Malachi 1:6-14

Introduction

Malachi was written approximately 100 years after the exile. (“Book of Malachi | Guide with Key Information and Resources”). In the historical section, Ezra and Nehemiah would have been contemporaries of Malachi. After Israel’s 70 year exile, many returned back to Babylon with hopes of restoring their land. However, the restoration would be more difficult than imagined. Nehemiah highlights extreme poverty and external and internal problems that prevented a complete restoration of a devastated Jerusalem. The external problems dealt with their neighbors, which hated the Jews (Nehemiah 2:10, Nehemiah 4:1-3); and the internal problems dealt with religious leaders willing to compromise Judaism for peace (Nehemiah 13:4-9). If this was not enough, wealthier Jews were oppressing poorer Jews (Nehemiah 5).

Twenty years after their return from exile, the Jews had rebuilt the temple around 515 B.C. (“Temple of Jerusalem | Judaism”). This temple was nowhere near the beauty and grandeur of Solomon’s temple. Sadly, the modesty of the second temple brought tears to many Jews. Ezra describes this in Ezra 3:12: “But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house was laid before their eyes, wept with a loud voice; and many shouted aloud for joy.” Just in case you think these older Jews were weeping for joy, the prophet Haggai adds in Haggai 2:3: “Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? And how do ye see it now? Is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?”

The hope was that the rebuilt temple would bring about a spirited revival of Judaism that would bring prosperity and more importantly influence to Jerusalem. However, 70 years later, Jerusalem was still in shambles. We pick up the story in Nehemiah 1:2–3: “That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.”

They had the temple, but without a city wall to protect them and to control immigration, the city was still in disarray. They had no joy or peace, and more than this, their neighbors disrespected their faith and God. Jerusalem had the temple but without any means to protect the worshippers. Therefore, Nehemiah received a leave of absence from King Artexerxes, traveled to Jerusalem and led the Jews to rebuild their broken wall and gates. The project was finished in September of 445 B.C. (Bucknell) Even with the temple, wall and gates rebuilt, the Jews struggled with godly leadership and passionate worshippers. This brings us to Malachi. The second in a series of 6 accusations was aimed at the priest.

Analogy

Malachi 1:6 “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: If then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?”

The analogy is that the priests of God are sons and servants to God who is their Father and Master. It is proper for a son or a servant to honor their father or master. The Hebrew word for “honour” means “weight” is pronounced “Kavod” in English. I recently read an article that expressed the importance of the Hebrew word. The author of the article wrote: “There are moments in life when words fall short — when we sense something so holy, so far beyond ourselves, that all we can do is stand still in awe. That’s the heart of the Hebrew word Kavod (כָּבוֹד, kah-VOHD) — glory, honor, weight, splendor… It’s the idea that God’s presence isn’t light or fleeting — it carries substance, a holy weight that fills everything it touches. When Scripture says, “The glory (kavod) of the Lord filled the tabernacle” (Exodus 40:34), it means His presence became so real, so tangible, that no one could stand inside.”

God’s presence was not real or tangible in their lives. As sons and servants, they did not appropriately honor God as their Father and Master. And as servants they did not fear or respect God’s authority over their lives. We should not see this charge in a vacuum. The reason they were not interested in giving God glory through their lives and respecting His authority was their lack of love for Him. David sang during a difficult time in his life in Psalm 63:1–2: “O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: My soul thirsteth for thee, My flesh longeth for thee In a dry and thirsty land, where no water is; To see thy power and thy glory, So as I have seen thee in the sanctuary.” These priests were not thirsty or longing for God; they were not interested in seeing His power and glory. The difference between David and these priests was their affections toward God.

To say they wanted an affirming God is fair. They were quick to question God’s love for them without considering their unloving actions towards Him. They saw themselves as the victim and not the victimizer. In short, they wanted cheap grace. They demanded God’s love without strings attached. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote of cheap grace in The Cost of Discipleship. He said: “Cheap grace is the deadly enemy of our Church. We are fighting to-day for costly grace. Cheap grace means grace sold on the market like cheapjacks’ wares. The sacraments, the forgiveness of sin, and the consolations of religion are thrown away at cut prices. Grace is represented as the Church’s inexhaustible treasury, from which she showers blessings with generous hands, without asking questions or fixing limits. Grace without price; grace without cost!” (Bonhoeffer).pg.3 People who want affirming love will always love themselves more than others.

