'My covenant was with Levi — of life and peace... the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the Torah at his mouth'; and against dealing treacherously with the wife of your youth, the wife of your covenant — 'for I hate putting away, says Hashem, the God of Israel.'
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
And now, this commandment Is for you, O you priests.
verse value 1271
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 24 letters. The shortest word is "now" (וְעַתָּ֗ה, 4 letters) and the longest is "the·priests" (הַכֹּהֲנִֽים, 6 letters). 5 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root אל ("to·you") in Malachi. Full calculation: וְעַתָּ֗ה [now] (481) + אֲלֵיכֶ֛ם [to·you] (101) + הַמִּצְוָ֥ה [commandment] (146) + הַזֹּ֖את [this] (413) + הַכֹּהֲנִֽים [the·priests] (130) = 1271.
Rashi
"Unto you." The priests: I command this commandment, that you shall not offer these upon My altar.
Ibn Ezra
"And now" – I have spoken to you.
Radak
"And now." The priests, since they receive the blemished offering directly from the hands of those who bring it, were obligated to prevent them and instruct them that this offering is not fit to be brought before Me, just as the Torah itself prevented it.
Metzudat David
"And now, to you, the priests, I command this commandment: that you should not accept a blemished or emaciated sacrifice."
Malbim
"And now, this commandment is incumbent upon you: Now I command you to pay heed to it and to warn the people."
If you will not hearken, and if you will not lay it to heart, To give glory to My name, Says Hashem of hosts, Then will I send the curse upon you, And I will curse your blessings; Indeed, I curse them, Because you do not lay it to heart.
verse value 8396
Insights
Verse structure: 22 words, 102 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֣ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֥י, 2 letters) and the longest is "your·blessings" (אֶת־בִּרְכוֹתֵיכֶ֑ם, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 132: upon·inner man, upon·inner man. 12 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "you·hear" (תִשְׁמְע֡וּ), "and·if·not" (וְאִם־לֹא֩), "you·will·put" (תָשִׂ֨ימוּ). The root אם appears 2 times in this verse. 19 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "said" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi); "hosts" (root צבא, 23x in Malachi). First appearance of the root נתן ("to·give") in Malachi. First appearance of the root שלח ("and·I·will·send") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·blessings', dividing the verse into phrases of 16 and 6 words.
Rashi
"And I will curse." And I will curse your blessings, that which ought to be blessed for you: the grain, the new wine, and the oil.
"And also I will curse it." In truth, one should not attribute the matter to the condition I stipulated — "if he does not listen" — for I knew that you would not listen; therefore, from now on I curse it.
Ibn Ezra
"If, and I will curse your blessings" – in the manner of "He will lighten my darkness."
And also its curses – from the conjugations of the doubled form and the word “blessing.”
"And also" – thus I have done until now, for I have cursed the blessing, because you have not set it upon your heart.
Radak
In you. In those who receive and in those who bring:
“Your blessings.” This means that I blessed you after the building of the Temple, as it is written: “After you have mocked Me with your sacrifices, I will turn your blessing into a curse.”
"And also I have cursed it." That is to say, until now I have cursed the blessing that I gave you from the time that you began to despise Me by bringing the offerings, and now I will add further to the curse if you do not heed.
Metzudat David
"To give honor to My name. Lest it be profaned by an offering that is not fitting for Me."
“And I will send among you.” [This refers] to the priests and to the people.
"And I will turn your blessings into curses." This means: the blessing that I blessed you with from the time of the establishment of the Temple of the Lord, as stated in Haggai — I will now turn it into a curse.
"And I have cursed it as well." This means that even the curse currently in effect is not accidental, for I have [already] cursed it, because you do not take care to guard My honor.
Metzudat Zion
"The curse, and I will curse." The language of "cursedness" and "malediction."
Malbim
"If you will not heed Me, inasmuch as I warn you, and if you will not take it to heart, inasmuch as the intellectual admonition obligates this, to give honor to My Name, then I will send upon you the curse. As I said, 'Cursed is the deceiver,' this very curse I will send upon you. And I will curse your blessings—namely, that which you bless the people with the Priestly Blessing after the offering of the sacrifice, as it is stated regarding this: 'And they shall place My Name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them,' meaning that through you the Lord will bless the people. But now, since you are removing My Name from the children of Israel and profaning it, I will turn your blessings into a curse. And indeed, I have already cursed them, since you do not take it to heart."
Behold, I will rebuke the seed for your hurt, And will spread dung upon your faces, Even the dung of your sacrifices; And you shall be taken away to it.
verse value 4200
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. Verse gematria: 4200 is divisible by 50, the years to the Jubilee (yovel). The shortest word is "rebuking" (גֹעֵ֤ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·your·faces" (עַל־פְּנֵיכֶ֔ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 580: dung, Peresh. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "rebuking" (גֹעֵ֤ר), "the·seed" (אֶת־הַזֶּ֔רַע), "and·I·will·scatter" (וְזֵרִ֤יתִֽי). The root פרש appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·festivals', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 3 words. Full calculation: הִנְנִ֨י [they] (115) + גֹעֵ֤ר [rebuking] (273) + לָכֶם֙ [to·you] (90) + אֶת־הַזֶּ֔רַע [the·seed] (683) + וְזֵרִ֤יתִֽי [and·I·will·scatter] (633) + פֶ֙רֶשׁ֙ [dung] (580) + עַל־פְּנֵיכֶ֔ם [upon·your·faces] (300) + פֶּ֖רֶשׁ [Peresh] (580) + חַגֵּיכֶ֑ם [your·festivals] (81) + וְנָשָׂ֥א [and·will·lift] (357) + אֶתְכֶ֖ם [you] (461) + אֵלָֽיו [to·him] (47) = 4200.
Rashi
"And I will scatter dung." [Referring to] the dung of the beasts of your festival offerings, upon your faces; that is to say, you shall not receive reward from Me, but rather harm and shame; and I will blast the seed of the field for you.
"And it shall carry you to it." The dung of your sacrificial animals shall carry you to it, so that you may be gluttonous and despised, like it.
Ibn Ezra
"Behold" – I will rebuke the seed so that it will not sprout, because My table was [left] empty.
And the word "your festivals" is like: "Bind the festival with cords." And behold, the meaning of "your festivals" is "your sacrifices." I will strew them upon your faces, and the meaning of "I will distance you from My face" is that I will not see you.
"And He shall take you up" – the one who carries is the enemy, to whom [He carries you].
Radak
"Behold, I rebuke you." [Here גוער] is an expression of destruction, as in "You have blasted nations" [Psalms 9:6] -- [I do this] to you on account of it.
"And I will scatter dung" (וְזֵרִיתִי פֶרֶשׁ). "Ve-zeriti" is accented on the penultimate syllable (מלעיל), and it is from the intensive [Pi'el] conjugation with a dagesh, like "He who scattered [מְזָרֶה] Israel" [Jeremiah 31:10]. "Peresh" is the dung of animals, as in "ve-et pirshah" [Numbers 19:5, "and its dung"]. He first said "peresh" [dung], and afterward explained, saying "peresh chageichem" [the dung of your festival-offerings] -- and this [chag] is like "lambs," meaning that the animals of the offerings are called "chagim" [festival-offerings]. So too, "bind the festival-offering with cords" [Psalms 118:27], "let festivals come around" [Isaiah 29:1], "the fat of My festival-offering" [Exodus 23:18]. And the offering is called a "chag" because most offerings are brought on the festival. And the meaning of this matter is: just as you disgrace Me with the offerings, so I will disgrace you with them -- for the most despised thing among animals, namely the dung, I will scatter upon your faces.
