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 <div class="label">2</div><div class="s1">Warning to the Priests</div><div class="m"> 1&#8220;Therefore, this decree&#160; # 2:1 Nah 1:14 is for you priests: 2If you don&#8217;t listen, and if you don&#8217;t take it to heart&#160; # 2:2 Is 42:25; 57:1; Jr 12:11 to honor my name,&#8221; says the Lord of Armies, &#8220;I will send a curse among you, and I will curse your blessings.&#160; # 2:2 Dt 28:20; Pr 3:33; 28:27; Mal 3:9 In fact, I have already begun to curse them because you are not taking it to heart.</div><div class="p"> 3&#8220;Look, I am going to rebuke your descendants,&#160; # 2:3 Hs 4:6&#8211;8 and I will spread animal waste&#160; # 2:3 Dung or entrails over your faces, the waste from your festival sacrifices,&#160; # 2:3 Ex 29:14; Lv 16:27 and you will be taken away with it. 4Then you will know that I sent you this decree, so that my covenant with Levi&#160; # 2:4 Nm 25:11&#8211;13; Dt 10:8; 33:8&#8211;11; Neh 13:29; Jr 33:17&#8211;22 may continue,&#8221; says the Lord of Armies. 5&#8220;My covenant with him was one of life and peace,&#160; # 2:5 1Sm 25:6; Pr 3:2 and I gave these to him; it called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name.&#160; # 2:5 Mal 1:6 6True instruction was in his mouth, and nothing wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me&#160; # 2:6 Gn 5:22,24; 6:9; Mc 6:8 in peace and integrity and turned many from iniquity.&#160; # 2:6 Is 53:6; Jr 23:22; Ezk 3:19&#8211;20 7For 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.&#160; # 2:7 2Ch 36:15&#8211;16; Hg 1:13</div><div class="p"> 8&#8220;You, on the other hand, have turned from the way.&#160; # 2:8 Ex 32:8; Dt 31:29; Mal 3:7 You have caused many to stumble&#160; # 2:8 Pr 4:16; Is 8:14&#8211;15; Hs 14:1 by your instruction. You have violated&#160; # 2:8 Lit corrupted the covenant of Levi,&#8221; says the Lord of Armies. 9&#8220;So I in turn have made you despised&#160; # 2:9 Mal 1:6&#8211;7 and humiliated before all the people because you are not keeping my ways but are showing partiality in your instruction.&#8221;&#160; # 2:9 Lv 19:15; Dt 10:17; Ps 82:2; Mt 22:16; 1Tm 5:21; Jms 2:1,9</div><div class="s1">Judah&#8217;s Marital Unfaithfulness</div><div class="m"> 10Don&#8217;t all of us have one Father?&#160; # 2:10 Ex 4:22&#8211;23; Is 63:16; Hs 11:1; Mal 1:6; Jn 8:41 Didn&#8217;t one God create us?&#160; # 2:10 Dt 32:6; Is 43:1&#8211;7; 64:8 Why then do we act treacherously against one another,&#160; # 2:10 Ex 21:8; Jdg 9:23; Jb 6:15; Is 21:2; Jr 3:20 profaning&#160; # 2:10 Nm 30:2; Ps 55:20; 89:34; Mal 1:12 the covenant of our ancestors?&#160; # 2:10 1Kg 8:21 11Judah has acted treacherously, and a detestable&#160; # 2:11 Lv 18:22&#8211;30; Ezr 9:1&#8211;14; Neh 13:4&#8211;9 act has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned&#160; # 2:11 Jr 16:18; Ezk 44:7 the Lord&#8217;s sanctuary,&#160; # 2:11 Or profaned what is holy to the Lord,# 2:11 Ex 36:1&#8211;6; Zph 3:4 which he loves,&#160; # 2:11 Ps 78:68&#8211;69 and has married the daughter of a foreign god.&#160; # 2:11 = a woman who worshiped a foreign god,# 2:11 Dt 7:3&#8211;4; Ezr 9:1&#8211;2,10&#8211;14; Neh 13:23&#8211;30 12May the Lord cut off&#160; # 2:12 Ex 12:19; 31:14 from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, whoever he may be,&#160; # 2:12 Hb obscure,# 2:12 Ru 4:10; 1Sm 24:21 even if he presents an offering to the Lord of Armies.</div><div class="p"> 13This is another thing you do. You are covering the Lord&#8217;s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning,&#160; # 2:13 Ps 6:6&#8211;10 because he no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.&#160; # 2:13 1Kg 8:28&#8211;30; Is 56:7</div><div class="p"> 14And you ask, &#8220;Why?&#160;&#8221; Because even though the Lord has been a witness&#160; # 2:14 Gn 31:50&#8211;53; Jdg 11:10; 1Sm 12:5 between you and the wife of your youth,&#160; # 2:14 Pr 2:16&#8211;17; 5:18; Is 54:6 you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partner&#160; # 2:14 Ec 4:10 and your wife by covenant.