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Meet John Brown of Haddington (1722-1787).
认识一下哈丁顿的约翰·布朗（John Brown of Haddington）（1722-1787）。
Brown was a man sovereignly fitted with incredible gifts, who rose from the shadows of poverty and ignorance into the public spotlight as a herald of God’s Word.
布朗是一位被神主权地赋予了令人难以置信的恩赐的人，他从贫穷和无知的阴影中崛起，作为神圣言（God’s Word）的传令官（herald）站在公众的聚光灯下。
He was a man bleeding bibline, who lead crowds of souls to the Cross for eternal healing.
他是一位满溢圣经气息（bleeding bibline）的人，带领成群的灵魂来到十字架（Cross）前，获得永恒的医治。
Now 220 years after his death, Brown’s printed and electrinic works stand as an Ebenezer-like reminder of God’s graciousness to sinners.
在他逝世 220 年后的今天，布朗的印刷和电子作品（electrinic works）仍然像一块以便以谢（Ebenezer-like）的石头，提醒人们神对罪人的恩慈。
Brown entered the world in Scotland in 1722, the son of a dirt-poor Christian father who supported his family through a meager income generated by weaving.
布朗于 1722 年在苏格兰出生，父亲是一位一贫如洗的基督徒，靠着微薄的织布收入养家糊口。
But it was a Christian home, and John’s parents were loving and faithful.
但这是一个基督徒家庭，约翰的父母充满爱心和忠信。
However, his childhood would be remembered by greater struggles.
然而，他的童年伴随着更大的挣扎。
By his thirteenth birthday, John’s father and mother were dead, their lives claimed by ravaging sicknesses.
在他十三岁生日时，约翰的父母都已去世，他们的生命被肆虐的疾病夺走。
And as a thirteen-year-old orphan, it appeared John Brown stood next in line to die from sicknesses.
而作为一个十三岁的孤儿，约翰·布朗似乎是下一个因病而死的人。
But God graciously spared John’s young life and restored his health.
但神恩慈地保全了约翰的年轻生命，并恢复了他的健康。
Being birthed into the cradle of poverty and orphaned as a teenager, John Brown had very little education — with the exception of one month of language studies in Latin.
约翰·布朗出生于贫困的摇篮中，少年时成了孤儿，受到的教育非常少——除了一个月的拉丁语（Latin）语言学习。
Without the influence of Christian parents, John entered the world to support himself, and under his new freedoms he fell into “practical apostasy.”
没有了基督徒父母的影响，约翰进入社会自食其力，在他的新自由下，他陷入了“实际的背道”（practical apostasy）。
Neglecting prayer, ignoring Scripture, and lacking concern for his soul’s health, John Brown demonstrated the evidence of an unconverted heart.
约翰·布朗忽略祷告，无视圣经（Scripture），缺乏对自己灵魂健康的关注，表现出了一个未曾归正（unconverted）的心的证据。
As an orphan teenager, John supported himself as a hired shepherd.
作为一个孤儿少年，约翰靠做雇来的牧羊人养活自己。
It was during these teenage years, knowing his apostate heart and being troubled over his spiritual apathy, that Brown began traveling to hear sermons by local preachers.
正是在这些少年时期，布朗清楚自己的背道之心，并为自己的属灵冷漠（spiritual apathy）感到困扰，他开始旅行去听当地传道人（preachers）的讲道（sermons）。
By God’s grace two consecutive sermons (one on John 6:64 and another on Isaiah 53:4) opened his eyes to the Cross of Christ.
借着神的恩典，连续的两篇讲道（一篇讲约翰福音 6:64，另一篇讲以赛亚书 53:4）开启了他的眼睛，使他看到了基督的十字架。
Brown, now aware of his sinfulness, clung to the Cross for his personal forgiveness before a holy God.
布朗，现在意识到自己的罪恶，为着自己在一位圣洁的神面前的个人饶恕而紧紧抓住十字架。
For the next several years Brown worked as a peddler, selling various things door-to-door, and then fought as a soldier for the Seceders defending the Edinburgh castle.