"Upon your faces." This means that I will make you a disgrace and a reproach because of the famine with which I will destroy the seed that you sow, and you will remain lacking in bread, and you will be a disgrace among the nations surrounding you, for through famine they become a disgrace -- as it is said, "and you shall be satisfied with it, and I will no longer make you a reproach of famine among the nations" [cf. Joel 2:19]. And behold, you are [now] a disgrace and a reproach, as if I had scattered dung upon your faces.
"And it shall carry you to it." The iniquity will carry you to this disgrace, measure for measure: you have despised Me, and you will be despised. And Targum Yonatan renders: "Behold, I am rebuking you concerning the produce of the grain, etc."
Metzudat David
"Behold, I rebuke you. On your account I will rebuke the seed, so that it shall not sprout."
"And I will scatter." I will scatter dung upon your faces, and he goes on to explain: "Dung" refers to the excrement of the animals that you offer before Me, which is the most detestable thing in an animal; that very thing I will scatter to disgrace you with it, just as you disgrace My Name.
“And He will bear.” This sin that is in your hands will bear you up to this disgrace.
Metzudat Zion
"Rebukes." The matter of a cry of reproof:
"And I will scatter." I will disperse, like [the expression] "He who scatters Israel" (Jeremiah 31).
"Dung." Manure and excrement, as it is written: "and its entrails and its dung" (Leviticus 4).
"Your festivals." So too, the sacrifices are called "festivals" because most of them are brought during the festivals. And likewise, "Bind the festival sacrifice with cords" (Psalms 118:27).
Malbim
"Behold, I will rebuke the seed for you," because they had been promised by Haggai (2:18-19) and Zechariah (8) that when they began the construction of the Temple and the offering of sacrifices, the blessing would be upon the seed that they would sow. And now, since you have not guarded the watch of the sacrifices properly, I will rebuke the seed because of you, so that it will not grow for blessing.
"And I will scatter dung upon your faces": for after the sacrifices become invalid, nothing remains of them except the dung — [namely] the excrement of the offered animals and their ashes, which you bring into the Temple. This is what is meant by "I will scatter dung upon your faces." Likewise, regarding the dung of the offerings that you bring on your festivals, [it is written] "and you shall be carried out to it" — it will consume and burn you, so that you become like the dung and the ashes.
Know then that I have sent This commandment to you, That My covenant might be with Levi, Says Hashem of hosts.
verse value 4655
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 56 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֚י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·know" (וִידַעְתֶּ֕ם, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "and·you·shall·know" (וִידַעְתֶּ֕ם), "I·have·sent" (שִׁלַּ֣חְתִּי), "to·be" (לִהְי֤וֹת). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "said" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi); "hosts" (root צבא, 23x in Malachi). First appearance of the root ברית ("my·covenant") in Malachi. First appearance of the root לוי ("with·Levi") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'this', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words.
Rashi
"To establish My covenant with Levi." This teaches that I desire that you should be established in My covenant, which I have made with the tribe of Levi.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall know" – Then you shall know, if you do not heed Me. Now He speaks to Israel, that they are obligated to honor the priests, the servants of the Name, and to do as they instruct you, and not to bring an offering that has a blemish.
Radak
"And you shall know that My covenant is with Levi." Therefore, I command you so much, because I desire that My covenant be with the tribe of Levi, which I have fulfilled.
Metzudat David
"And you shall know": Know for yourselves that I have sent this commandment to you, to be careful regarding My honor, in order that you may receive a good reward, for the covenant that I have made with the tribe of Levi to remain in effect. That is to say, with Aaron, the head of the tribe, for with him I made the covenant that the priesthood would be his and his seed after him.
Malbim
And you shall know that what I have sent this commandment to you is because you are obligated in this commandment from of old, that My covenant should be with Levi, for on this condition I made a covenant with Levi, namely, the covenant of priesthood and Levitical service, and it explains.
My covenant was with him Of life and peace, and I gave them to him, And of fear, and he feared Me, And was afraid of My name.
verse value 3982
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "with·him" (אִתּ֗וֹ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·I·gave·them·to·him" (וָאֶתְּנֵֽם־ל֥וֹ, 7 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "the·living" (הַֽחַיִּים֙), "and·the·peace" (וְהַשָּׁל֔וֹם), "and·I·gave·them·to·him" (וָאֶתְּנֵֽם־ל֥וֹ). 12 unique roots are used. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·feared·me', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: בְּרִיתִ֣י [my·covenant] (622) + הָיְתָ֣ה [was] (420) + אִתּ֗וֹ [with·him] (407) + הַֽחַיִּים֙ [the·living] (73) + וְהַשָּׁל֔וֹם [and·the·peace] (387) + וָאֶתְּנֵֽם־ל֥וֹ [and·I·gave·them·to·him] (533) + מוֹרָ֖א [fear] (247) + וַיִּֽירָאֵ֑נִי [and·feared·me] (287) + וּמִפְּנֵ֥י [and·from·face·of] (186) + שְׁמִ֖י [my·name] (350) + נִחַ֥ת [was·afraid] (458) + הֽוּא [he] (12) = 3982.
Rashi
"Life and peace." As it is said to Phinehas: "My covenant of peace" (Numbers 25). And it was promised to him and to his seed after him; hence, that his seed shall be alive.
"And I gave them to him." That he would receive them in awe. And indeed, he did so, as it is stated: "And he feared Me."
Nachat. The language of "chatat," meaning "he was frightened."
Ibn Ezra
"My covenant" – I made a covenant with him, because since he offers sacrifices, there will be life and peace for Israel.
And the meaning of “and I will place them upon Israel” is that God gave them to him so that Israel would fear him, and he would fear God.
"He was in awe" – it is from the nif'al conjugation, and the complete form is "ninchat," like "a broken and contrite heart," from the pattern of "fear" and "dismay," and the meaning is doubled. And some say: that "and I gave them to him" refers to commandments and statutes, and they are the Torah of the priests.
Radak
“My covenant was with him.” This refers to the head of the tribe for the priesthood, namely Aaron, who was holy to the Lord, and to Phinehas, who was zealous for his God. Concerning Phinehas it is stated, “Behold, I give him My covenant of peace” (Numbers 25:12), and it is further stated to him, “And it shall be to him and to his seed after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood” (ibid.). And He granted him life, for we find that he lived for more than three hundred years. Even according to the opinion that maintains Phinehas is not Elijah, we still find that he was present during the incident of the concubine in Gibeah, as it is written, “And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest stood before it in those days” (Judges 20:28). Thus, from his years up to that time, he lived for more than three hundred years.
“And I gave him fear.” Life and peace I gave to him because of the fear with which he feared Me.
"And because of My name he was awed [lit. broken]." Its root is חתת, and its meaning is "broken and subdued," because of the Name of the Lord. And Targum Yonatan renders: "and I gave him the complete instruction of My Torah, etc."
Metzudat David
"My covenant was with him." The covenant that I had with him added to him life and peace.
"And I gave him fear, and he feared Me." This means: I gave these to him because of the fear that was in his heart, and he feared before Me. The doubling of the words is for the sake of emphasizing the matter.
"He was dismayed." He was frightened and trembling.
Metzudat Zion
Nichat. The matter of "fear" is similar to [the verse] "And there was a dread of God" (Genesis 35:5):
Malbim
"My covenant that I made with him" was from both sides: from My side, it was the covenant of life and peace, whereby through the covenant I guaranteed to him life and peace. As it is stated, "Behold, I give him My covenant of peace" (Numbers 25:12); as it is stated, "And they shall keep your charge..." and "neither they nor you shall die" (Numbers 18:3), and "You shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, and you shall not die" (ibid., 18:32). And the covenant from his side was "and I will give him awe, and he shall fear Me"—that he should fear Me with the awe of majesty because of My greatness. And also because of My name, "he shall be in awe"—that he should tremble out of fear of punishment.
