Malachi 2:1-17

My *Messenger

Malachi

Gordon Churchyard

Chapter 2

v1 ‘And now, priests, this command is for you. v2 If you do not listen (to me)’ says the *LORD of Everything, ‘then I will send a *curse on you. (I will do this) if you do not really give honour to my name in your minds. A *curse will come (on you) instead of good things. In fact, I have already sent a *curse on you. (This is) because you do not really give me honour in your minds.

v3 Look! Because of you, I will be angry with your children. I will spread *dung on your faces. It will come from the animals that you offer (to God). And they will take you away with it. v4 And you will know that I sent this command. (I sent it) so that my *covenant with Levi will continue’, says the *LORD of Everything. v5 ‘My *covenant was with him. And I gave to him life and satisfaction. So he respected me (because) he was afraid of me. He was afraid of my name. v6 What he taught (people) was true and he said nothing false. He lived with me and had satisfaction. And he did what was right. Also, he turned many (people) away from *sin.

v7 A priest is the *messenger of the *LORD of Everything. So:

• The priest’s words should preserve knowledge.

• And people should listen to his instructions.

v8 But you are not doing these things. Also, you teach things that have caused many people to fall (which means that they do wrong things). You have spoiled (my) *covenant with Levi’, says the *LORD of Everything. v9 ‘So I have caused people to hate you. And I have caused you to suffer shame in front of all the people. (I did this) because you have not obeyed me. Instead, you try to become popular by what you teach.’

Notes

A new section starts here. It is about the honour of God.

1:6 The words in brackets … (…..) … are not in the *Hebrew Bible. Usually they are there to help us to understand things better. But ‘his’ is in the old *Syrian Bible and ‘is afraid of’ is in the old *Greek Bible. These priests did not give honour to God. And they did not respect him. ‘Disrespect’ means the opposite of respect. The name of God in the Bible usually means God himself.

1:7 God would not accept any person or thing that was *unholy. The animals were *unholy to offer to God. This was because there was something wrong with them, verse 8. But the priests were *unholy because they did not give honour to God. Neither did they serve him as their master, verse 6. An *altar is a special table. Priests burned animals on it to please God. There were several such tables in the *temple in Jerusalem. These tables were all ‘the *LORD’s table’. It is not the same as ‘the *Lord’s table’ (for the bread and wine) in a church.

1:8 Leviticus 22:17-25 tells us that God wanted them to offer to him perfect animals. Animals that were not perfect were called unclean (that is, *unholy) animals. God told the people to kill these animals in order to teach the people about Jesus. The animals needed to be perfect. And Jesus was perfect (1 Peter 1:19). The animals had to die. And Jesus had to die so that God will forgive our evil deeds (Hebrews 9:13-15).

Animals that were blind were called unclean. (That is, *unholy.) So were animals that could not walk. Or, animals that had diseases. Therefore, God would not accept them. Even their ruler would not accept such animals.

1:9 God would not accept the unclean things that the priests offered. Therefore, they should pray for him to be *gracious. ‘Gracious’ means ‘kinder than you need to be’. Many Bible students think that Malachi was using irony here. Irony is when you say the opposite of what you really mean. It is something that poets do in order to emphasise their message. Really, Malachi thought that the priest should offer good gifts to God. Malachi did not want them to continue to offer bad gifts while they prayed such prayers.

1:10 The doors were probably at the entrance to part of the *temple. The *temple was God’s house in Jerusalem. There was a yard (called a *court) round the building itself. The *altars in verse 7 were in this *court. If the doors were shut, nobody could enter to light fires. The priest lit the fire. Then, the person that brought the animal killed it. The fires burned the animals on the *altars. But it was *useless to burn animals that were not perfect. (‘Useless’ means ‘with no use’.) God would not accept animals that were not perfect. Leviticus 1:5, and other verses, tell us this.

