Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Malachi 1:14
But cursed [be] the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I [am] a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name [is] dreadful among the heathen.
14. a corrupt thing] or, a blemished thing, R.V. The word is feminine, and the meaning may perhaps be, that for a perfect male, which he has in his flock and therefore could offer, as the law required (Lev 22:18-19), he substituted a blemished female.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Cursed is the deceiver – o The fraudulent, hypocritical, false or deceitful dealer, who makes a show of one thing, and doth or intends another, nor doth to his power what he would make a show of doing; as if he could deceive God in doing in His service otherwise than He required, and yet be accepted by Him. The whole habit of these men was not to break with God, but to keep well with Him on as easy terms as they could. They even went beyond what the law required in making vows, probably for some temporal end, and then substituted for that which had typical perfection, the less valuable animal, the ewe and that, diseased. It was probably, to prevent self-deceit, that the law commanded that the oblation for a vow should be Lev 22:19, Lev 22:21, a male without blemish, perfect; lest (which may be a temptation in impulsive vows) repenting of their vow, they should persuade themselves, that they had vowed less than they had. Ordinarily, then, it would not have been allowed to one, who had not the best to offer, to vow at all. But, in their alleged poverty, the prophet supposes that God would so far dispense with His own law, and accept the best which anyone had, although it did not come up to that law. Hence the clause, which hath in his flock a male. If thou hast not a male, that curse in no wise injureth thee. But saying this, he showeth, that they have what is best, and offer what is bad.
They sinned, not against religion only, but against justice also. For as a merchant, who offers his goods at a certain price, if he supply them afterward adulterated and corrupted, is guilty of fraud and is unjust, so he who promised to God a sacrifice worthy of God, and, according to the law, perfect and sound, is fraudulent and sins against justice, if he afterward gives one, defective, mutilated, vitiated, and is guilty of theft in a sacred thing, and so of sacrilege.
Clergy or all who have vowed, should learn hence, that what they have vowed should be given to God, entire, manly, perfect, the best. For, reverence for the Supreme and Divine Majesty to whom they consecrate themselves demandeth this, that they should offer Him the highest, best and most perfect, making themselves a whole-burnt-offering to God.
, They who abandon all things of the world, and kindle their whole mind with the fire of divine love, these become a sacrifice and a whole-burnt-offering to Almighty God. , Man himself, consecrated and devoted in the name of God, is a sacrifice. He then offers a corrupt thing who, like Ananias, keeps back part of the price, and is the more guilty, because, while it was his own, it was in his own power.
I am a great King – o As God is Alone Lord through His universal Providence and His intrinsic authority, so He Alone is King, and a King so great, that of His greatness or dignity and perfection there is no end.
My Name is dreadful among the pagan – Absence of any awe of God was a central defect of these Jews. They treated Him, as they would not a fellow-creature, for whom they had any respect or awe or fear. Some remaining instinct kept them from parting with Him; but they yielded a cold, wearisome, heartless service. Malachi points to the root of the evil, the ignorance, how awful God is. This is the root of so much irreverence in peoples theories, thoughts, conversations, systems, acts, of the present day also. They know neither God or themselves. The relation is summed up in those words to a saint , Knowest thou well, Who I am, and who thou art? I am He Who Is, and thou art she who is not. So Job says in the presence of God Job 42:5-6, I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear, but now mine eye seeth Thee: wherefore I abhor myself and repent in dust and ashes. To correct this, God, from the beginning, insists on the title which He gives Himself. (Deu 10:16-17; Deu 7:21. Nehemiah uses it in his prayers Neh 1:5; Neh 9:32 and Daniel Dan 9:4. It occurs also Neh 4:8 (14 English) Psa 47:3; 68:36; Psa 89:8; Psa 96:4; Psa 99:3; Psa 111:9; Zep 2:11. Circumcise the foreskin of your hearts and be no more stiff-necked: for the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, the mighty and the terrible; and in warning Deu 28:58-59, If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that thou mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, The Lord thy God, then the Lord thy God will make thy plagues wonderful etc.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Mal 1:14
But cursed be the deceiver.
A cursed one
Curses are the echoes that sin awakens. All deceivers are cursed.
I. The deceiver. He may be a self-deceiver, or a deceiver of others, or both. Some may unconsciously deceive; others intentionally. It is the intentional deceiver that is cursed; he who aims to deceive others. These abound in–
1. Religious communities. The wily priest, the glib teacher of error, the hypocrite.
2. In the social circle. The liar, the seducer, the false friend.
3. In commerce. The unreliable employee, the concocter of lying prospectuses, the swindling merchant.
4. In political movements. The bribing agent, the self-seeking adventurer, the unscrupulous statesman. Men sometimes turn themselves into incarnate falsehoods for the sake of worldly success. The advantages gained are only seeming, not real. The deceiver is–
(1) Foolish. He injures himself for the sake of uncertain good.
(2) Despicable. Society treats the exposed deceiver with contempt. All honest men shun him.