The law of truth was in his mouth, And unrighteousness was not found in his lips; He walked with Me in peace and uprightness, And did turn many away from iniquity.
verse value 5246
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 64 letters. Verse gematria: 5246 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "truth" (אֱמֶת֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·in·level·ground" (וּבְמִישׁוֹר֙, 7 letters). 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "truth" (אֱמֶת֙), "in·his·mouth" (בְּפִ֔יהוּ), "and·injustice" (וְעַוְלָ֖ה). 13 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root תורה ("law") in Malachi. First appearance of the root פה ("in·his·mouth") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·his·lips', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: תּוֹרַ֤ת [law] (1006) + אֱמֶת֙ [truth] (441) + הָיְתָ֣ה [was] (420) + בְּפִ֔יהוּ [in·his·mouth] (103) + וְעַוְלָ֖ה [and·injustice] (117) + לֹא־נִמְצָ֣א [not·was·found] (212) + בִשְׂפָתָ֑יו [in·his·lips] (798) + בְּשָׁל֤וֹם [in·peace] (378) + וּבְמִישׁוֹר֙ [and·in·level·ground] (564) + הָלַ֣ךְ [went] (55) + אִתִּ֔י [with·me] (411) + וְרַבִּ֖ים [and·many] (258) + הֵשִׁ֥יב [turned·away] (317) + מֵעָוֺֽן [of·guilt] (166) = 5246.
Rashi
"He walked with Me in peace and in uprightness." [Referring to] Aaron, Eleazar, and Phinehas; and likewise, in the incident of the Golden Calf, they turned back all their tribes from sin, as it is stated: "And all the sons of Levi gathered to him" (Exodus 32:26).
Ibn Ezra
Torah – Yefet said: This is said about Aaron. And Rabbi Yeshua said: About Pinchas. And the correct view is that it was said about both of them and their holy sons, for thus it is fitting for the High Priest to be.
"It was in his mouth" – he does not accept bribes.
And "injustice" – to show partiality [lit. "to lift up faces"].
In peace – with the people of Israel.
And "equity" – to perform My commandments.
Radak
“Truthful Torah was in his mouth.” Just as the Torah of the Lord was in his mouth, in that he taught it to the many, so too it was in his heart. This is what is meant by “truthful Torah”: there was not one thing in his mouth and another in his heart. This is the meaning of “and deceit was not found on his lips.”
"In peace and in uprightness he walked with Me." "In peace" -- that he was attached to Me to do My will, in the manner of "he shall make peace with Me" [Isaiah 27:5]; and "in uprightness" -- that he walked in the ways of men in a straight path. And in both of these he was with Me, for in these I desire to do kindness, justice, and righteousness in the land.
"And he turned back many from iniquity." This means that he was always teaching Torah to everyone, and many listened to him, and he turned them back from iniquity.
Metzudat David
Torah. He taught Torah to the people and did not deviate from the path of truth.
"And iniquity, etc." This repeats the matter [already stated] in what was said [previously].
"He walked with Me." This means that on account of My commandments, he pursued making peace among people and guiding them on a straight path.
And many. Through His reproofs, He turned back many people from doing the evil they had intended to do.
Metzudat Zion
"And in equity." The word is derived from "straight/upright."
Malbim
Torah. And through the fear of God, which he established in his heart, he guarded the words of God, both in what pertains to Torah and to testimony, and in what pertains to action and conduct. Regarding Torah: “A Torah of truth was in his mouth” — the Torah that he studied for himself was a Torah of truth, according to the wisdom received from Sinai; and “error was not found on his lips.” In what he studied and taught to others, he taught according to halakha. And it is clear to me that the “lip” is external, as opposed to the “mouth,” and indicates that which one emits from the lip outward, to teach others. And it has become clear to me further that the “mouth” always alludes to matters of wisdom, and the “lip” alludes to matters of knowledge. That is to say, the “mouth” designates what one received from his teachers in matters of wisdom, which cannot be known by oneself except through transmission. And he said that he received a true transmission. And the “lip” designates what one emits from his own understanding in matters accessible to reason, such as things grasped through the senses or first principles, which he knew by himself with clear knowledge and would emit through his lips outward. And in this way, error could arise if he erred in his analysis and emitted misleading inferences. Hence it is said that “error was not found on his lips.” And regarding what pertains to conduct in practical intellect: whether in matters between man and God, “in peace and in uprightness he walked with Me.” He did not deviate from the commandments of God to dispute them, nor did he deviate from the straight path and the commandments of the Torah. And if in what pertains to others: “He turned many from iniquity” through his reproofs and moral teachings. And he explains this in contrast to what he taught the people, both in Torah and in conduct.
For the priest’s lips should keep knowledge, And they should seek the law at his mouth; For he is the messenger of Hashem of hosts.
verse value 3759
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 50 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֛י, 2 letters) and the longest is "Hashem·of·hosts" (יְהֹוָֽה־צְבָא֖וֹת, 9 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "for·lips·of" (כִּֽי־שִׂפְתֵ֤י), "priest" (כֹהֵן֙), "shall·keep·knowledge" (יִשְׁמְרוּ־דַ֔עַת). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem·of·hosts" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi). First appearance of the root שמר ("shall·keep·knowledge") in Malachi. First appearance of the root בקש ("seek") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·his·mouth', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־שִׂפְתֵ֤י [for·lips·of] (820) + כֹהֵן֙ [priest] (75) + יִשְׁמְרוּ־דַ֔עַת [shall·keep·knowledge] (1030) + וְתוֹרָ֖ה [and·law] (617) + יְבַקְשׁ֣וּ [seek] (418) + מִפִּ֑יהוּ [from·his·mouth] (141) + כִּ֛י [for] (30) + מַלְאַ֥ךְ [messenger] (91) + יְהֹוָֽה־צְבָא֖וֹת [Hashem·of·hosts] (525) + הֽוּא [he] (12) = 3759.
Rashi
"For the lips of a priest" — upon them rests the obligation to guard wisdom, for the Torah is sought from his mouth, as this matter has been entrusted to them: "They shall teach Your judgments to Jacob" (Deuteronomy 33:10).
"For an angel" – He is the Envoy of the Holy One, blessed be He, like the ministering angels, to minister before Him and to enter within His innermost domain.
Ibn Ezra
"For" – the word "for" is attached to the fact that when the priest is upright, the upright ones will increase, and behold, the lips of the priest are attached to that which is above, for he is a messenger, an emissary of the Lord, between Him and Israel.
Radak
For the lips of the priest shall guard knowledge. For it is fitting for every priest that his lips guard the knowledge of the commandments and the statutes, in order to teach them with his lips to Israel, as it is stated in the Torah: “And to teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord spoke to them by the hand of Moses” (Leviticus 10:11), and it is said: “They shall teach Your judgments to Jacob, and Your Torah to Israel” (Deuteronomy 33:10). Therefore, Israel shall seek Torah from his mouth.
For the angel of the Lord of Hosts is He. For He is the envoy of the Lord to instruct the words of the Holy One to Israel; and the Targum of Jonathan [ben Uzziel] rendered: "For he serves before the Lord of Hosts."
Metzudat David
"for the lips of the priest": This means that all of this is fitting for every priest, for the lips of the priest are fit to guard knowledge and to speak with them, and it is fitting that all the children of Israel should seek Torah from his mouth and that he should teach them.
"Ki mal'akh" [For he is a messenger] – For he is the agent of the Omnipresent, sent to guide them on the straight path, as it is written: "And to Levi He said, etc.... They shall teach Your judgments to Jacob" (Deuteronomy 33:10).
Metzudat Zion
"Mal'akh" (messenger): A messenger, as it is written, "And Haggai, the messenger of GOD, spoke..." (Haggai 1:13).
