Malachi 1 Devotional
by Pastor Lawrence Bowlin

Malachi was one of the postexilic prophets, along with Haggai and Zechariah, who prophesied to the remnant of Judah upon their return from exile in Babylon. His prophecy comes in the form of an oracle, which, is either a divine response given to a question asked by God’s people or to a pronouncement made by God without His being asked a question. If you skim the book of Malachi, you’ll notice that the prophet, speaking on behalf of God, gives some brief revelation from God, which is followed by some question made by the Jews that reveals something of their doubts and their lack of love for the Lord. This, then, is followed by more specific revelation from God in direct answer to their question.

In this first chapter, two questions are being asked and answered. The first question asked of the Lord by the Jews is, “How have you loved us?” which is discussed in the first five verses. The second question asked by them is, “How have we despised your name?” Both questions follow a brief revelation in which God tells them that He loves them and that they have despised his name. The substance of each section is then fleshed out with more revelation from God answering how these things have happened.

In reference to the first question concerning God’s love for Judah, the Lord reminds them that He has always loved Jacob and hated Esau. When Judah was besieged by Babylon back in the sixth century BC, the Edomites, who were descendants of Esau, joined hands with the Babylonians and rejoiced over the fall of Jerusalem. Thus the Jews had wondered why God ordered such devastation against Jerusalem but left Seir, the ancient capital of Edom, alone. So the Lord is reminding them of the rich history of His covenant love and care for Jacob even in exile from his brother Esau when living with his uncle Laban all those years outside the Promised Land. Although Esau continued to prosper living in his own land, the Lord never disciplined him in love and never gave him the precious covenantal promises. Thus while Israel had been disciplined and would be restored, when Edom would be torn down it would never rise again from the ashes. This is both evidence of God’s precious love for Israel as well as His great rule as king over all the nations of the world.

As for the second question regarding how the Jews, and particularly the priests, despised the name of God, the first answer is given in this chapter concerning their impure sacrifices, and a second answer is given in the following chapter showing how their priestly teaching and instruction was also impure. Regarding the former reason, the Lord points out to the priests that the people willingly offered unto Him lame, crippled, and sick animals instead of offerings that are fit for a king. He compared their tribute to that given to their governor, and the supposed honor given to a father or a master. In all those cases, the offerors favor and gifts would surely be rejected by any human authority figure who would be offended by such awful gifts. And yet, not only did the people attempt to give such awful tribute unto God their king, but the priests allowed and even encouraged such half-hearted worship unto the Lord.

The Lord is so offended by this hypocritical display of honor and these half-hearted attempts at love, especially given the fact that He has loved them with an everlasting love, that He yearns for a priest who will do the unthinkable by snuffing out the fire on God’s holy altar and barring the doors to the temple so as to put an end to this sick and foolish mentality displayed by God’s people, for He is not pleased with them at all. His desire is that in every place under the heavens that incense and a pure sacrifice be offered in His name. It is not until the New Testament that we see a high priest fulfill this desire of the Lord. We see a foretaste of it when Jesus overturns the tables of the money changers and drives out the animals from the temple courts so that the Gentiles could pray in the House of the Lord. But ultimately, it is with his death on the cross, that the Lord Jesus, our great high priest, finally offers himself as the pure offering that is pleasing in God’s sight and brings the incense of his own prayers for his people that are acceptable in God’s sight. By his perfect sacrifice, he extinguished the flames of the older order and by His perfect priesthood, He tore the curtain in the temple showing that there is a new access unto God that will not be found through the old temple. Jesus alone loves the Lord with all his heart just as the Lord loves Him, and in His love for us, he lays down his life for us in order to usher us into the presence of God so that we as Gentiles might call upon the Lord by faith in the name of Jesus, and that we might fear the Lord, the great King of all the world bringing him our tribute purified through the blood of Christ.