提要
我喜歡新國際版聖經如此翻譯1：22，「不要只聽上帝的話以致欺騙自己，去行所說的話。」
此處有三個重點：1.聽上帝的話2.自欺3.操練上帝的話。
新約經文──希臘文所用的動詞，有一些有共同的起源，例如「欺騙」（無論是騙人或騙己）是最具代表性的，它有「別用事實來迷惑我」之意，自欺的本意是「罪抵觸常識」，這特別動詞的鑰字是「paralogizomai」意思是「假因」或「因假而受騙」。在此處我們來看「欺騙」如何平衡前後兩個重點？
我們先來看第一個重點──聽上帝的話。聖經不僅是偉大的歷史、文學或詩歌，也是一本向道德挑戰的書；上帝的話不能被刪減，而它對讀者的意義因人而異，領受上帝的話並不是要我們離開現況，而是要我們成長，就像栽種一棵樹苗，沒有人會希望它不發芽成長。
試想一個人花了一天時間，在沙漠中開闢一個花園，天氣酷熱、水源又遠，當太陽下山時，你看到他正悠閒的看書喝茶，你會問「為何你如此安逸，難道不希望種子發芽嗎？」他平靜的回答：「誰說要它發芽長大﹖我如此做只是興趣罷了，它讓我感到平靜滿足，並且淨化我心。」這種回答不是很奇怪嗎？
上帝的話並不如此消極，而讀它的人也不應是消極的，上帝的話是活潑的，好比兩刃利劍，能使聽到的人被改變，並進而成為改變世界的力量，因此我們要實行所聽到的，才能平衡聽道與行道，不致於自欺。
聖經從無消極之意，其本身是激勵人研讀且去實行它。
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Overview
I like the way the NIV puts it, "Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says."
There are three subjects for discussion here: 1. listening to the word, 2. self-deception, and 3. practising the word.
When you look at the Greek verbs used in the New Testament for "deceive" (whether deceiving others or oneself), there is a common denominator with some of them; it is best expressed by the humorous remark, "Don't confuse me with the facts." Self-deceit is essentially "a sin against common sense" (as one scholar put it). The specific verb used in the key verse is paralogizomai, which means "to reason falsely" or "to deceive by false reasoning". The question is, how is the reasoning in this context out of balance?
Here's how. The Bible is not only tremendous history, literature, and poetry, it's a book with an implicit (and explicit) moral challenge. It's the word of God and cannot (or should not) be taken for anything less. It demands change in the reader. It is not content to leave us as we are. It expects growth, just as we do when we plant a sapling or a tulip bulb. In fact, none of us has ever planted a seed not expecting it to germinate and grow.
Imagine, then, a "gardener" who spends his day planting a garden in the desert, far from water, in scorching heat. You approach him at the end of the day as he contentedly sips a cup of tea and reads a book. "How can you be so happy?" you ask, "Your seeds won't grow!" He responds peacefully, "Grow? Who said anything about growth? I simply plant for recreation. It brings me peace and contentment. It blesses me."
The word of God is not passive, nor does it expect a passive posture from its readers. The word is active, "sharper than any two-edged sword", and expects the hearer to be transformed and, in turn, become an agent of change in the world. We are to do more than merely listen. We are to practise what we hear. The Bible was never meant to be taken passively. It is intensely personal, profound, and practical.
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