Malbim
For the lips of the priest shall guard knowledge: namely, the teachings that he learned and taught to others through his speech. He taught the people matters that he had investigated with his intellect, for this is the definition of "knowledge" (da'at), which denotes things one knows independently through clear understanding. And this is attributed to the lips, as stated above, which is the meaning of the verse: "For the lips of the priest." They were guardians of knowledge, to know all things with clear understanding; this stands in contrast to matters received through oral tradition regarding issues of wisdom for which there is no proof from the intellect, which are attributed to the mouth.
They shall seek Torah from his mouth. For he received the Written and Oral Torah, and from him those who receive from him shall seek it.
"For the angel of the Lord of Hosts is He." For He is the envoy of the Lord and His angel. Whether to store within his heart the tradition and the Torah that was given from Sinai; or to guard the understanding of the holy ones, by the Spirit of the Lord upon him.
But you are turned aside out of the way; You have caused many to stumble in the law; You have corrupted the covenant of Levi, Says Hashem of hosts.
verse value 5303
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 53 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "said" (אָמַ֖ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "from·the·way" (מִן־הַדֶּ֔רֶךְ, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "from·the·way" (מִן־הַדֶּ֔רֶךְ), "you·caused·to·stumble" (הִכְשַׁלְתֶּ֥ם), "many" (רַבִּ֖ים). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "said" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi); "hosts" (root צבא, 23x in Malachi). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·law', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאַתֶּם֙ [and·you] (447) + סַרְתֶּ֣ם [you·turned·aside] (700) + מִן־הַדֶּ֔רֶךְ [from·the·way] (319) + הִכְשַׁלְתֶּ֥ם [you·caused·to·stumble] (795) + רַבִּ֖ים [many] (252) + בַּתּוֹרָ֑ה [in·the·law] (613) + שִֽׁחַתֶּם֙ [you·corrupted] (748) + בְּרִ֣ית [covenant] (612) + הַלֵּוִ֔י [Levi] (51) + אָמַ֖ר [said] (241) + יְהֹוָ֥ה [Hashem] (26) + צְבָאֽוֹת [hosts] (499) = 5303.
Ibn Ezra
"And you" – this serves as a proof against those who do not heed them, in order to bring the stolen property.
"Ye have caused to stumble" – you, the teachers of the Torah.
Radak
“And you have turned aside from the way.” From the way of the first priests:
"You have caused many to stumble in the Torah." The opposite of "the many, he turned back from iniquity."
The covenant of Levi. The covenant that was with him, as it is stated:
Metzudat David
"And you have turned aside from the way." This means: from the way mentioned, which is fitting for the priests.
"You have caused them to stumble." It is not enough that you did not turn [people] back from sin; but you have also caused many to stumble in the laws of the Torah.
"You have corrupted the covenant of Levi." The covenant that I made with Aaron, the head of the tribe of Levi, to serve in My name and to honor Me — behold, you have corrupted it, for you have scorned it.
Metzudat Zion
"You have turned aside." The word is in the sense of "removal":
“Hichshaltem.” The term is derived from the word “makhshol,” meaning a stumbling block.
Malbim
“And you.” You were the opposite in these two matters. If in what concerns his relationship with himself, you turned aside from the path; and if in what concerns guiding the people and teaching them the laws of the Torah, you caused many to stumble in the Torah and in your instruction. And thus, you forgot the covenant of Levi, which I established with him regarding these two matters.
Therefore have I also made you Contemptible and base before all the people, According as you have not kept My ways, But have had respect of persons in the law.
verse value 5358
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 68 letters. The shortest word is "as·mouth·of" (כְּפִ֗י, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·also·I" (וְגַם־אֲנִ֞י, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 110: and·also·I, as·mouth·of. 9 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "and·also·I" (וְגַם־אֲנִ֞י), "I·gave" (נָתַ֧תִּי), "despised" (נִבְזִ֥ים). 14 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root כל ("to·all·the·people") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·all·the·people', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְגַם־אֲנִ֞י [and·also·I] (110) + נָתַ֧תִּי [I·gave] (860) + אֶתְכֶ֛ם [you] (461) + נִבְזִ֥ים [despised] (109) + וּשְׁפָלִ֖ים [and·low] (466) + לְכׇל־הָעָ֑ם [to·all·the·people] (195) + כְּפִ֗י [as·mouth·of] (110) + אֲשֶׁ֤ר [that] (501) + אֵֽינְכֶם֙ [nothing] (121) + שֹׁמְרִ֣ים [keeping] (590) + אֶת־דְּרָכַ֔י [my·ways] (635) + וְנֹשְׂאִ֥ים [and·lifting] (407) + פָּנִ֖ים [face] (180) + בַּתּוֹרָֽה [in·the·law] (613) = 5358.
Ibn Ezra
"And also"—you have despised Me, saying, 'My altar is despised.' Now the priests will be proven to show partiality to the great.
Radak
"And also I." "Despicable and contemptible to all the nations" — just as you despise Me, so I have made you despicable. The people before whom you show favor, and whom you are unwilling to reprove so that they might love you, I will make you despicable and contemptible in their eyes, as people say: "False witnesses are cheapened by their hire." "According to the fact that you do not keep My ways" — measure for measure: you despise Me in that you do not keep My ways, and I will make you despicable and contemptible.
"And they show partiality in the Torah." You show favoritism to the great ones regarding the matter of the Torah, which said, "You shall not offer these to the Lord," and when they bring a sacrifice with a blemish, you are afraid to admonish them and to say to them, "This sacrifice is invalid."
Metzudat David
“And I also.” This means: I too will break the covenant, for I will make you despised and abject in the eyes of the people. And this is what is meant by “the reversal of life and peace,” for the life of humiliation for a person of honor is not called life, and there is no peace in his soul.
"According to." According to the measure of the sin that you have committed, etc., according to this same measure shall be your disgrace and humiliation.
“And they show partiality in the Torah.” They show partiality to the wealthy of the people, flattering them in the judgments of the Torah and perverting justice.
Metzudat Zion
"According to." According to the measure, as it is written: "Each man according to his eating" (Exodus 12:4).
"And they bear faces." This expression is used in reference to honor and flattery, as it is likewise written: "And you bear the faces of the wicked" (Psalms 82:2).
Malbim
And I as well. Therefore, in contrast to how the Levite was esteemed in the eyes of the people and was among them like an angel of the Lord, exalted and sanctified.
"I have made you an object of scorn in the eyes of the people." And you are truly lowly in the eyes of all the people. For you have descended from your exalted status in proportion to the measure that you do not observe My ways (as it is stated, "You have turned aside from the way"). And you show partiality regarding the Torah (as it is stated, "You have caused many to stumble in the Torah"). For just as you added to your descent from the rank of the Levite and his priesthood, so too have you descended downward in disgrace and lowliness.
Have we not all one father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, Profaning the covenant of our fathers?
verse value 2235
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אֶחָד֙) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "father" (אָ֤ב, 2 letters) and the longest is "our·fathers" (אֲבֹתֵֽינוּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 42: not, not. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "to·all·of·us" (לְכֻלָּ֔נוּ), "God" (אֵ֥ל), "created·us" (בְּרָאָ֑נוּ). The root לא appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root אחד ("one") in Malachi. First appearance of the root בגד ("we·will·act·treacherously") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'created·us', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 7 words.
Rashi
"To profane the covenant of our fathers." The covenant that the Holy One, blessed be He, made with our fathers at Sinai:
Ibn Ezra
"Halo" [Is it not] – this is another passage to recall another sin, namely that they were divorcing their wives, and the latter were weeping on account of foreign women, as it is written in the Book of Ezra. They ought to have paid heed and said: "Is not our one father Jacob?" If so, since our Father is one and our Creator is one, why should a man betray his brother or his sister? For it is on account of this matter that [they would] profane the covenant of our fathers, who had accepted the Torah.
