Maleachi 2:15 Kommentar

There are two great ordinances which divine wisdom has instituted, the wretched profanation of both of which is complained of and sharply reproved in this chapter. I. The ordinance of the ministry, which is peculiar to the church, and is designed for the maintaining and keeping up of that; this was profaned by those who were themselves dignified with the honour of it and entrusted with the business of it. The priests profaned the holy things of God; this they are here charged with; their sin is aggravated, and they are severely threatened for it (Mal 2:1-9). II. The ordinance of marriage, which is common to the world of mankind, and was instituted for the maintaining and keeping up of that; this was profaned both by the priests and by the people, in marrying strangers (Mal 2:11, Mal 2:12), treating their wives unkindly (Mal 2:13), putting them away (Mal 2:16), and herein dealing treacherously (Mal 2:10, Mal 2:14, Mal 2:15). And that which was at the bottom of this and other instances of profaneness and downright atheism, thinking God altogether such a one as themselves, which was, in effect, to say, There is no God (Mal 2:17). And these reproofs to them are warnings to us.

INTRODUCTION TO MALACHI 2 This chapter contains a reproof both of priests and people for their sins. It begins with the priests, Mal 2:1 and threatens, in case they attend not to glorify the name of the Lord, they and their blessings should be cursed, their seed corrupted, dung spread upon them, and they took away with it, Mal 2:2 and the end of this commandment being sent them, of giving glory to the name of God, was that the covenant might appear to be with Levi, or him that was typified by him, Mal 2:4 of which covenant some account is given, with the reason why the blessings of it were given to him, with whom it was, Mal 2:5 who is described by the true doctrine he preached; by the purity of his lips; by the peaceableness and righteousness of his walk and conversation; and by his usefulness and success in turning many from sin, Mal 2:6 and it being part of the priest's office to preserve true knowledge, and communicate it, it is the duty of the people to seek to him for it; since he is the messenger of the Lord, Mal 2:7 but as for the priests of those times the prophet respects, they were apostates from the way of the Lord; made others to stumble at the law, and corrupted the covenant; and therefore became contemptible, base, and mean, in the sight of the people, Mal 2:8 who are next reproved for their marrying with those of other nations, idolatrous persons; and using polygamy and divorces, which were a profanation of the covenant of their fathers; a piece of perfidy and treachery among themselves; an abomination to the Lord; a profanation of his holiness; and led to idolatry, Mal 2:10 wherefore they are threatened to be cut off from the tabernacles of Jacob, and their sacrifices to be rejected; insomuch that the altar is represented as covered with weeping and tears, because disregarded, Mal 2:12. The reason of which was, because marrying more wives than one, and these strange women, was dealing treacherously with their lawful wives; was contrary to the first creation of man, and the end of it; and therefore such practices ought to be avoided; and the rather, since putting away was hateful to the Lord, Mal 2:14 and the chapter is concluded with a charge against them, that they wearied the Lord with their wicked words; affirming that the Lord took delight in the men that did evil; and that there were no judgment, truth, nor righteousness, in him, Mal 2:17.

