第五週■週四

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晨興餧養

創四九22『約瑟是多結果子的樹枝，是泉源旁多結果子的枝子；他的枝條探出牆外。』

   四一42『法老就摘下手上打印的戒指，戴在約瑟的手上，給他穿上細麻衣，把金鍊戴在他的頸項上。』

約瑟是多結果子的樹枝，豫表基督是枝子，（賽十一1，）藉着祂的信徒作祂的枝子，（約十五1，5，）將神伸展出去。創世記四十九章二十二節的泉源表徵神這多結果子的源頭；（詩三六9，耶二13；）枝條探出牆外，表徵基督的信徒作祂的枝子，將基督擴展出去，越過各種限制，在一切環境中顯大基督。（腓一20，四22，門10。）（聖經恢復本，創四九22 註1。）

約瑟登寶座時，得着了榮耀並且領受恩賜，豫表基督在祂的升天裏得着榮耀，（來二9，）並領受恩賜。（詩六八18，徒二33。）戒指、衣服和金鍊，描繪基督升上諸天時所領受的恩賜，祂已將這些恩賜傳給召會。打印的戒指，表徵聖靈在基督的信徒裏面和身上作印記。（徒二33，弗一13，四30，參路十五22。）衣服表徵基督作我們客觀的義，使我們在神面前得稱義，（林前一30，參詩四五9，13，路十五22，）並且作我們活出來的主觀的義，使我們彀資格有分於羔羊的婚娶。（詩四五14 與註1，啓十九7 ～ 9 與8 註2。）金鍊表徵賜給順從之人聖靈的美麗，彰顯於服從上。（參徒五32。）（創四一42 註1。）

信息選讀

照着屬靈經歷的順序，首先我們接受蓋印的靈，使我們得着救恩；然後我們接受義袍，開始活基督。（加二20，腓一20 ～ 21 上。）爲着活基督，我們的頸項必須戴上鍊子，我們的意志必須被聖靈征服。（聖經恢復本，創四一42 註1。）

當以色列人不順從時，主說他們是硬着頸項的百姓。（出三二9。）…戴着鍊子的頸項，表徵被征服並降服以順從神命令的意志。當你的頸項這樣被征服並降服時，就是戴上了鍊子。…行傳五章三十二節說，那靈是賜給順從神的人。因此，那靈作爲恩賜賜下，不僅是爲着得救，也是爲着順從。

在創世記四十一章四十五節，我們看見約瑟娶了安城祭司波提非拉的女兒亞西納爲妻。約瑟的妻子是異教徒，是埃及人。約瑟在被弟兄們棄絕的期間娶了她。這也是一個豫表，描繪基督如何在祂被以色列人棄絕的時候，從外邦人中娶召會爲妻。當祂與外邦人在一起時，從他們中間得了一個妻子。…亞西納描繪基督在被以色列人棄絕的期間，從外邦世界娶來的召會。基督在被棄絕的期間，來到外邦世界，留在那裏，並且從外邦世界得着召會。

約瑟從他的妻子亞西納生了兩個兒子，瑪拿西和以法蓮。瑪拿西這名的意思是『使之忘了』。在瑪拿西出生時，約瑟說，『神使我忘了一切的困苦，和我父的全家。』（51。）這指明瑪拿西的出生，使約瑟忘了一切的患難。…這啓示當召會有生產時，基督就要宣告祂忘了祂的患難。

約瑟的次子名叫以法蓮，意思是『繁衍』。（52。）在以法蓮出生時，約瑟說，『神使我在受苦之地繁衍。』…當我們傳福音並結果子，基督就要喜樂並宣告：『不再有患難了。看看所有的果子！』（創世記生命讀經，一七三一至一七三二、一七三五至一七三六頁。）

參讀：創世記生命讀經，第一百十三篇。

WEEK 5 — DAY 4

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Morning Nourishment

Gen. 49:22 Joseph is a fruitful bough, a fruitful bough by a fountain; his branches run over the wall.

       41:42 And Pharaoh took off his signet ring from his hand and put it upon Joseph’s hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen, and put a gold chain around his neck.

Joseph as a fruitful bough typifies Christ as the branch (Isa. 11:1) for the branching out of God through His believers as His branches (John 15:1, 5). In Genesis 49:22 the fountain signifies God, the source of fruitfulness (Psa. 36:9; Jer. 2:13), and the branches’ running over the wall signifies that Christ’s believers as His branches spread Christ over every restriction, magnifying Him in all circumstances (Phil. 1:20; 4:22; Philem. 10). (Gen. 49:22, footnote 1)

In his receiving glory and gifts in his enthronement, Joseph typifies Christ, who received glory (Heb. 2:9) and gifts (Psa. 68:18; Acts 2:33) in His ascension. The ring, the garments, and the gold chain portray the gifts that Christ received in His ascension to the heavens, which gifts He has passed on to the church. The signet ring signifies the Holy Spirit as a seal within and upon Christ’s believers (Acts 2:33; Eph. 1:13; 4:30; cf. Luke 15:22). The garments signify Christ as our objective righteousness for our justification before God (1 Cor. 1:30; cf. Psa. 45:9, 13; Luke 15:22) and as our subjective righteousness lived out of us that we may be qualified to participate in the marriage of the Lamb (Psa. 45:14 and footnote 1; Rev. 19:7-9 and footnote 82). The golden chain signifies the beauty of the Holy Spirit given for obedience expressed in submission (cf. Acts 5:32). (Gen. 41:42, footnote 1)

Today’s Reading

According to the sequence of spiritual experience, we first receive the sealing Spirit for salvation; then we receive the garment of righteousness and begin to live Christ (Gal. 2:20; Phil. 1:20-21a). In order for us to live Christ, our neck must be chained, our will must be subdued, by the Holy Spirit. (Gen. 41:42, footnote 1)

When the children of Israel were disobedient, the Lord referred to them as a stiff-necked people (Exo. 32:9)…The chained neck signifies a will that has been conquered and subdued to obey God’s commandment…When your neck has been conquered and subdued in this way, it is chained…Acts 5:32 says that the Spirit is given to those who obey God. Hence, the Spirit is given not only as a gift for salvation, but also for obedience.

In Genesis 41:45 we see that Joseph took as his wife Asenath, the daughter of Potipherah, priest of On. Joseph’s wife was a heathen, an Egyptian. Joseph took her during the time he was rejected by his brothers. This also is a type portraying how Christ has taken the Gentiles as His wife during the time of His rejection by the Israelites. As He was staying with the Gentiles, He obtained a wife from among them. Asenath portrays the church taken out of the Gentile world by Christ during His rejection by the children of Israel. During the time of this rejection, Christ came to the Gentile world, stayed there, and received the church out of the Gentile world.

Of his wife, Asenath, Joseph begot two sons, Manasseh and Ephraim. The name Manasseh means, “making to forget.” When Manasseh was born, Joseph said, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all my father’s house” (41:51). This indicates that with the birth of Manasseh Joseph forgot all his afflictions… This reveals that when the church is productive, Christ will declare that He has forgotten His afflictions.

The name of Joseph’s second son was Ephraim, which means “Fruitful” (41:52). When Ephraim was born, Joseph said, “God has made me fruitful in the land of my affliction.”…When we preach the gospel and produce fruit, Christ will be happy and declare, “There is no more affliction. But look at all the fruit!” (Life-study of Genesis, pp. 1450-1451, 1453-1454)

Further Reading: Life-study of Genesis, msg. 113