Radak
Is there not one Father for us all? Now the prophet turns to reprove them for another transgression: that they took foreign wives, as it is written in the Book of Ezra. And even he who had a wife from Israel would take a foreign wife alongside her, and love her more than the first. Regarding this he said, “Is there not one Father for us all?” For we are all children of Jacob, like a man and like a woman, and we are all brothers. If so, why does a man betray his brother? Moreover, he said, “Has not one God created us?” Meaning: in one God we believe, Who created us, unlike the gods of the nations from whom you take wives, thereby profaning the covenant of our fathers. For the covenant of the fathers is not to betray one’s wife. For Abraham our father, although he had no sons from Sarah, did not betray her by taking another wife alongside her, until she herself, of her own will, said to him, “Please go in to my maidservant; perhaps I shall build a family through her.” And Isaac our father, although Rebekah was barren, did not take another wife alongside her. And Jacob our father did not take a wife over and above his wives of his own volition, until they gave him permission of their own accord.
Metzudat David
Is there not one Father for us all? Now he returned to reprove them further with another matter, which is the cause that the Lord will not accept their offerings, and it is the treachery with which they betrayed their legitimate wives, as he will say in the matter. And he opened and said, "Is there not one Father for us all?" meaning that we are all children of the first man, and we have kinship on account of the body. And is there not one God who created us? Meaning, are not the souls of the upright emanated from Him, from the source of the holy quarry? And thus we have kinship on account of the soul.
Why? This means: And if so, why do we betray one another, each man his brother? This means: his wife, with whom he has a bond of brotherhood, both in respect to the body and in respect to the soul. For when they returned from exile, the sun had scorched them, they had become darkened, and they became loathsome in the eyes of their husbands, who then took foreign women. The prophet reproached them for this and said: “Why do we betray them, profaning further, through that betrayal, the covenant of our God?” For the Torah forbade this matter; we received this thing as part of the covenant, encompassing all the words of the Torah.
Metzudat Zion
Betrayed. The matter concerns transgression and rebellion:
“With his brother.” Its meaning is brotherhood and kinship.
To profane. The matter of nullification and annulment:
Malbim
“Are we not all one father?” After He had reproved them concerning matters of the sacrifices, He begins to reprove them for having taken foreign women. And there were two evils in this: a) That they took the daughter of a foreign god. b) That the foreign women were regarded as mistresses, and their Israelite wives were regarded as maidservants in the eyes of the foreign women. Now, when they took women from among their own people, there was in this a proper union, whether on account of family closeness, since they were all descendants of the chosen patriarchs, or on account of closeness in religion and faith, since both believed in one God. And through this they became joined and were one flesh, and they begot seed of God like themselves. But when they took the daughter of a foreign god, they defiled the unity of the family. And therefore it says, “Are we not all one father?” And also the unity of faith, and therefore it says, “Has not one God created us?” Meaning: We, all of us, the children of Israel, are children of one father and believe in one God. This is not so with idolaters, who are from different families and believe in different gods. And how can you take the daughter of a foreign god, whereby you defile the unity of the family? And therefore it says, “Why do we betray one another?” And also the unity of faith, and therefore it says, “To profane the covenant of our fathers,” which they made a covenant with one God.
Judah has dealt treacherously, And an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; For Judah has profaned the holiness of Hashem which He loves, And has married the daughter of a strange god.
verse value 4373
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 68 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·in·Jerusalem" (וּבִירוּשָׁלִָ֑ם, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 30: Judah, for, Judah. 11 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "acted·treacherously" (בָּגְדָ֣ה), "and·abomination" (וְתוֹעֵבָ֛ה), "was·done" (נֶעֶשְׂתָ֥ה). The root יהודה appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi). First appearance of the root יהודה ("Judah") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·in·Jerusalem', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 10 words.
Rashi
"For Judah has profaned himself," for he was holy to GOD, the firstfruits of His harvest (Jeremiah 2:3).
And regarding "and espoused the daughter of a foreign god": this refers to those who took foreign women as wives in Babylonia, and even the priests did so, as is explicitly stated in the Book of Ezra (9). And our Sages said that Malachi is this Ezra.
Ibn Ezra
"Betrayed" – [The phrase] 'the holy of the LORD' [refers to] Israel, sons and daughters, as it is written: "From the anger of His sons and daughters."
And "ba'al" – from the root of "when a young man marries a virgin."
"Daughter of a foreign god" – one who serves idolatry; and the reason [for this term] is that she is not from one father and from one God.
Radak
"She [Judah] has broken faith ... and in Jerusalem." This means that even in Jerusalem, which is the place of the Temple, they committed this abomination.
"The holy thing of the LORD, which He loved." The union of a man and a woman is holy to the Lord, as it is written, "and he shall cleave to his wife." And He commanded Israel to be holy, and holiness means that they should not cast themselves upon every woman, as the nations do. And at the end of the laws of forbidden relations it says, "You shall be holy." And Israel too are called "holy," as it says, "The holy portion of the Lord is Israel." And behold, they profane that holiness, which is the daughter of Israel, and take foreign women upon them. This is what is meant by "and he marries the daughter of a foreign god," namely, a daughter who serves idolatry, contrary to what it says, "One God created us." And our Sages of blessed memory explained that anyone who has relations with a non-Jewish woman is as if he has married an idolater, as it is written, "and he marries the daughter of a foreign god." For does a foreign god have a daughter? Rather, this refers to one who has relations with an idolater.
Metzudat David
“Judah has dealt treacherously.” Behold, Judah committed an act of treachery, and the abomination was done in Israel while he was dwelling among his people. For if the people had separated themselves from Israel to go to another nation and take a wife there, the deed would not have been so evil as it is, that he remains among his people and marries a gentile woman.
“And in Jerusalem.” This means that they added further guilt by committing this act in Jerusalem, the holy city.
"For Judah has profaned the holiness of the LORD." This means: He has profaned himself, who was holy to the LORD, and now he has become profaned because he loved and married a daughter of the nations.
Malbim
“Judah has dealt treacherously” – this refers to the betrayal within the family.
"And abominations were committed in Israel" — this refers to the fact that they took women who served idols; for besides the betrayal, it is an act of abomination. And this occurred both among the people of Israel and in Jerusalem, for there too they had foreign women. And He explained that "Judah has profaned His holiness, the Lord" by loving and marrying the daughter of a foreign god, which constitutes betrayal in respect to what he loved, and abomination in respect to marrying the daughter of a foreign god.
May Hashem cut off to the man that does this, Him that calls and him that answers out of the tents of Jacob, And him that offers an offering to Hashem of hosts.
verse value 3619
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֜ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "rousing·oneself" (עֵ֣ר, 2 letters) and the longest is "does·it" (יַעֲשֶׂ֙נָּה֙, 5 letters). 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "may·cut·off" (יַכְרֵ֨ת), "to·the·man" (לָאִ֨ישׁ), "does·it" (יַעֲשֶׂ֙נָּה֙). The root יהוה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "hosts" (root צבא, 23x in Malachi). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Jacob', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: יַכְרֵ֨ת [may·cut·off] (630) + יְהֹוָ֜ה [Hashem] (26) + לָאִ֨ישׁ [to·the·man] (341) + אֲשֶׁ֤ר [that] (501) + יַעֲשֶׂ֙נָּה֙ [does·it] (435) + עֵ֣ר [rousing·oneself] (270) + וְעֹנֶ֔ה [and·answering] (131) + מֵאׇהֳלֵ֖י [from·tents·of] (86) + יַעֲקֹ֑ב [Jacob] (182) + וּמַגִּ֣ישׁ [and·offers] (359) + מִנְחָ֔ה [gift] (103) + לַיהֹוָ֖ה [to·Hashem] (56) + צְבָאֽוֹת [hosts] (499) = 3619.
