Malachi 2
Priests to Be Disciplined
1“And now this commandment is for you, O priests. 2“If you do anot listen, and if you do not take it to heart to give honor to My name,” says the Lord of hosts, “then I will send the bcurse upon you and I will curse your blessings; and indeed, I have ccursed them already, because you are not taking it to heart. 3“Behold, I am going to drebuke your ▼▼ Lit seed
offspring, and I will fspread ▼▼ Or vomit
refuse on your faces, the ▼▼ Or vomit
refuse of your ifeasts; and you will be taken away ▼▼ Lit to
with it. 4“Then you will know that I have sent this commandment to you, ▼▼ Or to be My covenant with
that My lcovenant may ▼▼ Lit be
continue with Levi,” says the Lord of hosts. 5“My covenant with him was one of life and npeace, and I gave them to him as an object of ▼▼ Or fear
reverence; so he ▼▼ Or feared
,
qrevered Me and stood in awe of My name. 6 ▼▼ Or Law of truth
,
s“True instruction was in his mouth and unrighteousness was not found on his lips; he walked twith Me in peace and uprightness, and he uturned many back from iniquity. 7“For the lips of a priest should preserve vknowledge, and ▼▼ Lit they
men should xseek ▼▼ Or law
instruction from his mouth; for he is the zmessenger of the Lord of hosts. 8“But as for you, you have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to aastumble ▼▼ Or in the law
by the instruction; you have ▼▼ Or violated
,
adcorrupted the covenant of Levi,” says the Lord of hosts. 9“So aeI also have made you despised and afabased ▼▼ Lit to
before all the people, just as you are not keeping My ways but are showing ahpartiality in the ▼▼ Or law
instruction. Sin in the Family
10“Do we not all have ajone father? akHas not one God created us? Why do we deal altreacherously each against his brother so as to profane the amcovenant of our fathers? 11“Judah has dealt antreacherously, and an abomination has been committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah has aoprofaned the sanctuary of the Lord ▼▼ Or in that He has loved and married
which He loves and has married the daughter of a foreign god. 12“As for the man who does this, may the aqLord cut off from the tents of Jacob everyone who awakes and answers, or who arpresents ▼▼ Or a grain offering
an offering to the Lord of hosts. 13“This is ▼▼ Lit second
another thing you do: you cover the altar of the Lord with tears, with weeping and with groaning, because He auno longer regards the ▼▼ Or grain offering
offering or accepts it with favor from your hand. 14“Yet you say, ‘For what reason?’ Because the Lord has been a witness between you and the awwife of your youth, against whom you have dealt axtreacherously, though she is your companion and your wife by covenant. 15 ▼▼ Or Did He not make one, although He had the remnant
“But not one has azdone so who has a remnant of the Spirit. And ▼▼ Or why one? He sought a godly offspring
what did that one do while he was seeking a bbgodly ▼▼ Lit seed
offspring? Take heed then to your spirit, and let no one deal bdtreacherously against the wife of your youth. 16“For ▼▼ Lit He hates
I hate ▼▼ Lit sending away
,
bgdivorce,” says the Lord, the God of Israel, “and ▼▼ Lit he covers
him who covers his garment with ▼▼ Or violence
,
bjwrong,” says the Lord of hosts. “So take heed to your spirit, that you do not deal treacherously.” 17You have bkwearied the Lord with your words. Yet you say, “How have we wearied Him?” In that you say, bl“Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He bmdelights in them,” or, bn“Where is the God of bojustice?”
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