当我们向上帝呼救时，祂必垂听并帮助我们。

Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel! Joshua 10:14

耶和华为以色列争战。-约书亚记10章14节

SOS, the Morse code signal, was created in 1905 because sailors needed a way to indicate extreme distress. The signal gained notoriety in 1910 when used by the sinking ship Steamship Kentucky, saving all forty-six people aboard.

国际通用的求救信号“SOS”于1905年开始被采用，让船员在紧急情况时请求救援。这个信号在1910年“肯塔基号”蒸汽船遇难时使用而出名，船上的46人也因此获救。

While SOS may be a more recent invention, the urgent cry for help is as old as humanity. We hear it often in the Old Testament story of Joshua, who faced opposition from fellow Israelites (Joshua 9:18) and challenging terrain (3:15–17) for more than fourteen years as the Israelites slowly conquered and settled the land God had promised them. During this struggle “the Lord was with Joshua” (6:27).

SOS也许是个较近代的发明，但自古以来，人类都会在急难中呼救。在旧约圣经里，我们看到约书亚也发出这样的呼求。以色列民花了超过14年的时间，逐步征服上帝所赐的应许之地并定居下来。期间约书亚面对了以色列民的反对（约书亚记9章18节）和险恶的地形（3章15-17节）。在这样的艰难中，“耶和华与约书亚同在”（6章27节）。

In Joshua 10, the Israelites go to the aid of the Gibeonites, allies of Israel who were being attacked by five kings. Joshua knew that he needed the Lord’s help to defeat so many powerful enemies (v. 12). God responded with a hailstorm, even stopping the sun in the middle of the sky to give Israel more time to defeat the enemy. Joshua 10:14 recounts, “Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!”

在约书亚记第10章中，描述了以色列民去援助被五位国王合攻的盟友基遍人。约书亚知道他需要求告上帝的帮助才能战胜这么多强大的敌人（12节）。上帝听了他的呼求降下冰雹，甚至让“日头停留”（13节），好让以色列民有更多时间击溃敌军。约书亚记10章14节记载：“耶和华为以色列争战。”

If you are in the midst of a challenging situation, you can send out an SOS to God. Although help will look different than the assistance Joshua received, perhaps help comes through an unexpected job, an understanding doctor, or peace in the midst of grief. Be encouraged that these are ways He is responding to your call for help and fighting for you.

如果你正身处于困境之中，你也可以向上帝发出求救信号。你得到的帮助或许和约书亚的不同，可能你是得到一份出乎意料的工作、找到一位有同理心的医生，或是在忧伤中得着平安。期盼你能从中得着激励，因为这些都是上帝回应你的呼求、为你争战的方式。

天父谢谢祢，因祢在这艰难的旅程中与我们同行，并垂听我们向祢求救的声音。

Joshua 10:6-15    NIV

10 The Gibeonites then sent word to Joshua in the camp at Gilgal: “Do not abandon your servants. Come up to us quickly and save us! Help us, because all the Amorite kings from the hill country have joined forces against us.” 7 So Joshua marched up from Gilgal with his entire army, including all the best fighting men. 8 The Lord said to Joshua, “Do not be afraid of them; I have given them into your hand. Not one of them will be able to withstand you.” 9 After an all-night march from Gilgal, Joshua took them by surprise. 10 The Lord threw them into confusion before Israel, so Joshua and the Israelites defeated them completely at Gibeon. Israel pursued them along the road going up to Beth Horon and cut them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah. 11 As they fled before Israel on the road down from Beth Horon to Azekah, the Lord hurled large hailstones down on them, and more of them died from the hail than were killed by the swords of the Israelites. 12 On the day the Lord gave the Amorites over to Israel, Joshua said to the Lord in the presence of Israel: “Sun, stand still over Gibeon, and you, moon, over the Valley of Aijalon.” 13 So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, till the nation avenged itself on its enemies, as it is written in the Book of Jashar. The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. 14 There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel! 15 Then Joshua returned with all Israel to the camp at Gilgal.

约书亚记 10:6-15 

10 基遍人就打发人往吉甲的营中去见约书亚，说：“你不要袖手不顾你的仆人，求你速速上来拯救我们，帮助我们，因为住山地亚摩利人的诸王都聚集攻击我们。” 7 于是约书亚和他一切兵丁，并大能的勇士，都从吉甲上去。 8 耶和华对约书亚说：“不要怕他们，因为我已将他们交在你手里，他们无一人能在你面前站立得住。” 9 约书亚就终夜从吉甲上去，猛然临到他们那里。 10 耶和华使他们在以色列人面前溃乱。约书亚在基遍大大地杀败他们，追赶他们，在伯和仑的上坡路击杀他们，直到亚西加和玛基大。 11 他们在以色列人面前逃跑，正在伯和仑下坡的时候，耶和华从天上降大冰雹在他们身上，直降到亚西加，打死他们。被冰雹打死的，比以色列人用刀杀死的还多。 12 当耶和华将亚摩利人交付以色列人的日子，约书亚就祷告耶和华，在以色列人眼前说：“日头啊，你要停在基遍！月亮啊，你要止在亚雅仑谷！” 13 于是日头停留，月亮止住，直等国民向敌人报仇。这事岂不是写在《雅煞珥书》上吗？“日头在天当中停住，不急速下落，约有一日之久。” 14 在这日以前，这日以后，耶和华听人的祷告没有像这日的，是因耶和华为以色列争战。15 约书亚和以色列众人回到吉甲的营中。

INSIGHT

灵粮透视

The Gibeonites feared Israel’s God, so they tricked Joshua and the Israelites into becoming their allies (Joshua 9). So when Gibeon called Israel for help (10:6), they were ultimately calling on God.

基遍人畏惧以色列的上帝，所以他们欺骗约书亚和以色列人，变成他们的盟友（约书亚记9章）。因此，当基遍人向以色列求助时（10章6节），其实是在向上帝求告。

Do we wait for a crisis to turn to Him?

我们是否也等到危机来临时才求告上帝呢？

整理：于姊妹