COMMENTARY ON MALACHI
LESSON NUMBER 20
Mal 3:7 “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return? 8 Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings. 9 Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation.” – (Malachi 3:7-9)
WHEN MEN ROB GOD
INTRODUCTION
As in all of Scripture, two things are being communicated in the book of Malachi: the nature of God, and the nature of fallen man. Moses and the Prophets confirmed that men cannot be taught out of their sinful condition. A change of nature is required, As it is written, “Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil” (Jer 13:23). In order to Divine acceptance, the change is required because God does not, and cannot, change. This is why what is revealed of God prior to Moses, as well as during the administration of the Law, remains an accurate representation of God Himself. The views of God, and the corrupted views of men concerning Him, have not become obsolete. He can still be despised and dishonored (1:6). He can still be displeased with those He has chosen, and not accept their offerings (1:10). His name and table can still be profaned (1:12). Men can still fall into a state where serving God is considered wearisome (1:13). God can still send a curse upon those He has blessed (2:1). He still hates divorce (2:16). His Messenger is still purifying His people (3:2-3). Now, in this text, we are exposed to another matter than has to do with the nature of God and the nature of fallen man. For some, it is a hard text. I trust that will not be the case with you. If we view this text as though God has changed, we will not profit from it. If we see it as a revelation of God as well as of man, it will be a source of blessing to us. To this point, God has charged the priests in particular, and the people in general, with 1 doubting that He loved them (1:2), 2 not honoring Him (1:6a), 3 despising His name (1:6b), 4 offering polluted bread on His altar (1:7), 5 profaning His name (1:12), 6 being wearied by serving God (1:13), 7 departing out of the way (2:8a), 8 causing many to stumble (2:8b), 9 dealing treacherously (2:11a), 10 profaning the holiness of the Lord (2:11b), and 11 making the Lord weary (2:17). Now, we will be introduced to another thing men can do to God. Men may argue about the subject we will broach in this lesson, but they cannot deny the reality of which it speaks.
YOU HAVE GONE AWAY, BUT RETURN TO ME
Malachi 3:7 “Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?”
Notice the firmness of the word of the Lord. He is assessing the condition of Israel, and he speaks forthrightly about it. There is no chance that His assessment is wrong, or that it is not precisely correct in expression as well as in fact. He will define what is involved in departing from the Lord, even though a form of religion was maintained. What we have here is a kind of prelude to the day of judgment, when “the counsels of the heart” will be made known (1 Cor 3:5). That is precisely what the Lord is doing through the prophet Malachi.
FROM THE DAYS OF YOUR FATHERS. Other versions read “forefathers,” NIV and “ancestors.” NRSV Often the word “fathers” refers to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Deut 1:8,11,35.) In this sense God is referred to as “the God of your fathers” (Ex 3:13,15,16; Deut 4:1; Josh 18:31; 2 Chron 13:12; 28:9; 29:5; Ezra 8:28; 10:11). However, this is not the way the word is used here. Rather, this refers to the generations that followed Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – particularly from the deliverance from Egypt onward. Thus we read of Moses bringing “your fathers up out of the land of Egypt” (1 Sam 12:6). Peter spoke of “the fathers” in this sense: “And Moses truly said unto the fathers . . .” (Acts 3:22). Stephen repeatedly referred to the generation led by Moses as “our fathers” (Acts 7:38,39,44,45,51,52). These “fathers” commenced with the generation that tempted God ten times (Num 14:22), and continued down to the day of Jesus Christ. The only ones excluded from it were the remnant of believers who continued to have faith. Of the adults that came out of Egypt, that remnant was exceeding small – two.
