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A prophecy:(A) The word(B) of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.[a]

Israel Doubts God’s Love

“I have loved(C) you,” says the Lord.

“But you ask,(D) ‘How have you loved us?’

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob,(E) but Esau I have hated,(F) and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland(G) and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.(H)

Edom(I) may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild(J) the ruins.”

But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish.(K) They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord.(L) You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great(M) is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’(N)

Breaking Covenant Through Blemished Sacrifices

“A son honors his father,(O) and a slave his master.(P) If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect(Q) due me?” says the Lord Almighty.(R)

“It is you priests who show contempt for my name.

“But you ask,(S) ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’

“By offering defiled food(T) on my altar.

“But you ask,(U) ‘How have we defiled you?’

“By saying that the Lord’s table(V) is contemptible. When you offer blind animals for sacrifice, is that not wrong? When you sacrifice lame or diseased animals,(W) is that not wrong? Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased(X) with you? Would he accept you?” says the Lord Almighty.(Y)

“Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings(Z) from your hands, will he accept(AA) you?”—says the Lord Almighty.

10 “Oh, that one of you would shut the temple doors,(AB) so that you would not light useless fires on my altar! I am not pleased(AC) with you,” says the Lord Almighty, “and I will accept(AD) no offering(AE) from your hands. 11 My name will be great(AF) among the nations,(AG) from where the sun rises to where it sets.(AH) In every place incense(AI) and pure offerings(AJ) will be brought to me, because my name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord Almighty.

12 “But you profane it by saying, ‘The Lord’s table(AK) is defiled,’ and, ‘Its food(AL) is contemptible.’ 13 And you say, ‘What a burden!’(AM) and you sniff at it contemptuously,(AN)” says the Lord Almighty.

“When you bring injured, lame or diseased animals and offer them as sacrifices,(AO) should I accept them from your hands?”(AP) says the Lord. 14 “Cursed is the cheat who has an acceptable male in his flock and vows to give it, but then sacrifices a blemished animal(AQ) to the Lord. For I am a great king,(AR)” says the Lord Almighty,(AS) “and my name is to be feared(AT) among the nations.(AU)

Additional Warning to the Priests

“And now, you priests, this warning is for you.(AV) If you do not listen,(AW) and if you do not resolve to honor(AX) my name,” says the Lord Almighty, “I will send a curse(AY) on you, and I will curse your blessings.(AZ) Yes, I have already cursed them, because you have not resolved to honor me.

“Because of you I will rebuke your descendants[b]; I will smear on your faces the dung(BA) from your festival sacrifices, and you will be carried off with it.(BB) And you will know that I have sent you this warning so that my covenant with Levi(BC) may continue,” says the Lord Almighty. “My covenant was with him, a covenant(BD) of life and peace,(BE) and I gave them to him; this called for reverence(BF) and he revered me and stood in awe of my name. True instruction(BG) was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips. He walked(BH) with me in peace(BI) and uprightness,(BJ) and turned many from sin.(BK)

“For the lips of a priest(BL) ought to preserve knowledge, because he is the messenger(BM) of the Lord Almighty and people seek instruction from his mouth.(BN) But you have turned from the way(BO) and by your teaching have caused many to stumble;(BP) you have violated the covenant(BQ) with Levi,”(BR) says the Lord Almighty. “So I have caused you to be despised(BS) and humiliated(BT) before all the people, because you have not followed my ways but have shown partiality(BU) in matters of the law.”(BV)

Breaking Covenant Through Divorce

10 Do we not all have one Father[c]?(BW) Did not one God create us?(BX) Why do we profane the covenant(BY) of our ancestors by being unfaithful(BZ) to one another?

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

13 Another thing you do: You flood the Lord’s altar with tears.(CH) You weep and wail(CI) because he no longer looks with favor(CJ) on your offerings or accepts them with pleasure from your hands.(CK) 14 You ask,(CL) “Why?” It is because the Lord is the witness(CM) between you and the wife of your youth.(CN) You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant.(CO)

15 Has not the one God made you?(CP) You belong to him in body and spirit. And what does the one God seek? Godly offspring.[e](CQ) So be on your guard,(CR) and do not be unfaithful(CS) to the wife of your youth.

16 “The man who hates and divorces his wife,(CT)” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “does violence to the one he should protect,”[f](CU) says the Lord Almighty.

So be on your guard,(CV) and do not be unfaithful.

Breaking Covenant Through Injustice

17 You have wearied(CW) the Lord with your words.

“How have we wearied him?” you ask.(CX)

By saying, “All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord, and he is pleased(CY) with them” or “Where is the God of justice?(CZ)

“I will send my messenger,(DA) who will prepare the way before me.(DB) Then suddenly the Lord(DC) you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant,(DD) whom you desire,(DE) will come,” says the Lord Almighty.

But who can endure(DF) the day of his coming?(DG) Who can stand(DH) when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire(DI) or a launderer’s soap.(DJ) He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver;(DK) he will purify(DL) the Levites and refine them like gold and silver.(DM) Then the Lord will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,(DN) and the offerings(DO) of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years.(DP)

“So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers,(DQ) adulterers(DR) and perjurers,(DS) against those who defraud laborers of their wages,(DT) who oppress the widows(DU) and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners(DV) among you of justice, but do not fear(DW) me,” says the Lord Almighty.

