Malachi 2:1-9
New American Bible (Revised Edition)
Chapter 2
1 And now, priests, this commandment is for you:
If you do not listen,
2 (A)And if you do not take to heart
giving honor to my name, says the Lord of hosts,
I will send a curse upon you
and your blessing I will curse.
In fact, I have already cursed it,
because you do not take it to heart.
3 I will rebuke your offspring;
I will spread dung on your faces,
Dung from your feasts,
and will carry you to it.
4 You should know that I sent you this commandment
so that my covenant with Levi might endure,
says the Lord of hosts.
5 (B)My covenant with him was the life and peace which I gave him,
and the fear he had for me,
standing in awe of my name.
6 (C)Reliable instruction was in his mouth,
no perversity was found upon his lips;
He walked with me in integrity and uprightness,
and turned many away from evil.
7 (D)For a priest’s lips preserve knowledge,
and instruction is to be sought from his mouth,
because he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.
8 But you have turned aside from the way,
and have caused many to stumble by your instruction;
You have corrupted the covenant of Levi,[a]
says the Lord of hosts.
9 I, therefore, have made you contemptible
and base before all the people,
For you do not keep my ways,
but show partiality in your instruction.
Footnotes
- 2:8 The covenant of Levi: not mentioned elsewhere in the Bible. The covenant with Phinehas the grandson of Aaron (Nm 25:11–13) and the Blessing of Levi (Dt 33:8–11) may lie in the background.
Scripture texts, prefaces, introductions, footnotes and cross references used in this work are taken from the New American Bible, revised edition © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Inc., Washington, DC All Rights Reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.