生有時, 死有時—-傳道書3:1-2［凡事都有定期, 天下萬務都有定時. 生有時, 死有時.］時間在上帝手中, 人都不能脫離上帝的主權與操縱, 順應上帝的時間表是最明智的作法. 生與死皆有定時, 不遲不早, 人為的操控與干預, 並不明智, 也與天道, 神道有違. 最有名的例子是亞伯拉罕生以撒的事, 亞伯拉罕生子本是神的應許, 在神的定時中生, 是最完美的. 無奈人破壞了上帝的時間表, 在不到時候, 便生下以實馬利, 結果生出了大禍, 無疑是自討苦吃, 參見創世紀第15及16章. 死有定時的道理也相仿, 最有名的例子是希西家王患上致死的疾病時, 雖然神明明的告訴他, 他不能活了, 然而他向上帝苦苦哀求, 結果他被𨒂長了15年生命. 就在這15年當中, 他生養了兒子瑪拿西, 以後成為他的皇位繼承人, 但瑪拿西卻是以色列史上最壞的一個王, 參見王下20及21章. 若早知如此, 又何必當初？ 所以我們不必貪生, 也不要怕死, 在適當的時候做適當的事, 不必勉強. 接受上帝對我們美好的祝福與安排.
There is a time to be born, and a time to die – Ecclesiastes 3:1-2 [There is a time for everything, and a time for everything under heaven. There is a time to be born, and a time to die.] Time is in God’s hands, and no one can escape from God’s sovereignty and control. Complying with God’s timetable is the wisest thing to do. There is a timetable for life and death, neither too late nor too early. Human control and intervention are unwise and contrary to the ways of heaven and God. The most famous example is Abraham’s birth of Isaac. Abraham’s birth of a son was God’s promise. He was born in God’s timing, which is the most perfect. But man had no choice but to destroy God’s timetable and gave birth to Ishmael before the time, which resulted in a great disaster. , is undoubtedly asking for trouble, see Genesis Chapters 15 and 16. The same principle applies to the idea of a time for death. The most famous example is when King Hezekiah suffered from a fatal disease, although God clearly told him that he could not live. However, he cried out to God, and as a result, he was given 15 years of life. During these 15 years, he gave birth to his son Manasseh, who later became his heir to the throne, but Manasseh was the most important person in the history of Israel. The worst king, see 2 Kings 20 and 21. If you had known this, why did you do it in the first place? Therefore, we do not need to be greedy for life, nor should we be afraid of death. We should do the right thing at the right time without forcing it. Accept God’s wonderful blessings and arrangements for us.