（申02）赐给他为业之地 (Deuteronomy 2) The Land Given as an Inheritance

（ChatGPT was applied in English translation. 中文在后面）

Where is the Promised Land for Christians?

The so-called Promised Land refers to the land that the Creator gave as an inheritance in the Bible.

The Promised Land for the Israelites was in the land of Canaan. That was the place the Creator gave them to observe the laws of the Bible—for example, letting the land rest during the seventh year (the sabbatical year), offering the firstfruits, and giving one-tenth of the harvest to the Levites who were dedicated to full-time service, and so on. But when we read the Bible, we see that as the Israelites marched through other lands, some could be taken, but others could not—because the Creator had already given those lands to other nations as their inheritance. In Deuteronomy chapter 2, we see three such examples:

Deuteronomy 2:5

“Do not provoke them, for I will not give you any of their land, not even a footprint, because I have given Mount Seir to Esau as a possession.”

Deuteronomy 2:9–12

“…Do not harass the Moabites or provoke them to war, for I will not give you any part of their land as a possession, because I have given Ar to the descendants of Lot as a possession. (The Emites used to live there—a people great and numerous and tall as the Anakites. Like the Anakites, they too were considered Rephaites, but the Moabites called them Emites. The Horites used to live in Seir, but the descendants of Esau drove them out. They destroyed the Horites and settled in their place, just as Israel did in the land the Lord gave them as their possession.)”

Deuteronomy 2:18–22

“Today you are to pass by the region of Moab at Ar. When you come near the Ammonites, do not harass them or provoke them to war, for I will not give you possession of any land of the Ammonites. I have given it to the descendants of Lot as a possession. (That too was considered a land of the Rephaites, who used to live there. The Ammonites called them Zamzummites. They were a people strong and numerous, and as tall as the Anakites. The Lord destroyed them from before the Ammonites, who drove them out and settled in their place. The Lord had done the same for the descendants of Esau who lived in Seir, when He destroyed the Horites before them. They drove them out and have lived in their place to this day.”

So, Mount Seir was left to Esau’s descendants as an inheritance, and two regions of Ar were respectively given to Lot’s descendants—the Moabites and the Ammonites—as an inheritance. In a certain sense, these were lands that the Creator promised them in the Bible. He even helped them drive out the three tribes of giants who previously lived there. These peoples, although they had not received detailed biblical laws like the Israelites did, still received from their ancestors—Adam and Noah—basic commandments: such as to be fruitful and multiply, to govern the land and manage living creatures, not to eat the meat with blood of live animals, and to execute murderers. They were expected to observe these on the land they received as an inheritance.

Christians are composed of many different nations. For many of these nations, the Bible does not specifically designate any land as their inheritance. But all humans are descendants of Adam, and after the flood, of Noah. The Creator in the Bible once gave the whole earth to Adam’s descendants as their inheritance, and later again to Noah’s descendants:

Genesis 1:27–28

“So God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them and said to them: ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’”

Genesis 9:1

“God blessed Noah and his sons and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.’”

Therefore, Christians—as physical descendants of Adam and Noah—can see any place on earth as potentially the land the Creator gave them to live in. The whole earth is, according to the Bible, a Promised Land for their physical bodies. It provides them a space in this life to carry out the will of the Creator on earth. Just as in Matthew 6:10 Christ Jesus taught us to pray to the Creator:

“…Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven…”

However, Christians also have a promised land in the world to come. In the Book of Revelation, the apostle John wrote this passage:

Revelation 21:1–4

“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, ‘Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.’”

At that time, the Lord’s will will already be done on earth as it is in heaven, for the Bible had long foretold that He will reign over all the earth (Zechariah 14:9). At that time, Christians will have completed their mission in this life, and they will be in the promised land of the world to come—a place where the Lord dwells with them.

That promised land in the world to come is the eternal inheritance—it is better, and it is what we long for.