Rashi
“Waking and answering.” “Waking” refers to students, and “answering” refers to sages. “Waking” is an expression for a sharp person:
And he brings a meal-offering. And if he is a priest, he shall have no son who brings a meal-offering.
Ibn Ezra
"Yikaret" – awake and alert – on account of the matter of the son and the grandson. And Yefet said: Just as his soul will linger, so too his son will be awake and alert, for his lineage was not cut off. And if the one who performs this abomination, as he did, is a priest, he shall not have a son who brings an offering.
Radak
“May the Lord cut off, those who are awake and those who answer.” This means that no living person shall remain in his house, so that there will be no one in his house to answer the one who calls out. And “awake” is the opposite of “dead,” for he is asleep, as it is said, “Lest I sleep the sleep of death, and then I would have rest.” And the Targum translates “awake and answering” as “bar and bar bar” (i.e., “son and son of son”). And our Sages of blessed memory explained: If he is a scholar of Torah, he shall have no “awake” one among the sages and no “answering” one among the students. And if he is a priest, he shall have no son who offers a meal offering to the Lord of Hosts, for even from among the priests they took foreign wives, as it is written in the Book of Ezra.
Metzudat David
"Who does it." [Refers to] this matter.
"One who is awake and one who answers, from the tents of Jacob." [This means] that he shall not have, in the tents of Jacob—which are the houses of study—either one who is awake or one who answers. An awake one is a student who arouses himself to ask his teacher his doubts, and an answerer is a sage who answers and responds to the questions of those doubts.
“And presents an offering.” This means: if the one who does this is a priest, then he shall be cut off from having, among his offspring, one who offers sacrifices before the Omnipresent.
Metzudat Zion
"Er." The word means "awakening":
"And he answers." The word is from the same [root] as "aniyah" and "teshuvah," both meaning answering/response.
“M’ohalei.” This means: “From the tents of Torah.”
And he brings. He offers:
Minchah. A gift and an offering:
Malbim
"May the Lord cut off from that man who does this any who is awake and any who answers." This means that there will not be found in his house anyone who is awake from sleep, for they will all sleep the sleep of death. Nor will there be found anyone who is dozing slightly, so that he would be able to answer if called and awakened from his sleep. And as our Sages of blessed memory said: What is meant by "dozing"? It is one who is neither fully asleep nor fully awake, neither fully conscious nor fully unconscious; when called to him, he answers. And by this phrase, the text may be referring either to the sleep of death, or as our Sages of blessed memory explained, to the coma of the rational soul. As it is stated: "He shall have no one awake among the wise, and no one answering among the students." For the intellect of the wise is completely awake, while the intellect of the students, although it is dozing, nevertheless, if one arouses him, he answers and awakens. And likewise, if he is a priest, there will not be in his house anyone who offers a meal offering to the Lord. For the children will follow their foreign mothers, and they will have no portion either in Torah or in divine service.
And this further you do: You cover the altar of Hashem with tears, With weeping, and with sighing, Insomuch that He regards not the offering any more, Neither receives it with good will at your hand.
verse value 5093
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 70 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֔ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "weeping·of" (בְּכִ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·the·gift" (אֶל־הַמִּנְחָ֔ה, 7 letters). 14 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "and·this" (וְזֹאת֙), "second" (שֵׁנִ֣ית), "you·will·do" (תַּעֲשׂ֔וּ). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·groaning', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Rashi
"This too you shall do a second time." The first [sin], which I have rebuked at length, is grave: that he married foreign women, even though he was unmarried. And this second [sin] is more grave than that one: that married Israelite men took foreign women in addition to their [Israelite wives], because the Israelite women had become darkened [like charcoal] from the famine and the exile and had become repulsive in their [husbands'] eyes, and he would keep her [the Israelite wife] confined at home like a living widow, while the foreign woman was the mistress [of the house].
“Clothed with tears is the altar.” This refers to women who would come before the altar of the Lord, weeping before Him and saying, “What have we sinned? What fault did our husbands find in us, that we are standing before the altar to be examined as suspected adulteresses?”
"Since there is no longer any turning [to the offering], etc."—Until you are not worthy that I should turn to your meal-offering and accept favor from your hands.
"And moaning." This is an expression of sighing, that a person is distressed in his heart; [in] Old French, "demoneise." And the root/prototype for all of them is "Sigh in silence [he'anek dom]" (Ezekiel 24:17). Now if "anaqah" meant an expression of crying out, where would be the silence? And its Targum renders it "דמדנקין" [damdankin]. And so too did he [Targum Yonatan] translate (ibid., ch. 24) "וּנְקֹטֹתֶם בִּפְנֵיכֶם" ["and you shall loathe yourselves"] as "ותדנקון" [ve'tadnekun] — an expression of a person who moans and is distressed within himself.
Ibn Ezra
"And this" – this is a second reason, for the first was that it was stolen and blemished; and the second is that "my altar is covered with tears, weeping, and groaning," on account of the daughters of Israel who are weeping, and I will no longer turn to your altars, nor do I find pleasure in it.
Radak
"And this is the second thing you shall do." Why "second"? In addition to what was mentioned first—namely, the desecration of the altar by a blemished sacrifice—He says further: "You shall do a second thing to the altar," in that you cause the altar of the Lord to be covered with tears. For your Israelite wives come and weep upon it, before Him, over the injustice you commit against them, in that you take upon yourselves foreign women, and the foreign women are beloved while the Israelite women are hated. They come before Him with weeping and groaning, covering the altar with tears.
"[So] that there is no longer any turning to the Minchah." It is a matter of justice that I should no longer turn to your Minchah offerings that you bring upon the altar, for upon the altar you offered a sacrifice that was blemished and stolen, and the tears of the women, your companions, testify against you; and it is not in accordance with justice that I should turn to your Minchah offerings.
"And taking favor from your hand" – [meaning] that it would be acceptable to you.
Metzudat David
“And this is the second thing you shall do.” This means: In addition to the disgrace you have brought upon the altar by calling it a “table of defiled and despised things,” which causes [Him] to despise your offerings, you will further do a second act of disgrace to the altar, in that through you tears will cover the altar of the Lord. And the tears come from weeping and lamentation, for sometimes tears flow from joy and laughter and the like. Therefore, it is stated that the tears come from weeping and lamentation, namely, that the women stand around the altar and weep over their humiliation.
“So that there is no longer [any turning to the offering].” — Without there being any other means to find a merit to incline [Him] toward the offering that you bring upon the altar, and to take from you something willingly.
Metzudat Zion
"Covering." The word is in the form of "covering."
"And moaning." The matter of a cry of sighing, like "the groaning of a prisoner" (Psalms 102):
"Panot." The word is from [the language of] "turning" (turning aside) and "turning around" (going around).
Malbim
"And this second thing you shall do." This means: Apart from this, you commit another sin, namely that the Hebrew wives are being afflicted at the hands of the foreign wives, and they cover the altar with tears, weeping, and lamentation, to the point that it is no longer possible for Him to turn toward your offering and accept favor from your hands, for they bring judgment against you to Heaven before the altar. And as Solomon stated in his prayer: "If a man sins against his fellow and an oath is imposed upon him, and he comes to Your altar, and You will hear from heaven..."
Yet you say: ‘Wherefore?’ Because Hashem has been witness Between you and the wife of your youth, Against whom you have dealt treacherously, Though she is your companion, And the wife of your covenant.
verse value 5603
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 70 letters. Verse gematria: 5603 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֡ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·say" (וַאֲמַרְתֶּ֖ם, 6 letters). 14 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "upon·what" (עַל־מָ֑ה), "upon" (עַ֡ל), "for·Hashem" (כִּֽי־יְהֹוָה֩). The root בין appears 2 times in this verse. 15 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "for·Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "and·you·shall·say" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi). First appearance of the root בין ("between") in Malachi. First appearance of the root אשה ("wife·of") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'upon·what', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 15 words.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall say" – And the answer is that the Name was a witness between you and each one individually, and between [each one] and the wife of his youth.
