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11 Judah[a] has broken faith,
    and an abominable thing has been done
    in Israel and in Jerusalem.
By marrying the daughter of a foreign god,
    Judah has profaned the Lord’s beloved sanctuary.
12 May the Lord banish from the tents of Jacob
    any who do this,
and also deprive them of any witness or advocate
    or someone to present offerings to the Lord of hosts.

You Betray the Woman of Your Youth[b]

13 And this you are to do as well:
    you must cover the altar of the Lord
    with tears, with weeping and moaning,
because at present he refuses to consider your offering
    or to accept it with satisfaction from your hand.

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Footnotes

  1. Malachi 2:11 Judah: signifies here all who belong to the people of God. Centuries-long experience (beginning with Solomon: 1 Ki 11:4) had shown how dangerous marriages with foreign women were: these women, holding tightly to their various forms of worship, drew their husbands into them.
  2. Malachi 2:13 Like all the peoples of the time, Israel allowed a husband to repudiate his wife (Mt 24:1-4). The prophet is more demanding: in his eyes, marriage is a sacred bond that cannot be broken without going against the intention of the Creator (Gen 2:24). This passage leads toward the ideal that Jesus will propose (Mt 19:1-9).

11 Judah has been unfaithful. A detestable(A) thing has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem: Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves(B) by marrying(C) women who worship a foreign god.(D) 12 As for the man who does this, whoever he may be, may the Lord remove(E) him from the tents of Jacob[a](F)—even though he brings an offering(G) to the Lord Almighty.

13 Another thing you do: You flood the Lord’s altar with tears.(H) You weep and wail(I) because he no longer looks with favor(J) on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.(K)

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Footnotes

  1. Malachi 2:12 Or 12 May the Lord remove from the tents of Jacob anyone who gives testimony in behalf of the man who does this