As a result of loving themselves more than God, they did not honor God by allowing Him to influence their lives. When we say that a person carries weight in their family, what we are saying is: “To be important or meaningful especially in influencing others.” (“Carry Weight ”) The priests rejected God’s weight of influence in their lives. They performed their functions as priests, no different than how many Jews lived during the time of the Judges: Judges 17:6 “In those days there was no king in Israel, but every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” Therefore, as described in the first part of Malachi 1:6, there relationship with God was broken on multiple levels.

Audience

Malachi 1:6 “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: If then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?”

Unlike the first section, this section’s targeted audience is not Israel but the priests. I read somewhere that priests brought people to God and prophets brought God to people. I thought this was a good way at explaining the difference between the priests and the prophets. At the same time, it speaks of the priests importance in the worship of God.

If the priests have relational character flaws with God that show in their worship, then this will have an adverse consequence with the people. Therefore, despite this section focusing on the priests, the ramifications of their charge extends to Israel. We can see an example of this in 1 Samuel 1-2. Eli was the High Priest and judge of Israel (Nissan Mindel) but too old to officiate many of his duties. So, his two sons Hophni and Phinehas officiated the worship of God. This was a poor choice for Eli to make because his two sons were wicked. The narrator of 1 Samuel wrote regarding Hophni and Phinehas in 1 Samuel 2:17: “Wherefore the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord: for men abhorred the offering of the Lord.” A few verses later, Eli vainly rebukes his sons without taking any counter-measures to stop their evil ways in 1 Samuel 2:23–24: “And he said unto them, Why do ye such things? for I hear of your evil dealings by all this people. Nay, my sons; for it is no good report that I hear: ye make the Lord’s people to transgress.” (“Hebrew Word of the Week —Kavod (כָּבוֹד) — the Glory That Changes Everything”)

I want you to notice that the wickedness of the priest led the people to abhor the worship of God and to transgress God’s law. Therefore, even though the prophet Malachi rebukes in this section of his book, the consequences of their actions negatively impacted the Jews worship of God.

Is there any relevance for us in a book that was written 25000 years ago? Absolutely, if this book is God’s word. The writer of Hebrews wrote in Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” The word “quick” is in the present tense. In Biblical Greek, present tense verbs indicate a present reality without an end date in mind. Therefore, Hebrews says that God’s word is alive and continues to be alive today. David Matthis wrote: “This Library (The 66 books of the Bible) is the living voice of the unchanging God, who continues to speak through these same inspired ancient words by the power of his living Spirit. Christians don’t come to the Bible just to hear what God said. We come to hear what he says. We come to hear him speak, even today, through his written word, by his empowering Spirit.” (Mathis) I will highlight three relevant areas.

First, we are the priest of God following our great High Priest Jesus Christ (Hebrews 4:14: “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession”). Peter, twice mentions in 1 Peter 2 our role as priest of God. He wrote in 1 Peter 2:5: “Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.” And in 1 Peter 2:9: “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light.” We are a holy and royal priest of God. As priests of God, we bring our family, friends, co-workers, and neighbors to God through intercessory prayer and worship. Our estimation of God is critical as we present our loved ones to God through prayer. I will illustrate the principle this way: I love macaroni and cheese much more than rice or potatoes. If someone is cooking macaroni and cheese, instead of rice or potatoes, my anticipation will be immersed in joy; however, the opposite is true if rice or potatoes is the dish. If we view God as the best, then our anticipation of coming to Him will be joyful and thrilling; however, the opposite is true if we fail to see God as the best.

Second, not only are we priests of God; we are the offering or the one being sacrificed, as well. Paul wrote in Romans 12:1: “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Our value of God determines how we present ourselves for sacrifice. If we see serving God as a 9-5 job instead of humble and joyful service, then this will impact our service for God. This may include giving God our leftovers and not our firstfruits.

Third, both the priest and the sacrifice were instrumental in the worship of God. If either of these are flawed in the worship of God then this will have a cascading effect on others worshipping God. If we disrespect the worship of God with our attitude or life, others may be discouraged from worshipping God, abhor the worship of God, or cause others to transgress God’s law. A couple decades ago, I had a neighbor named Tom, who was unsaved. We talked about the Lord several times. Regardless of what I said, eventually, he would fault back to a person he knew down the street who claimed to be saved. He would say: “If he is a Christian, then I am not doing bad; I will be ok.” I did not know who he referenced, or if the person had been regenerated by the Holy Spirit: in other words, I do not know if the person was a confessor without ever possessing salvation. Either way, it does not change the result: his lifestyle of presenting himself as a living sacrifice unto God discouraged others from coming to Christ.

Accusation

Malachi 1:6 “A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: If then I be a father, where is mine honour? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Saith the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?”