YOU HAVE GONE AWAY FROM MINE ORDINANCES. Other versions read, “statutes,” NASB “decrees,” NIV “rules,” BBE and “laws.” CJB The word “ordinances” means “appointed bound.” This speaks of a moral boundary – the line of demarcation between right and wrong. It is to human responsibility what a wall is to a structure, or the shore is to the sea. In the Hebrew tongue it means a limit, something that is prescribed, or a decree. STRONG’S
From the foot of Mount Sinai until the time of Malachi, the people had departed from God’s ordinances, or failed to obey His commandments. God does not argue that they were incapable of doing His commandments – although there is a sense in which this is true, for they did not have a heart to do them (Deut 5:28-29). However, this circumstance did not absolve them of guilt, or in any way make their action tolerable to God. They are depicted as going away from the commandments that God had given them – ignoring them in their lives.
RETURN UNTO ME. Now we see the gravity of the situation. In failing to do what God had commanded, or walking away from His ordinances, they had actually left God, or turned their back to Him, going in another direction. As God said through Jeremiah, “they have turned their back unto Me, and not their face” (Jer 2:27). This is how God regards disobedience, and is in sharp variance with human assessments of disobedience. There is no acceptable excuse for living contrary to the commandments of the Lord.
Thus the summons to “return unto Me” – that is, begin keeping His ordinances, for that is the preliminary way of coming to and serving God. Once God told Israel that a return to him involved 1 confessing their iniquity. 2 that they had walked contrary to Him, 3 that God had walked contrary to them, 4 humble themselves, and 5 accept the punishment for their sins (Lev 26:40-42). Returning to the Lord is more than a decision. That is precisely why everyone inquiring into how to be saved was given something to do, for heartfelt obedience is the first manifestation of sincerity (Acts 2:37; 9:6; 16:30-31). This kind of obedience is the initial means through which men return to the “Shepherd and Bishop” of their souls (1 Pet 2:25).
I WILL RETURN UNTO YOU. Malachi had already told the people that God was not with them. He did not accept them or their offerings (1:8,10,13), which constitutes a forsaking of the people, for God does not dwell among those He does not accept. God “rejected” Saul (1 Sam 16:1), and whole generations of Israel (2 Kgs 17:20; Jer 6:30; 7:29). His nature will not allow Him to continue with those who insist on departing from His ordinances.
Yet, God takes no delight in such an action. Thus He promises that upon the return of the people to Himself, He will return to them, and they shall enjoy His blessing once again. What is involved in God returning to Israel? Moses told the people it involved God remembering His covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Lev 26:42). Jeremiah said in returning to them God would not cause His anger to fall upon them (Jer 3:12). In returning God would save then, deliver them, and redeem them (Jer 15:19-21).
BUT YE SAID. Looking into their hearts, God knew how the people were reasoning. Sin had rendered them so obtuse, they could not think properly. Hence they reasoned, “Wherein shall we return,” or “In what way shall we return?” NKJV or “How shall we return?” NASB As He has done throughout Malachi’s prophecy, the Lord will respond to the silent inquiry of the disobedient. His answer will, as always, reveal something of His nature.
WHEREIN HAVE WE ROBBED THEE?
3:8 “ Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.”
We now enter into a most controversial passage – particularly in our area of the country. However, if we will remember that the Scriptures are more a revelation of God than of the duty of man, this passage will give us no difficulty. The revelation of the duty of man is within the context of the revelation of the nature of God. This is because God is the principle Person, not man. The only reason Israel departed from God by failing to keep His ordinances was because they began to think of themselves as the principle ones. However, this was not true. Therefore it is not possible for any thought based on such an imagination to be true.
WILL A MAN ROB GOD? Other versions read, “Will anyone rob God?” NRSV “Will man rob God?” RSV “Will a man keep back from God what is right?” BBE “Can a person rob God,” CJB “Shall a man afflict God,” DOUAY “Can a person cheat God?” GWN “Dare a man rob God?” NAB “Should people cheat God?” NLT “Ought a person to defraud God?” TNK “Doth man deceive God?” YLT and “Will a man rob or defraud God?” AMPLIFIED You can see the strength of the passage by the tendency of some translators to diminish its strength by using such expressions as “keep back,” BBE “afflict,” DOUAY “cheat,” NLT and “deceive.” YLT
The word “rob,” as used in this text, means to spoil or take away from. The sophist may reason that such a thing is not possible, that no one can diminish God’s resources. However, the prophet is not speaking of God’s resources, but of His ordinances. When men withhold from the Lord what He has commanded them to give, they have robbed Him. They have robbed Him of glory and of praise. They have put into their own coffers what actually belonged to Him, for what God commands to be given to Him belongs to Him. If this is not the case, then God is not God at all, but only a competitor for the heart of men. Such a thought is so blasphemous that it is not worthy of further comment.
