God can guard our relationship with Him.

上帝会保守我们和祂之间的关系。

Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards. Song of Solomon 2:15

要给我们擒拿狐狸，就是毁坏葡萄园的小狐狸。-雅歌2章15节

While talking on the phone with a friend who lives by the seaside, I expressed delight at hearing seagulls squawking. “Vile creatures,” she responded, for to her they’re a daily menace. As a Londoner, I feel the same way about foxes. I find them not cute animals but roaming creatures that leave smelly messes in their wake.

当我跟一位住在海边的朋友通电话时，从她那边不时传来海鸥的叫声，令我欣羡不已。她却回答说：“它们真是烦人！”对她来说，这些海鸥是日常的祸害。对于住在伦敦的我来说，狐狸也是一样讨厌。我并不觉得狐狸可爱，因为它们所到之处都留下臭味。

Foxes appear in the love poetry of the Song of Solomon, an Old Testament book that reveals the love between a husband and wife and, some commentators believe, between God and His people. The bride warns about little foxes, asking her bridegroom to catch them (2:15). For foxes, hungry for the vineyard’s grapes, could tear the tender plants apart. As the bride looks forward to their married life together, she doesn’t want vermin disturbing their covenant of love.

在旧约雅歌这本歌颂爱情的诗集中，也提到了狐狸。雅歌虽是描述丈夫与妻子之间的爱情，但有些圣经注释家认为，这其实是反映上帝和祂子民的关系。新娘叮嘱新郎要抓住小狐狸（2章15节），因那些偷吃葡萄的狐狸，可能会毁坏葡萄园。新娘对婚姻生活充满期待，不希望任何有害的动物破坏她与新郎爱的盟约。

How can “foxes” disturb our relationship with God? For me, when I say “yes” to too many requests, I can become overwhelmed and unpleasant. Or when I witness relational conflict, I can be tempted to despair or anger. As I ask the Lord to limit the effect of these “foxes”—those I’ve let in through an open gate or those that have snuck in—I gain in trust of and love for God as I sense His loving presence and direction.

“狐狸”怎么会破坏我们和上帝之间的关系呢？对我来说，这就像答应太多的请求和邀约，使自己忙得不可开交，以致烦躁不安。或是遇到情感上的冲突，让自己陷入沮丧和恼怒。这些“孤狸”，无论是我开门让它进来的，或是它趁隙而入的，只要我求上帝降低它们对我的影响，就能感受到上帝的同在与带领，我也能更信靠、更爱我的上帝。

How about you? How can you seek God’s help from anything keeping you from Him?

那你呢？你会如何寻求上帝的帮助，好摆脱那些让你远离上帝的事物呢？

Lord God, You are powerful and You are good. Please protect our relationship with You, keeping out anything that would take our eyes off You.

天父，祢是全能且良善的，求祢保守我和祢的关系，挪去一切会让我远离祢的事物。

Song of Solomon 2:14-17    NIV

2 My dove in the clefts of the rock, in the hiding places on the mountainside,

show me your face, let me hear your voice; for your voice is sweet, and your face is lovely. 15 Catch for us the foxes, the little foxes that ruin the vineyards, our vineyards that are in bloom. 16 My beloved is mine and I am his; he browses among the lilies. 17 Until the day breaks and the shadows flee,turn, my beloved, and be like a gazelle or like a young stag  on the rugged hills.

雅歌 2:14-17 

2 我的鸽子啊，你在磐石穴中，在陡岩的隐密处，求你容我得见你的面貌，得听你的声音，因为你的声音柔和，你的面貌秀美。”15 要给我们擒拿狐狸，就是毁坏葡萄园的小狐狸，因为我们的葡萄正在开花。 16 良人属我，我也属他；他在百合花中牧放群羊。 17 我的良人哪，求你等到天起凉风，日影飞去的时候，你要转回，好像羚羊或像小鹿在比特山上。

INSIGHT

灵粮透视

Although the author is not specifically named, Song of Songs is traditionally attributed to Solomon, who is mentioned in 1:1, 5; 3:7, 9, 11; 8:11, 12 and who is referred to as “King Solomon” in 3:9–11. Therefore, this book is also called “The Song of Solomon.” Solomon composed 1,005 songs (1 Kings 4:32), but this song is deemed to be “the best”—hence the appropriate title “Solomon’s Song of Songs” (1:1). It is one of two biblical books (the other is Esther) where God isn’t mentioned explicitly. Some interpret Song of Songs as an allegory of Christ’s love for the church; others consider it to be a poem describing the romance and relationship of two passionate lovers. Rich in nature metaphors—“Your eyes are doves” (1:15); “My beloved is like a gazelle” (2:9); “The little foxes that ruin the vineyards” (v. 15)—the song celebrates sexual love and physical intimacy within the bonds of marriage (4:8–5:1). Together husband and wife wield out “the foxes” (2:15), removing anything that threatens their loving union or hurts the exclusivity of their marriage.

虽然旧约的雅歌没有写明作者是谁，但教会传统上都认为这卷书的作者就是所罗门，因为这卷书多次提到所罗门（1章1、5节，3章7、9、11节，8章11、12节），在3章9-11节还提到“所罗门王”。因此，这卷书也被称为“所罗门的歌”。所罗门创作了诗歌1,005首（列王纪上4章32节），但雅歌被认为是其中最好的，因此可以恰当地称为“所罗门的歌，是歌中的雅歌”（1章1节）。圣经中有两卷书没有明确提到上帝，雅歌便是其中一卷（另一卷是以斯帖记）。有些人从寓意的角度来解释雅歌，认为它是在讲基督对教会的爱；也有人认为这是一首诗，描述两个热恋情人的浪漫和交往。本书多以大自然的事物为比喻，例如：“你的眼睛好像鸽子眼”（1章15节）；“我的良人好像羚羊”（2章9节）；“毁坏葡萄园的小狐狸”（15节）。雅歌歌颂了婚姻关系中的性爱和身体上的亲密关系（4章8节-5章1节），丈夫和妻子一起擒拿“狐狸”（2章15节），除去任何威胁他们相爱合一，或伤害他们婚姻关系的事物。

整理：于姊妹