(3) Treacherous. He is like a splintered staff, a rotten cable, a sandy foundation, a spiders web, a wreckers beacon, a flower-covered bog, a desert mirage, etc.
(4) Mischievous. He lays traps for the innocent. He destroys social confidence.
(5) Diabolical. Like Lucifer, he sins in wily guise. He is a true son of the father of lies.
II. HIS CURSE. This may be suspicion, discredit, fear of discovery, exposure, stings of conscience, spiritual blindness, the execrations of his victims; the contempt of all good men; the displeasure of the Almighty, hell-fires, etc. His curse is certain. In a universe where a God of truth and righteousness reigns, the deceiver is sure to be punished. The curse is terrible and eternal. Application–
1. Let us guard ourselves against all deceivers.
2. Let us beware of deceit.
3. Better be deceived than deceive. (W. Osborne Lilley.)
And sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing.
The service of God an unblemished offering
The prophets were Gods messengers, commissioned to witness in His name against the sins of the people. To understand this remonstrance aright, we must remember what were the laws respecting the offerings. The prime of each offering was to be presented to God. But these profane priests thought that anything would serve for a sacrifice, though never so coarse and mean. They picked out the worst they had, that which was neither fit for the market nor for their own tables, and offered that at Gods altar. With every sacrifice the law commanded them to bring a meat-offering of fine flour, mingled with bread: but they brought polluted bread, of coarse and refuse material. The principle illustrated is–that the service of God admits of nothing short of the most perfect offering that can be presented; and everything below this affixes upon the offerers the character of deceivers, and the condemnation of being cursed.
I. The service of religious worship.
1. It is profane service whenever it is not intelligent, whenever it is not founded on a right understanding of the object of worship. You, who have watched the movements or the torpidity of your minds at the time of supposed prayer, will bear me witness how often you have failed to recognise the simple being of the God before whom you bow down.
2. No offering of worship is acceptable which is not also solemn and reverential. This it could not fail to be if we were possessed by a just sense of the transcendent greatness of Him to whom prayer is presented. His majesty is infinite and ineffable, and therefore we stand at an immeasurable distance from Him. And yet to such a Being we address ourselves in prayer. Do any of us detect in ourselves the vacant gaze, the roving thought?
3. Acceptable worship must be spiritual. Why so? God is a Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. They must so worship Him, because it is not possible that He should receive any other. Do you assert that God is a Spirit, then you contract Him into the narrow dimensions of your own being if you give Him no more than the devotions of the body, if you give Him not the ardent services of your soul.
4. If our worship be genuine, it will be marked by intentness of mind. Languor and laxness of the spirit are sure tokens that it is not a glad offering, but an irksome task. In all these cases what is the sin which we charge home but that very sin for which the prophet utters his rebuke? They have a better offering which they might offer. They are capable of a worship more worthy of God. Instead, they bring the lame, and the sick, and the torn, they sacrifice unto the Lord a corrupt thing.
II. The habitual service of the life. Here too the service of God admits of nothing short of the most perfect offering that can be presented. Our baptismal covenant, made for us in our unconscious infancy, when our own reason was not privy to the engagement, is sealed and confirmed in maturer age; and then it is that we deliberately and personally vow to give the choice thing in our flock. But where is he to be found that fully recognises and performs the baptismal oath? The baptised man, the communicant, and the parent for his child, and he who is in near danger, has vowed, deliberately, unto God, the male that is in his flock; but he leaves off with sacrificing unto the Lord a corrupt thing. (R. Eden, M. A.)
I am a great King, saith the Lord of hosts.–
Jehovah a king
What God is Himself, what constitutes His essence no language can describe. What God is to His creatures, and what relations He sustains with respect to them, may without difficulty be stated in language sufficiently intelligible. Sometimes God styles Himself a father, sometimes a master, and sometimes a king.
I. Jehovah is a king. A king is the political head or supreme ruler of a kingdom. There are kings by right, and kings in fact. The king by right has claim to the throne, though he may not possess it. The king in fact actually possesses the throne, though he may have no right to it. He alone who has both the right and the possession can properly be called a king. And such a king is Jehovah. His kingdom is the whole created universe, and of this kingdom He is in actual and full possession. And He is the rightful sovereign of the universe. All men were born into the dominions of Jehovah. Men cannot cease to be His subjects without ceasing to exist. He possesses all the insignia of royalty. He has a throne, a crown, royal robes, etc.
II. Jehovah is a great king. Great is the Lord, and His greatness is unsearchable. See the greatness, duration, and stability of His empire. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom.
1. If God is a king, He is under obligations to make laws for His subjects. When He assumes any office He binds Himself to perform all the duties of that office. The first and most indispensable duty of an absolute sovereign is to make laws for his subjects. It is as much his duty to make laws, as it is their duty to obey them when made.
2. He is under obligations to make the wisest and best laws possible. It was incumbent on him to consult, not the private wishes and inclinations of individuals, but the great interests of his whole kingdom.
