Malachi 2
King James Version
2 And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you.
2 If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart.
3 Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it.
4 And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the Lord of hosts.
5 My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me, and was afraid before my name.
6 The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips: he walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from iniquity.
7 For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.
8 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the Lord of hosts.
9 Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law.
10 Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?
11 Judah hath dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the Lord which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god.
12 The Lord will cut off the man that doeth this, the master and the scholar, out of the tabernacles of Jacob, and him that offereth an offering unto the Lord of hosts.
13 And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand.
14 Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the Lord hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.
15 And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.
16 For the Lord, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the Lord of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously.
17 Ye have wearied the Lord with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him? When ye say, Every one that doeth evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and he delighteth in them; or, Where is the God of judgment?
Malachi 2
Lexham English Bible
2 “And so then, O priests, this command is for you: 2 If you will not listen, and if you will not take it to heart[a] to give glory to my name,” says Yahweh of hosts, “then I will send the curse on you, and I will curse your blessings; moreover I have already cursed them because you are not taking it to heart.[b] 3 Look! I am going to rebuke your offspring,[c] and I will scatter offal on your faces, the offal of your religious feasts, and you will be carried to it.[d]
4 “Then you will know that I have sent to you this command, that my covenant with Levi continues,”[e] says Yahweh of hosts. 5 “My covenant with him was one of life and peace, and I gave them to him. This required reverence, and he revered[f] me and stood in awe before[g] my name. 6 The instruction of truth[h] was in his mouth, and wickedness was not found on his lips. In peace and in uprightness[i] he walked with me, and he brought back many from sin.[j] 7 For the lips of the priest should guard knowledge, and they should seek instruction[k] from his mouth, for he is the messenger of Yahweh of hosts. 8 But you, you have turned from the way; you have caused many to stumble by your instruction;[l] you have ruined the covenant of Levi,” says Yahweh of hosts. 9 “And in turn I have made you despised and humbled before all the people, inasmuch as you are not keeping[m] my way, but are favoring your own instruction.”[n]
Yahweh Hates Faithlessness
10 Do we not all have[o] one father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we unfaithful to one another,[p] profaning the covenant of our ancestors?[q] 11 Judah has been faithless, and a detestable thing has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. Judah has profaned the sanctuary of Yahweh which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign[r] god. 12 May Yahweh cut off from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, the one who is awake and who answers, and the one who brings an offering to Yahweh of hosts!
13 And this you do as well:[s] you cover the altar of Yahweh with tears, with weeping and with groaning, because he[t] no longer regards the offering[u] or accepts it with favor from your hand. 14 But you ask, “For what reason?”[v] Because Yahweh stands as a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have been unfaithful, even though she is your marriage partner and your wife by covenant.[w] 15 Did not one God make them?[x] But a remnant of the spirit is his.[y] And what does the one God desire? An offspring of God.[z] You must be attentive to[aa] your spirit, and you must not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth. 16 “For I hate divorce,”[ab] says Yahweh, the God of Israel, “and he who covers his clothing with violence,” says Yahweh of hosts. “You must be attentive to[ac] your spirit and you must not be unfaithful.”
17 You have wearied Yahweh with your words, but you ask, “With what have we wearied him?” You have done so when you say,[ad] “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight[ae] of Yahweh, and in them he delights,” or “Where is the God of justice?”
Footnotes
- Malachi 2:2 Literally, “place it on your heart”
- Malachi 2:2 Literally “you are not placing it on your heart”
- Malachi 2:3 Literally “for you the offspring”
- Malachi 2:3 The Hebrew is difficult. The subject is indefinite, and “it” likely refers to a refuse or waste pile
- Malachi 2:4 Literally “be”
- Malachi 2:5 Or “feared”
- Malachi 2:5 Literally “from the face of”
- Malachi 2:6 Or “law of truth”
- Malachi 2:6 Or “rectitude,” or “fairness”
- Malachi 2:6 Or “iniquity”
- Malachi 2:7 Or “law”
- Malachi 2:8 Or “the law”
- Malachi 2:9 Or “observing”
- Malachi 2:9 Literally “lifting faces in the instruction/law”
- Malachi 2:10 Literally “Is for all of us not”
- Malachi 2:10 Literally “each man to his brother”
- Malachi 2:10 Or “fathers”
- Malachi 2:11 Or “pagan”
- Malachi 2:13 Literally “a second time”
- Malachi 2:13 Yahweh
- Malachi 2:13 Literally “there is no longer turning to the offering”
- Malachi 2:14 Literally “Because of what?”
- Malachi 2:14 Literally “the wife of your covenant”
- Malachi 2:15 Literally “Not one did he make”
- Malachi 2:15 The meaning of this sentence is difficult; literally “And a remnant of the spirit to him”
- Malachi 2:15 Or “a godly offspring”
- Malachi 2:15 Literally “You must keep watch on”
- Malachi 2:16 Hebrew “sending away”
- Malachi 2:16 Literally “You must keep watch on”
- Malachi 2:17 Literally “at your saying”
- Malachi 2:17 Literally “eyes”
2012 by Logos Bible Software. Lexham is a registered trademark of Logos Bible Software