Reflections on Malachi 1:6-10

6 “ A son honors his father,
And a servant his master.
If then I am the Father,
Where is My honor?
And if I am a Master,
Where is My reverence?
Says the LORD of hosts
To you priests who despise My name.
Yet you say, ‘In what way have we despised Your name?’

7 “ You offer defiled food on My altar,
But say,
‘ In what way have we defiled You?’
By saying,
‘ The table of the LORD is contemptible.’
8 And when you offer the blind as a sacrifice,
Is it not evil?
And when you offer the lame and sick,
Is it not evil?
Offer it then to your governor!
Would he be pleased with you?
Would he accept you favorably?”
Says the LORD of hosts.

9 “ But now entreat God’s favor,
That He may be gracious to us.
Whilethis is being done by your hands,
Will He accept you favorably?”
Says the LORD of hosts.
10 “ Who is there even among you who would shut the doors,
So that you would not kindle fire on My altar in vain?
I have no pleasure in you,”
Says the LORD of hosts,
“ Nor will I accept an offering from your hands.

When I read these verses, I was taken aback by God's sharp rebuke to His priests. Here, he took them to task over the following charges:
- Despising His name
- Offering defiled food on His altar
- Defiling His name
- Saying the table of the Lord is contemptible
- Offering the blind as a sacrifice
- Offering the lame and sick as a sacrifice

The misconduct of the priests is very serious when we compare their offerings to God's standard of offerings outlined in the book of Leviticus, where God laid out the sacrificial system for His chosen people.

There were five key offerings that the Israelites had to make in order to have their sins forgiven and to restore their fellowship with God.

The burnt Offering (Leviticus 1) - Hebrew (olah)
It is the only sacrifice that is entirely consumed upon the altar, and therefore it is sometimes called the whole offering. It included bulls, sheep, goat, pigeons and turtledoves. The offering is to be a male without blemish to make payment for sins in general, and showed a person's devotion to God.
How it relates to Christ - The unblemished animal symbolised the moral perfection demanded by a holy God, and the perfect nature of the real sacrifice that is to come - Jesus Christ.

The Grain Offering (Leviticus 2) - Hebrew (minchah)
It is a tribute offering made in order to secure or maintain the divine favour, indicating that the fruits of a person's labour should be dedicated to God. Three kinds of offerings are listed: fine flour with oil and incense, baked cakes or wafers of fine flour and oil, and roasted kernels of grain (corn) with oil and incense. The absence of yeast symbolised the absence of sin, and the oil symbolised God's presence. Part of the offering was burnt on the altar as a gift to God, and the rest was eaten by the priests. The offering was to show honour and respect to God in worship, and to acknowledge that all we have belongs to God.
How it relates to Christ - Christ is the perfect man who gave all of himself to God and to others.


The Peace Offering (Leviticus 3) - Hebrew (shelamin)
It is designed to provide expiation and permits the one who makes the offering to eat the meat of the sacrifice. It was often given on a joyous occasion. The offering is to be a male or female of the herd without blemish. It was to express gratitude to God and symbolised peace and fellowship with God.
How it relates to Christ - Christ is the only way to fellowship with God.


The Sin Offering (Leviticus 4) - Hebrew (chatta't)
It is used to remove impurity from the sanctuary. Failure to observe the commandments of the Lord results in a violation of the holiness code and in the covenant relationship with God. The subsequent sin offering may then be given for the anointed priest, the congregation of Israel, the ruler of the people, or an individual of the common people. It involves the sprinkling of the animal's blood (again the animal is to be without blemish) and emphasised purification before God. It is offered to end a person's period of uncleanness, to end certain vows, or to purify from inadvertent sins or sins of omission.
How it relates to Christ - The offering restores the sinner to fellowship with God and also shows the seriousness of sin. Christ's death restores our fellowship with God because He is the final sin offering.



The Trepass Offering (Leviticus 5) - Hebrew (asham)
Known also as the Guilt Offering or the Offering of Reparation, it is prepared for violation of the sanctity of the property of God or of another person, usually by the use of a false oath. The trespass has desecrated the sanctity of God and an offering is required. It was to make payment for sins against God and against others. A sacrifice was made to God and the injured person was repaid or compensated.
How it relates to Christ - Christ's death has taken away all the deadly consequences of sin.


(The notes above on the five offerings are taken from the Life Application Bible - NIV version and the Spirit-filled Bible - NKJV version)


In Malachi, the priests were guilty of profaning God's name, instead of doing their duty and doing honour to His name. God's answer was very clear - He says in His Word that He finds no pleasure in them and He will not accept an offering from their hands.

I thought about what lessons these verses would hold for Christians today, given that the book of Malachi seems very far removed from our modern age. As well, due to Christ's sacrifice, we no longer have to offer animals before God. But in Malachi, we can see clearly that God takes an extremely serious view of sin, and so it is extremely important for us to go before Christ in prayer and confess our sins daily and repent of our sins.

I was telling a close Christian friend that sometimes I tend to take God for granted. Instead of giving God the best of my time, my efforts, my heart and my life, I tend to leave Him with the scraps. Forgive me, Lord. There are always so many things that I would be busy doing rather than spending time with Him in prayer, devoting time to His ministry or to evangelism, or immersing myself in His Word.

Lately, though, I've been trying to consciously spend more time with God through these ways:
- Doing a bible study of each book, starting with Malachi
- Carving out a time period for my quiet time (2am to 4am)
- Blogging my thoughts/notes/reflections on the bible study during quiet time
- Praying before work during the taxi ride to the office (apart from praying during quiet time)
- Praying to God daily for endless portions of these things: passion for Him and His Word; compassion for people; grace; love, joy and peace; humility; wisdom; and increasing revelation of Him and His Word; and faith to believe in the impossible.

And you know what? It is such a tremendous joy, honour and privilege for me to be in the inner courts. This, not because of who I am or what I've done, but because of God's grace upon me as well as Christ's crucifixtion and resurrection. May I ever be grateful for and humbled by this truth. Amen.