3. He is under obligations to annex some penalty to every violation of his law. A law without a penalty annexed is not a law, that is, it cannot answer the purpose of a law.
4. He is bound to enforce his laws, and to inflict the threatened punishment on all who transgress them. He must not bear the sword in vain, but be a terror to evil-doers. Justice in a sovereign ruler consists in treating his subjects according to their deserts. He may be guilty of injustice by treating them better than they deserve, as well as by treating them worse than they deserve. But God cannot act unjustly.
5. We may learn the necessity of an atonement for sin. Something which shall maintain the authority of Gods law, secure the great interests of His kingdom, and answer all the ends of government, no less effectually than the infliction of merited punishment upon transgressors. Without such an atonement God cannot consistently with justice, or His obligations as a sovereign, pardon a single offender.
6. If Jehovah is king, sin is treason and rebellion, and every impenitent sinner is a traitor and a rebel.
7. If Jehovah is king, it is requisite that He should have ambassadors, in order that His will should be communicated to His subjects. Gods inspired messengers, the prophets and apostles, were ambassadors extraordinary. His ministers are His ambassadors to-day. (E. Payson, D. D.)
God a great King
Men reveal their conceptions of God by the kind of homage they render to Him. God was dishonoured by the hypocritical worship of His own people; they were representing Jehovah as a senseless idol To reprove them He here declares His greatness.
I. This declaration which Jehovah makes respecting Himself. God places Himself towards us in various aspects. He is a king. He has in Himself all the qualities of kingly greatness. Kings should be the greatest of men. He has all the attributes of a great king. His power, authority, majesty, etc. His dominions are great. His kingdom is eternal.
II. What lessons may be learnt from this declaration. Learn–
1. To reverence Him.
2. The importance of securing His favour. He has shown us the way to secure it–by repentance, faith, and obedience.
3. To trust implicitly in His overruling providence.
4. To submit ourselves to His government.
5. To expect great blessings from His hands. Great expectancy in His creatures pleases Him. Great expectations from Him are never disappointed. (W. Osborne Lilley.)
God is a great king
In one country abroad, much plagued by invasions from heathens, a grand old custom sprang up in their churches. When the Apostles Creed was repeated the noblemen and men-at-arms drew their swords, and did not sheathe them again until the creed was over. They meant it as a sign that God was their king, and that they would show their earnestness in saying so, if need be, by fighting and dying for that God to whom they owed all, and that Church of God to which they belonged. (C. Kingsley.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 14. Cursed be the deceiver] Those who act thus, as they cannot elude God’s notice, so neither shall they escape his curse.
And voweth, and sacrificeth – a corrupt thing] The history of Ananias and Sapphira, Ac 5:1, c., is a complete comment on this. It was high time to break up this corrupt service and after this time God does not appear to have paid any regard to it, for he sent them no other prophet.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Now comes a thunder-clap from heaven against sinners, who were before reproved.
Cursed be the deceiver; the hypocrite, that doth deceive man, and would deceive God; the false heart, that intends one thing and pretends another, would seem to offer a sacrifice of the best, but puts God off with the worst.
A male; a perfect male, such as God requireth and accepteth.
Voweth: in vows God required very perfect and unblemished offerings, Lev 22:18,19; but there are jugglers that vow corrupt things, when they have what is perfect, and should vow that.
And sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing; solemnly sacrificeth the worst, wholly unfit for acceptance. Any thing but the best we have is this corrupt thing, for the best we have is justly commanded, and that only is acceptable to the Lord.
I am a great King; very full of majesty, and therefore will by no means be slighted.
My name is dreadful among the heathen: heathens reverence this name, and will do so when converted, and you Jews ought not to undervalue it.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
14. deceiverhypocrite. Notpoverty, but avarice was the cause of their mean offerings.
malerequired by law(Lev 1:3; Lev 1:10).
great King (Psa 48:2;Mat 5:35).
