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Texts -- Malachi 2:1-8 (NET)

Context
The Sacrilege of the Priestly Message
2:1 “Now , you priests , this commandment is for you. 2:2 If you do not listen and take seriously the need to honor my name ,” says the Lord who rules over all , “I will send judgment on you and turn your blessings into curses – indeed , I have already done so because you are not taking it to heart . 2:3 I am about to discipline your children and will spread offal on your faces , the very offal produced at your festivals , and you will be carried away along with it. 2:4 Then you will know that I sent this commandment to you so that my covenant may continue to be with Levi ,” says the Lord who rules over all . 2:5 “My covenant with him was designed to bring life and peace . I gave its statutes to him to fill him with awe , and he indeed revered me and stood in awe before me . 2:6 He taught what was true ; sinful words were not found on his lips . He walked with me in peace and integrity , and he turned many people away from sin . 2:7 For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge of sacred things, and people should seek instruction from him because he is the messenger of the Lord who rules over all . 2:8 You , however, have turned from the way . You have caused many to violate the law ; you have corrupted the covenant with Levi ,” says the Lord who rules over all .

Pericope

NET
  • Mal 2:1-9 -- The Sacrilege of the Priestly Message

Bible Dictionary

  • Malachi

    [ebd] messenger or angel, the last of the minor prophets, and the writer of the last book of the Old Testament canon (Mal. 4:4, 5, 6). Nothing is known of him beyond what is contained in his book of prophecies. Some have supposed ...
    [nave] MALACHI Last of the minor prophets, Mal. 1:1. Reproves the church for its impiety, Mal. 1; 2; 3:7-15. Foretells the coming of the Messiah, Mal. 3:1-6; the judgments on the wicked and consolations of the righteous, Mal. 4:1...

  • Malachi, Prophecies of

    [ebd] The contents of the book are comprised in four chapters. In the Hebrew text the third and fourth chapters (of the A.V.) form but one. The whole consists of three sections, preceded by an introduction (Mal. 1:1-5), in which t...

  • Minister

    [nave] MINISTER, a sacred teacher. Index of Sub-topics Miscellany of Minor Sub-topics; Call of; Character and Qualifications of; Charge Delivered to; Courage of; Duties of; Duties of the Church to; Emoluments of; Faithful, Instanc...

  • Levites

    [nave] LEVITES The descendants of Levi. Set apart as ministers of religion, Num. 1:47-54; 3:6-16; 16:9; 26:57-62; Deut. 10:8; 1 Chr. 15:2. Substituted in the place of the firstborn, Num. 3:12, 41-45; 8:14, 16-18; 18:6. Religious ...

  • ANGEL

    [ebd] a word signifying, both in the Hebrew and Greek, a "messenger," and hence employed to denote any agent God sends forth to execute his purposes. It is used of an ordinary messenger (Job 1:14: 1 Sam. 11:3; Luke 7:24; 9:52), of...
    [isbe] ANGEL - an'-jel (mal'akh; Septuagint and New Testament, aggelos): I. DEFINITION AND SCRIPTURE TERMS II. ANGELS IN OLD TESTAMENT 1. Nature, Appearances and Functions 2. The Angelic Host 3. The Angel of the Theophany III. ANGE...

  • Messenger

    [isbe] MESSENGER - mes'-en-jer: The regular Hebrew word for "messenger" is mal'akh, the Greek aggelos. This may be a human messenger or a messenger of God, an angel. The context must decide the right translation. In Hag 1:13 the pr...
    [nave] MESSENGER, Figurative Hag. 1:13; Mal. 2:7; 3:1; 4:5, 6; Matt. 11:10; Mark 1:2; Luke 7:27. Of Satan, 2 Cor. 12:7.

  • Peace

    [isbe] PEACE - pes (shalom; eirene): 1. In the Old Testament: Is a condition of freedom from disturbance, whether outwardly, as of a nation from war or enemies, or inwardly, within the soul. The Hebrew word is shalom (both adjectiv...
    [nave] PEACE. Exemplified By Abraham, Gen. 13:8, 9; Abimelech, Gen. 26:29; Mordecai, Esth. 10:3; David, Psa. 120:7. See: Charitableness; Nation, Peace of. Social Gen. 45:24; Lev. 26:6; Job 5:23, 24; Psa. 34:14 1 Pet. 3:11. Psa...

  • Priest

    [ebd] The Heb. kohen, Gr. hierus, Lat. sacerdos, always denote one who offers sacrifices. At first every man was his own priest, and presented his own sacrifices before God. Afterwards that office devolved on the head of the famil...
    [nave] PRIEST. Before Moses Melchizedek, Gen. 14:18; Heb. 5:6, 10, 11; 6:20; 7:1-21. Jethro, Ex. 2:16. Priests in Israel before the giving of the law, Ex. 19:22, 24. Called angel, Eccl. 5:6. Mosaic Ex. 28:1-4; 29:9, 44; Num....

  • Covenant

    [nave] COVENANT Sacred, Josh. 9:18-21; Gal. 3:15. Binding, Josh. 9:18-20; Jer. 34:8-21; Ezek. 17:14-18; Gal. 3:15. Binding, not only on those who make them, but on those who are represented, Deut. 29:14, 15. Blood of, Ex. 24:8. ...

  • Knowledge

    [nave] KNOWLEDGE Of good and evil, Gen. 2:9, 17; 3:22. Is power, Prov. 3:20; 24:5. Desire for, 1 Kin. 3:9; Psa. 119:66; Prov. 2; 3; 12:1; 15:14; 18:15. Rejected, Hos. 4:6. Those who reject are destroyed, Hos. 4:6. Fools hate, ...