And did not he make one?.... That is, did not God make one man, and out of his rib one woman? did he not make man, male and female? did he not make one pair, one couple, only Adam and Eve, whom he joined together in marriage? or rather, did he not make one woman only, and brought her to Adam to be his wife? which shows that his intention and will were, that one man should have but one wife at a time; the contrary to which was the then present practice of the Jews: Yet had he the residue of the spirit; it was not for want of power that he made but one woman of Adam's rib, and breathed into her the breath of life, or infused into her a human soul or spirit; he could have made many women at the same time; and as the Father of spirits, having the residue of them with him, or a power left to make as many as he pleased, he could have imparted spirits unto them, and given Adam more wives than one: And wherefore one? what is the reason why he made but one woman, when he could have made ten thousand, or as many as he pleased? the answer is, That he might seek a godly seed; or "a seed of God" (d); a noble excellent seed; a legitimate offspring, born in true and lawful wedlock; see Co1 7:14 a seed suitable to the dignity of human nature, made after the image of God, and not like that of brute beasts, promiscuous and uncertain: Therefore take heed to your spirit; to your affections, that they do not go after other women, and be led thereby to take them in marriage, and to despise and divorce the lawful wife, as it follows: and let none deal treacherously with the wife of his youth; by marrying another, or divorcing her: these words are differently rendered and interpreted by some; but the sense given seems to be the true one, and most agreeable to the scope of the place. Some render the first clause, "hath not one made?" (e) that is, did not the one God, who is the only living and true God, make one man or one woman? and then the sense is the same as before; or did not that one God make, constitute, and appoint, that the woman should be the man's companion, and the wife of his covenant, as in the latter part of the preceding verse Mal 2:13? or, "did not one do?" (f) that is, so as we have done, take another wife besides the wife of his youth? and so they are the words of the people to the prophets, justifying their practice by example; by the example of Abraham, whom some of the Jewish writers think is intended by the "one", as in Isa 51:2. The Targum is, "was not one Abraham alone, from whom the world was created?'' or propagated. Kimchi gives it as his own sense, in these words; "Abraham, who was one, and the father of all that follow him in his faith, did not do as ye have done; for he did not follow his lust, nor even marry Sarah, but so that he might cause the seed of God to remain;'' yet he mentions it as his father's sense, that they are the words of the people to the prophet, expressed in a way of interrogation, saying, did not our father Abraham, who was one, do as we have done? who left his wife, and married Hagar his maid, though he had the residue or excellency of the spirit, and was a prophet; to whom the prophet replies, and what did that one seek? a godly seed; which is, as if it was said, when he married Hagar, it was to seek a seed, because he had no seed of Sarah his wife. A seed was promised him, in which all nations of the earth were to be blessed; he sought not to gratify his lust, but to obtain this seed, the Messiah, to whom the promises were made, as the apostle argues, Gal 3:16 "he saith not, and to seeds as of many; but as of one, and to thy seed, which is Christ"; called here the "godly seed", or the "seed God" (g), as some choose to render the words; that is, that seed which is God, who is a divine Person, God and man in one person; or which is of God, of his immediate production, without the help of a man; which the Jews call the seed that comes from another place, and which they use as a periphrasis of the Messiah. So on those words in Gen 4:25, "she called his name Seth, for God hath appointed me another seed", "says R. Tanchuma, in the name of R. Samuel, she has respect to that seed which comes from another place; and what is this? this is the King Messiah (h).'' And the same Rabbi elsewhere (i) observes, on those words in Gen 19:32, "that we may preserve seed of our father", "it is not written, that we may preserve a son of our father, but that we may preserve seed of our father; that seed which is he that comes from another place; and what is this? this is the King Messiah.'' Now as Abraham had the promise of a son, and his wife was barren, he took the method he did that he might have one, the son of the promise, a type of the Messiah, and from whom he should spring; and this is sufficient to justify him in it: besides, he did not deal treacherously with Sarah his wife, for it was with her good will and by her authority he did this thing; but do you take heed to your spirit, that no one of you deal treacherously with the wife of his youth, to leave her, and marry the daughter of a strange God: and much the same sense Jarchi takes notice of as the Agadah, or the interpretation of their ancient Rabbins. Some render the words, "and not one does this"; that is, deals treacherously with the wife of his youth, that has the residue of the spirit, or the least spark of the Spirit of God in him; and how should anyone do it, seeking a godly seed? therefore take heed to your spirit, &c.; so De Dieu. But according to others the sense is, "there is not one of you that does according to the law, whose spirit remains with him that is not mixed with the daughter of a strange god;'' which is Aben Ezra's note. But according to Abarbinel the sense is, not one only has done this, committed this evil, in marrying more and strange women; not some only, and the rest have the spirit with them, and keep it pure from this sin; so that a godly seed cannot be procreated from you; therefore take heed to your spirit. (d) "semen Dei", Pagninus, Montanus, Calvin, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Cocceius, Burkius. (e) "nonue unus fecit?" V. L. Menochius, Tirinus. (f) "Et ne unus fecit?" Pagninus, Montanus; "et unus ille (Abramus) ita egit?" Grotius; "annon unus hoc fecit?" Tigurine version; so Joseph Kimchi. (g) "semen Deus", Galatin. de Arcan. Cathol. Ver. l. 8. c. 2. p. 550. (h) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 23. fol. 20. 4. Midrash Ruth, fol. 36. 1. (i) Bereshit Rabba, sect. 51. fol. 46. 1. Midrash Ruth, fol. 35. 4.