Radak
And you shall say. And if you were to say:
"On what?" On account of the matter of our wives, [they think] He does not accept our meal offerings; and the answer is:
"Because the Lord has testified against you" – He testified between you and her that you do not love her and your heart is not with her, and He is a witness against you that you have been faithless to her.
"And she is your companion." And she was your companion from of old, from the days of your youth. The proper interpretation is that he stated two matters: "She is your companion"—even though she is not the wife of your youth, all the more so when she is the wife of your youth, that you ought to love her more and not to despise her, as it is stated in Isaiah: "Should a wife of one's youth be despised?" And afterward he said, "And she is your covenant-wife," for a covenant was established between you and her when you took her as a wife. Whether she is the wife of your youth or not the wife of your youth, if you take another woman, a foreign woman, this is a great betrayal. For if she were Jewish, this is the custom of the world to take a woman alongside a woman, and to have many women if one desires. But to take a foreign woman—this is a great evil, that she will see a foreign woman as a mistress like her, or greater than her. And it is fitting that your wives will weep over you.
Metzudat David
"And you shall say." And if you were to ask, "On what account did the wrath break out?"—it is because you denied [the charge], claiming that you had found in them an indecent matter.
“Because the Lord” – This means: On this matter I will answer you, that this is “because the Lord is a witness between you and the wife of your youth,” whom you married in your youth, in whom you alone have dealt treacherously, whereas she remains joined to you and is your wife according to the covenant, for she upholds the covenant that you made with her to be your wife, for she does not turn toward strangers; and truth is not with you.
Malbim
And you shall say, “Upon what? Why is this sin so great?” He answers: “Because the Lord testified between you and the wife of your youth, that the Lord is the witness between you. If at first the Lord was the witness to the bonds that were established between you—that you betrothed her with a canopy and betrothal before the Lord, and He is the witness that the matter was done in His presence—and if now He is the witness and the one who warns you, because you have been faithless to her, and you transgressed what you bound yourself to in her regard, while she has not been faithless to you; not with words of contention and strife, for she is your companion, nor did she betray you by going astray in harlotry away from her husband, for she is your wife of covenant, nor did she commit a trespass against the covenant of marriage.”
And not one has done so Who had exuberance of spirit! For what seeks the one? A seed given of God. Therefore take heed to your spirit, And let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.
verse value 4483
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 67 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֔וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֔וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·be·careful" (וְנִשְׁמַרְתֶּם֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 50: and·not·one, not·let·him·deal·treacherously. 10 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "and·not·one" (וְלֹא־אֶחָ֣ד), "and·rest·of" (וּשְׁאָ֥ר), "spirit" (ר֙וּחַ֙). The root אחד appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. First appearance of the root רוח ("spirit") in Malachi. First appearance of the root אלהים ("God") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'God', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Rashi
"And did not the One make [it]?" [Namely:] The Holy One, blessed be He, [made it so] for Adam and Eve, first.
And the rest: The spirits and souls are Mine; they all emanated from the first man.
"And what does the one seek?" The one of the pair seeks to find grounds for accusation against his wife, who is his partner — [through whom comes] the seed of God — what an abomination it is that he demeans her! And this is the language of the Targum of Jonathan, except that the Targum reads: "And what does the one seek, but the seed of God?" And the interpretation would be correct, were it not that the word "ha'echad" is marked with the cantillation zakef; the zakef accent separates the word "mevakesh" (seeks) from joining with "umah ha'echad" (and what does the one), and attaches it instead to "zera Elohim" (seed of God). And there is a resolution according to the aggadah: those who had married idolatresses gathered before the prophet and said to him, "Did not Abraham do likewise, who took Hagar in addition to his wife?" He said to them, "'And the rest of his spirit'—his intention was not like your intention. He did not set his eyes upon her [with untoward intent]; he had a different intention." They said to him, "And what did the one seek? What was his intention?" He said to them, "That he might have the seed of God." And the Targum of Jonathan is fitting in my eyes, for we do not find in Scripture or in the Mishnah the word sha'ar serving the meaning of "other," except in a place where a person can interpret it in the sense of "remainder," such as [Daniel 7:7]: "It devoured and crushed, and the remainder it trampled with its feet," and in the language of the Mishnah: "And the rest of those liable to death, except for those specified." But the language she'achar serves [the meaning of] "other," whereas sha'ar does not serve [that meaning].
"And you shall guard yourselves with your spirit." "And in the wife of your youth, let not your spirit be faithless."
Ibn Ezra
And not one of you has acted in accordance with the law, so that his spirit would remain his. And if you say, "What does this one seek?"—[the answer is] godly offspring, through the commandments of the Name. And the meaning of "his spirit would remain his" is that it should not mix with the daughter of a foreign god. Therefore it is written: "And guard yourselves in your spirit, and let your spirit not be unfaithful to the wife of your youth."
Radak
"And not one did it." Abraham, who was one and the father of all who came after him in his faith, did not act as you do, for he did not pursue lust, nor did he have intercourse even with Sarah except in order to leave godly seed, meaning that God, blessed be He, commanded him to leave seed, as it is said, "Be fruitful and multiply."
"And he had an abundance of spirit." He possessed an excess of vitality; therefore, he did not pursue lust, and he did not engage in sexual relations except for the mitzvah of procreation and multiplication. My master and father, of blessed memory, explained that these are the words of the people addressed to the prophet, and they are words of astonishment. They said to him: "Is it not true that our father Abraham, peace be upon him, was one who did not act in this manner, as we do, in that he left his wife and took Hagar, his maidservant, as a wife? And even though he had an abundance of spirit and was a prophet!" And the prophet answers them.
"And what did the one seek? The seed of God." This means that when [Abraham] had relations with Hagar, he did so only in order to seek offspring, since he had no offspring from Sarah his wife. Nevertheless, he did not betray Sarah, his wife, for he did this with her will and permission. But you, guard your spirit, and let not one of you betray the wife of his youth by leaving her to have sexual relations with the daughter of a foreign god. The meaning of "and he had a surplus of spirit" is one of excess and distinction, like "exceeding in dignity" and "exceeding in might." For just as in the root *yeter* there is the sense of remainder and the sense of distinction and praise, so too in the root *sha'ar* there is the sense of remainder and the sense of excess and distinction. That is to say, Abraham had an excess of spirit and distinction.
“Let him not betray.” Thus is the way of Scripture to speak both directly and indirectly in one place. And the Targum renders: “Was not Abraham one, a solitary one, etc.” And behold, the answer to them was from the prophet, as they pressed him and he rebuked them, saying that they were not doing what was proper.
Metzudat David
"And not one did it." This means: And if you were to respond and say, "Is it that Abraham, who is called 'one,' as it is stated, 'One was Abraham' (Ezekiel 33:24), did not do such a thing? Did he not also take Hagar the Egyptian alongside Sarah his wife?"
“And the rest of the spirit was upon him.” For indeed he possessed an abundance of the spirit of wisdom and the fear of God, and a wondrous exalted stature.
“And what was the one seeking?”—This means: “To this I will answer you: What was this one seeking by doing this? Did he do it to satisfy his lust? No, his intention was to generate a holy seed, fearing God, through Sarah his wife, as she said, ‘Perhaps I will have children from her’ (Genesis 16:2).”
"And you shall guard yourselves." Therefore, be vigilant in your desire to subdue it by force.
“And with the wife of your youth, do not betray.” This means: direct your inclination toward loving the wife of your youth.
Metzudat Zion
And "the remainder." Behold, [the term] "the remainder" denotes an excess of merit, for just as the word "more" (yoter) is shared between the meanings of "remainder" and "excess of merit," as it is stated, "the righteous is more than his fellow" (Proverbs 12:26), so too the word "the remainder" (sha'ar) is shared between these two meanings.
