Malachi 2
2
Rules for Priests
1“Priests, this rule is for you. 2Listen to me! Pay attention to what I say. Show honor to my name. If you don’t respect my name, bad things will happen to you. You will say blessings,#2:2 blessings Words asking for good things to happen to a person who tries to obey God’s law. but they will become curses. I will make bad things happen because you don’t show respect for my name.” This is what the Lord All-Powerful said.
3“Look, I will punish your descendants. During the festivals, you priests offer sacrifices to me. You take the dung and inside parts from the dead animals and throw them away. But I will smear the dung on your faces, and you will be thrown away with it! 4Then you will learn why I am giving you this command. I am telling you these things so that my agreement with Levi will continue.” This is what the Lord All-Powerful said.
5 The Lord said, “I made that agreement with Levi. I promised to give him life and peace—and I gave him those things. Levi respected me and showed honor to my name. 6He taught the true teachings and didn’t teach lies. Levi was honest, and he loved peace. He followed me and saved many people from being punished for the evil things they did. 7A priest should know God’s teachings. People should be able to go to a priest and learn God’s teachings. A priest should be the Lord’s messenger to the people.
8“But you priests stopped following me! You used the teachings to make people do wrong. You ruined the agreement with Levi.” This is what the Lord All-Powerful said. 9“You don’t live the way I told you. You have not accepted my teachings. So I will cause people to hate you and think you are worth nothing.”
Judah Was Not True to God
10We all have the same father. The same God made every one of us. So why do people cheat one another? They show that they don’t respect the agreement. They don’t respect the agreement that our ancestors made with God. 11The people of Judah cheated other people. People in Jerusalem and Israel did terrible things. God loves the Temple, but the people in Judah didn’t respect the Lord’s holy Temple. The people of Judah began to worship a foreign goddess. 12The Lord will remove them from Judah’s family. They might bring gifts to the Lord All-Powerful—but it will not help. 13You can cry and cover the Lord’s altar with tears, but the Lord will not accept your gifts. He will not be pleased with the things you bring to him.
14You ask, “Why are our gifts not accepted?” It is because the Lord saw the evil things you did—he is a witness against you. He saw you cheat on your wife. You have been married to her since you were young. She was your girlfriend. Then you made your vows to each other—and she became your wife. 15God wants husbands and wives to become one body and one spirit. Why? So that they would have holy children and protect that spiritual unity. Don’t cheat on your wife. She has been your wife from the time you were young.
16The Lord, the God of Israel, says, “I hate divorce, and I hate the cruel things that men do. So protect your spiritual unity. Don’t cheat on your wife.”
The Special Time of Judgment
17You have taught wrong things, and it makes the Lord very sad. People were doing evil things, but you said that this pleased the Lord and that he accepted those things. And you taught that God does not punish people for the evil they do.
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Malachi 2
2
1And now, O ye kohanim, this mitzvah is for you.
2If ye will not hear, and if ye will not take it to lev, to give kavod unto My name, saith Hashem Tzva'os, I will even send a me'erah (curse) upon you, and I will curse your brakhot; yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not take it to lev.
3Hineni, I am rebuking your zera, and I will spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your chagim; and it will take you away with it.
4And ye shall have da'as that I have sent this mitzvah unto you, that My brit might continue with Levi, saith Hashem Tzva'os.
5My brit was with him of chayyim and shalom; and I gave them to him that he might fear Me; so he feared Me, and stood in reverence before My name.
6Torat emes was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found on his lips: he walked with Me in shalom and yashrus, and did turn rabbim (many) away from avon (iniquity).
7For the kohenʼs lips should preserve da'as, and they should seek torah at his mouth: for he is the malach Hashem Tzva'os.
8But ye are departed out of HaDerech; ye have caused rabbim to fall into a michshol (stumbling block) at the torah (teaching); ye have corrupted the Brit of Levi saith Hashem Tzva'os.
9Therefore have I also made you contemptible and shefalim before kol HaAm because ye have not been shomrim of darkhei of Me, but have shown partiality in torah.
10Have we not all Av Echad? Hath not El Echad created us? Why do we commit chillul Brit Avoteinu by every man breaking faith with his brother?
11Yehudah hath broken faith, and a toeva (abomination) is committed in Yisroel and in Yerushalayim; for Yehudah hath committed chillul against the Beis Hamikdash Hashem loves, by marrying the bat el nekhar.
12May Hashem cut off the man that doeth this, [offspring] awake and answering, from the ohalim of Ya'akov, that offereth a minchah unto Hashem Tzva'os.
13And this too have ye done, covering the mizbe'ach of Hashem with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, because that He regardeth not the minchah any more, nor receiveth it with ratzon (good will) at your hand.
14Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because Hashem hath been ed (witness) between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously, breaking faith: yet is she thy chaveret, and the wife of thy brit.
15And did not Hashem make echad? And the remnant of the ruach is Hashemʼs. And why echad? That He might seek zera Elohim. Therefore be shomer of your ruach, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.
16For Hashem Elohei Yisroel saith that He hateth putting away: for it covereth oneʼs garment with chamas (violence), saith the Hashem Tzva'os: therefore, be shomer of your ruach, that ye deal not treacherously, breaking faith.
17Ye have wearied Hashem with your devarim. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied Him? When ye say, Everyone that doeth rah is tov in the sight of Hashem, and in them Hashem finds chafetz; or, Where is Elohei HaMishpat?
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THE ORTHODOX JEWISH BIBLE
FOURTH EDITION © Artists For Israel Intl Inc., 2002-2011, 2021.