For in the Gospel of Matthew he says, “Whosoever shall put away his wife, saving for the cause of fornication, causes her to commit adultery.” He also is deemed equally guilty of adultery who marries a woman put away by her husband. The Creator, however, except on account of adultery, does not put asunder that which he himself joined together, the same Moses in another passage enacting that he who had married after violence to a damsel should thenceforth not have it in his power to put away his wife. Now if a compulsory marriage contracted after violence shall be permanent, how much rather shall a voluntary one, the result of an agreement! This has the sanction of the prophet: “You shall not forsake the wife of your youth.” Thus you have Christ following spontaneously the tracks of the Creator everywhere, both in permitting divorce and in forbidding it. You find him also protecting marriage, in whatever direction you try to escape. He prohibits divorce when he will have the marriage inviolable; he permits divorce when the marriage is spotted with unfaithfulness. You should blush when you refuse to unite those whom even your Christ has united, and repeat the blush when you disunite them without the good reason why your Christ would have them separated.

(v. 13 ff.) And you have done this again, covering the altar of the Lord with tears, weeping and groaning, so that I will no longer look upon your sacrifices or accept anything pleasing from your hands. Yet you ask, 'Why?' Because the Lord has been witness between you and the wife of your youth, whom you have despised, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. Did not one God create us all? Did not one God give us life and breath? And what does one seek, except the seed of God? Therefore, guard your spirit and do not despise the wife of your youth. When you have hatred, let it go, says the Lord God of Israel; but iniquity will cover its clothing, says the Lord of hosts: guard your spirit and do not despise. LXX: And you have done these things that I hated: you covered the altar of the Lord with tears, weeping and groaning, looking for a sacrifice still worthy of labor, or to receive something acceptable from your hands. And you said, why? Because the Lord has testified between you and the wife of your youth, whom you have abandoned, and she is your companion, and the wife of your covenant, and no other person has done this, and the remainder of your spirit. And you said, what else does God seek besides offspring? And guard in your spirit, and do not abandon the wife of your youth. But if you hate her and divorce her, says the Lord God of Israel, he will cover your thoughts of wickedness, says the Almighty Lord. And guard in your spirit, and do not abandon. Let us interpret the story, and connecting short sentences to each verse, let us discuss what has been handed down to us from the Hebrews. The abandoned wives of the Israelites, contemplating the women of foreign nations in the beds of their husbands, sought refuge only in God's help, prostrating themselves before the altar of the Lord for 966 days and nights with tears, groans, and wails, causing envy towards His providence; because He did not regard human affairs and did not alleviate their miseries. Where God says that he cannot accept sacrifice and offering from the hands of priests who have committed these things, being hindered by the weeping and lamentations of their wives, and moreover, he asks why he does not accept sacrifice from their hands, and immediately he declares: Because the Lord has testified between you and the wife of your youth, whom you have despised, saying: Because of this, a man will leave his father and mother and cling to his wife, and the two will become one flesh (Gen. II, 24): and therefore she is called a partner and wife of union and covenant, who was made from the rib of man by God. And the remainder of his spirit, whether of God, as some suppose, or of the husband, as others suspect, because on this account it seems that, in a certain manner, one soul exists in two (persons), with the spirit and mind united. Therefore, when one (person) has made both the man and the woman, on this account the conjunction of both was made by God, so that children would be born. For there is only one God, what does he seek except the seed of God, that is, children generated from the Israelite stock? So when you have fruitful wives and rejoice in children, why do you seek the beauty of women, which is suitable for prostitutes, not for wives? Therefore, God commands through the prophet and says: Guard your spirit; do not be led astray by desire, so that you are not overcome by the love of strangers. And do not despise the wife of your youth, who was first joined to you in virgin marriage, let her remain with you until old age. But it could happen that the rulers, priests, Levites, and people would respond: God commanded through Moses that when we hate our wives, we should divorce them. And it is written: You say to me that it is written: When you hate your wife, divorce her, says the Lord God of Israel (Deut. XXIV). And immediately he replied: Indeed, this is a commandment in the Law, but because of the hardness of your hearts. Which the Lord further expounds in the Gospel: But whoever, except for the cause of fornication, unjustly divorces his wife (Mat. V, 52), his garment of iniquity will cover him, that is, the body in which the soul is clothed, says the Lord of hosts: so that he may be punished in the same way he sinned. Therefore, in this dissolved question, it inculcates and repeats what it said above: Guard your spirit, and do not despise, either the guardianship of your spirit, or certainly a wife, if she is poor or ugly. What we specifically explained according to the book of Ezra concerning abandoned wives, some people believe this statement is generally against those who plunder the possessions of others and unjustly amass wealth, daring to offer gifts to God, which it says it cannot accept, forbidden by the tears of those who have been devastated, and by weeping and groaning. And it is fitting to apply this testimony to that place: Honor God from your just labors (Prov, III, 9). But they also mix in this feeling, those who on account of the loss of family property, the death of their children, shipwreck, and other things that pertain to the loss of worldly possessions, are turned to weeping, and give themselves wholly to mourning and lamentation: not with the strength of mind and hope in God, and disregard everything for the rewards of the future; even if they direct their prayers to God, they are not received by him, because they are defiled by unseemly and incongruous lamentations for a man. But as for what follows: Because the Lord has testified between you and the wife of your youth, whom you have despised; and she is your partner, and the wife of your covenant or testament; and no other has done so; and the remnants of your spirit are interpreted in such a way that they say the natural understanding of the wife of your youth, and the law written in the heart, which is inherent in all human beings. Therefore, even the nations without the law of God do the things that are of the law. And about this wife, it is preached in Proverbs: A wife is joined to a man by God (Prov. XIX, 24); and we are commanded to drink from our own wells and fountains, and let no one share in drinking, and to take delight in the wife of our youth. This wife even impels us to say to the gullible: God will judge, and God will see (Judges VII, 13); and I leave all things to be judged between me and you, about which even Ecclesiastes speaks: And live your life with the woman whom you have loved all the days of your vanity, which have been given to you under the sun (Eccl. IX, 9). This wife is the remaining spirit of ours, because she is always joined to our perception: and if she departs from us, we immediately offend God, and our impiety covers us. Hence it is again suggested: Keep your spirit (Galatians 6), not the flesh in which those who are cannot please God, not the soul: For the animalistic man does not receive those things which are of the spirit (1 Corinthians 2:14); but the spirit: for the Spirit intercedes for us with unspeakable groanings (Romans 8:16).

