三月三十一日[mp3_embed playlst=”/downloading/audio/evening/03/0331.mp3″]
经文: 爱雅的女儿利斯巴用麻布，在磐石上搭棚，从动手收割的时候，直到天降雨在尸身上的时候，日间不容空中的雀鸟落在尸身上，夜间不让田野的走兽前来蹧践。（撒母耳记下二十一：10）
倘若妇人对她那被杀儿子的爱能使她持续悲哀，彻夜不眠，守护这么长的时期，我们在思念爱我们的主所受的苦难时，能生出疲倦之心吗？这个妇人赶走前来攫食的雀鸟。我们不能从沉思中逐去那些属世的、能污秽我们头脑的罪恶思想吗？离开，罪恶之翼的鸟，离开吧！利斯巴忍受着夏天的暑溽、夜晚的露珠和雨水，毫无遮蔽且孤独一人。睡眠从祂的泪眼中被逐出。看哪，她是如何爱她的儿子！我们遭逢些微不便或试验时就心生抱怨。我们真是如此懦弱，不能与主同受苦难吗？这个妇人甚至有无比的勇气去赶走野兽。为耶稣的缘故，我们是否作好准备去面对每一敌人？她的孩子被杀戮了，她虽哭泣仍然守护者。为我们的罪而被钉十架的主，我们当为祂作什么？我们的职责是无尽的、我们的爱应该是满溢的、我们的悔改应该是彻底的。与耶稣一起儆醒应该是我们的责任，保护祂的尊荣应该是我们的职守，与祂的十架同住应该是我们的平安。那些可怖的尸体或许会令利斯巴害怕，尤其是在夜晚。但是在我们受死的主身上没有一丝可怖，反而能吸引我们。耶稣，我们愿与祂一同儆醒，求祂以恩典向我们启示祂自已，使我们不至坐在麻布底下，而是安坐在祂的宫室之中。
Evening, March 31
Scripture: “And Rizpah the daughter of Aiah took sackcloth, and spread it for her upon the rock, from the beginning of harvest until water dropped upon them out of heaven, and suffered neither the birds of the air to rest on them by day, nor the beasts of the field by night.”(2 Samuel 21:10)
If the love of a woman to her slain sons could make her prolong her mournful vigil for so long a period, shall we weary of considering the sufferings of our blessed Lord? She drove away the birds of prey, and shall not we chase from our meditations those worldly and sinful thoughts which defile both our minds and the sacred themes upon which we are occupied? Away, ye birds of evil wing! Leave ye the sacrifice alone! She bore the heats of summer, the night dews and the rains, unsheltered and alone. Sleep was chased from her weeping eyes: her heart was too full for slumber. Behold how she loved her children! Shall Rizpah thus endure, and shall we start at the first little inconvenience or trial? Are we such cowards that we cannot bear to suffer with our Lord? She chased away even the wild beasts, with courage unusual in her sex, and will not we be ready to encounter every foe for Jesus’ sake? These her children were slain by other hands than hers, and yet she wept and watched: what ought we to do who have by our sins crucified our Lord? Our obligations are boundless, our love should be fervent and our repentance thorough. To watch with Jesus should be our business, to protect his honour our occupation, to abide by his cross our solace. Those ghastly corpses might well have affrighted Rizpah, especially by night, but in our Lord, at whose cross-foot we are sitting, there is nothing revolting, but everything attractive. Never was living beauty so enchanting as a dying Saviour. Jesus, we will watch with thee yet awhile, and do thou graciously unveil thyself to us; then shall we not sit beneath sackcloth, but in a royal pavilion.