Eclipse日蚀

[Dexu Xia]

Eclipse

I will restore David’s fallen shelter—I will repair its broken walls and restore its ruins—and will rebuild it as it used to be. Amos 9:11

I was prepared with eye protection, an ideal viewing location, and homemade moon pie desserts. Along with millions of people in the US, my family watched the rare occurrence of a total solar eclipse—the moon covering the entire disk of the sun. 

The eclipse caused an unusual darkness to come over the typically bright summer afternoon. Although for us this eclipse was a fun celebration and a reminder of God’s incredible power over creation (Psalm 135:6–7), throughout history darkness during the day has been seen as abnormal and foreboding (Exodus 10:21; Matthew 27:45), a sign that everything is not as it should be. 

This is what darkness signified for Amos, a prophet during the time of the divided monarchy in ancient Israel. Amos warned the Northern Kingdom that destruction would come if they continued to turn away from God. As a sign, God would “make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight” (Amos 8:9). 

But God’s ultimate desire and purpose was—and is—to make all things right. Even when the people were taken into exile, God promised to one day bring a remnant back to Jerusalem and “repair its broken walls and restore its ruins” (9:11). 

Even when life is at its darkest, like Israel, we can find comfort in knowing God is at work to bring light and hope back—to all people (Acts 15:14–18).

When was a time you chose to reject or disobey God? How did God provide rescue and bring light into your dark situation?

日蚀

我必建立大卫倒塌的帐幕，堵住其中的破口。把那破坏的建立起来，重新修造，像古时一样。—阿摩司书9章11节

我准备了护目镜，选定绝佳的观望位置，带着自家做的小蛋糕。与世界各地的民众一样，我们全家也一起观赏罕见的日全蚀景观，看着整个太阳逐渐被月亮的阴影遮住。在阳光明媚的夏天下午，这场日蚀带来了不寻常的黑暗。虽然观赏日蚀是很有趣的经验，也提醒了我们上帝奇妙的创造（诗篇135篇6-7节），但在历史中，白日的黑暗向来被视为异常和不祥之兆（出埃及记10章21节；马太福音27章45节），代表会有不寻常的事发生。

这也是阿摩司对黑暗的解读。阿摩司是在古以色列分裂成南北两国时期的先知，他警告北国如果继续远离上帝，必有毁灭到来。其预兆就是，上帝将“使日头在午间落下，使地在白昼黑暗”（阿摩司书8章9节）。

但从过去直到如今，上帝最终的旨意和目的依然是要使万事归正。虽然以色列民成了俘虏，但上帝应许有一天将会带剩余的百姓回到耶路撒冷，且要“堵住其中的破口。把那破坏的建立起来，重新修造”（9章11节）。或许我们的生活正处于最黑暗的景况中，但我们仍可以像被掳的以色列人一样心得安慰，因为上帝会持续动工，要让所有人重获光明和盼望（使徒行传15章14-18节）。

主耶稣，我们感谢祢，因我们读到启示录21章23节，知道祢的荣光比日光更加明亮，能驱走一切黑暗。

你曾在何时拒绝或违抗上帝？当你处在那黑暗的景况中，上帝如何赐给你拯救及亮光？