1:11 Notice that the word ‘but’ at the start links this verse with verse 10. ‘From sunrise to sunset’ is used in Psalms 50:1 and Psalms 113:3 and in Isaiah 45:6 and Isaiah 59:19. This phrase means the whole world (see Malachi 1:5). *Incense is a mixture of sticky substances from various trees. When people burn *incense, it gives a pleasant smell. Chapter 16 of the Book of Numbers teaches us that only the Chief Priest could offer *incense to God. We do not know what the ‘pure gifts’ are. They may be animals. But no other place in the *Old Testament says that God will accept them outside Israel. However, see Acts 10:35. But God does not want us to continue to give animals to him. He wants us to obey him and to give our lives to him (Psalms 51:16-17).

1:12 Again, the word ‘but’ at the start links this verse with the previous verse.

1:13 The priests thought that all their religion was a nuisance to them. They hated it, or ‘blew down their noses’ at it. The English way to say this is ‘turned up their noses’ at it. The priests did this when they offered animals that were not perfect. The animal may have had an injury. Maybe a wild animal hurt or killed it. Exodus 22:31 says that the people should not even eat such an animal. To offer it to God insulted God. Or maybe the animals could not walk; or they had diseases. Leviticus 22:20-25 says that the people must not offer these animals to God.

1:14 Sometimes people promised God something, such as a good animal, if he answered their prayers. But when God did answer, they gave him something not so good! This verse says that such a person was cheating. If God *curses someone, something bad, perhaps death, will happen to that person.

2:1 The priests came from the *tribe of Levi. They lived in 48 towns in Judah (the south part of the *Jews’ country) and Israel (the north part). Numbers 35:3 tells us that they kept animals. They were probably the people who cheated in the previous verse.

2:2 A *curse had an important meaning for people from the *Jewish religion. God punished people by a *curse if they did not obey his laws. Deuteronomy 27:14 to Deuteronomy 28:68 has lists of both *curses and *blessings. *Blessings are the opposite of *curses. *Curses cause death, but *blessings cause life. The *Levites read out these lists every year. They did it on the day when the people promised to obey God’s *covenant.

2:3. The *Hebrew Bible uses the word ‘angry’. The *Greek Bible, an ancient translation from 200 *B.C., has ‘cut off’ or ‘make separate’. It probably means that God would not let them be part of the *covenant. *B.C. means ‘years Before Christ came to the earth’. ‘Dung’ is the dirt that animals make. It has a bad smell. Priests cleared it up from the *temple and burned it. (See Exodus 29:14.) God says that he will clear his people up. That is, God would take them away from their homes and punish them.

2:4 In verses 4-6, God speaks about Levi as if Levi is one man. In fact, God means the family of Levi, especially the men who were good priests. And God is reminding the evil priests at the time of Malachi about their family history.

Levi himself was really a cruel man (Genesis 34:35). Levi’s father was Jacob. Before Jacob died, he blessed his 12 sons. But Jacob did not bless Levi. Instead of a *blessing, Levi received a *curse on behalf of his family (Genesis 49:5-7). But later, Moses belonged to the family of Levi. And Moses pleased God greatly. So, God appointed priests from Levi’s family. And Moses blessed Levi’s family (Deuteronomy 33:8-11).

2:5 Deuteronomy, Proverbs and Psalms tell us that life and satisfaction happen to people that obey God. Some verses are: Deuteronomy 4:40; Deuteronomy 6:2; Deuteronomy 6:3; Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Proverbs 3:1-2; Proverbs 4:10; Proverbs 4:20-22; Psalms 1:3; Psalms 16:11; Psalms 91:16.

2:6 ‘Sin’ means ‘not to obey God’s laws’. A priest should know God’s laws. And he should obey them. Then other people will see his behaviour. And then they will learn how to serve God. Today, people should still see that Christians obey God’s laws (1 Peter 2:9).

2:7 The word ‘messenger’ tells us that the priest brings a message from the *LORD himself. The example in Zechariah 3:7 says that the Chief Priest could enter where God was. Ephesians 2:6 may say that this is also true of all Christians. Nehemiah 8:7-11 describes how the *Levites taught people the law of God.