（申02）赐给他为业之地

基督徒的应许之地在哪里？所谓的应许之地，指的是圣经里造物主赐给他为产业的地。

以色列人的应许之地在迦南地，那是造物主赐给他们遵行圣经律法的地方，比如让土地守第七年的安息年，献上初熟的果实，把收获的十分之一给全职奉献的利未人，等等。但我们读圣经时发现，以色列人行军经过别的土地，有的可以占领，有的却不可以占领，因为造物主把后者的土地已经赐给别的民族为业，我们在民数记第二章看到三个后者的例子：

民数记2:5 “不可与他们争战。他们的地，连脚掌可踏之处，我都不给你们，因我已将西珥山赐给以扫为业。 ”

民数记2:9-12 “… 不可扰害摩押人，也不可与他们争战。他们的地，我不赐给你为业，因我已将亚珥赐给罗得的子孙为业。（先前，有以米人住在那里，民数众多，身体高大，像亚衲人一样。这以米人像亚衲人。也算为利乏音人。摩押人称他们为以米人。先前，何利人也住在西珥，但以扫的子孙将他们除灭，得了他们的地，接着居住，就如以色列在耶和华赐给他为业之地所行的一样。）”

民数记2:18-22 “你今天要从摩押的境界亚珥经过，走近亚扪人之地，不可扰害他们，也不可与他们争战。亚扪人的地，我不赐给你们为业，因我已将那地赐给罗得的子孙为业。（那地也算为利乏音人之地，先前利乏音人住在那里，亚扪人称他们为散送冥。那民众多，身体高大，像亚衲人一样，但耶和华从亚扪人面前除灭他们，亚扪人就得了他们的地，接着居住。正如耶和华从前为住西珥的以扫子孙将何利人从他们面前除灭，他们得了何利人的地，接着居住一样，直到今日。”

所以，西珥山被留给以扫的后代为业，亚珥的两处土地分别被赐给罗得的后代摩押人和亚扪人为业。从某种角度来说，这些是造物主在圣经里应许给他们的地，甚至祂还帮他们赶出原来住在那里的三族巨人。他们作为别的民族，虽然没有像以色列人那样接受过详细的圣经律法，但他们从祖先亚当和诺亚那里也接受过生养众多，治理土地，管理活物，不吃动物带血的肉，对杀人犯判死刑等很基本的诫命，应该在他们所得为业的土地上遵守。

基督徒有由很多不同民族组成，很多民族在圣经上没有明确规定得到哪些地土为业。但人类都是亚当的后代，洪水后的人类也都是诺亚的后代。造物主在圣经里曾把全地都赐给亚当的后代为业，后来又赐给诺亚的后代为业：

创世记1:27-28 “神就照着自己的形像造人，乃是照着他的形像造男造女。神就赐福给他们，又对他们说，要生养众多，遍满地面，治理这地。也要管理海里的鱼，空中的鸟，和地上各样行动的活物。”

创世记9:1 “神赐福给挪亚和他的儿子，对他们说，你们要生养众多，遍满了地。”

所以基督徒作为亚当和诺亚的肉身后代，地球上任何地方都可能是造物主赐给他们生活的地方。全地都是他们有圣经根据的应许之地，为他们在今生在地上行造物主的旨意提供了一个场所，就如马太福音6:10基督耶稣教导我们对造物主的祷告中所说的：

“…愿你的旨意行在地上，如同行在天上…”

然而，基督徒还有来世的应许之地，圣经的启示录里，使徒约翰记下了这段经文：

启示录21:1-4 “我又看见一个新天新地。因为先前的天地已经过去了。海也不再有了。我又看见圣城新耶路撒冷由神那里从天而降，预备好了，就如新妇妆饰整齐，等候丈夫。我听见有大声音从宝座出来说，看哪，神的帐幕在人间。他要与人同住，他们要作他的子民，神要亲自与他们同在，作他们的神。神要擦去他们一切的眼泪。不再有死亡，也不再有悲哀，哭号，疼痛，因为以前的事都过去了。

那时，主的旨意已经行在地上如同行在天上，因圣经早就预言祂将在全地作王（撒迦利亚14:9）。那时，基督徒已经完成今生使命，他们在来世的应许之地，是主与他们同住的地方。

那来世的应许之地，是永恒的产业，是更美好的，是我们所向往的。