my name . . . dreadful among. . . heathenEven the heathen dread Me because of Myjudgments; what a reproach this is to you, My people, who fear Me not(Mal 1:6)! Also it may betranslated, “shall be feared among,” &c.agreeing with the prophecy of the call of the Gentiles (Mal1:11).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
But cursed be the deceiver,…. A cunning, crafty, subtle man, who thinks and contrives, speaks and acts, in a very artful and deceiving manner; though some derive the word from , “to be able”; and so the Septuagint and Arabic versions render it, “who is able”; to bring a proper offering, a perfect lamb, as it follows:
which hath in his flock a male; without spot and blemish, as the law requires:
and voweth and sacrificeth to the Lord a corrupt thing; that was a female, or had blemishes in it; for the law required what was perfect and without a blemish for a vow; what was superfluous or deficient in its parts might do for a freewill offering, but not for a vow,
Le 22:18 wherefore such a man must be accursed, and such conduct must be highly resented by the Lord; had he it not in his power to do better, it might be excusable; but then it would be better not to have vowed at all; but to vow a sacrifice to the Lord, and deal deceitfully with him, when he could have brought an offering agreeable to his vow, and to the law, this is aggravated wickedness:
for I [am] a great King, saith the Lord of hosts; the King of the whole world, the King of kings, and Lord of lords; and therefore to be honoured and reverenced suitable to his dignity and greatness:
and my name [is] dreadful among the heathen; because of his judgments executed among them; or rather because of his Gospel preached unto them; for this may be considered as a prophecy of what would be when the Gospel should be spread in the Gentile world; and therefore if they, when he was made known to them, would fear and reverence him; then the Israelites, to whom he had given such instances and proofs of his love, ought to have shown a greater regard unto him.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
“And cursed is he who deceives whilst there is in his flock a male animal, and he who vows and sacrifices to the Lord that which is corrupt; for I am a great King, saith Jehovah of hosts, and my name is feared among the nations.” This verse is not attached adversatively to Mal 1:13, but Vav is the simple copula, for the question in Mal 1:13 has a negative sense, or is to be answered by “No.” To this answer there is attached the curse upon all the Israelites who offer such sacrifices to God as have not the characteristics required by the law. Two cases are mentioned. In the first place, that when according to the law a male animal ought to have been sacrificed, the person offering the sacrifice offered a female, i.e., one of less value, under the pretence that he did not possess or could not procure a male. The prophet calls this nakhal , cheating. The second case refers to votive sacrifices; for which as zebhach sh e lamm (Lev 22:21) both male and female animals could be used, though only such as were free from faults, inasmuch as animals having any moshchath are declared in Lev 22:25 to be not acceptable. Moshchath , according to the Masoretic pointing, is the feminine of the hophal participle for , like for in 1Ki 1:15 (cf. Ewald, 188, b, and Olshausen, p. 393), according to which we should have to think of a female animal in bad condition. This pointing, however, is probably connected with the view still defended by Ewald, Maurer, and Hitzig, that the words are a continuation of the circumstantial clause , and that Mal 1:14 only refers to votive sacrifices: Cursed is the deceiver who has in his flock a male, but vows and sacrifices a corrupt female. This view, however, is evidently opposed to the meaning of the words. If were a circumstantial clause, we should expect . Moreover, since even female animals were admissible for votive sacrifices, the vowing and offering of a female animal could not be blamed in itself, and therefore what was reprehensible was not that a female animal was vowed and offered in sacrifice by any one, but that, instead of offering a faultless animal ( tamm ), he presented a blemished one. We must therefore follow the ancient translators and many commentators, who read moshchath ( masc.), according to which the curse is pronounced upon any one who vowed a sacrifice and afterwards redeemed his vow with a faulty and unsuitable animal. An animal was moshchath , corrupt, when it had any fault, which rendered it unsuitable for sacrifice. The reason for the curse is explained by reminding them of the greatness of God. Because Jehovah is a great King and His name is feared among the nations, to offer a corrupt animal in sacrifice is an offence against His majesty.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
I come now to the kind of fraud they practiced, If there be, he says, in his flock a male, that is, a lamb or a ram, when he vows, then what is corrupt he offers to Jehovah. He then means, that though they pretended some religion, yet nothing was done by them with a sincere and honest heart; for they immediately repented of the vow made to God; they thought that they might be reduced to poverty, if they were too bountiful in their sacrifices. Hence then the Prophet proves that they offered to God with a double mind, and that whatever they thus offered was polluted, because it did not proceed from a right motive.
We said yesterday, that the Prophet did not require fat or lean beasts, because God valued either the blood or flesh of animals on its own account, but for the end in view; for these were the performances of religion by which God designed to train up the Jews for the end contemplated, and in the duty of repentance. As then they were so sordid as to these sacrifices, it was easy to conclude, that they were gross and profane despisers of God, and had no concern for religion.
The reason follows, For a great king am I, saith Jehovah, and my name is terrible (212) among the nations. God declares here that his majesty was of no account among the Jews, as though he had said, “With whom do you think that you have to do?” And this is what we ought carefully to consider when engaged in God’s service. We indeed know that it is a vice which has prevailed in all ages, that all nations and individuals thought that they worshipped God, when they devised foolish and frivolous rites according to their own fancies. If then we have a desire to worship God aright, we must remember how great he is; for his majesty will raise us up above the whole world, and cease will that audacity which possesses almost all mankind; for they think that their own will is a law, when they presumptuously obtrude anything on God. The greatness of God then ought to humble us, that we may not worship him according to the perceptions of our flesh, but offer him only what is worthy of his celestial glory.