YE HAVE ROBBED ME? Now the charge is delivered, and there is no doubt about it being factual. “You are robbing Me,” NASB or “you rob Me.” NIV This is not only something that had been done, it was still being done – a transgression that was continuing.
WHEREIN HAVE WE ROBBED THEE? In their hearts, the people disagree with this assessment. They cannot conceive of themselves as doing such a thing. Previously they had responded to Divine assessments. “Wherein hast Thou loved us?” (1:2). “Wherein have we despised Thy name?” (1:6). “Wherein have we polluted Thee?” (1:7). “Wherein have we wearied Thee?” (2:17). Now they ask,. “Wherein have we robbed Thee?” These are not honest or innocent inquiries. They are the response of those with stiff necks and hard hearts – disobedient people. However, God will answer their foolish question. He will specify how they have, and continue to, rob Him. Further, if we forget who is speaking, we will not learn from it – and these things have been written for our learning (Rom 15:4).
IN TITHES AND OFFERINGS. The answer of God is straightforward, with no ambiguity: “in tithes and offerings.” Other versions read, “your tithes and offerings,” NIV “tenths and voluntary contributions,” CJB “By not making the payments of 10 percent and the contributions,” CSB “in tithes and in firstfruits,” DOUAY “you don't bring a tenth of your income and other contributions,” GWN “the tithes and offerings due to Me,” NLT and “[You have withheld your] tithes and offerings.” AMPLIFIED There is no question, then, about what the text actually says.
Two categories of giving are mentioned: “tithes and offerings” – and both had been withheld from God by the people. Of the tithes God stated, “And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD'S: it is holy unto the LORD . . . the tithe of the herd, of the flock . . . the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord” (Lev 27:30-32).
These tithes were particularly for the priests, who had no inheritance in the land of promise. Therefore, the tithes were the means through which they were sustained. Thus it is written, “But the tithes of the children of Israel, which they offer as an heave offering unto the LORD, I have given to the Levites to inherit” (Num 18:24). Further, God told the Levites, “When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heave offering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe” (Num 18:26). Thus, not only did the priests live from the tithes, they were themselves to present a tithe to the Lord – the “tenth part of the tithe” they received. Yet, even though God had made these things clear, the people continued to rob God by not giving their tithes.
Over 700 years after the law was given, during the time of Hezekiah, he restored the giving of the tithes (2 Chron 31:5-12). Nearly 300 years later, Nehemiah restored the practice again (Neh 10:37–38; 12:44). Now, 100 years after the restoration of Nehemiah, the people were once again robbing God. This was being done by the priests and the people. Both of them were to give a tenth of everything they received from the Lord – and everything they received was, in actuality, from the Lord. The tithe belonged to the Lord, not to the people. They were, for a while, custodians of it, but it really belong to the Lord. He did not take it from them, they took it from Him.
THIS WHOLE NATION IS CURSED
2:9 “ Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation.”
I am fully aware of the objection that is registered by many believers that tithing is not commanded by Christ or the apostles. However, neither is worship so commanded. This is a weak and foolish argument that I will address in the next lesson. At this point it is necessary to firmly establish the reaction of God to this circumstance. How does an unchanging God respond to those who withhold from Him what belongs to Him. What does He do when people do not do what He commands them to do, and fail to fulfill what is required of them? In particular, how does He respond, or answer, when such circumstances are found among those whom He has called, delivered, sustained, and blessed? That is what must be seen.