接下来的几年里，布朗做过小贩（peddler），挨家挨户地卖各种东西，后来又作为分离派（Seceders）的一名士兵，保卫爱丁堡（Edinburgh）城堡。
But in the years following his conversion, Brown was convinced God had called him into pastoral ministry.
但在他归信后的几年里，布朗确信神已经呼召他进入牧养事工（pastoral ministry）。
And it was in these teenage years, by diligent personal study, Brown exhibited an amazing aptitude for disciplined learning.
正是在这些少年时期，通过勤奋的个人学习，布朗展现出惊人的自律学习天赋（aptitude for disciplined learning）。
Humble Heart
谦卑的心
John Brown’s family poverty made educational opportunities scarce.
约翰·布朗的家庭贫困使得受教育的机会稀少。
The most striking feature of Brown’s intellect is that (although being limited to one formal month of language lessons) he would build from this little knowledge to teach himself Greek and Hebrew and later French, Italian, Dutch, German, Arabic, Persic, Syriac and Ethiopic!
布朗智力最显著的特点是（尽管他只接受过一个月的正式语言课程）他能从这点知识出发自学希腊语（Greek）和希伯来语（Hebrew），以及后来的法语（French）、意大利语（Italian）、荷兰语（Dutch）、德语（German）、阿拉伯语（Arabic）、波斯语（Persic）、叙利亚语（Syriac）和埃塞俄比亚语（Ethiopic）！
This was not, Brown stressed, the result of a born-genius, but of diligent self-teaching and prayerful study.
布朗强调，这不是天生天才的结果，而是勤奋自学和祷告学习的结果。
As a teenager, Brown first set out to learn Greek.
作为一个少年，布朗首先开始学习希腊语。
Brown turned to identical passages in the Greek New Testament and his Bible.
布朗翻阅希腊文新约圣经中与他自己的圣经中相同的段落。
By comparing Greek names to their translation in his Bible he learned the Greek alphabet because he understood the letters would correlate exactly from the Greek New Testament.
通过将希腊名字与他圣经中的译文进行比较，他学会了希腊字母表，因为他明白字母会与希腊文新约圣经中的字母完全对应。
Once he learned the Greek letters he moved on to the shortest biblical sentences, comparing the Greek to his Bible translation.
一旦他学会了希腊字母，他就转向最短的圣经句子，将希腊文与他圣经的译文进行比较。
Brown continued in this manner until he picked up sentence structure and built a vocabulary.
布朗以这种方式继续，直到他掌握了句子结构并积累了词汇量。
Brown wrote in an autobiographical account later in his life: “He (God) left me a young orphan without any relations on earth that were able to help me to any purpose, he carried me through to a larger stock of learning than many others who had the greatest plenty; and all this without my being obligated to be ever in debt to, or dependent on, any person whatsoever.”
布朗在晚年的自传中写道：“祂（神）把我留作一个年轻的孤儿，在世上没有任何亲戚能够有效地帮助我，祂却带领我获得了比许多拥有最丰富资源的人更多的学识（stock of learning）；所有这一切，都没有让我有义务欠下任何人的债，或依赖任何人。”
So how would achievements that normally work to the puffing up in pride, work in Brown’s life towards humility?
那么，那些通常会使人傲慢自大的成就，在布朗的生命中是如何导向谦卑的呢？
Word spread of this poor orphaned shepherd and his knowledge of biblical Greek.
这个贫穷的孤儿牧羊人和他对圣经希腊语的知识传开了。
The question on the local’s minds was simple: How did he learn?
当地人心中的问题很简单：他是怎么学会的？
And those close to John quickly filled the listening ears with their own suspicion.
而那些靠近约翰的人很快就用他们自己的怀疑充斥了听众的耳朵。
Clearly John learned Greek through the direct tutorship of Satan himself, they said.
他们说，很明显，约翰是通过撒旦本人的直接指导才学会希腊语的。
The fumes of the gossip ignited throughout the community.
