Malachi 1:7

1:7 You are offering improper sacrifices on my altar, yet you ask, ‘How have we offended you?’ By treating the table ¹  of the Lord as if it is of no importance!

Malachi 2:13

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

Malachi 1:10

1:10 “I wish that one of you would close the temple doors, ³  so that you no longer would light useless fires on my altar. I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord who rules over all, “and I will no longer accept an offering from you.

[1:7]  ¹ sn The word table, here a synonym for “altar,” has overtones of covenant imagery in which a feast shared by the covenant partners was an important element (see Exod 24:11). It also draws attention to the analogy of sitting down at a common meal with the governor (v. 8).

[2:13]  ² 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.

[1:10]  ³ sn The rhetorical language suggests that as long as the priesthood and people remain disobedient, the temple doors may as well be closed because God is not “at home” to receive them or their worship there.