YE ARE CURSED WITH A CURSE. Other versions read, “under a curse,” NIV “a curse is on you,” CSB “suffering under a curse,” CSB “indeed cursed,” NAB “bound for judgment,” NET “a curse lies on you,” NJB and “the awesome curse of God is cursing you.” LIVING This is unusually strong language, and can only be duly heeded when we remember this is God’s reaction to what Israel was doing – robbing Him. Further, this is an expression of His character.
Those who are fond of quoting the 28th chapter of Deuteronomy concerning the blessings of God upon those who perfectly keep His Law, often ignore what is said of the curses of God in the previous chapter. They are upon those who fail to keep His Law, who include: 1 the man who makes a graven image, 2 the one who sets a light by his father and mother in their privacy, 3 the man who moves his neighbor’s landmark, 4 the one who makes the blind to wander, 5 the one who perverts judgment, 6 the fornicator, 7 those guilty of bestiality, 8 those guilty of incest, 9 the one who smites his neighbor, 10 the one who takes a reward to kill the innocent, and 11 the one who does not confirm all of his words (Deut 27:15-26). Jeremiah summarized such things in these words, “Cursed be the man that obeyeth not the words of this covenant” (Jer 11:3). He also declared, “cursed be the man who trusteth in man” (Jer 17:5).
To curse with a curse means God has reserved such for destruction. There is no way to avert such a curse without returning to God. Nothing will work for the good of such a person or people. Nothing they do will be accepted by God, and the destroyer will not be held back. Jesus referred to this condition as the wrath of God abiding on a person (John 3:36). Paul described the unbelieving Jews of his day as those who “fill up their sins alway: for the wrath is come upon them to the uttermost” (1 Thess 2:16). He also described this as a condition in which the individual is treasuring up wrath to be unleashed on the day of wrath against them (Rom 2:5). Nothing can work in the favor of such a people. Everything they do will fail, and relief will not come from any other quarter. They must return to the Lord for the situation to change.
YE HAVE ROBBED ME. And what is it that has produced such a dreadful circumstance? What has moved the God of heaven to pronounce such an awful judgment? The words are clear: “ye have robbed Me!” They had withheld the tithes and offerings from Him that He had required – and this is the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! It is not a different God. The covenant He made with Israel was in harmony with His nature, just as the one He has made in Christ Jesus. The only real difference between the two covenants is the Lord’s Christ, who has accomplished what needed to be done. He has made a righteous way for men to be changed in order to lift the hovering cloud of the wrath of God.
EVEN THIS WHOLE NATION. The entire nation had robbed God! As a whole, they were disobedient, so that a righteous man not only stood out among them, but made himself a prey to his fellows by departing from evil. Thus Isaiah said, “Yea, truth faileth; and he that departeth from evil maketh himself a prey: and the LORD saw it, and it displeased him that there was no judgment” (Isa 59:15). That word was given nearly 400 years before Malachi, and yet the people had continued in their obstinate ways – even after the Babylonian captivity. Those who wonder concerning God’s reaction to a lethargic church, living during the time when “the Sun of righteousness” has risen with “healing in His wings,” need to seriously consider this text.
It is, then, possible for a body of people to be cursed, with only a true remnant escaping that curse. Thus Jesus said to the church in Sardis, “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments” (Rev 3:4). There were also “the rest in Thyatira,” who did not embrace the false doctrine being taught there, and had not known “the depths of Satan” (Rev 2:24).
It would not surprise me if we are not living in a period of time in which the vast majority of the professing church is under a curse, while the faithful remnant is being preserved in its midst. I fear that what is being withheld from God in this time is infinitely greater than what Israel was withholding from God during the time of the prophet Malachi.
THE GOD OF THE CURSE. God has not lost or abandoned His ability to curse. Jesus spoke of those who would be “cursed” because they did not minister to His “brethren” (Matt 25:41). Those who receive from God, yet do not yield the appropriate fruit, are depicted as “nigh unto cursing” (Heb 6:8). Peter refers to false teachers as “cursed children” (2:14). Paul said of any person who peached another gospel, “let him be accursed” (Gal 1:8-9).