2:8 But the priests did not obey God’s laws. Moreover, what they taught caused other people to *sin also. So these priests destroyed their *covenant with God. God did not destroy his *covenant with his people. He punished the people that did not obey him. Read Matthew 18:5-6.

2:9 So the ordinary people realised what the priests were doing. Therefore they hated the priests. The section ends by repeating what the priests did. They tried to make themselves popular by changing God’s laws. This did not bring honour to God, which is the main subject in this passage.

v10 We all have one father. One God created us all. We should not spoil the *covenant that our fathers made. (But we do spoil it) when we do not *keep our promises to each other. v11 (The people in) Judah have not done what they promised to do. They have done something very bad in Jerusalem and in Israel. In fact, (the people in) Judah have made *unholy the *temple that the *LORD loves. This happened when (*Jews) married the daughter of a foreign god. v12 I want the *LORD to cut off everyone who does this. I want him to cut them off, whoever they are. Even if they offer gifts to the *LORD of Everything, (I want the *LORD to cut them off). Then they will not belong to the family of Jacob.

v13 And there is something else that you do. You flood the *altar of the *LORD with your tears! You cry and you weep because:

• (The *LORD) does not give attention to the gifts that you offer (to him).

• He does not accept with pleasure what your hands (offer to him).

v14 You ask, ‘Why (does he not accept them)?’ It is because the *LORD is the witness between you and your wife. (You married her) when you were young. (It is because) you have not kept your promises to her. She is your partner and your wife by your marriage *covenant. v15 (The *LORD) unites a husband and wife. Their body and spirit are his. And why (did he) unite them? Because he wanted them to have children (that obeyed) God. So guard your own spirit. Also, *keep the promises that you made to your first wife. v16 In fact, (the *LORD) hates divorce. (That is) what the *LORD God of Israel says. (He hates it) when people are cruel (to other people). So guard your own spirit and *keep your promises.

Notes

A new section starts here. It is about people that do not *keep their promises to each other, especially in marriage.

Verse 10 Malachi teaches his people:

• We all have one father.

• One God created us.

The one father may mean Abraham; ‘Abraham is your father’, (Isaiah 51:2). Some Bible students think that Malachi means God here. God as ‘our father’ is a *New Testament idea. For example, ‘our father who is in heaven’ (Matthew 6:9). In the *Old Testament, God was father to the king and to the whole nation (Isaiah 64:8). ‘Keep our promise’ is an English way to say ‘do what we promised to do’.

Verse 11 There is a note on ‘*unholy’ at 1:7. Here, the *Hebrew word reminds us of images of false gods and false religions. Bible students are not sure what ‘married the daughter of a foreign god’ means. Here are two possibilities:

• They brought a false god from another country into the *temple in Jerusalem. This would make the *temple *unholy.

• Some of the men married foreign women. These foreigners served false gods. But perhaps this would not make the *temple *unholy.

So, the first of these ideas is probably the correct one. In the past, *Jews had married people who were not *Jews. People that were not *Jews joined the *Jews when they left Egypt (Exodus 12:38). Also, Ruth married Boaz (Ruth 4:13). But the Bible makes clear that these foreign people obeyed the God of Israel (Exodus 12:48; Ruth 1:16). Foreign gods had different standards from the God of Israel (1 Kings 11:1-8; Nehemiah 13:23-31). Some Bible students think that ‘the *temple that the *LORD loves’ means his people. This is true in the *New Testament, as Paul tells us (1 Corinthians 6:19).

Verse 12 ‘Cut off’ means that the person would not belong to Israel. Such a person would become a foreigner. And the people in Israel would avoid that person. ‘To belong to the family of Jacob’ is ‘in the tents of Jacob’ in the *Hebrew Bible. Bible students are not sure how to translate ‘whoever they are’. Two ideas are:

• anyone, whether he is a master or a pupil;

• anyone who answers whoever wakes him up.

