Overcoming Envy 克服嫉妒
Dexu Xia
Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands. 1 Samuel 18:7
In the film Amadeus, aging composer Antonio Salieri plays some of his music on the piano for a visiting priest. The embarrassed priest confesses he doesn’t recognize the tunes. “What about this one?” Salieri says, playing an instantly familiar melody. “I didn’t know you wrote that,” the priest says. “I didn’t,” Salieri replies. “That was Mozart!” As viewers discover, Mozart’s success had caused deep envy in Salieri—even leading him to play a part in Mozart’s death.
A song lies at the heart of another envy story. After David’s victory over Goliath, the Israelites heartily sing, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands” (1 Samuel 18:7). The comparison doesn’t sit well with King Saul. Envious of David’s success and afraid of losing his throne (vv. 8–9), Saul begins a prolonged pursuit of David, trying to take his life.
Like Salieri with music or Saul with power, we’re usually tempted to envy those with similar but greater gifts than we possess. And whether it’s picking fault with their work or belittling their success, we too can seek to damage our “rivals.”
Saul had been divinely chosen for his task (10:6–7, 24), a status that should’ve fostered security in him rather than envy. Since we each have unique callings too (Ephesians 2:10), maybe the best way to overcome envy is to quit comparing ourselves. Let’s celebrate each other’s successes instead.
Whom are you most tempted to envy? How can you celebrate their success?
Loving God, I thank You for my friends’ and colleagues’ successes.
扫罗杀死千千，大卫杀死万万。—撒母耳记上18章7节
在电影《莫扎特传》中，年迈的作曲家安东尼奥 · 萨列里（Antonio Salieri）为到访的神父弹奏自己的作品。神父尴尬地表示他未能认出那首乐曲时，萨列里随即转而弹奏另一首人们所熟悉的乐曲。神父说：“啊，原来这首大作是你的作品！”萨列里说：“不是，这是莫扎特写的！”接着，观众便看到萨列里因嫉妒莫扎特的成就，而设计谋害莫扎特。
另一个嫉妒的故事也与歌曲有关。大卫战胜歌利亚之后，以色列妇女欢舞高唱：“扫罗杀死千千，大卫杀死万万”（撒母耳记上18章7节）。扫罗王不喜欢这个对比，甚至嫉妒大卫的成就，更害怕自己将丧失王位（8-9节）。以致后来扫罗长期追捕大卫，企图将他置于死地。
正如萨列里嫉恨莫扎特的音乐才华，或像扫罗不甘声誉扫地一样，我们也可能会落入“文人相轻”或“同行相忌”的景况，嫉妒那些与我们拥有类似才干但更有才华的人。无论是挑剔对方所做的事，或贬低其成就，我们都是在伤害我们的“对手”。
其实，扫罗既蒙上帝拣选为王（10章6-7、24节），理应具备足够的安全感而非无端的嫉妒心。我们各人皆领受上帝独特的呼召（以弗所书2章10节），或许克服嫉妒最好的方式，就是不相互比较争竞。让我们放下嫉妒，彼此欣赏！
你最嫉妒谁？你如何欣赏对方的成就？
慈爱的上帝，我为着同事和朋友的成就向祢献上感谢。