流言蜚语的烟雾在整个社区中蔓延开来。
While the slanderous report was idiotic (Satan equipping the ignorant in the Scriptures?) it fueled speculation, inflamed further slanders, and cut Brown to the heart.
虽然这个诽谤性的报道很愚蠢（撒旦会装备无知的人学习圣经吗？），但它却助长了猜疑（speculation），激起了更多的诽谤，并深深地伤害了布朗的心。
Brown struggled under the hurtfulness of the slander, but endured the pain silently.
布朗在诽谤的伤害下挣扎，但默默地忍受了痛苦。
Decades later, Brown would point back to this humbling as critical in his life and ministry.
几十年后，布朗会回溯说，这次谦卑的经历（humbling）对他的一生和事奉（ministry）至关重要。
Brown recalls, “the Lord most clearly delivered me and vindicated me, when I made least carnal struggling, but labored to bear his indignation as quietly as I could.
布朗回忆说：“当我最少进行属肉体的挣扎，而是努力尽可能安静地承受祂的义怒（indignation）时，主最清楚地拯救了我并为我辩护。
The sting I had found in my learning which I had so eagerly hunted after, tended to keep me humble under what I had attained, or afterwards attained.
我在我如此热切追求的学问中所发现的刺，倾向于使我在所获得或后来获得的一切之下保持谦卑。
The reproach which I myself had met with, tended to render me less credulous of what I heard charged on others.”
我自己所遭遇的羞辱，倾向于使我对听到别人受到的指控不那么轻信（credulous）。”
And so what others meant for evil, God used for Brown’s good.
因此，别人意图为恶的，神却用在了布朗的好处上。
The sharp blade of slander he felt was a divine gift of humility, cutting away his pride and equipping him for further spiritual duty.
他所感受到的诽谤的利刃，是谦卑的神圣恩赐，它割除了他的骄傲，并装备他去承担进一步的属灵责任（spiritual duty）。
And what duty did the Lord have in store!
而主为他预备了怎样的责任呢！
By the end of his fruitful life, Brown would serve as the beloved pastor in Haddington for 36 years, and a professor of divinity for 20 years, teaching languages, theology, church history and homiletics.
在他富有成果的生命结束时，布朗在哈丁顿（Haddington）担任了 36 年受人爱戴的牧师，并担任了 20 年的神学教授（professor of divinity），教授语言、神学、教会历史和讲道学（homiletics）。
He is noted for authoring many books including A General History of the Christian Church, A Dictionary of the Holy Bible and the Self-Interpreting Bible, a massive 4 volume study Bible used in its day as a detailed commentary on the whole of Scripture.
他以著述许多书籍而闻名，包括《基督教教会通史》（A General History of the Christian Church）、《圣经词典》（A Dictionary of the Holy Bible）和《自解圣经》（the Self-Interpreting Bible），后者是一部大部头的四卷本研读圣经，在当时被用作对整本圣经的详细注释。
But here in this review we are concerned mostly with a work worthy of clearing space in your library collection: The Systematic Theology of John Brown of Haddington.
但在这篇评论中，我们主要关注的是一部值得在你的图书馆收藏中腾出空间的作品：哈丁顿的约翰·布朗的《系统神学》（The Systematic Theology of John Brown of Haddington）。
Experientially Sensitive
对经历敏感
To understand the theology of John Brown of Haddington we must see into his heart.
要理解哈丁顿的约翰·布朗的神学，我们必须深入了解他的内心。
Brown was no mere intellectual theologian, resting content if his students were intellectually challenged.
布朗并非仅仅是一位理性神学家，不满足于学生仅在智力上受到挑战。
While holding high intellectual standards for his students, everything in his theology applied to the heart.
尽管他对学生持有高标准的智力要求，但他神学中的一切都应用于心灵。
The rich application of Brown’s theology makes it especially suited for pulpit preparation.
布朗神学丰富的应用使其特别适合讲台预备（pulpit preparation）。
Brown was a man sensitive to his own spiritual failings and need of God’s grace.