Jacob is another name for Israel. This meant all the *Jewish people when Malachi wrote his book.

Verse 13 Only the priests could come near the *altar. So either this means the priests, or perhaps the people that they served.

Verse 14 The *Jews believed that God was a witness to a marriage (Genesis 31:50; Proverbs 2:17). Partners that were loyal to each other and to God gave a good home for their children. The word ‘partner’ usually means ‘very good friend’ in the Hebrew language. ‘Companion’ would be a very good translation.

Verse 15 All Bible students agree that the first part is very difficult to translate. Our translation is one possibility among many. Here are some other translations:

• Did not the *LORD make you one with your wife? In body and spirit, you are his. (New Living Bible)

• Did not the one God make her, both flesh and spirit? (Revised English Bible)

• Did he not create a single being that has flesh and the breath of life? (Jerusalem Bible)

There are many other translations. ‘Flesh’ is another word for ‘body’. Really, it means ‘meat’. One part of the verse is very clear: ‘*keep the promises that you made to your first wife.’

Verse 16 This verse may mean that people had divorced their first wives in order to remarry. Malachi says that this is cruel to the first wives. Actually, ‘to be cruel’ is ‘to cover your clothes with (blood from when you) fight’ in the *Hebrew Bible. Deuteronomy 24:1 says that the *LORD allows divorce. But this verse says that he does not like it. There is more teaching about divorce in Genesis 2:18-25 and Matthew 5:31-32 and 19:4-9.

v17 Your words have made the *LORD tired. But you ask, ‘How have we made the *LORD tired?’ (It is) because you say, ‘People that do evil (things) are pleasing the *LORD. He acts as if they are good.’ Or (you say) ‘God is not a fair judge.’

messenger ~ someone who brings a message.
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke.
Jew ~ a person who was born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children. It is also a name for one of Israel’s people.
Lord ~ master; also a name for God.
LORD ~ the covenant name of God.
covenant ~ agreement, especially, an agreement between God and the people.
curse ~ a wish that bad things and death will happen; in Malachi it does not mean bad language.
dung ~ dirt from an animal.
covenant ~ agreement, especially, an agreement between God and the people.
sin ~ not to obey God’s rules.
messenger ~ someone who brings a message.
Syrian ~ a language.
Greek ~ a language.
unholy ~ not suitable for God.
altar ~ a special table in the temple of God (or a false god).
temple ~ the house of a god; the Temple in Jerusalem was God’s house.
temple ~ the house of a god; the Temple in Jerusalem was God’s house.
Lord ~ master; also a name for God.
LORD ~ the covenant name of God.
covenant ~ agreement, especially, an agreement between God and the people.
gracious ~ very kind (even when you do not have to be kind).
court ~ a special yard with a wall round it.
useless ~ of no use.
incense ~ substance that burns to give a pleasant smell.
incense ~ substance that burns to give a pleasant smell.'Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible, which the writers wrote before the life of Jesus.
tribe ~ a large family that started many centuries ago, with just one mother and father.
Jew ~ a person who was born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children. It is also a name for one of Israel’s people.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew or anything that belongs to a Jew.
Jew ~ a person who was born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children. It is also a name for one of Israel’s people.
blessing ~ something good that happens to people; the opposite of a curse.
curse ~ a wish that bad things and death will happen; in Malachi it does not mean bad language.
blessing ~ something good that happens to people; the opposite of a curse.
curse ~ a wish that bad things and death will happen; in Malachi it does not mean bad language.
curse ~ a wish that bad things and death will happen; in Malachi it does not mean bad language.
Levites ~ the tribe (or large family) that worked in the temple. Some of them were priests. Other Levites helped the priests, or taught people about the Bible.
tribe ~ a large family that started many centuries ago, with just one mother and father.
temple ~ the house of a god; the Temple in Jerusalem was God’s house.

'New Testament ~ the last part of the Bible, which the writers wrote after the life of Jesus.