Thee ; Against myself to watch and pray.
    主啊,让我将自己完全献给你;帮助我警醒祷告,防备自己。

    How weak am I, when left by thee! How frail! how apt to fall away!
    当你离开我时,我是多么软弱!多么脆弱!多么容易堕落!

    If but a moment thou withdraw, That moment see me break thy law.
    若你稍离片刻,那一刻就见我违背你的律法。

    Jesus, the sinner’s only trust. Let me now feel thy grace infused;
    耶稣,罪人唯一的倚靠。让我此刻感受你注入的恩典;

    Ah, raise the fallen from the dust, Nor break a reed already braised;
    啊,将跌倒的从尘土中扶起,不折断已经压伤的芦苇;

    Smile on this cheerless heart again, Nor let me seek thy face in vain.
    再次向这忧愁的心展露笑颜,不要让我徒然寻求你的面。

    Let thy meek mind descend on me, Thy Holy Spirit from above;
    愿你谦卑的心降在我身上,你从上而来的圣灵;

    Assist me, Lord, to follow thee, Drawn by thy endearing cords of love
    主啊,帮助我跟随你,被你爱的绳索所吸引

    Made perfect by thy cleansing blood, Completely saved, and born of God.
    借着你洁净的宝血得以完全,完全得救,重生为神的儿女。

    THE MIND OF CHRIST.
    基督的心意

    LORD, I feel a carnal mind. –‘ That hangs about me still,
    主啊,我感到肉体的心意,仍缠绕着我,

    Vainly though I strive to bind My own rebellious will;
    尽管我徒然努力约束自己叛逆的意志;

    Is not haughtiness of heart The gulf between my God and me?
    内心的骄傲,不正是我与上帝之间的鸿沟吗?

    Meek Redeemer now impart Thine own humility.
    温柔的救主,现在将你的谦卑赐给我。

    Fain would I my Lord pursue Be all my Saviour taught,
    我切愿追随我的主,成为救主所教导的样式,

    Do as Jesus bids me do, And think as Jesus thought!
    遵行耶稣的吩咐,思想如耶稣所思!

    But ’tis thou must change my heart, The perfect gift must come from thee:
    但唯有你必须改变我的心,完全的恩赐必从你而来:

    Meek Redeemer now impart Thine own humility.
    温柔的救主,现在将你的谦卑赐给我。

    Lord, I cannot, must not rest, Till I thy mind obtain,
    主啊,我不能,也不敢安息,直到我得着你的心意,

    Chase presumption from my breast, And all thy mildness gain!
    驱除我心中的妄自尊大,获得你所有的温柔!

    Give me, Lord, thy gentle heart, Thy lowly mind my portion be,
    主啊,赐我你温柔的心,愿你谦卑的心意成为我的份,

    Meek Redeemer now impart Thine own humility.
    温柔的救主,现在将你的谦卑赐给我。

    Let thy cross my will control, Conform me to my guide;
    愿你的十字架掌管我的意志,使我效法我的引导者;

    In thine image mould my soul, And crucify my pride;
    按你的形象塑造我的灵魂,钉死我的骄傲;

    Give me, Lord, a contrite heart, A heart that always looks to thee:
    主啊,赐我一颗痛悔的心,一颗永远仰望你的心:

    Meek Redeemer now impart Thine own humility.
    温柔的救主,现在将你的谦卑赐给我。

    Tear away my every boast, My stubborn mind abase;
    除去我一切的夸口,降卑我顽固的心思;

    Saviour! fix my only trust In thy redeeming grace:
    救主!使我唯一的信靠在于你救赎的恩典:

    Give me a submissive heart, From pride and self-dependence free;
    赐我一颗顺服的心,使我脱离骄傲和自我依赖;

    Meek Redeemer now impart Thine own humility!
    温柔的救主,现在将你的谦卑赐给我!