&#160; # 2:14 Ezk 16:8,59&#8211;62; Hs 2:16&#8211;20 15Didn&#8217;t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit? What is the one seeking?&#160; # 2:15 Hb obscure Godly offspring. So watch yourselves carefully,&#160; # 2:15 Lit So guard yourselves in your spirit,# 2:15 Ex 23:13; Jos 23:11 so that no one acts treacherously against the wife of his&#160; # 2:15 Lit your youth.</div><div class="p"> 16&#8220;If he hates&#160; # 2:16 Gn 29:31; Dt 21:15&#8211;17; 22:13,16; Jdg 15:2; Pr 30:23 and divorces his wife,&#8221;&#160; # 2:16 Dt 24:1&#8211;4 says the Lord God of Israel, &#8220;he&#160; # 2:16 Or The Lord God of Israel says that he hates divorce and the one who covers his garment with injustice,&#8221;&#160; # 2:16 Gn 6:11,13; Ps 73:6; Jr 22:3; Hab 1:2&#8211;3 says the Lord of Armies. Therefore, watch yourselves carefully,&#160; # 2:16 Lit Therefore, guard yourselves in your spirit and do not act treacherously.</div><div class="s1">Judgment at the Lord&#8217;s Coming</div><div class="m"> 17You have wearied the Lord &#160; # 2:17 Is 43:22&#8211;24 with your words.</div><div class="p">Yet you ask, &#8220;How have we wearied him?&#160;&#8221;</div><div class="p">When you say, &#8220;Everyone who does what is evil is good in the Lord&#8217;s sight, and he is delighted with them,&#160; # 2:17 Dt 25:16; Mal 3:15 or else where is the God of justice?&#160;&#8221;&#160; # 2:17 Neh 9:33; Is 40:27</div>
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“Therefore, this decree  is for you priests: If you don’t listen, and if you don’t take it to heart  to honor my name,” says the LORD of Armies, “I will send a curse among you, and I will curse your blessings.  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,  and I will spread animal waste  over your faces, the waste from your festival sacrifices,  and you will be taken away with it. Then you will know that I sent you this decree, so that my covenant with Levi  may continue,” says the LORD of Armies. “My covenant with him was one of life and peace,  and I gave these to him; it called for reverence, and he revered me and stood in awe of my name.  True instruction was in his mouth, and nothing wrong was found on his lips. He walked with me  in peace and integrity and turned many from iniquity.  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. 
“You, on the other hand, have turned from the way.  You have caused many to stumble  by your instruction. You have violated  the covenant of Levi,” says the LORD of Armies. “So I in turn have made you despised  and humiliated before all the people because you are not keeping my ways but are showing partiality in your instruction.” 

Don’t all of us have one Father?  Didn’t one God create us?  Why then do we act treacherously against one another,  profaning  the covenant of our ancestors?  Judah has acted treacherously, and a detestable  act has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. For Judah has profaned  the LORD’s sanctuary,  , which he loves,  and has married the daughter of a foreign god.  , May the LORD cut off  from the tents of Jacob the man who does this, whoever he may be,  , even if he presents an offering to the LORD of Armies.
This is another thing you do. You are covering the LORD’s altar with tears, with weeping and groaning,  because he no longer respects your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands. 
And you ask, “Why? ” Because even though the LORD has been a witness  between you and the wife of your youth,  you have acted treacherously against her. She was your marriage partner  and your wife by covenant.  Didn’t God make them one and give them a portion of spirit? What is the one seeking?  Godly offspring. So watch yourselves carefully,  , so that no one acts treacherously against the wife of his  youth.
“If he hates  and divorces his wife,”  says the LORD God of Israel, “he  covers his garment with injustice,”  says the LORD of Armies. Therefore, watch yourselves carefully,  and do not act treacherously.
LORD
You have wearied the LORD   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 delighted with them,  or else where is the God of justice? ”

להקשיב ל Malachi 2