Breaking Covenant by Withholding Tithes

“I the Lord do not change.(DX) So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.(DY) Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away(DZ) from my decrees and have not kept them. Return(EA) to me, and I will return to you,”(EB) says the Lord Almighty.

“But you ask,(EC) ‘How are we to return?’

“Will a mere mortal rob(ED) God? Yet you rob me.

“But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’

“In tithes(EE) and offerings. You are under a curse(EF)—your whole nation—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe(EG) into the storehouse,(EH) that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates(EI) of heaven and pour out(EJ) so much blessing(EK) that there will not be room enough to store it.(EL) 11 I will prevent pests from devouring(EM) your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,(EN)” says the Lord Almighty. 12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed,(EO) for yours will be a delightful land,”(EP) says the Lord Almighty.(EQ)

Israel Speaks Arrogantly Against God

13 “You have spoken arrogantly(ER) against me,” says the Lord.

“Yet you ask,(ES) ‘What have we said against you?’

14 “You have said, ‘It is futile(ET) to serve(EU) God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements(EV) and going about like mourners(EW) before the Lord Almighty? 15 But now we call the arrogant(EX) blessed. Certainly evildoers(EY) prosper,(EZ) and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.’”

The Faithful Remnant

16 Then those who feared the Lord talked with each other, and the Lord listened and heard.(FA) A scroll(FB) of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared(FC) the Lord and honored his name.

17 “On the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty, “they will be my(FD) treasured possession.(FE) I will spare(FF) them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son(FG) who serves him. 18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous(FH) and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.(FI)

Judgment and Covenant Renewal

[g]“Surely the day is coming;(FJ) it will burn like a furnace.(FK) All the arrogant(FL) and every evildoer will be stubble,(FM) and the day that is coming will set them on fire,(FN)” says the Lord Almighty. “Not a root or a branch(FO) will be left to them. But for you who revere my name,(FP) the sun of righteousness(FQ) will rise with healing(FR) in its rays. And you will go out and frolic(FS) like well-fed calves. Then you will trample(FT) on the wicked; they will be ashes(FU) under the soles of your feet on the day when I act,” says the Lord Almighty.

“Remember the law(FV) of my servant Moses, the decrees and laws I gave him at Horeb(FW) for all Israel.(FX)

“See, I will send the prophet Elijah(FY) to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord comes.(FZ) He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children,(GA) and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike(GB) the land with total destruction.”(GC)

Footnotes

  1. Malachi 1:1 Malachi means my messenger.
  2. Malachi 2:3 Or will blight your grain
  3. Malachi 2:10 Or father
  4. 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
  5. Malachi 2:15 The meaning of the Hebrew for the first part of this verse is uncertain.
  6. Malachi 2:16 Or “I hate divorce,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “because the man who divorces his wife covers his garment with violence,”
  7. Malachi 4:1 In Hebrew texts 4:1-6 is numbered 3:19-24.

The Lord’s Love for Israel

An oracle:(A) The word of the Lord(B) to Israel through(C) Malachi.[a]

“I have loved you,”(D) says the Lord.

But you ask: “How have You loved us?”

“Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?”(E) This is the Lord’s declaration. “Even so, I loved Jacob, but I hated Esau.(F) I turned his mountains into a wasteland, and gave his inheritance to the desert jackals.”(G)

Though Edom says: “We have been devastated, but we will rebuild[b] the ruins,” the Lord of Hosts says this: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called a wicked country(H) and the people the Lord has cursed[c] forever.(I) Your own eyes will see this, and you yourselves will say, ‘The Lord is great, even beyond[d] the borders of Israel.’(J)

Disobedience of the Priests

“A son honors his father, and a servant his master. But if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is your fear of Me?(K) says Yahweh of Hosts to you priests, who despise My name.”

Yet you ask: “How have we despised Your name?”

“By presenting defiled food on My altar.”

You ask: “How have we defiled You?”(L)

When you say: “The Lord’s table is contemptible.”(M)

“When you present a blind animal for sacrifice, is it not wrong? And when you present a lame or sick animal, is it not wrong?(N) Bring it to your governor! Would he be pleased with you or show you favor?” asks the Lord of Hosts. “And now ask for God’s favor. Will He be gracious to us?(O) Since this has come from your hands, will He show any of you favor?”(P) asks the Lord of Hosts. 10 “I wish one of you would shut the temple doors,(Q) so you would no longer kindle a useless fire on My altar!(R) I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Hosts, “and I will accept(S) no offering from your hands.(T)

11 “For My name will be great among the nations,(U) from the rising of the sun to its setting. Incense[e] and pure offerings will be presented in My name in every place because My name will be great among the nations,”[f] says Yahweh of Hosts.

12 But you are profaning it(V) when you say: “The Lord’s table is defiled, and its product, its food, is contemptible.” 13 You also say: “Look, what a nuisance!” “And you scorn[g] it,”[h](W) says the Lord of Hosts. “You bring stolen,[i](X) lame, or sick animals. You bring this as an offering! Am I to accept that from your hands?” asks the Lord.

