• 马可福音 11:12-26

诅咒无花果树

12第二天，他们从伯大尼出来，耶稣饿了。 13他远远地看见一棵无花果树，树上有叶子，就过去，看是不是在树上可以找到什么。他到了树下，竟找不到什么，只有叶子，因为不是无花果的季节。 14耶稣就对树说：“从今以后，永没有人吃你的果子。”他的门徒都听到了。

洁净圣殿

15他们来到耶路撒冷。耶稣一进圣殿，就赶出在圣殿里做买卖的人，推倒兑换银钱之人的桌子和卖鸽子之人的凳子； 16也不许人拿着器具从圣殿里经过。 17他教导他们说：“经上不是记着：

‘我的殿要称为万国祷告的殿吗？

你们倒使它成为贼窝了。’”

18祭司长和文士听见这话，就想法子要除掉耶稣，却又怕他，因为众人都对他的教导感到惊奇。 19每天晚上，他们都到城外去。

从无花果树得教导

20早晨，他们从那里经过，看见无花果树连根都枯干了。 21彼得想起耶稣的话来，就对他说：“拉比，你看！你所诅咒的无花果树已经枯干了。” 22耶稣回答：“你们对上帝要有信心。 23我实在告诉你们，无论何人对这座山说：‘离开此地，投在海里！’他心里若不疑惑，只信所说的必成，就为他实现。 24所以我告诉你们，凡你们祷告祈求的，无论是什么，只要信你们已经得着了，就为你们实现。 25你们站着祷告的时候，若想起有人得罪你们，就该饶恕他，好让你们在天上的父也饶恕你们的过犯。”

耶稣观察了圣殿里发生的一切（马可福音11:11），第二天就回到那里。他去了最公开的地方，其名为“外邦人院”，那里生意正火。圣殿当局允许这些生意，并从中获益。受“认可”在圣殿献为祭的牲畜只在圣殿里出售。货币兑换商们忙着赚取巨额利润，因为朝拜者必须用特殊的圣殿货币来购买祭牲和支付圣殿税。

耶稣出于对神的名和荣耀的热忱，赶走了一众牟取暴利的人，并推翻了他们的桌子和凳子。他还阻止人们滥用圣殿的庭院作为运送商品的捷径。神带着属天的怒气清理圣殿时，场景一定颇具戏剧化。

然后，耶稣开始教导众人。其中有些人可能带着讥笑的眼光看着他清理外邦人院中的陋习和敲诈行为。耶稣引用以赛亚书56:7重复了神说过的话：他的殿要成为“万民祷告的殿”，意思是以色列人应该带领万民（外邦人）敬拜神。但不忠于神的百姓却把那庭院变成了“贼窝”（马可福音11:17；耶利米书7:11）。

那些从圣殿丑恶的商业化中获利的祭司长和律法师们，看到对手是耶稣，就严肃地策划要杀死他。他们把耶稣视为一种竞争和威胁。

通常情况下，无花果树上若有叶子，就表示即将结出果实。在去圣殿的路上，耶稣诅咒了一棵没有结果的无花果树。这棵树在无花果的季节到来之前就已经长满了叶子，令人误以为它结了果子，但其实它没有。这象征上帝的子民已变得虚伪和做作，就像圣殿里虽人来人往，却没有结出任何属灵的果子一样。第二天，门徒看到那棵被诅咒的树“连根都枯干了”（马可福音11:20）。这生动地表明了顽梗悖逆和不忠的后果，也是对即将到来的审判的警告（圣殿在公元70年被罗马人摧毁）。

然后，耶稣讲到信心和果子：对神的信心可以移山，并表现在移山的祷告中（马可福音11:23–24）；这样的信心也会产生饶恕他人的能力，如同我们得到了天父的饶恕一样（马可福音11:25）。信心一定结出果子。

思考

在全球关注新冠疫情之际，教会和我们个人该如何提醒自己我们的属天使命？本周你将如何去做？

在这样一个充满不确定性和要求“社交距离”的时代，我们能结出什么样的果子？上帝正在我们身上寻找什么？我们如何实践信仰和顺服？

• 花点时间向神献上感恩与祈求

• Mark 11:12-26

Jesus Curses the Fig Tree

12 On the following day, when they came from Bethany, he was hungry. 13And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. 14And he said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it.

Jesus Cleanses the Temple

15 And they came to Jerusalem. And he entered the temple and began to drive out those who sold and those who bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. 16And he would not allow anyone to carry anything through the temple. 17And he was teaching them and saying to them, “Is it not written, ‘My house shall be called a house of prayer for all the nations’? But you have made it a den of robbers.” 18And the chief priests and the scribes heard it and were seeking a way to destroy him, for they feared him, because all the crowd was astonished at his teaching. 19And when evening came they went out of the city.

The Lesson from the Withered Fig Tree

20 As they passed by in the morning, they saw the fig tree withered away to its roots. 21And Peter remembered and said to him, “Rabbi, look! The fig tree that you cursed has withered.” 22And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. 23Truly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says will come to pass, it will be done for him. 24Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25And whenever you stand praying, forgive, if you have anything against anyone, so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.”

Having observed all that was happening in the temple (Mark 11:11), Jesus returned the next day. He went to the most public area, known as the Court of the Gentiles, where a roaring trade was going on. The temple authorities had allowed such business—and gained from it. “Approved” animals for temple sacrifices were only sold in the temple. The money changers were busy making huge profits—special temple currency had to be used to buy the animals and to pay the temple tax.

Aflame with passion for God’s name and glory, Jesus drove away the entire crowd of profiteers and overturned their tables and benches. He also prevented people from misusing the temple courts as a shortcut to transport their merchandise. It was high drama as God cleaned out the temple with divine anger.

Then Jesus taught the crowd, some of whom may have looked on with amusement as He cleaned up the abuse and ungodly profiteering in the Court of the Gentiles. Jesus quoted Isaiah 56:7 and Jeremiah 7:11, repeating what God had said—His house would be “a house of prayer of all nations”, meaning that Israel was supposed to lead the nations (Gentiles) to worship God. But the unfaithful people of God had turned the court into a “den of thieves” (Mark 11:17) instead.

Seeing who they were up against, the chief priests and teachers of the law, who had profited from the ghastly commercialisation of the temple, seriously plotted to kill Jesus. They saw Him as a competition and threat.

Normally, leaves on a fig tree indicate that fruit is coming. On the way to the temple, Jesus cursed a fruitless tree that had fully leafed before the season for figs. It had given the false impression that it bore fruit when it actually did not. It represented what God’s people had become—hypocritical and pretentious. The temple had its crowds but it was not bearing any spiritual fruit. The following day, the disciples saw the cursed tree “withered from the roots” (Mark 11:20)—an object lesson of the consequences of stubborn disobedience and unfaithfulness, and a warning of impending judgment (the temple was destroyed by the Romans in AD 70). Then Jesus mentioned something about faith and fruitfulness. Faith in God can move mountains and is expressed in mountain-moving prayer (Mark 11:23–24). Such faith also produces the power to forgive others even as we are forgiven by our Father (v. 25). Faith produces fruit.

Think It Over

Amid global concerns over the COVID-19 outbreak, how can the church, and we as individuals, remind ourselves of our heavenly mission? What will you do about it this week?

What sort of fruit can we bear in such times of uncertainty and requirements on “social distancing”? What might God be looking for in us? How can we practise our faith and obedience?

• Take a moment to give thanks and prayers to God