布朗是一个对自己属灵失败和需要神恩典敏感的人。
For example, Brown’s wife of 18 years died when he was 49.
例如，布朗 49 岁时，他结婚 18 年的妻子去世了。
In writing a letter to a friend shortly after this loss, Brown reveals a deep sensitivity to his remaining personal sinfulness.
在这场损失后不久写给朋友的一封信中，布朗揭示了对自己残留个人罪性的深度敏感。
“In short my life is and has been a kind of almost perpetual strife between God and my soul.
“简而言之，我的生命一直都是神和我的灵魂之间几乎是永久的争战。
He strives to overcome my enmity and wickedness with his mercies, and I strive to overcome his mercy with my enmity and wickedness.
祂努力用祂的怜悯来胜过我的敌意（enmity）和邪恶，而我却努力用我的敌意和邪恶来胜过祂的怜悯。
Astonishingly kind on his side, but worse than diabolically wicked on mine!
在祂那方面是惊人的仁慈，而在我这方面却是比魔鬼（diabolically）更邪恶！
After all, I wish and hope that he, not I, may obtain the victory at last.”
归根结底，我盼望并希望最终是祂，而不是我，赢得胜利。”
This spiritual sensitivity filters through the Systematic Theology.
这种属灵的敏感性贯穿于《系统神学》之中。
Theology was not merely the content for a textbook but truth deeply pondered and applied as medicine to his own soul.
神学不仅仅是教科书的内容，更是被深深默想并作为药物应用于他自己灵魂的真理。
Brown closes each chapter with serious questions for reflection connecting the theology of Scripture to the heart.
布朗在每一章的结尾都提出了严肃的反思问题，将圣经的神学与心灵联系起来。
For example in the section on Bibliology, the reader is not only told Scripture is precious but asked the pointed question: Is Scripture precious to your soul?
例如，在论述圣经学（Bibliology）的部分，读者不仅被告知圣经是宝贵的，而且被问了一个尖锐的问题：圣经对你的灵魂宝贵吗？
He then proceeds to humbly answer the question and reveal his own heart: “Blush deep, O my soul, — that I have so long enjoyed this scripture glass, and turned my back to it; — so little beheld Jesus and his salvation in it!
然后他谦卑地回答这个问题并揭示他自己的心：“深感羞愧吧，哦，我的灵魂，——我竟然如此长久地拥有这面圣经的镜子（scripture glass），却背弃它；——在其中如此少地瞻仰（beheld）耶稣和祂的救恩！
That I have had in my house this treasure, this live coal of infinite, of redeeming love, and yet my heart so little moved, melted, and inflamed by it!” (p. 98).
我在我的家中拥有这份财宝，这份无限的、救赎的爱的活炭（live coal），然而我的心却如此少地被它感动、融化和点燃！”（第 98 页）。
This humble confession is part of what it means to learn Bibliology (and all of theology).
这种谦卑的认罪是学习圣经学（以及所有神学）的意义的一部分。
Biblically Saturated
充满圣经气息
In Brown’s day, as in our day, preachers are tempted to make a name for themselves through tricks, creativity and humor.
在布朗的时代，如同我们今天一样，传道人很容易通过技巧、创意和幽默为自己扬名。
In other words, preachers are tempted to supplement God’s Word with the personality they bring into the pulpit.
换句话说，传道人很容易用他们带到讲台上的个性来补充神的话语。
With Brown’s intellectual caliber, he was tempted to supplement Scripture with poetic imagery and intense creativity.
以布朗的智力水平，他曾被诱惑以诗意的意象（poetic imagery）和强烈的创造力来补充圣经。
It was a temptation he fought.
这是他与之抗争的诱惑。
Instead, Brown sought to saturate his expositions with the illustrations and language of Scripture.