He again repeats what we have before observed, though it was disregarded by the Jews, — that he was a great king through the whole world. As then the Jews thought that sacrifices could not be offered to God, such as he would accept, in any other place but at Jerusalem, and in the temple on Mount Sion, he testifies that he is a great king even in the farthest parts of the world. It hence follows, that God’s worship would not be confined to Judea, or to any other particular part of the world; for by the gospel the Lord would receive to himself all nations, and come into the possession of his kingdom. Now follows
(212) Rendered “illustrious — επιφανὲς,” by the Septuagint, — “powerful,” by the Targum, — “dreadful — horrible,” by Jerome, — “terrible — terrible,” by Marckius, — “shall be feared,” by Henderson, — “shall be had in reverence,” by Newcome, and the same with Drusius, “ reverendum.” The word is literally “to be feared,” נורא; it is often rendered “terrible,” what causes dread or terror. Some take the present tense, “my name is terrible,” i.e., is dreaded on account of my greatness, manifested by my judgments. But if we take the future, then we must render the words — “my name shall be feared” or reverenced. — Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(14) Some consider that two cases are mentioned in this verse. (1) One who acts deceitfully (by offering a female as a burnt offering, which is contrary to the Law, while there is in his flock a male); (2) and one who makes a vow (to offer a sacrifice of peace offerings, for which either a male or a female was allowable, provided it were without a blemish: Lev. 22:23), and then offers an animal that has a blemish. But it is better to understand but one case to be mentionedviz., that of a man who vows, and while he has a male in his flock offers a female with a blemish. A female without blemish would be admissible as a vow offering, but a male without blemish would be the most valuable, because it could be offered as a burnt offering, whereas a female could not; while a female with a blemish would be the very worst, and actually illegal. A man is not bound to make a vow, but if he make one his offering should be of the very best, just as he would not dare to offer to a king or to his ruler (Mal. 1:6) anything but the best. How cursed, then, must he be who, while he possesses the best, deliberately makes a vow to God, and then offers Him the very worst.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
14. To the specific condemnation of the priests is added a curse upon all Israelites whose worship is insincere.
The deceiver One who seeks to deceive Jehovah in the manner described in the succeeding clauses. Keil sees here two kinds of deception: (1) when according to the law a male animal should have been sacrificed, and the person offering the sacrifice substituted a female, that is, one of less value, under the pretense that he did not have a male; (2) when one made a vow that demanded a perfect sacrifice, but offered one that was faulty and therefore unfit. To get this distinction from the present text requires considerable stretching of the Hebrew as well as of the imagination. Was there any occasion on which a diseased animal could be vowed? It is better, therefore, to understand the words of only one kind of deception. The thought becomes clearer if, following LXX., the pronominal suffix is added to the verb voweth, “who hath in his flock a male and voweth it, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a blemished thing.”
Voweth Only perfect animals could be offered in fulfillment of a vow (Lev 22:21).
A corrupt thing R.V., “blemished.” Instead of the perfect animal, which, though vowed, he retains in the flock. Such hypocrisy the great and terrible God of the universe cannot endure (compare Isa 1:13).
A great King Over all the earth. As such he has the right to demand the best.
My name See on Mal 1:6, and references there.
Is dreadful among the heathen R.V., “terrible among the Gentiles” (see on Zep 2:11); but here the word seems to be used rather in the sense of “is feared” held in reverence. Jehovah who is reverenced even among the nations (Mal 1:11), cannot, in justice to himself and to the nations, permit himself to be treated with contempt by his own people.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Mal 1:14. Which hath in his flock a male Who, having in his stock that which is strong and sound, afterwards, having made a vow, sacrificeth into the Lord that which is sick; for, &c. Houbigant.
REFLECTIONS.1st, This word of the Lord to Israel is called a burden: it contained sharp rebukes, and bound upon the impenitent a load of wrath, which would sink them into the belly of hell. The charge against Israel here advanced is, their ingratitude. God asserts his love, which he had shewed them from the days of old. I have loved you, saith the Lord; but they seemed insensible of the mercy, and unaffected with it: Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? as if the instances of his regard were so slight and so few, that they had little or no obligations to him: to convince them of their baseness, he proves, by the distinguishing favours shewn them, the love that he had had towards them.
1. He had preferred Jacob, though the younger brother, to Esau, and entailed upon him the covenant of promise in respect to the birth of the Messiah, and the variety of distinguishing privileges flowing therefrom. Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? and, as his elder, should in the common course of things have succeeded to the birthright; but God had been pleased to choose the younger, and reject the first-born. Yet I loved Jacob; chose him when yet unborn to be the great progenitor of the Messiah, and of that nation which I had chosen to preserve the purity of my worship and the glory of my great name: and I hated Esau; so far as to deprive him of the birthright, and of the peculiar honour and privileges bestowed upon Jacob and his posterity.
2. Their posterity were deeply affected by this original difference which God had made between their great progenitors, not only in respect to the spiritual privileges of their respective dispensations, but also in respect to temporal blessings. I laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness: as was done by the Chaldeans: and though Judaea was also desolated by them; yet there was a distinguishing difference; the ruins of the one were for a while only; of the other perpetual. Both nations had sinned with a very high hand: but as the Messiah should come of the Jews, they should be preserved as a nation, while the others should be obliterated from the face of the earth. For, though the Edomites attempted to repair their breaches, God disappointed their endeavours: They shall build, but I will throw down; God was against them: and who ever hardened their hearts against him, and prospered? and they shall call them, The border of wickedness; their sins will be notorious, and read in their sufferings: the people against whom the Lord hath indignation for ever. The offers of grace made to them, will render them utterly inexcusable on the great day of account: but their sins were so enormous as a nation, that they most completely filled up the measure of their iniquities, and provoked God to cut them off for ever. And your eyes shall see the desolations of Edom; and ye shall say the Lord will be magnified from the border of Israel; he justly deserves and demands their praises: not to have offered them, must prove their base ingratitude.
