Malachi 1:6–2:16

DISOBEDIENCE OF THE PRIESTS

6 “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 the Lord of Armies to you priests, who despise my name.”

Yet you ask, “How have we despised your name?”

7 “By presenting defiled food on my altar.”

“How have we defiled you?” you ask.l

When you say, “The Lord’s table is contemptible.”m

8 “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 Armies. 9 “And now plead 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 Armies. 10 “I wish one of you would shut the temple doors,q so that you would no longer kindle a useless fire on my altar!r I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Armies, “and I will accepts no offering from your hands.t

11 “My name will be great among the nations,u from the rising of the sun to its setting. IncenseE and pure offerings will be presented in my name in every place because my name will be great among the nations,”F says the Lord of Armies.

12 “But you are profaning itv 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 scornG it,”H,w says the Lord of Armies. “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 the Lord of Armies, “and my name will be feared among the nations.

WARNING TO THE PRIESTS

2 “Therefore, this decreez is for you priests: 2 If you don’t listen, and if you don’t take it to heartaa to honor my name,” says the Lord of Armies, “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.

3 “Look, I am going to rebuke your descendants,ac and I will spread animal wasteA over your faces, the waste from your festival sacrifices,ad and you will be taken away with it. 4 Then you will know that I sent you this decree, so that my covenant with Leviae may continue,” says the Lord of Armies. 5 “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 6 True instruction was in his mouth, and nothing wrong was found on his lips. He walked with meah in peace and integrity and turned many from iniquity.ai 7 For the lips of a priest should guard knowledge, and people should desire instruction from his mouth, because he is the messenger of the Lord of Armies.aj

8 “You, on the other hand, have turned from the way.a You have caused many to stumbleb by your instruction. You have violatedB the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of Armies. 9 “So I in turn have made you despisedc and humiliated before all the people because you are not keeping my ways but are showing partiality in your instruction.”d

JUDAH’S MARITAL UNFAITHFULNESS

10 Don’t all of us have one Father?e Didn’t one God create us?f Why then do we act treacherously against one another,g profaningh the covenant of our ancestors?i 11 Judah has acted treacherously, and a detestablej act has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profanedk the Lord’s sanctuary,C,l which he loves,m and has married the daughter of a foreign god.D,n 12 May the Lord cut offo from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, whoever he may be,E,p even if he presents an offering to the Lord of Armies.

13 This is another thing you do. You are covering the Lord’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning,q because he no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.r

14 And you ask, “Why?” Because even though the Lord has been a witnesss between you and the wife of your youth,t you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partneru and your wife by covenant.v 15 Didn’t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit? What is the one seeking?E Godly offspring. So watch yourselves carefully,F,w so that no one acts treacherously against the wife of hisG youth.

16 “If he hatesx and divorces his wife,”y says the Lord God of Israel, “heA covers his garment with injustice,”z says the Lord of Armies. Therefore, watch yourselves carefully,B and do not act treacherously.