The Book Of Malachi Chapter 2 Part 2 God Judged His People For Profaning Marriage Covenant

Those who are disloyal to God treat their brethren treacherously. 

Malachi 2:10-11  Have we not all one father? hath not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers? 11)  Judah hath dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the LORD which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god.

God is the Father of all men by creation, and of the Jews by national adoption of them (See Acts 17:26).

Many Jews treated each other badly, lying, cheating, being dishonest in their dealings.

They were disloyal to God and the consequence of that disloyalty is treating your brethren treacherously.

At every turn it seemed that they violated the covenant God made with them at Mount Sinai. 

Violating the marriage covenant happened because they were unfaithful to Jehovah.

God often described Himself as Israel's husband and their idolatrous behavior was compared to committing adultery (See Jeremiah 2:23 to 5:19 for example).

God took Judah to task because they married into pagan families and were unfaithful to Him.

Doing so led to the Jewish people committing idolatry, immorality and heaping disgrace upon Jehovah's name.

Israel's history demonstrates that this was a chronic problem among the people.

Intermarriage with unbelieving pagans always brought two things to the Israelites: judgment from Jehovah with an opportunity to repent and return to God.

God's will is crystal clear about intermarriage with unbelievers. 

Deuteronomy 7:1-4  When the LORD thy God shall bring thee into the land whither thou goest to possess it, and hath cast out many nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, seven nations greater and mightier than thou; 2)  And when the LORD thy God shall deliver them before thee; thou shalt smite them, and utterly destroy them; thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor shew mercy unto them: 3)  Neither shalt thou make marriages with them; thy daughter thou shalt not give unto his son, nor his daughter shalt thou take unto thy son. 4)  For they will turn away thy son from following me, that they may serve other gods: so will the anger of the LORD be kindled against you, and destroy thee suddenly. 

Malachi censured the marriages of Israelites with strange women, which the law of God had forbidden. 

What God commanded His people to do is fairly simple. Seven different nations occupied the land God promised to give Abraham and his offspring.

Israel was to utterly destroy those people. 

Israel was not to enter into any kind of agreement with pagan peoples, such as offering mutual aid if one group was attacked.

This is why Malachi condemned them for intermarrying with unbelieving people. 

God specifically commanded them not to intermarry because the pagan wives would turn them away from the One, True, Living God and turn them toward false gods.

Some Jews were treacherous in interpersonal dealings. 

Many husbands divorced their Jewish wives so that they could marry a pagan woman.

Intermarriage with pagans was a main driver in God sending Israel away into Babylon for 70 years of captivity.

Ezra had to deal with it when a remnant of Jews returned to Jerusalem (See Ezra 9 & 10).

Nehemiah had to deal with it (See Nehemiah 9 & 10).

And now, less than 100 years later, Malachi chastised the people for the same sin.

Those who persisted in this vile practice will be cut off by God.

Malachi 2:12  The LORD will cut off the man that doeth this, the master and the scholar, out of the tabernacles of Jacob, and him that offereth an offering unto the LORD of hosts. 

Israel's history shows that God consistently judged them for the sin of intermarriage with pagans.

Jehovah warned that any man who did this would be cut off. He who teaches such doctrine, and he who follows it shall be cut off by Jehovah.

The phrase "the master and the scholar" simply means that each person guilty of this sin will be cut off. 

Their family name and posterity will be removed.

Priests are singled out for committing this sin. They did not live uprightly and the people followed their bad example.

Afflicted wives poured out their hearts to Jehovah at His altar.

Malachi 2:13  And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand. 

The devasted wives who were divorced when their husbands sought to marry a pagan wife, covered the altar of God with their heartache and sorrow.

They cried out to God for help because they had no where else to turn. Jehovah keeps His eyes upon the widows, the poor and the orphaned.

The priests sinned by not speaking out against men who divorced their wives in order to marry a pagan. 

In contempt of the marriage-covenant, which God instituted for the common benefit of mankind, they abused and put away the wives to make room for strange wives.

Faithless priests turned a blind eye to the plight of the afflicted wives.

Malachi 2:14  Yet ye say, Wherefore? Because the LORD hath been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth, against whom thou hast dealt treacherously: yet is she thy companion, and the wife of thy covenant.

This is as if the priests said "What is the meaning of the women covering the altar with tears?" 

Priests pretended not to know the reason of divorced wives sorrows, when they were so notoriously guilty of breach of covenant with them.

Priests were witnesses of the contract made between the parties in marriage as well as any divorce. 

When a lawless husband divorced his wife, the wife of his youth, they did not execute on him the discipline of the law. 

These unfaithful men kept their wives until they had passed their youth, and then put them away so that they might get younger wives.

They did not perform their promises to them, but defrauded them of their maintenance or dowery that was due to their wives only.

They put them away, gave them a bill of divorce, and turned them out, without the provision that the law of Moses prescribed. 

God warns against dealing treacherously against our wives.

Malachi 2:15-16  And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth. 16)  For the LORD, the God of Israel, saith that he hateth putting away: for one covereth violence with his garment, saith the LORD of hosts: therefore take heed to your spirit, that ye deal not treacherously. 

Malachi used rhetorical questions that require and answer of "Yes."

Did not God make one man, and out of Adam's rib one woman? 

Did He not make them male and female? 

Did He not make one pair, one couple, Adam and Eve, whom He joined together in marriage? 

God's will is that one man should have but one wife at a time and this command was violated by the practice of the Jews.

Why did God establish the marriage covenant? 

That He might seek a godly seed, a noble, excellent seed born in true and lawful wedlock (See 1 Corinthians 7:14). 

God seeks a seed suitable to the dignity of human nature, one that is made after the image of God, and not like brute beasts.

Therefore He said "Take heed to your spirit" which means to scrutinize the motives leading them to put away your wives.

In all this they covered their violent intention with their garment. 

They abused their wives and yet, in the sight of others, they pretended to be very loving to them. 

Externally they seemed to be tender toward them as an outward show intended to cover their wicked intentions. 

Such corrupt actions is proved by the testimony of God Himself. “The Lord has been witness between thee and the wife of thy youth." 

He was witness to the marriage-covenant between them witnessed all the violations and treacherous dealings in contempt of it. 

He stands ready to judge between faithless husband and the wife he seeks to put away. 

This reminder and the warnings should cause us to be faithful to God and to our wives. 

God Himself is a witness both to all our covenants and to all our covenant-breaches.

Therefore, we too, must heed the instruction from God by taking heed to our own spirit.

We are reminded that our own heart is deceitful and desperately wicked. 

We must heed the clear instruction we have from the scriptures. 

It does us no good if we hear instruction and then do not live by what God says to us.

A life of faith means taking God at His Word. Believing what He says to us and then living accordingly.

May our Lord help us to digest these truths so that we might glorify Him in all things.

Bob