2nd, The bad example of the priests being of most pernicious consequence to the people, God sends to them a severe rebuke.
1. God tells them what he might justly have expected from them. A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master; at least, all admit that this ought to be, and they are accounted unnatural, undutiful, and wicked, who act otherwise. If then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? If reverence, respect, and fear, be paid to an earthly parent or master, how much more due are they to our Father and Master in heaven? and to rob him of this his honour, how much more criminal?
2. He charges them with the insolent contempt with which they had treated him. They despised his name; paid no regard to his honour, and neglected his worship and service; and profaned it, by their irreverent use of it, and perverting it to serve their own pride, covetousness, and luxury, bringing the highest reproach upon it by their whole conduct; for nothing so deeply dishonours God as the bad lives of those who call themselves his ministers. And yet with daring effrontery they deny the charge: Ye say, wherein have we despised thy name? either they were so ignorant of the divine law, as to think that they had observed it; or so atheistical, as to imagine that God could not detect them. Thus hardened sinners justify themselves in evil, and say, like the adulterers, I have done no wickedness; but God will reprove them, and set in order the things that they have done.
[1.] Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; the shew-bread or the meat-offering, which accompanied their daily sacrifice, was made either of the refuse of the wheat, or of flour damaged and unfit for use: and yet ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee? as if there was no harm in what they had done: and this attempt to vindicate themselves was an aggravation of their crime.
[2.] Ye say, The table of the Lord is contemptible; perhaps not publicly, but among themselves, they treated the divine institutions with ridicule; and though it was for their interest to keep up the form of religion, they talked of it as a mere juggle designed to keep the vulgar in awe: or if they said not so much, their conduct spoke aloud their sentiments. They paid no veneration to the sanctuary, or its ordinances: Ye say, the table of the Lord is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible, as if it was no better than any other table: their own tables were better served than his; and the fat and the blood, which were the Lord’s portion, were in their eyes contemptible, and very little deserving of so many laws concerning them.
[3.] They offered the blind and the lame, and the torn and the sick, for sacrifices to God; such as they would not have dared to have presented to their governor, because he would have esteemed it an affront. And is not this evil? contrary to God’s express command, and a designed insult. Note; They who think that God will be satisfied with careless, cold, negligent, hasty prayers, the labour of the lips or the book, where all the life of devotion, of faith and love, is wanting, are but offering the blind and lame for sacrifice, and their services will be accounted but an abomination.
[4.] They were perfect mercenaries, and served merely for hire. They would not shut a door of the temple, nor kindle a fire there, unless they were well paid: the work of the sanctuary was no delight to them; the wages was all that they looked at. Note; Though God would have us live by the altar that we serve, yet to have an eye to this as the inducement to undertake the ministry, is in God’s sight most abominable; and such hirelings will be abhorred and disowned by the great Bishop of souls.
[5.] The service in which they were obliged to be employed was a weariness to them. They were always complaining of the hard duty: to be so constant in attendance on the temple, so strict in the observance of the forms and ordinances prescribed, they thought quite tiresome, and snuffed at it, with discontent and reluctance dragging themselves to the task, and hurrying it over as fast as possible. Would to God these had been the only ministers of the sanctuary on whom such things were chargeable!
3. He expostulates with them on this conduct of theirs. Should I accept this of your hands? can such sacrifices and services be pleasing? No, saith God; I have no pleasure in you; neither will I accept an offering at your hand; since they had made themselves vile, and this had been by their means, with their connivance and encouragement, that such despicable sacrifices were offered; Shall I regard your persons? saith the Lord of Hosts. It was impossible that he should, and therefore their prayers, which the prophet ironically calls them to offer, must needs be unavailing and rejected. Note; If our persons are not accepted of God through the blood of atonement, all our prayers must needs be fruitless.
Some understand Mal 1:9 as containing a serious exhortation to the priests, who had been the chief authors of all the evil, to repent of their sins, and cry to God for mercy on the behalf of themselves and the people, and not to flatter them with vain hopes that God accepted their persons more than others, seeing that the holiness of their office aggravated their sins, and would increase their punishment.
4. Since they thus dishonoured God, he will glorify himself, rejecting them, and turning to the Gentiles, setting up his church from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same. My name, saith he, shall be great among the Gentiles; they shall render him that glory of which Israel had robbed him: and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, the incense of prayer and praise, arising from all the worshipping assemblies of true believers, who are consecrated spiritual priests, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ, and a pure offering, even themselves, their bodies, souls, and spirits, a living sacrifice: for my name shall be great among the heathen: it is repeated, to assure them of the certainty of the event; and that, when the time came that the Gentiles should be fellow-heirs, and of the same body, they might remember that the mouth of the Lord had spoken it.
