17这十二根杖在约柜前过了一夜，神使亚伦的杖发了芽，生了花苞，结了熟杏。这里有一根枯死的杖，而神将生命能力放在其中。……亚伦的杖发了芽有什么意义呢？发芽的杖首先乃是叫杖的主人谦卑，其次也叫别的杖的主人没话说。如果我们拿一根已经干掉的杖，像亚伦所拿的一样，是死的，一点发芽的盼望也没有；……但第二天，竟然看见我们的枯杖已经发了芽，且开了花，还结出了果子。我们该有怎样的反应呢？我们该流泪向神说，这是你的事，不是我的事；是你的荣耀，不是我的荣耀。我们这人在神面前自然就谦卑了。这真是如保罗所说的，宝贝在瓦器里，要显明这超越的能力是属于神，不是出于我们（林后四7）。所以只有愚昧的人才会骄傲。但蒙恩的人必俯伏在神面前说，“这是神的事，我一点没有可骄傲的；这是在于神的怜悯，不在于人的定意或奔跑。我没有一点不是领受的；我所有的，全是因着神的拣选。” 17The twelve rods spent a night before the Ark. God caused Aaron’s rod to bud, blossom, and bear ripe almonds. Here was a dead rod, yet God put the power of life into it…What did it mean for Aaron’s rod to bud? First, a budding rod humbles the owner of the rod. Second, it shuts up the mouth of the owners of the other rods. What would our reaction be if we took a dry rod like that of Aaron’s, which was dead and had no hope of budding, and found to our surprise that it had budded, blossomed, and borne fruit the next day? We would confess to God in tears that this was His doing. It would have nothing to do with us. It would be His glory, not our glory. Spontaneously, we would be humbled before God. This is what Paul meant when he said, “We have this treasure in earthen vessels that the excellency of the power may be of God and not out of us” (2 Cor. 4:7). Only foolish ones would try to be proud. A person who has received grace from God will surely fall down before Him, saying, “This is God’s doing. I have nothing to boast of. Everything depends on God’s mercy, not on man’s willing or running. There is nothing that I have which has not been received. Everything that I have comes from God’s selection.”