2:1,2God warned the priests that if they did not honor his name, he would punish them. Like these priests, we, too, are called to honor God's name—to worship him. This means acknowledging God for who he is—the almighty Creator of the universe, who alone is perfect and who reaches down to sinful people with perfect love. According to this definition, are you honoring God’s name?
Life Application Study BibleMalachiChapter 2
Malachi 2
New Living Translation · Life Application Study Bible · Original pages: 1521, 1522
A few verse numbers on this page were hard to read in the scan and are marked with a dotted underline — compare with the original page image if in doubt.
2Malachi 2
A Warning to the Priests
1“Listen, you priests—this comman4 is for you! 2Listen 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. 31 will punish your descendants and splatter your faces with the manure from your festival sacrifices, and I will throw you on the manure pile. 4Then 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. 5“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. 6They 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. 7“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. 8But 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. 8“So Ihave 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.”
2. The sinful people
A Call to Faithfulness
1010Are we not all children of the same Father? Are we not all created by the same God? Thenwhy do we betray each other, violating the covenant of our ancestors?
11Judah 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. 12May the LORD cut off from the nation of Israel* every last man who has done this and yet brings an offering to the LORD of Heaven's Armies. 13Here 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. “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. 15Didn’t the LORD make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his.* And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. *6“For I hate divorce!” says the LORD, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,*” says the LORD of Heaven's Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.” 17You 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?”
Textual footnotes
- 2:12 Hebrew from the tents of Jacob. The names “Jacob” and “Israel” are often interchanged throughout the Old
- 2:15 Or Didn't the one
- 2:16 Hebrew fo cover one’s garment with violence.
Life Application Notes 6 notes
2:1,2The priests didn’t take seriously God's priority, even though he had reminded them through his word many times. How do you find out what is most important to God? Begin by Joving him with all your heart, soul, and strength (Deuteronomy 6.5). This means listening to what God says in his Word and then setting your heart, mind, and will on doing what he says. When we love God, his Word becomes a shining light that guides our daily activities. The priests in Malachi's day had stopped toving God, and thus they did not know nor care what he wanted.
2:4-6The Levites “walked with [God],” and “turned many from lives of sin” (2:6). Levi was the ancestor of the tribe of Levites, the tribe set apart for service to God (Numbers 1:47-54). The Levites became God’s ministers, first in the Tabernacle, then in the Temple. In these verses, God was addressing the priests who were from this tribe, admonishing them for corrupting the laws he gave their ancestor Levi and not following his example.
2:7,8Malachi was angry at the priests because, although they were to be God’s messengers, they did not know God’s will. And this lack of knowledge caused them to lead God’s people astray.
2:15,16“Guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth” means to have the same commitment to marriage that God has to his promises for his people. Our passion should be reserved exclusively for our spouse.
2:17-3:6God was tired of the way the people had cynically twisted his truths. He would punish those who insisted that because God was silent, he approved of their actions or at least would never punish them. God would also punish thase who professed a counterfeit faith while acting sinfully (see 3:5).
Charts, profiles & sidebars from the printed pages
Study feature · page 1521
MALACHI served as a prophet to Judah about 430 B.C. He was the last of the Old Testament prophets.
Climate of the times........... The city of Jerusalem and the Temple had been rebuilt for almost a century, but the people had become complacent in their worship of God. The people’s relationship with God was broken because of their sin, and they would soon be punished. But the few who repented would receive God's blessing, highlighted in his promise to send a Messiah. Main message
importance of message Hypocrisy, neglecting God, and careless living have devastating consequences. Serving and worshiping God must be the primary focus of our life, both now and in eternity. Contemporary prophets
Their ignorance was willful and inexcusable. Pastors and leaders of God's people must know God’s Word—what it says, what it means, and how it applies to daily life. How much time do you spend in God's Word? 2:9 The priests had allowed influential and favored people to break the {aw. The priests were so dependent on these people for support that they could not afford to confront them when they did wrong. In your church, are certain people allowed to do wrong without criticism? There should be no double standard based on wealth or position. Let your standards be those presented in God's Word. Playing favorites is contemptible in God’s sight (see James 2:1-9). 2:10-16 The people were being unfaithful. Though not openly saying they rejected God, they were living as if he did not exist. Men were marrying pagan women who worshiped idols. Divorce was common, occurring for no reason other than a desire for change. People acted as if they could do anything without being punished. And they wondered why God refused to accept their offerings and bless them (2:13)! We cannot successfully separate our dealings with God from the rest of our life. He must be LORD of all.
Study feature · page 1522
2:11, 12. After the Temple had been rebuilt and the walls completed, the people were excited to see past prophecies coming true. But as time passed, the prophecies about the destruction of God’s enemies and a coming Messiah were not immediately fulfilled. The people became discouraged, and they grew complacent about obeying all of God’s laws. This complacency gradually led to blatant sin, such as marriage to those who worshiped idols. Ezra and Nehemiah also had confronted this problem years earlier (Ezra 9-10; Nehemiah 13:23-31). 2:14 The people were complaining about their adverse circumstances when they had only themselves to blame. People often try to avoid guilt feelings by shifting the blame. But this doesn’t solve the problem. When you face problems, look first at yourself. If you changed your attitude or behavior, would the problem be solved? 2:14, 15 Divorce in these times was practiced exclusively by men. They were disloyal to their wives and ignored the wedding vows they had made before God, thus corrupting his purpose for them to rear godly children who love the LORD. Not only were men unfaithful to their wives, but they also were ignoring the fact that this bonding relationship was an illustration of their union with God.