14 “The deceiver is cursed who has an acceptable male in his flock and makes a vow but sacrifices a defective animal to the Lord.(Y) For I am a great King,” says Yahweh of Hosts, “and My name[j] will be feared among the nations.

Warning to the Priests

“Therefore, this decree(Z) is for you priests: If you don’t listen, and if you don’t take it to heart(AA) to honor My name,” says Yahweh of Hosts, “I will send a curse among you, and I will curse your blessings.(AB) In fact, I have already begun to curse them because you are not taking it to heart.

“Look, I am going to rebuke your descendants,(AC) and I will spread animal waste[k] over your faces, the waste from your festival sacrifices,(AD) and you will be taken away with it. Then you will know that I sent you this decree so My covenant with Levi(AE) may continue,” says the Lord of Hosts. “My covenant with him was one of life and peace,(AF) and I gave these to him; it called for reverence, and he revered Me and stood in awe of My name.(AG) True instruction was in his mouth, and nothing wrong was found on his lips. He walked with Me(AH) in peace and fairness and turned many from sin.(AI) For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the Lord of Hosts.(AJ)

“You, on the other hand, have turned from the way.(AK) You have caused many to stumble(AL) by your instruction. You have violated[l] the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of Hosts. “So I in turn have made you despised(AM) and humiliated before all the people because you are not keeping My ways but are showing partiality in your instruction.”(AN)

Judah’s Marital Unfaithfulness

10 Don’t all of us have one Father?(AO) Didn’t one God create us?(AP) Why then do we act treacherously against one another,(AQ) profaning(AR) the covenant of our fathers?(AS) 11 Judah has acted treacherously, and a detestable(AT) thing has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned(AU) the Lord’s sanctuary,[m](AV) which He loves,(AW) and has married the daughter of a foreign god.[n](AX) 12 To the man who does this, may the Lord cut off(AY) any descendants[o][p](AZ) from the tents of Jacob, even if they present an offering to the Lord of Hosts.

13 And this is another thing you do: you cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning,(BA) because He no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.(BB)

14 Yet you ask, “For what reason?” Because the Lord has been a witness(BC) between you and the wife of your youth.(BD) You have acted treacherously against her, though she was your marriage partner(BE) and your wife by covenant.(BF) 15 Didn’t the one God make us with a remnant of His life-breath? And what does the One seek?[q] A godly offspring. So watch yourselves carefully,[r](BG) and do not act treacherously against the wife of your youth.

16 “If he hates(BH) and divorces his wife,(BI)” says the Lord God of Israel, “he[s] covers his garment with injustice,”(BJ) says the Lord of Hosts. Therefore, watch yourselves carefully,[t] and do not act treacherously.

Judgment at the Lord’s Coming

17 You have wearied the Lord(BK) with your words.

Yet you ask, “How have we wearied Him?”

When you say, “Everyone who does what is evil is good in the Lord’s sight, and He is pleased with them,”(BL) or “Where is the God of justice?”(BM)

“See, I am going to send My messenger,(BN) and he will clear the way before Me.(BO) Then the Lord you seek(BP) will suddenly come to His temple,(BQ) the Messenger of the covenant you desire—see, He is coming,” says the Lord of Hosts. But who can endure the day of His coming? And who will be able to stand when He appears?(BR) For He will be like a refiner’s fire(BS) and like cleansing lye.(BT) He will be like a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver.(BU) Then they will present offerings to the Lord in righteousness. And the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will please the Lord as in days of old(BV) and years gone by.

“I will come to you in judgment, and I will be ready to witness against sorcerers and adulterers; against those who swear falsely; against those who oppress the widow and the fatherless, and cheat the wage earner; and against those who deny justice to the foreigner.(BW) They do not fear Me,”(BX) says the Lord of Hosts. “Because I, Yahweh, have not changed,(BY) you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed.(BZ)

Robbing God

“Since the days of your fathers, you have turned from My statutes; you have not kept them.(CA) Return to Me,(CB) and I will return to you,”(CC) says the Lord of Hosts.

But you ask: “How can we return?”

“Will a man rob(CD) God? Yet you are robbing Me!”

You ask: “How do we rob You?”

“By not making the payments of the tenth and the contributions.(CE) You are suffering under a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me. 10 Bring the full tenth into the storehouse(CF) so that there may be food in My house.(CG) Test Me in this way,”(CH) says the Lord of Hosts. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven(CI) and pour out a blessing for you without measure.(CJ) 11 I will rebuke the devourer[u](CK) for you, so that it will not ruin the produce of your land and your vine in your field will not fail to produce fruit,” says the Lord of Hosts. 12 “Then all the nations will consider you fortunate, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Hosts.

The Righteous and the Wicked

13 “Your words against Me are harsh,”(CL) says the Lord.

Yet you ask: “What have we spoken against You?”

