Malachi 1:13 Kommentaari

Thus prophet is sent first to convince and then to comfort, first to discover sin and to reprove for that and then to promise the coming of him who shall take away sin. And this method the blessed Spirit takes in dealing with souls, Joh 16:8. He first opens the wound and then applies the healing balm. God had provided (and one would think effectually) for the engaging of Israel to himself by providences and ordinances; but it seems, by the complaints here made of them, that they received the grace of God in both these in vain. I. They were very ungrateful to God for his favours to them, and rendered not again according to the benefit they received (Mal 1:1-5). II. They were very careless and remiss in the observance of his institutions; the priests especially were so, who were in a particular manner charged with them (Mal 1:6-14). And what shall we say of those whom neither providences nor ordinances work upon, and who affront God in those very things wherein they should honour him?

In this chapter the Lord declares his love to the people of Israel, and proves it; and complains that the honour due unto him was not given him; which he demonstrates by various instances. The inscription is in Mal 1:1 showing the name and nature of the prophecy; the author of it; the people to whom it was sent; and the name of the person by whom. In Mal 1:2 the Lord affirms his love to the people of Israel, which they called in question; and proves it to be real, special, and distinguishing, by the instance of Jacob and Esau, two brothers; yet one, their ancestor, was loved, and the other hated; which latter is proved by the desolations made in his country, and by the fruitless attempts made to repair and rebuild; which was so clear a proof of the Lord's indignation against him, that the Israelites could not but see it, and would be obliged to confess it, to the glory of God, Mal 1:3 hence he passes on to observe the honour and fear that were due to him as a Father and master, which were not shown him; but, instead thereof, he was despised, and even by the priests themselves, with which they are charged, Mal 1:6 and which being objected to by them, is proved by offering polluted bread on his altar; and by polluting him, in saying his table was contemptible; and by sacrificing the blind, the lame, and the sick, unto him; things which would be justly resented, if offered to a temporal prince and governor, Mal 1:7 wherefore they are called upon by the prophet to pray to the Lord for grace and mercy for the people, seeing it was by their means (the priests) that these things were done; though it was questionable whether the Lord would have any regard to them, Mal 1:9 their sins being so dreadfully aggravated; and particularly, inasmuch as they did not serve in the temple, not so much as shut a door, or kindle a fire on the altar, for nothing, without being paid for it; hence the Lord declares he had no pleasure in them, nor would he accept their offerings; but would call the Gentiles by his grace, among whom his name would be great from one end of the earth to the other; and incense and pure offerings would be offered by them to him, Mal 1:10 and then he renews the charge against them, that they had profaned his name, by saying that his table, and the fruit thereof, were polluted, and his meat contemptible; by expressing a weariness in his worship, and a contempt of it; and by bringing the torn, the lame, and sick, as an offering to him, Mal 1:12 upon which such sacrificers are declared deceivers, and pronounced accursed, which they might assure themselves was and would be their case; since he was a great King, and his name dreadful among the Heathen, Mal 1:14.

Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it?.... These are either the words of the priests, saying what a wearisome and fatiguing business the temple service was to them, for which they thought they were poorly paid; such as slaying the sacrifices; removing the ashes from the altar; putting the wood in order; kindling the fire, and laying the sacrifice on it: or of the people that brought the sacrifice, who, when they brought a lamb upon their shoulders, and laid it down, said, how weary are we with bringing it, suggesting it was so fat and fleshy; so Kimchi and Abarbinel, to which sense the Targum seems to agree; which paraphrases it, "but if ye say, lo, what we have brought is from our labour;'' and so the Syriac version, "and ye say, this is from our labour"; and the Vulgate Latin version, "and ye say, lo, from labour"; and the Septuagint version, "and ye say, these are from affliction"; meaning that what they brought was with great toil and labour, out of great poverty, misery, and affliction: and ye have snuffed at it, saith the Lord of hosts; or, "blown it" (p); filled it with wind, that it might seem fat and fleshy, when it was poor and lean; so Abarbinel and Abendana: or ye have puffed, and panted, and blown, as persons weary with bringing such a heavy lamb, when it was so poor and light, that, if it was blown at, it would fall to the ground; so R. Joseph Kimchi: or ye have puffed at it, thrown it upon the ground by way of contempt; so David Kimchi: or, "ye have grieved him" (q); the owner of the lamb, from whom they stole it; which sense is mentioned by Kimchi and Ben Melech; taking the word rendered "torn", in the next clause, for that which was "stolen". Jarchi says this is one of the eighteen words corrected by the scribes; and that instead of "it", it should be read "me": and the whole rendered, "and ye have grieved me"; the Lord, by bringing such sacrifices, and complaining of weariness, and by their hypocrisy and deceitfulness. Cocceius renders the words, "ye have made him to expire"; meaning the Messiah, whom the Jews put to death: and ye have brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; See Gill on Mal 1:8 and if the first word is rendered "stolen", as it may, this offering was an abomination to the Lord, Isa 61:8, thus ye brought an offering; such an one as it was: or a "minchah", a meat offering, along with these abominable ones: should I accept this of your hands? saith the Lord; which, when offered to a civil governor, would not be acceptable, Mal 1:8 and when contrary to the express law of God. (p) "et efflastis illam", Montanus; "anheli isto estis", Tigurine version; "exsufflare possetis", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, "difflatis", Drusius; "sufflavistis illud", Burkius. (q) "Et contristastis illum"; so some in Vatablus.

But every Lord's day do ye gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. But let no one that is at variance with his fellow come together with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be profaned. For this is that which was spoken by the Lord: In every place and time offer to me a pure sacrifice; for I am a great King, saith the Lord, and my name is wonderful among the nations.

(Verse 10 seqq.) I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord of hosts, and I will not accept an offering from your hand. For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense will be offered to my name, and a pure offering. For my name will be great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts. But you profane it when you say: 'The table of the Lord is polluted, and its fruit, its food, is despised.' And you have said: 'Behold, we have labored and blown it away', says the Lord of hosts. And you have brought in the lame, and the sick, and you have brought in an offering: will I accept it from your hand? says the Lord. LXX: It is not my will in you, says the Lord Almighty, and I will not accept a sacrifice from your hands, for from the rising of the sun to its setting my glorious name is among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name, and a pure sacrifice, for great is my name among the nations, says the Lord Almighty. But you have defiled it by saying, 'The table of the Lord is polluted, and its fruit, its food, is despised.' You also say, 'These things are from affliction,' and you scoff at them,' says the Lord Almighty. You bring stolen goods, lame or sick animals, and offer them as sacrifices. Should I accept them from your hands?' says the Lord Almighty. The rule of Scriptures is this: When a clear prophecy about the future is given, do not diminish what is written by uncertain allegories. So now, specifically, the Lord's message is addressed to the priests of the Jews, who offer the blind and the lame and the sick for sacrifice, so that they may know that spiritual victims will succeed the carnal victims. And not the blood of bulls and goats, but incense, that is, the prayers of the saints, are to be offered to the Lord, not in one province of the world, Judea, nor in one city of Judea, Jerusalem, but in every place, an offering is to be made, not unclean, like the people of Israel, but clean, like in the ceremonies of the Christians. For from the rising of the sun even to its setting, the name of the Lord is great among the Gentiles, as the Savior says: Father, I have manifested your name to men (John 17:6). And when, he says, my name shall become great among the Gentiles, oh you princes of the Jews, you have defiled it and continue to defile it. Thus, the prophecy covers both the future and the present time. But therefore, oh priests and princes of the Jews, in every place a clean offering is presented to me, and my name is great among the Gentiles, because you say the Lord's table is defiled, and what is placed on it is contemptible with the fire that devours it. The people, upon returning from Babylon, built an altar made only of random and unpolished stones, according to the book of Ezra (Ezra 1:6), without a temple, without city buildings, without the construction of walls, and they believed that the worship of the religion was of lesser value because it lacked the adornments of the temple. To them, the Lord says: Do you think that the altar and the burnt offerings and the sacrifices placed on it are polluted? Do you also think that the fire, which consumes the sacrifices, is polluted? You do not understand that the almighty God does not seek gold, gems, or a multitude of sacrifices, but rather the will of those who offer. 953. But those who think that the altar should be understood as the table on which the loaves were placed, how can they interpret what follows, when I do not see at all the fire that devours it: for the fire does not devour the loaves of the offering, which were always exchanged for new ones instead of the old ones, and taken away to be used by the priests (Leviticus 2:4). Or certainly it should be understood in this way: You have defiled my name by saying: What good is it if we offer the best? Whatever is offered must be consumed by fire. But the fruit of the altar is fire, and the food of fire is the offerings of the host or the holocaust. And it is not enough that you spoke blasphemy in the previous discourse, but you also said this: 'Behold, we have labored and blown away what we had, says the Lord of hosts.' The meaning of this statement is as follows: You said, 'We have returned from captivity, we have been plundered by our enemies, we have labored greatly on a long journey, we are poor, whatever we could have, has been consumed by the hardships of the road. Whatever we have, we offer.' And by saying this, you have blown away your own sacrifices, that is, you have made them unworthy by my exhalation. Or as it can be read in Hebrew: 'And you have blown me away by saying this.' You have done injury not to the sacrifice, but to me, to whom you were sacrificing. Therefore, I will by no means accept that from your hand, says the almighty Lord. Some think that this is specifically said to the Jews because their offerings are unclean and polluted, and sacrifice is transferred to the Gentiles. It should be understood as pertaining to the priests of the Church who offer sacrifices to the Lord negligently. But if we accept this, then the offerings must be transferred again from the Church to another religion. And just as I read the Gospel, so again what is not yet future will happen in accordance with the Gospel. They also refer to the contaminated table of the Lord in holy Scriptures, if they are understood differently than they are written.

