Malachi 2:8

2:8 You, however, have turned from the way. You have caused many to violate the law; ¹  you have corrupted the covenant with Levi,” ²  says the Lord who rules over all.

Malachi 2:13

2:13 You also do this: You cover the altar of the Lord with tears ³  as you weep and groan, because he no longer pays any attention to the offering nor accepts it favorably from you.

Matthew 18:7

18:7 Woe to the world because of stumbling blocks! It ⁴  is necessary that stumbling blocks come, but woe to the person through whom they come.

¹ tn The definite article embedded within בַּתּוֹרָה (battorah) may suggest that the Torah is in mind and not just “ordinary” priestly instruction, though it might refer to the instruction previously mentioned (v. 7).

² tn Or “the Levitical covenant.”

³ sn You cover the altar of the Lord with tears. These tears are the false tears of hypocrisy, not genuine tears of repentance. The people weep because the Lord will not hear them, not because of their sin.

⁴ tn Grk “For it.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.