14 You have said: “It is useless to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements(CM) and walking mournfully(CN) before the Lord of Hosts? 15 So now we consider the arrogant(CO) to be fortunate.(CP) Not only do those who commit wickedness prosper, they even test God(CQ) and escape.”(CR)

16 At that time those who feared the Lord spoke to one another. The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of remembrance(CS) was written before Him for those who feared Yahweh and had high regard for His name. 17 “They will be Mine,” says the Lord of Hosts,(CT) “a special possession on the day I am preparing. I will have compassion on them as a man has compassion on his son who serves him.(CU) 18 So you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve Him.

The Day of the Lord

[v]“For indeed, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and everyone who commits wickedness will become stubble. The coming day will consume them,” says the Lord of Hosts, “not leaving them root or branches. But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings,(CV) and you will go out and playfully jump like calves from the stall.[w] You will trample the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet on the day I am preparing,” says the Lord of Hosts.

A Final Warning

“Remember the instruction of Moses My servant, the statutes and ordinances I commanded him at Horeb(CW) for all Israel. Look, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet(CX) before the great and awesome Day of the Lord comes.(CY) [x]And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers.(CZ) Otherwise, I will come and strike the land[y] with a curse.”

Footnotes

  1. Malachi 1:1 = My Messenger
  2. Malachi 1:4 Or will return and build
  3. Malachi 1:4 Or Lord is angry with
  4. Malachi 1:5 Or great over
  5. Malachi 1:11 Or Burnt offerings
  6. Malachi 1:11 Or is great . . . are presented . . . is great
  7. Malachi 1:13 Lit blow at
  8. Malachi 1:13 Ancient Jewish tradition reads Me
  9. Malachi 1:13 Or injured
  10. Malachi 1:14 Or Because I am . . . Yahweh of Hosts, My name
  11. Malachi 2:3 Dung or entrails
  12. Malachi 2:8 Lit corrupted
  13. Malachi 2:11 Or profaned what is holy to the Lord
  14. Malachi 2:11 = a woman who worshiped a foreign god
  15. Malachi 2:12 One Hb ms, LXX, DSS read off one witnessing or answering
  16. Malachi 2:12 Lit off one waking or answering; Hb obscure
  17. Malachi 2:15 Or Did the One not make them? So their flesh and spirit belong to Him, or No one who does this even has a remnant of the Spirit in him; Hb obscure
  18. Malachi 2:15 Lit So guard yourselves in your spirit
  19. Malachi 2:16 Or The Lord God of Israel says that He hates divorce and the one who
  20. Malachi 2:16 Lit Therefore, guard yourselves in your spirit
  21. Malachi 3:11 Perhaps locusts
  22. Malachi 4:1 Mal 3:19 in Hb
  23. Malachi 4:2 Or like stall-fed calves
  24. Malachi 4:6 Mal 3:24 in Hb
  25. Malachi 4:6 Or earth

This is the message[a] that the Lord gave to Israel through the prophet Malachi.[b]

The Lord’s Love for Israel

“I have always loved you,” says the Lord.

But you retort, “Really? How have you loved us?”

And the Lord replies, “This is how I showed my love for you: I loved your ancestor Jacob, but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”

Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.”

But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’ When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’”

Unworthy Sacrifices

The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says to the priests: “A son honors his father, and a servant respects his master. If I am your father and master, where are the honor and respect I deserve? You have shown contempt for my name!

“But you ask, ‘How have we ever shown contempt for your name?’

“You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar.

“Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?[c]

“You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

10 “How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings. 11 But my name is honored[d] by people of other nations from morning till night. All around the world they offer[e] sweet incense and pure offerings in honor of my name. For my name is great among the nations,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

12 “But you dishonor my name with your actions. By bringing contemptible food, you are saying it’s all right to defile the Lord’s table. 13 You say, ‘It’s too hard to serve the Lord,’ and you turn up your noses at my commands,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Think of it! Animals that are stolen and crippled and sick are being presented as offerings! Should I accept from you such offerings as these?” asks the Lord.

14 “Cursed is the cheat who promises to give a fine ram from his flock but then sacrifices a defective one to the Lord. For I am a great king,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and my name is feared among the nations!

A Warning to the Priests

“Listen, you priests—this command is for you! Listen to me and make up your minds to honor my name,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “or I will bring a terrible curse against you. I will curse even the blessings you receive. Indeed, I have already cursed them, because you have not taken my warning to heart. I will punish your descendants and splatter your faces with the manure from your festival sacrifices, and I will throw you on the manure pile. Then at last you will know it was I who sent you this warning so that my covenant with the Levites can continue,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“The purpose of my covenant with the Levites was to bring life and peace, and that is what I gave them. This required reverence from them, and they greatly revered me and stood in awe of my name. They passed on to the people the truth of the instructions they received from me. They did not lie or cheat; they walked with me, living good and righteous lives, and they turned many from lives of sin.

“The words of a priest’s lips should preserve knowledge of God, and people should go to him for instruction, for the priest is the messenger of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. But you priests have left God’s paths. Your instructions have caused many to stumble into sin. You have corrupted the covenant I made with the Levites,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “So I have made you despised and humiliated in the eyes of all the people. For you have not obeyed me but have shown favoritism in the way you carry out my instructions.”