GOD'S LOVE: ISRAEL'S INGRATITUDE: THE PRIESTS' MERCENARY SPIRIT: A GENTILE SPIRITUAL PRIESTHOOD SHALL SUPERSEDE THEM. (Mal 1:1-14) burden--heavy sentence. to Israel--represented now by the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin, with individuals of the ten tribes who had returned with the Jews from Babylon. So "Israel" is used, Ezr 7:10. Compare Ch2 21:2, "Jehoshaphat king of Israel," where Judah, rather than the ten tribes, is regarded as the truest representative of Israel (compare Ch2 12:6; Ch2 28:19). Malachi--see Introduction. God sent no prophet after him till John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ, in order to enflame His people with the more ardent desire for Him, the great antitype and fulfiller of prophecy.

what a weariness is it!--Ye regard God's service as irksome, and therefore try to get it over by presenting the most worthless offerings. Compare Mic 6:3, where God challenges His people to show wherein is the "weariness" or hardship of His service. Also Isa 43:22-24, wherein He shows that it is they who have "wearied" Him, not He who has wearied them. snuffed at--despised. it--the table of the Lord, and the meat on it (Mal 1:12). torn--namely, by beasts, which it was not lawful to eat, much less to offer (Exo 22:31). thus . . . offering--Hebrew, mincha; the unbloody offering of flour, &c. Though this may have been of ordinary ingredients, yet the sacrifices of blemished animals accompanying it rendered it unacceptable.

God's Love, and the Contempt of His NameMalachi 1:1-2:9 The Lord has shown love to Israel (Mal 1:2-5), but Israel refuses Him the gratitude which is due, since the priests despise His name by offering bad sacrifices, and thereby cherish the delusion that God cannot do without the sacrifices (Mal 1:6-14). The people are therefore punished with adversity, and the priesthood with desecration (Mal 2:1-9).