1 A prophecy: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.

2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord.

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

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.”

4 Edom may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild the ruins.”

But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord. 5 You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’

1 The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.

2 I have loved you, saith the Lord.

Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us?

Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord:

Yet I loved Jacob,

3 And I hated Esau,

And laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness.

4 Whereas Edom saith, We are impoverished,

But we will return and build the desolate places;

Thus saith the Lord of hosts,

They shall build, but I will throw down;

And they shall call them, The border of wickedness,

And, The people against whom the Lord hath indignation for ever.

5 And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say,

The Lord will be magnified from the border of Israel.

1 This is the message that the Lord gave to Israel through the prophet Malachi.

2 “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, 3 but I rejected his brother, Esau, and devastated his hill country. I turned Esau’s inheritance into a desert for jackals.”

4 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.’ 5 When you see the destruction for yourselves, you will say, ‘Truly, the Lord’s greatness reaches far beyond Israel’s borders!’ ”

1 The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.

2 “I 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 Jacob I have loved;

3 But Esau I have hated,

And laid waste his mountains and his heritage

For the jackals of the wilderness.”

4 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 throw down;

They shall be called the Territory of Wickedness,

And the people against whom the Lord will have indignation forever.

5 Your eyes shall see,

And you shall say,

‘The Lord is magnified beyond the border of Israel.’

1 This message is the word of the Lord given to Israel through Malachi.

2 The Lord said, “I have loved you.”

But you ask, “How have you loved us?”

The Lord said, “Esau and Jacob were brothers. I loved Jacob, 3 but I hated Esau. I destroyed his mountain country and left his land to the wild dogs of the desert.”

4 The people of Edom might say, “We were destroyed, but we will go back and rebuild the ruins.”

But the Lord All-Powerful says, “If they rebuild them, I will destroy them. People will say, ‘Edom is a wicked country. The Lord is always angry with the Edomites.’ 5 You will see these things with your own eyes. And you will say, ‘The Lord is great, even outside the borders of Israel!’ ”

1 The burden of the word of Jehovah to Israel by Malachi.

2 I have loved you, saith Jehovah. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother, saith Jehovah: yet I loved Jacob; 3 but Esau I hated, and made his mountains a desolation, and gave his heritage to the jackals of the wilderness. 4 Whereas Edom saith, We are beaten down, but we will return and build the waste places; thus saith Jehovah of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and men shall call them The border of wickedness, and The people against whom Jehovah hath indignation for ever. 5 And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say, Jehovah be magnified beyond the border of Israel.

1 The burden of the word of Jehovah to Israel by Malachi. 2 I have loved you, saith Jehovah; but ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith Jehovah, and I loved Jacob, 3 and I hated Esau; and made his mountains a desolation, and gave his inheritance to the jackals of the wilderness. 4 If Edom say, We are broken down, but we will build again the ruined places, —thus saith Jehovah of hosts: They shall build, but I will throw down; and men shall call them the territory of wickedness, and the people against whom Jehovah hath indignation for ever. 5 And your eyes shall see it, and ye shall say, Jehovah is magnified beyond the border of Israel.

1 This is a divine revelation. The Lord spoke his word to Israel through Malachi. 

2 “I loved you,” says the Lord. 

“But you ask, ‘How did you love us?’ 

“Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “I loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I hated. I turned his mountains into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the jackals in the desert. 

4 “The descendants of Esau may say, ‘We have been beaten down, but we will rebuild the ruins.’ 

“Yet, this is what the Lord of Armies says: They may rebuild, but I will tear it down. They will be called ‘the Wicked Land’ and ‘the people with whom the Lord is always angry.’ 5 You will see these things with your own eyes and say, ‘Even outside the borders of Israel the Lord is great.’ 

1 An oracle: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.

2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord.

But you ask: “How have You loved us?”

“Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” This is the Lord’s declaration. “Even so, I loved Jacob, 3 but I hated Esau. I turned his mountains into a wasteland, and gave his inheritance to the desert jackals.”

4 Though Edom says: “We have been devastated, but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of Hosts says this: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called a wicked country and the people the Lord has cursed forever. 5 Your own eyes will see this, and you yourselves will say, ‘The Lord is great, even beyond the borders of Israel.’

1 An oracle. The word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi.

2 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 3 but I have hated Esau; I have made his hill country a desolation and his heritage a desert for jackals. 4 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. 5 Your own eyes shall see this, and you shall say, “Great is the Lord beyond the borders of Israel!”

1 An oracle. The word of Yahweh to Israel through Malachi.

2 “I have loved you,” says Yahweh, but you say, “How have you loved us?” “Is Esau not Jacob’s brother?” declares Yahweh. “I have loved Jacob, 3 but Esau I have hated. I have made his mountain ranges a desolation, and given his inheritance to the jackals of the desert.” 4 If Edom says, “We are shattered, but we will return and rebuild the ruins,” Yahweh of hosts says this: “They may build, but I will tear down; and they will be called a territory of wickedness, and the people with whom Yahweh is angry forever.” 5 Your eyes will see this, and you will say, “Yahweh is great beyond the borders of Israel.”

1 This is the Lord’s message to Israel through Malachi.

2 “Israel, I have loved you,” says the Lord.

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

“Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” says the Lord. “But I chose Jacob 3 instead of Esau. I turned Esau’s mountains into a dry and empty land. I left that land of Edom to the wild dogs in the desert.”

4 Edom might say, “We have been crushed. But we’ll rebuild our cities.”

The Lord who rules over all says, “They might rebuild their cities. But I will destroy them. They will be called The Evil Land. My anger will always remain on them. 5 You will see it with your own eyes. You will say, ‘The Lord is great! He rules even beyond the borders of Israel!’

1 The oracle of the word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.

2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord. But you say, “How have You loved us?” “Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob;

3 but I have hated Esau, and I have made his mountains a desolation and appointed his inheritance for the jackals of the wilderness.”

4 Though Edom says, “We have been beaten down, but we will return and build up the ruins”; thus says the Lord of hosts, “They may build, but I will tear down; and men will call them the wicked territory, and the people toward whom the Lord is indignant forever.”

5 Your eyes will see this and you will say, “The Lord be magnified beyond the border of Israel!”