相反，布朗寻求用圣经的例证和语言来充实他的释义。
He writes,
他写道， code Codedownloadcontent_copyexpand_less "... notwithstanding all my eager hunting after most part of that lawful learning which is known among the sons of men, I was led generally to preach as if I had never read a book but the Bible. “……尽管我曾热切追求世人所知的大部分合法学问，但我通常被引导去讲道，仿佛我从未读过除圣经以外的任何书。
And the older I grew, I more and more aimed at this, (an observation which I had made in the days of my youth, that what touched my conscience of heart was not any airy flights or well-turned phrases, but either express scriptural expressions, or what came near to them), and led me to deal much in scriptural language, or what was near it.
我越老，就越是朝着这个目标努力（这是我在年轻时就有的一个观察，即触动我良心或心灵的，不是任何空洞的飞想或精心雕琢的词句，而是明确的圣经表达，或接近它们的表达），并引导我大量使用圣经语言，或接近圣经的语言。
My imagination being somewhat rank and inclined to poetic imagery when I commenced a preacher, sometimes led me into flighty thoughts or expressions.
当我开始作传道人时，我的想象力有些放纵，倾向于诗意的意象，有时会引导我产生空泛的思想或表达。
But the Lord made me ashamed of this as a real robbing of him, in order to sacrifice to my own devilish and accursed pride.”
但主使我为此感到羞愧，认为这是一种真正地抢夺（robbing）祂，为的是献祭给我自己魔鬼般且被咒诅的骄傲。”
Here is why Brown’s systematic theology does not fit the traditional mold.
这就是为什么布朗的系统神学不符合传统模式的原因。
Brown’s work is a catechism on steroids, comprised of almost 27,000 biblical citations (about 50 per page)!
布朗的作品是一本打了兴奋剂（steroids）的教理问答，包含了将近 27,000 条圣经引文（每页约 50 条）！
His goal is to make a statement and let you see it in Scripture for yourself.
他的目标是做出一个陈述，然后让你自己去圣经中看到它。
He is a a trial lawyer building his case from the evidence of Scripture.
祂是一位诉讼律师（trial lawyer），从圣经的证据中建立他的案件。
He is a man mighty in the Scriptures, bleeding bibline, speaking carefully the words of another as a delegate entrusted with a priceless message.
祂是一位在圣经中有能力的人，满溢圣经气息，作为受托于无价信息的代表（delegate），谨慎地传讲着他人的话语。
Brown’s theological textbook shows him to be a man consumed with biblical phrases, terms, word pictures and imagery.
布朗的神学教科书显示出他是一个被圣经短语、术语、词语图画和意象所完全占据的人。
Table of Contents
目录
Address to Students of Divinity
致神学学生的劝勉
BOOK I: Of the Regulating Standard of Religion
第一卷：论宗教的规范标准（Regulating Standard）
- Of the Law of Nature
- 论自然律（Law of Nature）
- Of the insufficiency of the law
- 论律法的不足
- Of the revealed standard of religion in the OT & NT
- 论旧约和新约中所启示（revealed）的宗教标准
BOOK II: Of God, the Author, Object, and End of All Religion
第二卷：论神，祂是所有宗教的作者、对象和目的
- Of God’s names, nature, and perfections
- 论神的名、本质和完全（perfections）
- Of Persons in the Godhead
- 论神性（Godhead）中的位格（Persons）
- Of the decrees of God
- 论神的预旨（decrees of God）
- Of God’s execution of his decrees in his creating of all things
- 论神在祂创造万物中对祂预旨的施行（execution）
BOOK III.—Of the Covenant Bonds of Religious Connection Between God and Men
第三卷.—论神与人之间宗教联系的立约约束（Covenant Bonds）
- Of the covenant of works
- 论行为之约（covenant of works）
- Of the covenant of grace
- 论恩典之约（covenant of grace）
BOOK IV.—Of Christ, the Mediator of the Covenant of Grace
第四卷.—论基督，恩典之约的中保（Mediator）
- Of Christ’s Mediatorial Person
- 论基督作中保的位格（Mediatorial Person）
