《圣经》中的各卷书是以不同文体写成的
The Bible is a collection of books written in
例如 叙事体 诗歌 散文
different literary styles like narrative, poetry and prose.
大多数人都熟悉这些文体
Most of us are familiar with these kinds of literature.
当我们看到“饥饿游戏”或“了不起的盖茨比”时
Yeah, we all know a narrative when we see one,
我们会意识到这些是叙事体
like “The Hunger Games” or “The Great Gatsby”.
无论是看到惠特曼的作品或听到鲍勃迪伦的歌时
Most people can recognize poetry
大多数人都能认识到这些是诗歌体裁
whether it’s Walt Whitman or the songs of Bob Dylan
每天 我们周围都充满了散文 比如新闻类文章或随笔
Every day, we are surrounded by prose like news articles or essays.
以上所举的例子都是美国当代文体
All of these examples are modern American literature.
他们来自于这一时代和这一地区
They came from this time period and this region of the world.
但还有来自其它时期和地区的中世纪英语文学
But there is also a medieval English literature from another place and time.
或来自这一时期和地方的古希腊文学
or Ancient Greek writings from this place and time.
所以不同时期和不同文化会产生它与众不同的文学
So each time period and culture produces its own unique kind of literature.
为了能更好的读懂《圣经》我们需要记住
In order to read the Bible well, we need to keep in mind
《圣经》来自这一地区
that it comes from this part of the world
产生于这一时期
and was produced in this basic period of time.
所以古代犹太文学到底有什么独特呢？
So, what is unique about ancient Jewish literature?
一个主要特征就是它缺少现代读者所期望
A key feature is that it lacks a lot of the details that
在故事和诗集里能看到的大量细节描述
modern readers have come to expect in stories and poems.
这使得它看起来非常简单
This makes it seem really simple.
但事实上 《圣经》是非常精妙的文学
But, actually, it is very sophisticated literature.
里面写到的每一个细节 都非常重要
Every detail that is given, matters.
那太好了 但缺少细节就意味着
That’s great, but the lack of detail means that
故事里面充斥着模棱两可的内容
stories are often loaded with ambiguities.
我的意思是 比如《圣经》中第一个故事“亚当和夏娃在伊甸园”
I mean, take one of the first stories, Adam and Eve in the Garden.
这条说话的蛇是从哪来的？
Where did this talking snake come from?
为什么上帝允许它在那？
Why did God allow him there?
为什么亚当和夏娃没像上帝说的那样当场死亡？
Why didn’t Adam and Eve die on the spot like God said they would?
谁是女人的后裔？谁将消灭那条蛇但又被它咬到？
Who is this offspring of the woman who will destroy the snake, but is bitten by it?
是的 这个故事里充满未解之谜
Yeah, there are so many puzzles in this story.
我们提的一些疑问
Some of these are questions that we have
对于作者所关注的主题来说并不重要
and that are not important to what the author is focusing on.
但也有一些内容是故意写得模棱两可
But some of these ambiguities are intentional.
故意的？
Intentional?
这样不会引起误解吗？
Won’t that lead to bad interpretations?
人们用自己的想法填补故事细节？
People filling in the gaps with their own answers?
《圣经》作者用这种方式写作是有风险
That’s a risk the biblical authors took in writing this way.
我们都倾向于把自我文化假想强加到《圣经》里
We all tend to impose our own cultural assumptions onto the Bible.
但显然 作者们认为冒这个险值得
But they apparently thought the risk was worth it.
恰是这些令人奇怪之处 吸引读者进入阅读与发现的冒险之旅
These oddities are really invitations into an adventure of reading and discovery.
你的意思是？
What do you mean?
例如 关于女人后裔击败蛇
For example, the strange promise about the offspring of
并被蛇咬伤的奇异应许
the woman crushing and being bitten by the snake,
“后裔”一词便是吸引人关注家谱的线索
that word “offspring” is a clue to pay attention to genealogies
你会惊讶的看到 这一线索贯穿整本圣经故事中
which, lo and behold, run all through the biblical narrative.
家谱可以从夏娃追溯到
They traced the lineage from Eve
大卫王及他的后裔
all the way to King David and his offspring.
在《新约》里 耶稣被认为是这一王族血统的后裔
In the New Testament, Jesus is connected to the offspring of this royal line.
《先知书》中 先知以赛亚预言一个王
When you read the prophets, Isaiah connected this king
要为了他的百姓受苦而死
to the suffering servant who would die on behalf of his people.
后面《启示录》中有象征性的图景
Then, in the book of Revelation, there is the symbolic vision.
你能猜到吗？
Can you guess?
那是关于一个女人和她的后裔
It is about a woman and her offspring.
关于耶稣和他的门徒舍命战胜恶龙的故事
It is Jesus and his followers who conquer the dragon by giving up their lives.
所以 单看故事里的每一部分都有疑问 但纵观整个故事就都能理解了
Yeah, so each part of the story there is loaded with ambiguities, but, all together, it makes sense.
这就是《圣经》的文学之妙
This is the literary genius of the Bible.
它迫使你不断的阅读
It forces you to keep reading
对每一部分的理解都需要依据其他部分的内容
and then interpret each part in light of the others.
感觉起来非常复杂
This is feeling complicated.
我不确定我是否能做到这样
I don’t know if I can do all that.
你并不需要靠自己一次性全读懂
You are actually not expected to notice all of this by yourself or all at once.
这种紧凑的写作方式迫使你
This dense way of writing forces you
把速度放慢仔细阅读
to slow down and then read carefully,
踏上这一交互式的发现旅程
embarking on this interactive discovery process
用一生的时间反复阅读
through the whole biblical narrative
整个圣经故事
over a lifetime of reading and re-reading.
啊 好的 冥想文学
Ah! Okay, meditation literature.
是的 在诗篇第一篇我们会看到理想的圣经读者
Yeah, in Psalm 1 we read about the ideal Bible reader.
就是昼夜冥思经文的人
It is someone who meditates on the scriptures day and night.
希伯来语中 “冥想”是指逐字轻声低语
In Hebrew, the word “meditate” means literally “to mutter or speak quietly”.
理想就是在你余生的每一天
The idea is that every day for the rest of your life,
自己缓慢地大声阅读圣经
you slowly, quietly read the Bible out loud to yourself
然后与朋友交流分享
and then go talk about it with your friends,
思索其中的疑问 前后融会贯通
pondering the puzzles, making connections
来发现《圣经》的全部意义
and discovering what it all means.
当你能够以经解经时奇妙的事情就发生了
As you let the Bible interpret itself, something remarkable happens.
《圣经》开始读懂你了
The Bible starts to read you.
因为最终《圣经》的作者是想让读者
Because, ultimately, the writers of the Bible
通过阅读结合自身的生活获得启示
want you to adopt this story as your story.
所以这一古代的犹太写作方式
So, this ancient Jewish writing style, it must create
肯定创造了独特的叙事体 诗歌及论述体裁
unique types of narrative and poetry and discourse?
是的 下期我们将从圣经叙事体开始探讨《圣经》中所有的文学体裁
Yes, we will explore all of those literary styles starting next with biblical narrative.