REPROOF OF THE PRIESTS FOR VIOLATING THE COVENANT; AND THE PEOPLE ALSO FOR MIXED MARRIAGES AND UNFAITHFULNESS. (Mal. 2:1-17) for you--The priests in particular are reproved, as their part was to have led the people aright, and reproved sin, whereas they encouraged and led them into sin. Ministers cannot sin or suffer alone. They drag down others with them if they fall [MOORE].

MAURER and HENGSTENBERG explain the verse thus: The Jews had defended their conduct by the precedent of Abraham, who had taken Hagar to the injury of Sarah, his lawful wife; to this Malachi says now, "No one (ever) did so in whom there was a residue of intelligence (discriminating between good and evil); and what did the one (Abraham, to whom you appeal for support) do, seeking a godly seed?" His object (namely, not to gratify passion, but to obtain the seed promised by God) makes the case wholly inapplicable to defend your position. MOORE (from FAIRBAIRN) better explains, in accordance with Mal 2:10, "Did not He make (us Israelites) one? Yet He had the residue of the Spirit (that is, His isolating us from other nations was not because there was no residue of the Spirit left for the rest of the world). And wherefore (that is, why then did He thus isolate us as) the one (people; the Hebrew is 'the one')? In order that He might seek a godly seed"; that is, that He might have "a seed of God," a nation the repository of the covenant, and the stock of the Messiah, and the witness for the one God amidst the surrounding polytheisms. Marriage with foreign women, and repudiation of the wives wedded in the Jewish covenant, utterly set aside this divine purpose. CALVIN thinks "the one" to refer to the conjugal one body formed by the original pair (Gen 2:24). God might have joined many wives as one with the one husband, for He had no lack of spiritual being to impart to others besides Eve; the design of the restriction was to secure a pious offspring: but compare Note, see on Mal 2:10. One object of the marriage relation is to raise a seed for God and for eternity.