Malachi 2:1-9 They Will KNOW

God has warned the priests that their offerings are offensive. They are bringing the dregs instead of he best to Him. He will curse them so they will KNOW His disgust with their actions.

God’s anger towards the acts of the Levites in NOT a surprise to them. They are charged with knowing and teaching His Laws. They KNOW what His word says is an acceptable offering. And they KNOW the consequences of disobeying Him. But they think it doesn’t apply to them.

I’m curious here. Are the priests alone offering unacceptable sacrifices or are they allowing the people to do so too? Are they teaching the people that this is ok? THAT would REALLY be a problem! The priests are charged with being God’s voice to the people. They are His earthly representatives for Israel. Setting a BAD example is damaging enough. Teaching that it is acceptable practice is inviting utter disaster again to the whole people.

Jesus said, that in His time, the priests were teaching one thing and doing another. They heaped insurmountable requirements on the people that they were not willing to follow for themselves. NOT practicing what they preached. Is this how it was in Malachi’s day?

One of the main components of God’s punishment was to smear them with dung/poop/crap/feces/excrement. That was not only a disgusting punishment but was also humiliating and separating from God. Dung had a purpose and still does. It is used as fuel for fires (when wood is not available) and as fertilizer. It is NOT an adornment! Is it disease carrying and disgusting if not dealt with properly. Touching it was one of the things that made a person “unclean” in God’s Law. For a priest to be smeared in it would be horrific! It would remove him from service and it required specific cleaning rituals. But if God wouldn’t accept the sacrifice of the ritual, they would remain unclean and unworthy of standing between God and man.

I’m wondering how God would get the dung on them. Other than from birds, I have never known dung to fall from the sky. Would He use this method? A flock of birds pooping all over someone would NOT be beyond the realm of possibilities. Or would He use instances like in the Back to the Future movies? In all three movies, the Tannon family members wind up in PILES of manure by unexpected means. The stench of manure permeates them and the experience is carried throughout the whole series. Would that be the pattern God would use with these priests for their punishment? Orchestrating EVERY opportunity to cover them in dung possible so that they smell it even when it is no longer on them; burn the smell into their nose hairs, and cause EVERYONE to remember their encounters with it. A VERY humiliating experience to carry around.

The separation from God would be the WORST of their punishment. They would not be allowed to speak for Him, to offer sacrifices for the people, or even enter His gates. They would be unclean and unworthy to come near Him. BUT THERE IS STILL HOPE. Step 1 would be to STOP the practice of offering less than their best to the Lord. Step 2 would be to ask for forgiveness; from God AND the people. Step 3 would entail repairing the damage done. This includes correcting the teachings previously done that were outside of God’s Laws; false teachings.

I was thinking about another reason that God was SO ANGRY with the Levites. The Levites were the leads of the people. If they led them down false paths, the people’s future with God would be damaged. It is the Levites who rejected Jesus. The high priest himself who lead the procession to Pilot’s home to turn Jesus over for crucifixion. He who communicated the ‘charges’ and demanded death. And he who paid the guards to say Jesus’ disciples stole His body to make it appear as if He had risen from the dead. It is their steadfast belief and teachings that still denies that the Messiah has already come.

ALL of these things are part of God’s plan too. For salvation to be offered to the Gentiles, the Jews had to reject it. NOT that God made the Jews reject Jesus, but that He allowed the Levites of the time to value earthly power above all else. It AMAZES me EVERY TIME I think about the steps that He had to go through to bring salvation to me. And that He had it planned out before He even spoke the first words of creation! He willingly and purposefully took EVERY step, including issuing every warning that He KNEW would be ignored. If it were me, I would have washed my hands of the whole thing LONG ago.

Father God, Your LOVE is AMAZING!!! You don’t give up on those whom You love. You continue to call out to ALL of us, even though You KNOW that few will listen. You don’t wipe out a people who You KNOW will never change. You are allowing us to ALL ‘grow together’ like the wheat and the tares. And You give EVERY opportunity for each of us to choose LIFE. There will always be corrupt leaders or those only pretending to be doing Your will in front of others. Our job is to go to You for SURE direction and not follow blindly those in ‘authority’.

THANK YOU that I am NOT an “authority”! THANK YOU for letting me share what You share with me. But MOST OF ALL Father, DON’T let me EVER share or practice things contrary to Your word! This is my SINCERE prayer Father God. Thank You for loving me, warts and all.