  • Angel of the Lord

    [nave] ANGEL OF THE LORD Gen. 16:7, 9, 10, 11; 22:11, 15; Ex. 3:2; Num. 22:22; Judg. 2:1, 4; 5:23; 6:11; 13:3, 13; 2 Sam. 24:16; 1 Kin. 19:7; 2 Kin. 1:3, 15; 19:35; 1 Chr. 21:12, 15, 16, 18, 27, 30; 2 Chr. 32:21; Psa. 34:7; 35:5, 6...

  • Integrity

    [nave] INTEGRITY. Gen. 18:19; Ex. 18:21; Deut. 16:19, 20; Job 10:7; Job 13:15, 18; Job 16:17; Job 27:4-6; Job 29:14; Job 31:1-40; Psa. 7:3-5, 8; Psa. 15:1-5; Psa. 17:3; Psa. 18:20 2 Sam. 22:21. Psa. 24:3-5; Psa. 26:1-3; Psa. 69:4;...

  • Impenitence

    [nave] IMPENITENCE. Lev. 23:26-29; Lev. 26:21 vs. 22-24.; Deut. 29:19-21; 1 Sam. 15:23; Job 9:2, 4; Job 24:13; Job 33:14; Psa. 7:11, 12 v. 13.; Psa. 10:3; Psa. 32:9; Psa. 50:17, 21; Psa. 52:1, 7; Psa. 58:3-5; Psa. 68:21; Psa. 78:8...

  • Glorifying God

    [nave] GLORIFYING GOD Commanded, 1 Chr. 16:28; Psa. 22:23; Isa. 42:12. Due to him, 1 Chr. 16:29; for his holiness, Psa. 99:9; Rev. 15:4; mercy and truth, Psa. 115:1; Rom. 15:9; faithfulness and truth, Isa. 25:1; wondrous works, Ma...

  • INTERCESSION

    [isbe] INTERCESSION - in-ter-sesh'-un (pagha`, "to make intercession"; originally "to strike upon," or "against"; then in a good sense, "to assail anyone with petitions," "to urge," and when on behalf of another, "to intercede" (Ru...

  • COVENANT, IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

    [isbe] COVENANT, IN THE OLD TESTAMENT - kuv'-e-nant (berith): I. GENERAL MEANING II. AMONG MEN 1. Early Idea 2. Principal Elements 3. Different Varieties 4. Phraseology Used III. BETWEEN GOD AND MEN 1. Essential Idea 2. Covenants R...

  • AWE

    [isbe] AWE - o: Fear mingled with reverence and wonder, a state of mind inspired by something terrible or sublime. In the King James Version and the Revised Version (British and American) it occurs in Ps 4:4: "Stand in awe, and sin...

  • ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES

    [isbe] ANGELS OF THE SEVEN CHURCHES - It is evident from the contexts of the various Biblical passages in which the word "angel" appears, that the word does not always represent the same idea. In such passages as Dan 12:1 and Acts ...

  • CURSE

    [isbe] CURSE - kurs ('alah (Nu 5:21,23,17, etc.), me'erah (Prov 3:33; Mal 2:2, etc.), klalah (Gen 27:12,13); katara (Gal 3:10,13)): This word as noun and verb renders different Hebrew words, some of them being more or less synonymo...

  • DUNG; DUNG GATE

    [isbe] DUNG; DUNG GATE - dung ('ashpoth, domen, peresh; skubalon, etc.): Nine different words occurring in the Hebrew have been translated "dung" in the Old Testament. The word used to designate one of the gates of Jerusalem ('ashp...
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Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • "Haggai and Zechariah . . . are noteworthy for the chronological precision with which they related their lives and ministries to their historical milieu. This is not the case at all with Malachi. In fact, one of the major pro...
  • Malachi prophesied during the times of Nehemiah. The dates of Nehemiah's ministry were about 445-420 B.C. Possibly Malachi ministered during the time when Nehemiah returned to Babylon following the completion of Jerusalem's w...
  • I. Heading 1:1II. Oracle one: Yahweh's love for Israel 1:2-5III. Oracle two: The priests' illicit practices and indifferent attitudes 1:6-2:9A. The priests' sins 1:6-141. Disrespectful service 1:6-72. Disqualified sacrifices ...
  • This title verse explains what follows as the oracle of Yahweh's word that He sent to Israel through Malachi. The Hebrew word massa', translated "oracle,"occurs 27 times in the Prophets (e.g., Isa. 13:1 Nah. 1:1; Hab. 1:1; Ze...
  • The revelation that Yahweh gave Malachi for Israel consisted of six "heavy"messages. The first one reminded God's people of His love for them and of their ungratefulness.1:2a The Lord's first word to His people was short and ...
  • Whereas the emphasis in Malachi's argument shifts at this point somewhat from the sins of the priests to their possible fate, there is a continuing emphasis on their sins. In the preceding section (1:6-14) the cultic activity...
  • That another oracle is in view is clear from the question and answer format that begins this pericope, as it does the others. Verse 17 contains the question and answer, and the discussion follows in 3:1-6. The Israelites' cha...
  • 1:8-9 Zechariah was serving God faithfully by discharging some temple function as a member of his priestly division. There were so many priests then that the great privilege of offering incense on the golden incense altar in ...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools : for they consider not that they do evil. 2. Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to u...
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