5. A curse is pronounced on these careless and wicked priests, and on all others who are deceivers like them. Cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing. Though they might think thus to satisfy their consciences, and the corrupt priests, indulgent casuists, flattered them that it would be accepted; they were both deceivers and deceived. God is not to be thus mocked; they would put a cheat upon him, but in fact deceived themselves, and brought wrath upon their souls. He will be served with the best, or not at all: to attempt to put him off with the refuse, is increasing our provocations; For I am a great King, saith the Lord of Hosts, and therefore to be honoured according to his excellent greatness; and my name is dreadful among the heathen; the judgments that he had executed upon them made it so; and their more provoking wickedness would bring down still heavier vengeance upon their heads.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
Almighty Lord! grant both to Writer and Reader grace, in receiving the message of this prophecy, from thy servant the Prophet, that we may indeed accept the whole of it as the burden of the Lord, bringing to us the great things of thy blessed word. We pray to mark the distinguishing grace of our God, in his choice of Jacob, and rejection of Esau. And we humbly beg the Lord to help our solemn meditations on this subject, with his divine teaching, that under the Holy Ghost’s influence, we may give diligence to make our calling and election sure. Oh! for grace, to know thee as our Father; yea, our God and Father in Christ Jesus; and to offer thee that honor, and to worship thee and love thee with that holy fear, as becometh the redeemed of the Lord!
And, oh! thou glorious Lord Jesus! hasten, we beseech thee, the auspicious hour, when from sun rise to sun set thy name shall be adored from shore to shore, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. We long to see the dawn of that blessed day, when all the world shall see the salvation of our God; and the knowledge of Jesus shall cover the earth, as the waters the channel of the great deep. Raise up to thyself, O Lord, faithful disinterested pastors, who will not snuff at thy service, nor count it a weariness and a burden. Oh! for an heart to receive what my Lord hath said, and bow with holy joy and reverence to the revelation. Thou art indeed, O blessed Jesus, a Great King, and thy name is dreadful among the heathen. Prove the greatness of thy sovereignty and power, by reigning in me, and over me, and in all the affections of my heart, the Lord of life and glory. Amen.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Mal 1:14 But cursed [be] the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I [am] a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name [is] dreadful among the heathen.
Ver. 14. But cursed be that deceiver ] Cursed with a curse both verbal and penal; temporal and spiritual, Mal 3:9 . These last light heavy, such as are hardness of heart and horror of conscience, though less observed; because they come into the deceiver’s bowels like water, and like oil into his bones; they soak and sink into his soul insensibly, Rom 1:28 Mat 27:5 Psa 109:18 . He hath his death about him (as we say of one that hath drunk poison, or eaten an Italian fig), though he fall not down dead immediately. He is accursed, and he shall be so, as, in a contrary sense, Isaac said of his son Jacob, He is blessed, and he shall be blessed. But usually the visible vengeance of God dogs the deceiver at the heels; his sin finds him out, and lays him open to others, as an accursed person. This was Cain’s case and curse, Gen 4:15 . God sets a mark upon him; probably it was the perpetual trembling of his hands and whole body, through the horror of his conscience. So, not long before, when Adam had played the deceiver, and hearkened to that old impostor, the subtle serpent, God spared him, but cursed the ground (as the Persians, when their noblemen’s sons had made a fault, hanged up their coats and whipped them in their presence): “Cursed is the ground for thy sake: thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth,” Gen 3:17 . And the truth is, it was never beautiful nor cheerful since that curse inflicted; but lies bedridden, waiting for the coming of the second Adam to free it from that heavy curse, Rom 8:20 . The barren fig tree felt the power of Christ’s curse even to admiration, Mat 21:20 “For when the disciples saw it, they marvelled, saying, How soon is the fig tree withered away!” They might marvel well enough; for the fig tree is the most juiceful of any tree, and bears the brunt of winter-blasts without withering. But the blasts of Christ’s mouth are more powerful. He can blow men to destruction, Job 4:9 ., as so many dust-heaps; yea, frown, not some single fig tree only, but the whole vineyard to desolation. “It is burnt with fire, it is consumed: they perish at the rebuke of thy countenance,” Psa 80:16 . Men may curse, and no hurt follow; “the curse causeless shall not come,” Pro 26:2 . Micah’s mother cursed when she lost her money, Jdg 17:2 ; but who cared or fared the worse for that? And the like may be said of Julius Palmer the martyr’s mother, when he craved her blessing upon his knees, she drove him out of doors for a heretic, and said, God’s curse and mine go with thee.