A Call to Faithfulness

10 Are we not all children of the same Father? Are we not all created by the same God? Then why do we betray each other, violating the covenant of our ancestors?

11 Judah has been unfaithful, and a detestable thing has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. The men of Judah have defiled the Lord’s beloved sanctuary by marrying women who worship idols. 12 May the Lord cut off from the nation of Israel[f] every last man who has done this and yet brings an offering to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

13 Here is another thing you do. You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and doesn’t accept them with pleasure. 14 You cry out, “Why doesn’t the Lord accept my worship?” I’ll tell you why! Because the Lord witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows.

15 Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his.[g] And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. 16 “For I hate divorce!”[h] says the Lord, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,[i]” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.”

17 You have wearied the Lord with your words.

“How have we wearied him?” you ask.

You have wearied him by saying that all who do evil are good in the Lord’s sight, and he is pleased with them. You have wearied him by asking, “Where is the God of justice?”

The Coming Day of Judgment

“Look! I am sending my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. Then the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his Temple. The messenger of the covenant, whom you look for so eagerly, is surely coming,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“But who will be able to endure it when he comes? Who will be able to stand and face him when he appears? For he will be like a blazing fire that refines metal, or like a strong soap that bleaches clothes. He will sit like a refiner of silver, burning away the dross. He will purify the Levites, refining them like gold and silver, so that they may once again offer acceptable sacrifices to the Lord. Then once more the Lord will accept the offerings brought to him by the people of Judah and Jerusalem, as he did in the past.

“At that time I will put you on trial. I am eager to witness against all sorcerers and adulterers and liars. I will speak against those who cheat employees of their wages, who oppress widows and orphans, or who deprive the foreigners living among you of justice, for these people do not fear me,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

A Call to Repentance

“I am the Lord, and I do not change. That is why you descendants of Jacob are not already destroyed. Ever since the days of your ancestors, you have scorned my decrees and failed to obey them. Now return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“But you ask, ‘How can we return when we have never gone away?’

“Should people cheat God? Yet you have cheated me!

“But you ask, ‘What do you mean? When did we ever cheat you?’

“You have cheated me of the tithes and offerings due to me. You are under a curse, for your whole nation has been cheating me. 10 Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test! 11 Your crops will be abundant, for I will guard them from insects and disease.[j] Your grapes will not fall from the vine before they are ripe,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 12 “Then all nations will call you blessed, for your land will be such a delight,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

13 “You have said terrible things about me,” says the Lord.

“But you say, ‘What do you mean? What have we said against you?’

14 “You have said, ‘What’s the use of serving God? What have we gained by obeying his commands or by trying to show the Lord of Heaven’s Armies that we are sorry for our sins? 15 From now on we will call the arrogant blessed. For those who do evil get rich, and those who dare God to punish them suffer no harm.’”

The Lord’s Promise of Mercy

16 Then those who feared the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened to what they said. In his presence, a scroll of remembrance was written to record the names of those who feared him and always thought about the honor of his name.

17 “They will be my people,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “On the day when I act in judgment, they will be my own special treasure. I will spare them as a father spares an obedient child. 18 Then you will again see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

The Coming Day of Judgment

[k]The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says, “The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed—roots, branches, and all.

“But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings.[l] And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture. On the day when I act, you will tread upon the wicked as if they were dust under your feet,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“Remember to obey the Law of Moses, my servant—all the decrees and regulations that I gave him on Mount Sinai[m] for all Israel.

“Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.”

Footnotes

  1. 1:1a Hebrew An Oracle: The message.
  2. 1:1b Malachi means “my messenger.”
  3. 1:7 As in Greek version; Hebrew reads defiled you?
  4. 1:11a Or will be honored.
  5. 1:11b Or will offer.
  6. 2:12 Hebrew from the tents of Jacob. The names “Jacob” and “Israel” are often interchanged throughout the Old Testament, referring sometimes to the individual patriarch and sometimes to the nation.
  7. 2:15 Or Didn’t the one Lord make us and preserve our life and breath? or Didn’t the one Lord make her, both flesh and spirit? The meaning of the Hebrew is uncertain.
  8. 2:16a Hebrew For he hates divorcing.
  9. 2:16b Hebrew to cover one’s garment with violence.
  10. 3:11 Hebrew from the devourer.
  11. 4:1 Verses 4:1-6 are numbered 3:19-24 in Hebrew text.
  12. 4:2 Or the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.
  13. 4:4 Hebrew Horeb, another name for Sinai.

Polluted Offerings to God

The [a]burden of the word of the Lord to Israel [b]by Malachi.

Israel Beloved of God

“I(A) have loved you,” says the Lord.
“Yet you say, ‘In what way have You loved us?’
Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?”
Says the Lord.
“Yet (B)Jacob I have loved;
But Esau I have hated,
And (C)laid waste his mountains and his heritage
For the jackals of the wilderness.”

Even though Edom has said,
“We have been impoverished,
But we will return and build the desolate places,”

Thus says the Lord of hosts:

“They may build, but I will (D)throw down;
They shall be called the Territory of Wickedness,
And the people against whom the Lord will have indignation forever.
Your eyes shall see,
And you shall say,
(E)‘The Lord is magnified beyond the border of Israel.’

