Malachi 1:6

The Sacrilege of Priestly Service

1:6 “A son naturally honors his father and a slave respects ¹  his master. If I am your ²  father, where is my honor? If I am your master, where is my respect? The Lord who rules over all asks you this, you priests who make light of my name! But you reply, ‘How have we made light of your name?’

Malachi 1:1

Introduction and God’s Election of Israel

1:1 What follows is divine revelation. ³  The word of the Lord came to Israel through Malachi: ⁴ 

Malachi 1:13

1:13 You also say, ‘How tiresome it is.’ You turn up your nose at it,” says the Lord who rules over all, “and instead bring what is stolen, lame, or sick. You bring these things for an offering! Should I accept this from you?” ⁵  asks the Lord.

[1:6]  ¹ tn The verb “respects” is not in the Hebrew text but is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. It is understood by ellipsis (see “honors” in the preceding line).

[1:6]  ² tn The pronoun “your” is supplied in the translation for clarification (also a second time before “master” later in this verse).

[1:1]  ³ tn Heb “The burden.” The Hebrew term III מַשָּׂא (massa’), usually translated “oracle” or “utterance” (BDB 672 s.v. מַשָּׂא), is a technical term in prophetic literature introducing a message from the Lord (see Zech 9:1; 12:1). Since it derives from a verb meaning “to carry,” its original nuance was that of a burdensome message, that is, one with ominous content. The grammatical structure here suggests that the term stands alone (so NAB, NRSV) and is not to be joined with what follows, “the burden [or “revelation”] of” (so KJV, NASB, ESV).

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “The word of the Lord to Israel by the hand of Malachi.” There is some question as to whether מַלְאָכִי (mal’akhi) should be understood as a personal name (so almost all English versions) or as simply “my messenger” (the literal meaning of the Hebrew). Despite the fact that the word should be understood in the latter sense in 3:1 (where, however, it refers to a different person), to understand it that way here would result in the book being of anonymous authorship, a situation anomalous among all the prophetic literature of the OT.

[1:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “from your hand,” a metonymy of part (the hand) for whole (the person).