- Of Christ’s general and particular offices
- 论基督的一般性（general）和特殊性（particular）职分
- Of Christ’s States: Humiliation, Exaltation
- 论基督的两种状态（States）：降卑（Humiliation）、升高（Exaltation）
BOOK V.—Of the Principal Blessings of the Covenant of Grace
第五卷.—论恩典之约的主要福分
- Of Union with Christ:
- 论与基督的联合（Union with Christ）：
- Of Justification
- 论称义（Justification）
- Of Adoption
- 论收养（Adoption）
- Of Sanctification
- 论成圣（Sanctification）
- Of Spiritual Consolation
- 论属灵的安慰（Spiritual Consolation）
- Of Believers’ Glorification
- 论信徒的荣耀（Glorification）
BOOK VI.—Of the External Dispensation of the Covenant of Grace, by the Law, the Gospel, etc
第六卷.—论恩典之约的外部施行（External Dispensation），藉着律法、福音等
- Of the Law of God
- 论神的律法
- Of the Gospel of Christ
- 论基督的福音
- Of the Instituted Ordinances of the covenant of grace
- 论恩典之约所设立的蒙恩之道（Instituted Ordinances）
BOOK VII.—Of the Church or Society, for, and to which, the Covenant of Grace is Dispensed
第七卷.—论教会或群体，恩典之约是为了它、并向它施行的
- Of the nature, formation, and fellowship of the Christian Church
- 论基督教会的性质、形成和团契（fellowship）
- Of Church-power, and the subjects in which it resides, head and officers
- 论教会权柄，以及权柄所归属的主体，即元首和职员
- Of ecclesiastical judicatories, their divine warrant, work, and censures
- 论教会的审判机构（ecclesiastical judicatories），它们的属神凭据、工作和惩戒（censures）
Conclusion
结论
So you’re looking at your bookshelf and you have Reymond, Erickson, Grudem, Culver, Calvin, and maybe even Turretin.
所以你正看着你的书架，上面有雷蒙德（Reymond）、埃里克森（Erickson）、格鲁登（Grudem）、卡尔弗（Culver）、加尔文（Calvin），甚至可能有图雷丁（Turretin）。
Why another systematic theology?
为什么还要另一本系统神学？
John Brown’s theology is a square peg in a round hole.
约翰·布朗的神学是一个圆孔中的方榫（square peg in a round hole）。
It does not fit into the classic category of “systematic theology.”
它不符合“系统神学”的经典范畴。
The original title for the work was A Compendious View of Natural and Revealed Religion.
该作品的最初标题是《自然与启示宗教的简明概述》（A Compendious View of Natural and Revealed Religion）。
Brown aimed at a different goal, namely to bring the reader under the waterfall of biblical content to be immersed in its theology and saturated by its language.
布朗旨在达到一个不同的目标，即带领读者进入圣经内容的瀑布之下，使其沉浸在其神学中并被其语言所浸透（saturated）。
Brown’s goal is to help the reader see the width of biblical revelation on a given topic and then to experience the truth personally.
布朗的目标是帮助读者看到圣经启示在一个特定主题上的广度，然后亲自体验真理。
This systematic theology is especially suited for readers seeking to be driven deeper into Scripture to experience God’s marvelous truth.
这本系统神学特别适合那些寻求更深入圣经以体验神奇妙真理的读者。
John Brown does not want you to be amazed at his story, intellect or far-reaching understand of theology.
约翰·布朗不希望你对他的故事、智力或对神学的深远理解感到惊奇。
He wants you to look at Scripture for yourself and be amazed at its comprehensive theological tapestry woven from Genesis to Revelation.
祂希望你自己去看圣经，并惊叹于它从创世记到启示录所编织的全面神学锦缎（tapestry）。
Brown’s intention is nothing short of making you “mighty in the Scriptures.”
布朗的意图就是让你“在圣经上有能力”（mighty in the Scriptures）。
This, by God’s grace, is what makes The Systematic Theology of John Brown of Haddington special.
这就是，借着神的恩典，使得哈丁顿的约翰·布朗的《系统神学》变得特别的原因。