Polluted Offerings

“A son (F)honors his father,
And a servant his master.
(G)If then I am the Father,
Where is My honor?
And if I am a Master,
Where is My reverence?
Says the Lord of hosts
To you priests who despise My name.
(H)Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your name?’

“You offer (I)defiled food on My altar,
But say,
‘In what way have we defiled You?’
By saying,
(J)‘The table of the Lord is [c]contemptible.’
And (K)when you offer the blind as a sacrifice,
Is it not evil?
And when you offer the lame and sick,
Is it not evil?
Offer it then to your governor!
Would he be pleased with you?
Would he (L)accept[d] you favorably?”
Says the Lord of hosts.

“But now entreat God’s favor,
That He may be gracious to us.
(M)While this is being done by your hands,
Will He accept you favorably?”
Says the Lord of hosts.
10 “Who is there even among you who would shut the doors,
(N)So that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain?
I have no pleasure in you,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
(O)“Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.
11 For (P)from the rising of the sun, even to its going down,
My name shall be great (Q)among the Gentiles;
(R)In every place (S)incense shall be offered to My name,
And a pure offering;
(T)For My name shall be great among the nations,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

12 “But you profane it,
In that you say,
(U)‘The table of the [e]Lord is defiled;
And its fruit, its food, is contemptible.’
13 You also say,
‘Oh, what a (V)weariness!’
And you sneer at it,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
“And you bring the stolen, the lame, and the sick;
Thus you bring an offering!
(W)Should I accept this from your hand?”
Says the Lord.
14 “But cursed be (X)the deceiver
Who has in his flock a male,
And takes a vow,
But sacrifices to the Lord (Y)what is blemished—
For (Z)I am a great King,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“And My name is to be feared among the nations.

Corrupt Priests

“And now, O (AA)priests, this commandment is for you.
(AB)If you will not hear,
And if you will not take it to heart,
To give glory to My name,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“I will send a curse upon you,
And I will curse your blessings.
Yes, I have cursed them (AC)already,
Because you do not take it to heart.

“Behold, I will rebuke your descendants
And spread (AD)refuse on your faces,
The refuse of your solemn feasts;
And one will (AE)take you away [f]with it.
Then you shall know that I have sent this commandment to you,
That My covenant with Levi may continue,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
“My(AF) covenant was with him, one of life and peace,
And I gave them to him (AG)that he might fear Me;
So he feared Me
And was reverent before My name.
(AH)The[g] law of truth was in his mouth,
And [h]injustice was not found on his lips.
He walked with Me in peace and equity,
And (AI)turned many away from iniquity.

“For(AJ) the lips of a priest should keep knowledge,
And people should seek the law from his mouth;
(AK)For he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.
But you have departed from the way;
You (AL)have caused many to stumble at the law.
(AM)You have corrupted the covenant of Levi,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
“Therefore (AN)I also have made you contemptible and base
Before all the people,
Because you have not kept My ways
But have shown (AO)partiality in the law.”

Treachery of Infidelity

10 (AP)Have we not all one Father?
(AQ)Has not one God created us?
Why do we deal treacherously with one another
By profaning the covenant of the fathers?
11 Judah has dealt treacherously,
And an abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem,
For Judah has (AR)profaned
The Lord’s holy institution which He loves:
He has married the daughter of a foreign god.
12 May the Lord cut off from the tents of Jacob
The man who does this, being [i]awake and aware,
Yet (AS)who brings an offering to the Lord of hosts!

13 And this is the second thing you do:
You cover the altar of the Lord with tears,
With weeping and crying;
So He does not regard the offering anymore,
Nor receive it with goodwill from your hands.
14 Yet you say, “For what reason?”
Because the Lord has been witness
Between you and (AT)the wife of your youth,
With whom you have dealt treacherously;
(AU)Yet she is your companion
And your wife by covenant.
15 But (AV)did He not make them one,
Having a remnant of the Spirit?
And why one?
He seeks (AW)godly offspring.
Therefore take heed to your spirit,
And let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth.

16 “For (AX)the Lord God of Israel says
That He hates divorce,
For it covers one’s garment with violence,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
“Therefore take heed to your spirit,
That you do not deal treacherously.”

17 (AY)You have wearied the Lord with your words;
Yet you say,
“In what way have we wearied Him?
In that you say,
(AZ)“Everyone who does evil
Is good in the sight of the Lord,
And He delights in them,”
Or, “Where is the God of justice?”

The Coming Messenger

“Behold, (BA)I send My messenger,
And he will (BB)prepare the way before Me.
And the Lord, whom you seek,
Will suddenly come to His temple,
(BC)Even the Messenger of the covenant,
In whom you delight.
Behold, (BD)He is coming,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

“But who can endure (BE)the day of His coming?
And (BF)who can stand when He appears?
For (BG)He is like a refiner’s fire
And like launderers’ soap.
(BH)He will sit as a refiner and a purifier of silver;
He will purify the sons of Levi,
And [j]purge them as gold and silver,
That they may (BI)offer to the Lord
An offering in righteousness.