The accusation by God is: “O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?” The word “despised” means to have “disdain,” of “contempt.” It is the same word that is translated as “contemptible” in Malachi 1:7:“Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; And ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the Lord is contemptible.” Their attitude towards their Father and Master spoke of their view of Him. The effects were not honoring or fearing their Father and Master, but the cause was they saw Him as vile person. (Daniel 11:21). The office whose purpose was to bring people to God, had disdain for Him (1 Samuel 17:42) and scorned Him (Esther 3:6).

Our actions will tell the story of our heart. Proverbs 4:23: “Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life.” The word “issues” means “outgoings.” In other words, the heart is a portal that allows what is in it to flow out of it through our mind and actions. An example of this word in Joshua 17:9 “And the coast descended unto the river Kanah, southward of the river: these cities of Ephraim are among the cities of Manasseh: the coast of Manasseh also was on the north side of the river, and the outgoings of it were at the sea.” As the river empties into the sea, the contents of heart empties into our minds and actions. This is why we need to keep or protect out heart from allowing infectious pathogens of thoughts and affections from entering into our heart. I read somewhere that the thought of Proverbs 4:23 is to “keep your heart with all keeping.” The priests failed to keep their heart with all keeping by allowing their hearts to be home base for poisonous and treasonous thoughts about God.

These priests despised the name of God. They treated the name of God with disdain and contempt. The Bible mentions only one aspect of God that is higher than His name: Psalm 138:2, “I will worship toward thy holy temple, And praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: For thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.” His word soars above His name. Yet, we can see why. A person’s word is their bond. You have no reputable name if your word has no truth. Despising one’s name is easy if their word is unreliable. I do not trust the words of a politician, criminal, or cheater; however, God is holy, true, righteous, and good. They had disdain for God and despised His name because His word is righteous, true and good. The Psalmist confessed in Psalm 119:18: “Open thou mine eyes, That I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.” The priests did not see wondrous things from God’s law; nor did they want their eyes opened to “Thus saith the Lord.”

They were more interested in their plan and path than God’s word operating as “lamp unto (their) feet, And a light unto (their) path” (Psalm 119:105). For the priests to despise God means, they did not trust His word as a governor for their life. From the late 90’s until I went full-time as a pastor, I worked for various trucking companies. Most of these companies I worked for had governors on the trucks. These governors prevented the trucks from eclipsing a certain speed. Companies installed these governors to reduce insurance payment and to prevent trucks from driving an unsafe speed. Most drivers that I worked with disagreed with these governors; they believed that they could drive faster and still be safe. Israel’s priests disagreed with God’s word governing their life; just like drivers, they knew more than God on how best to live their lives.

Instead of confessing and turning from their sins, the Lord knew they would double-down by arrogantly asking: “wherein have we despised thy name?” We have an idiomatic phrase in English: who? me? The urban dictionary defines this phrase as follows: “A phrase used by ignorant people either to deflect a question that they were not prepared to answer, or because they are in an uncomfortable situation that is beyond their grasp.(“Urban Dictionary”) Either the priests were deflecting, feigning innocence, or backslidden so much that they could not fathom how they despised the name of God. Regardless of the reason, they wanted proof for the accusation.

Answer

Malachi 1:7–8:“Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; And ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? In that ye say, The table of the Lord is contemptible. And if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer it now unto thy governor; Will he be pleased with thee, or accept thy person? saith the Lord of hosts.”

The Lord provides two indisputable evidences to convict them on the charge of despising His name: They did not respect the Lord’s altar and the Lord’s sacrifice. The first evidence points to attitude not the quality of what was offered. Their disposition towards the altar was no different than towards the name of God. “Despised” and “contemptible” are the same Hebrew word. They had disdain for the altar of the Lord. We need to understand the gravity of the charge. Bible Hub’s Encyclopedia wrote regarding the altar: “The ‘Altar of the LORD’ is a significant element in biblical worship and religious practice, serving as a sacred place where offerings and sacrifices are made to God. Throughout the Bible, altars are depicted as places of divine encounter, covenant, and atonement, reflecting the centrality of worship in the life of God's people.” (“Topical Bible: The Altar of the LORD”)

The priests attitude toward the altar was sacrilege. Before Israel’s exile, their heart was for other gods: Ezekiel 14:5 “That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.” The Jews turned from God so that they could affectionately pursue idols or false gods. Approximately, 100 years after the return, they were estranged from God through their disdainful attitude towards God. Unlike their forefathers who followed after other gods, the Jews in Malachi’s time were mainly monotheistic. Yet, their feelings, emotions, and attitude usurped God’s word, which devastatingly effected the condition of their heart as they approached the altar of the Lord.