What was David the worse for Shimei’s cursing of him, or Jeremiah for the people’s, Jer 15:10 , or the reformed Churches for the Pope’s? The silly people in Italy are made to believe that ever since the Pope excommunicated Queen Elizabeth the people of England are all as black as devils. The Pope is like a wasp, no sooner angered but out comes a sting; which, being out, is like a fool’s dagger rattling and snapping without an edge. We may say of his curses (with bell, book, and candle), as Vogetius saith of chariots armed with scythes and hooks, that at first they were a terror, and after a scorn, lib. 1, cap. 24. But God’s curses are terrible, and light heavy. Together with word there goes forth a power (as it is said in another case), and what be speaketh with his mouth he maketh good with his hand. And it is a fearful thing to fall into the punishing hands of the living God: those that have felt his finger will say so. This the deceiver is sure to do if timely course be not taken. Currat ergo poenitentia, ne praecurrat sentontia.
That deceiver
Which hath in his flock a male
For I am a great King, saith the Lord of hosts
And my name is dreadful among the heathen hath. Hebrew. yesh, See note on Lam 1:12.
cursed: Mal 3:9, Gen 27:12, Jos 7:11, Jos 7:12, Jer 48:10, Mat 24:51, Luk 12:1, Luk 12:2, Luk 12:46, Act 5:1-10, Rev 21:8
which hath in his flock: or, in whose flock is, Ecc 5:4, Ecc 5:5, Mar 12:41-44, Mar 14:8, 2Co 8:12
for: Mal 1:8, Mal 1:11, Deu 28:58, Psa 47:2, Psa 48:2, Psa 95:3, Isa 57:15, Jer 10:10, Dan 4:37, Zec 14:9, Mat 5:35, 1Ti 6:15
my name: Psa 68:35, Psa 76:12, Dan 9:4, Heb 12:29, Rev 15:4
Reciprocal: Gen 18:7 – General Exo 9:16 – that my Exo 12:5 – be without Exo 29:1 – without Lev 1:3 – a male Lev 1:10 – a male Lev 3:1 – without Lev 22:20 – General Lev 23:18 – seven lambs Lev 27:11 – General Num 6:14 – one ewe Num 19:2 – no blemish Num 28:19 – they shall Num 28:31 – without blemish Deu 17:1 – General Deu 23:18 – any vow Job 21:15 – and what Psa 48:10 – According Psa 96:10 – Say Psa 145:1 – my God Isa 43:23 – hast not Isa 43:24 – filled me Isa 44:6 – the King Jer 46:18 – saith Jer 48:15 – saith Jer 51:57 – the king Eze 45:15 – out of the fat Zec 14:16 – the King Joh 10:29 – is greater Act 5:2 – kept Rom 1:5 – for his name Rom 2:22 – sacrilege 1Ti 1:17 – the King
Mal 1:14. The Jews were required to offer the best of their animals for sacrifice on the altar. A male means just such a beast with all the special requirements as to qualities directed under the Law. God never asks more of a man than he is able to give, but He will not accept any service that is less than one is capable of performing.
Mal 1:14. But cursed be the deceiver The hypocrite, that deceives man, and seems as if he would be glad to deceive God; the false heart, that intends one thing and pretends another, would appear to offer a sacrifice of the best, but puts God off with the worst. Which hath in his flock a male A perfect male, such as God requireth; and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing Such as the Lord hath declared he will not accept. The former reproofs related only to the priests; here the prophet reproves those in general who showed a contempt of God by vowing unto him, upon any occasion, the worst of their flock. It seems to be spoken of such offerings as any of the people, of their own accord, vowed to God: see Lev 22:19. And if they did not think fit to vow such things as God directed, they would have done less dishonour to him not to have vowed at all. For I am a great King, saith the Lord, and my name is, or shall be, dreadful As God is the great King over all the earth, and will be acknowledged as such among the Gentiles under the gospel, (Mal 1:11,) so mens religious services ought to be performed with a reverence suitable to the greatness of his majesty.
1:14 But cursed [be] the deceiver, which hath in his flock {p} a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the Lord a corrupt thing: for I [am] a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name [is] dreadful among the heathen.
(p) That is, has ability to serve the Lord according to his word, and yet will serve him according to his covetous mind.
The people also were playing the old bait and switch game; they were swindling God. They vowed to offer an acceptable animal as a sacrifice, but when it came time to present the offering they substituted one of inferior quality. How totally inappropriate this was since Yahweh was a great King, the greatest in the universe, really the ultimate royal suzerain. His name would be feared among all the nations, yet His own people and their spiritual leaders were treating it with contempt.
"Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever." [Note: Ibid., p. 11.]
"All of history is moving toward one great goal, the white-hot worship of God and his Son among all the peoples of the earth. Missions is not that goal. It is the means. And for that reason it is the second greatest human activity in the world." [Note: Ibid., p. 15.]
Lack of true heart for the Lord and His service marked these leaders of God’s people. They evidently thought He did not notice their actions and attitudes, but Malachi confronted them with their hypocrisy. The prophet’s words should also challenge modern servants of the Lord and leaders of His people to examine our hearts.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)