“Then (BJ)the offering of Judah and Jerusalem
Will be [k]pleasant to the Lord,
As in the days of old,
As in former years.
And I will come near you for judgment;
I will be a swift witness
Against sorcerers,
Against adulterers,
(BK)Against perjurers,
Against those who (BL)exploit wage earners and (BM)widows and orphans,
And against those who turn away an alien—
Because they do not fear Me,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

“For I am the Lord, (BN)I do not change;
(BO)Therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob.
Yet from the days of (BP)your fathers
You have gone away from My ordinances
And have not kept them.
(BQ)Return to Me, and I will return to you,”
Says the Lord of hosts.
(BR)“But you said,
‘In what way shall we return?’

Do Not Rob God

“Will a man rob God?
Yet you have robbed Me!
But you say,
‘In what way have we robbed You?’
(BS)In tithes and offerings.
You are cursed with a curse,
For you have robbed Me,
Even this whole nation.
10 (BT)Bring all the tithes into the (BU)storehouse,
That there may be food in My house,
And try Me now in this,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“If I will not open for you the (BV)windows of heaven
And (BW)pour out for you such blessing
That there will not be room enough to receive it.

11 “And I will rebuke (BX)the devourer for your sakes,
So that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground,
Nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,”
Says the Lord of hosts;
12 “And all nations will call you blessed,
For you will be (BY)a delightful land,”
Says the Lord of hosts.

The People Complain Harshly

13 “Your(BZ) words have been [l]harsh against Me,”
Says the Lord,
“Yet you say,
‘What have we spoken against You?’
14 (CA)You have said,
‘It is useless to serve God;
What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance,
And that we have walked as mourners
Before the Lord of hosts?
15 So now (CB)we call the proud blessed,
For those who do wickedness are [m]raised up;
They even (CC)tempt God and go free.’ ”

A Book of Remembrance

16 Then those (CD)who feared the Lord (CE)spoke to one another,
And the Lord listened and heard them;
So (CF)a book of remembrance was written before Him
For those who fear the Lord
And who [n]meditate on His name.

17 “They(CG) shall be Mine,” says the Lord of hosts,
“On the day that I make them My (CH)jewels.[o]
And (CI)I will spare them
As a man spares his own son who serves him.”
18 (CJ)Then you shall again discern
Between the righteous and the wicked,
Between one who serves God
And one who does not serve Him.

The Great Day of God

“For behold, (CK)the day is coming,
Burning like an oven,
And all (CL)the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be (CM)stubble.
And the day which is coming shall burn them up,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“That will (CN)leave them neither root nor branch.
But to you who (CO)fear My name
The (CP)Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
(CQ)You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,
Says the Lord of hosts.

“Remember the (CR)Law of Moses, My servant,
Which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel,
With (CS)the statutes and judgments.
Behold, I will send you (CT)Elijah the prophet
(CU)Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
And (CV)he will turn
The hearts of the fathers to the children,
And the hearts of the children to their fathers,
Lest I come and (CW)strike the earth with (CX)a curse.”

Footnotes

  1. Malachi 1:1 oracle, prophecy
  2. Malachi 1:1 Lit. by the hand of
  3. Malachi 1:7 Or to be despised
  4. Malachi 1:8 Lit. lift up your face
  5. Malachi 1:12 So with Bg.; MT Lord
  6. Malachi 2:3 Lit. to it
  7. Malachi 2:6 Or True instruction
  8. Malachi 2:6 Or unrighteousness
  9. Malachi 2:12 Talmud, Vg. teacher and student
  10. Malachi 3:3 Or refine
  11. Malachi 3:4 pleasing
  12. Malachi 3:13 Lit. strong
  13. Malachi 3:15 Lit. built
  14. Malachi 3:16 Or esteem
  15. Malachi 3:17 Lit. special treasure

An oracle. The word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.[a]

Israel Preferred to Edom

“I have loved you,” says the Lord. But you say, “How have you loved us?” “Is not Esau Jacob’s brother?” says the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob,(A) but I have hated Esau; I have made his hill country a desolation and his heritage a desert for jackals.(B) If Edom says, ‘We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins,’ the Lord of hosts says: They may build, but I will tear down, until they are called the wicked country, the people with whom the Lord is angry forever. Your own eyes shall see this, and you shall say, ‘Great is the Lord beyond the borders of Israel!’ ”(C)

Corruption of the Priesthood

A son honors his father and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is the honor due me? And if I am a master, where is the respect due me? says the Lord of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. You say, “How have we despised your name?”(D) By offering polluted food on my altar. And you say, “How have we polluted it?”[b] By thinking that the Lord’s table may be despised.(E) When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not wrong? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not wrong? Try presenting that to your governor; will he be pleased with you or show you favor? says the Lord of hosts.(F) And now implore the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. The fault is yours. Will he show favor to any of you? says the Lord of hosts.(G) 10 Oh, that someone among you would shut the temple[c] doors, so that you would not kindle fire on my altar in vain! I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hands.(H) 11 For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name is great among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name and a pure offering, for my name is great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.(I) 12 But you profane it when you say that the Lord’s table is polluted and its food[d] may be despised. 13 “What a weariness this is,” you say, and you sniff at it,[e] says the Lord of hosts. You bring what has been taken by violence or is lame or sick, and this you bring as your offering! Shall I accept that from your hand? says the Lord.(J) 14 Cursed be the cheat who has a male in the flock and vows to give it and yet sacrifices to the Lord what is blemished, for I am a great King, says the Lord of hosts, and my name is reverenced among the nations.(K)

And now, O priests, this command is for you. If you will not listen, if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name, says the Lord of hosts, then I will send the curse on you, and I will curse your blessings; indeed, I have already cursed them[f] because you do not lay it to heart.(L) I will rebuke your offspring and spread dung on your faces, the dung of your offerings, and I will put you out of my presence.[g]

Know, then, that I have sent this command to you, that my covenant with Levi may hold, says the Lord of hosts.(M) My covenant with him was a covenant of life and well-being, which I gave him; this called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name.(N) True instruction was in his mouth, and no wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me in integrity and uprightness, and he turned many from iniquity.(O) For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should seek instruction from his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.(P) But you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble by your instruction; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of hosts,(Q) so I make you despised and humbled before all the people, inasmuch as you have not kept my ways but have shown partiality in your instruction.(R)

The Covenant Profaned by Judah

10 Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Why then are we faithless to one another, profaning the covenant of our ancestors?(S) 11 Judah has been faithless, and abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem, for Judah has profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, which he loves, and has married the daughter of a foreign god.(T) 12 For the one who does this, may the Lord cut off any witness[h] or advocate from the tents of Jacob or anyone who could bring an offering to the Lord of hosts.(U)

13 And this you do as well: You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning because he no longer regards the offering or accepts it with favor at your hand. 14 You ask, “Why does he not?” Because the Lord was a witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant.(V) 15 Did God[i] not make them one, flesh with spirit in it? And what does the one desire? Godly offspring. So look to yourselves, and do not let anyone be faithless to the wife of his youth.[j](W) 16 For I hate[k] divorce, says the Lord, the God of Israel, and covering one’s garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So take heed to yourselves and do not be faithless.

17 You have wearied the Lord with your words. Yet you say, “How have we wearied him?” By saying, “All who do evil are good in the sight of the Lord, and he delights in them.” Or by asking, “Where is the God of justice?”(X)

The Coming Messenger

See, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me, and the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight—indeed, he is coming, says the Lord of hosts.(Y) But who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?

For he is like a refiner’s fire and like washers’ soap;(Z) he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the descendants of Levi and refine them like gold and silver, until they present offerings to the Lord in righteousness.[l](AA) Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord, as in the days of old and as in former years.

Then I will draw near to you for judgment; I will be swift to bear witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired workers in their wages, the widow, and the orphan, against those who thrust aside the alien and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.(AB)

For I the Lord do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, have not perished.(AC) Ever since the days of your ancestors you have turned aside from my statutes and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, “How shall we return?”(AD)

Do Not Rob God

Will anyone rob God? Yet you are robbing me! But you say, “How are we robbing you?” In your tithes and offerings!(AE) You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me—the whole nation of you! 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.(AF) 11 I will rebuke the locust[m] for you, so that it will not destroy the produce of your soil, and your vine in the field shall not be barren, says the Lord of hosts. 12 Then all nations will count you happy, for you will be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.

13 You have spoken harsh words against me, says the Lord. Yet you say, “How have we spoken against you?”(AG) 14 You have said, “It is vain to serve God. What do we profit by keeping his command or by going about as mourners before the Lord of hosts?(AH) 15 Now we count the arrogant happy; evildoers not only prosper, but when they put God to the test they escape.”(AI)

The Reward of the Faithful

16 Then those who revered the Lord spoke with one another. The Lord took note and listened, and a book of remembrance was written before him of those who revered the Lord and thought on his name.(AJ) 17 They shall be mine, says the Lord of hosts, my special possession on the day when I act, and I will spare them as parents spare their children who serve them.(AK) 18 Then once more you shall see the difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and one who does not serve him.(AL)

The Great Day of the Lord

[n]See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.(AM) But for you who revere my name the sun of righteousness shall rise, with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall.(AN) And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.(AO)

Remember the teaching of my servant Moses, the statutes and ordinances that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.(AP)

See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes.(AQ) He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.[o]

Footnotes

  1. 1.1 Or by my messenger
  2. 1.7 Gk: Heb you
  3. 1.10 Heb lacks temple
  4. 1.12 Cn: Heb its fruit, its food
  5. 1.13 Or at me
  6. 2.2 Heb it
  7. 2.3 Cn Compare Gk Syr: Heb and he shall bear you to it
  8. 2.12 Q ms Compare Gk: MT arouse
  9. 2.15 Heb he
  10. 2.15 Meaning of Heb uncertain
  11. 2.16 Cn: Heb he hates
  12. 3.3 Or right offerings to the Lord
  13. 3.11 Heb devourer
  14. 4.1 3.19 in Heb
  15. 4.6 Or a ban of utter destruction