"Ruach." This means: the spirit of wisdom and the fear of God.
"By your spirit." This refers to the concept of "will," as it is written, "Behold, I will put a spirit within him" (Isaiah 37:7).
Malbim
And did not One make him and his remainder? He brings proof for their sin in this from the creation of man. For when the Lord created man, He did not create male and female separate from one another, as He created the rest of the living creatures; rather, man was created first alone, and Eve was one of his ribs, and she was with him at first as one body (as our Sages of blessed memory stated that two faces were created). And this is what it says, "And did not One make him and his remainder?"—the Lord made man one body with his remainder, namely his wife; both were joined together at the time when man was made.
"And He made a spirit for him." For man, together with that which was attached to him, there was one spirit. In such a way that both were created with one flesh and one spirit. Not like the rest of living creatures, which were two by two, both in flesh and in spirit. And why did He do so? And why did He not create man immediately separated, husband and wife? It is to teach that a person's spouse must be similar to him and united with him, both in flesh—that she be from his people and from his ancestral house—and in spirit, that they have one religion and one faith. As it is stated: "Are we not all under one Father? Has not one God created us?" Just as man and his wife were initially one flesh and one spirit. And this is what is said: "And what does the one signify?" Meaning: What does this unity indicate that must exist between the couple? The answer is that she seeks the seed of God. That through the unity between them in flesh and in spirit, thereby the seed that is born from this couple will be the seed of God, not a mixed seed—kilayim, shatnez—like the seed of beasts, which do not maintain lineage and unity, but rather like the seed of the first man, who begot in his image, in his likeness, in the image of God. And therefore, "And you shall guard your spirit." Guard the spirit of your desire.
And regarding the wife of your youth, do not betray her, so that your spirit will not betray the wife of your youth by hating her and loving another in her stead, since the intent of Creation was that they should have one spirit, a spirit of love and desire.
For I hate putting away, Says Hashem, the God of Israel, And him that covers his garment with violence, Says Hashem of hosts; Therefore take heed to your spirit, That you deal not treacherously.
verse value 4746
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 71 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "let·go" (שַׁלַּ֗ח, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·clothing" (עַל־לְבוּשׁ֔וֹ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 241: said, said. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "for·I·hate" (כִּֽי־שָׂנֵ֣א), "and·shall·cover" (וְכִסָּ֤ה), "violence" (חָמָס֙). The root אמר appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "said" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi); "hosts" (root צבא, 23x in Malachi). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'hosts', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Rashi
For it is stated, “If he has hated her, he shall send her away.” And our Sages dispute this matter in the tractate Gittin: some of them say that if he has hated her, he should send her away with a bill of divorce, and she may marry another man.
"And he covers violence with his garment." But is it proper to spread your tallit over her to hold her as your wife, when violence is spread over that tallit, and hatred is in your heart toward her, and you constantly provoke and distress her?
Ibn Ezra
For it is said: "The Lord will hate" the one who sends away his pure wife, and "He hates" the one who covers it up, or the Lord will see his violence which is in secret.
Radak
"For he hates, let him send away." If one of you hates his wife, he shall send her away. As the Targum renders it: "If you hate her, divorce her." That is to say, it is better that he send her away with a bill of divorce, so that she may go and marry another man who will love her, rather than that he retain her and hate her in his heart. This is a great act of treachery. This is what the verse means by "and covers his violence with his garment": he pretends that he loves her and clings to her as his garment clings to his flesh, which he does not strip off; so too, he is unwilling to send her away, even though he hates her. This is the violence that he covers with his garment.
Metzudat David
"For he hated, let him send away." If you hate her to the extent that you cannot incline your heart toward loving her, send her away; divorce her, and let her marry another, in whose eyes she will find favor.
"And he shall cover..." — This means that one may cover the injustice upon his garment from above, i.e., he should not conceal the injustice beneath his garment such that his wife sits under him while his heart is estranged from her. Rather, he should expose the injustice and the hatred and divorce her. Or, you should be careful in your desire to subdue it by force, to remove the hatred, and you shall not betray them by doing them dishonor by taking foreign women for yourselves.
Metzudat Zion
Chamas. The matter of evil thought and hatred:
Malbim
"For he hates"—that is, if your spirit hates the wife and is not pleased with her, and you cannot restrain your spirit from hating her, is it not that he should send her away? said the Lord of Hosts. Behold, it is stated in the Torah, that if she finds no favor in his eyes, he shall write her a certificate of divorce and send her away from his house.
"And he shall cover the wrong upon his garment." This sending away [i.e., this divorce] is what covers the wrong that is upon his garment; that is to say, even though this too is considered wrong, nevertheless, it is a concealed and hidden wrong. Not so if she remains in his house and he treats her with hatred; this is a very open and manifest wrong. But better than both of these is if "you shall guard yourselves in your spirit" and not betray her at all, so that he will not need to come to a state of hatred and sending her away.
You have wearied Hashem with your words. Yet you say: ‘Wherein have we wearied Him?’ In that you say: ‘Every one that does evil Is good in the sight of Hashem, And He delights in them; Or where is the God of justice?’
verse value 3631
Insights
Verse structure: 19 words, 81 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "evil" (רָ֜ע, 2 letters) and the longest is "in·your·words" (בְּדִבְרֵיכֶ֔ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 26: Hashem, Hashem. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Malachi. Unique to this verse in Malachi (hapax): "you·have·wearied" (הוֹגַעְתֶּ֤ם), "in·your·words" (בְּדִבְרֵיכֶ֔ם), "we·have·wearied" (הוֹגָ֑עְנוּ). The root יגע appears 2 times in this verse. 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 46x in Malachi); "and·you·shall·say" (root אמר, 40x in Malachi). First appearance of the root דבר ("in·your·words") in Malachi. First appearance of the root משפט ("judgment") in Malachi. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'we·have·wearied', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 13 words.
Rashi
In your saying, “All who do evil are pleasing in His eyes,” etc.: “Where is the God of judgment?” Because you see that the way of the wicked prospers, while the righteous suffer and stumble, you say in your hearts one of two things: either “All who do evil are pleasing in His eyes,” or “There is no judgment and no Judge to exact retribution.” And so is the interpretation of the language of the Scripture: “All who do evil are pleasing in His eyes”—therefore He causes them to prosper. Or, if this is not so, “Where is the God of judgment” who does not exact retribution from them?
Ibn Ezra
"You have wearied" – This is another topic: we know that the Exalted Name does not grow weary; how then could His deeds weary Him? Rather, this is merely the language of human beings, indicating that He can no longer tolerate all those who do evil. Were it not that their actions were pleasing in His eyes, He would not have allowed them to continue. And if you say, "He will yet execute judgment," when was this, and where is it? Why does He not execute judgment? This prophecy refers to the future, and initially Elijah will come, as it is written at the end of the book.
Radak
“You have wearied the Lord.” This is expressed by way of parable, speaking in the language of human beings, for He, blessed be He, does not grow weary nor does He become fatigued.
Or where is the God of judgment? Or, if it is not so — for the one who does evil is not good in His eyes — where is the God of judgment? Why does He not execute judgment upon them?
Metzudat David
“You have wearied the Lord” etc. You weary before the Omnipresent with your words. The verse is expressed in human language, for God, blessed be He, does not grow weary or tired.
"And you shall say." And if you were to say, "In what do we weary Him?"
“By your saying.” This means: I will answer you in accordance with what you are saying, that every doer of evil is good in the sight of the Lord and He desires them.
“Or where is the God of justice?” This means: “Or, [perhaps] it is not so [that the evildoer is good in His eyes]; for the one who does evil is not good in His eyes. Where is the God of justice?—why does He not execute judgment upon them?” And it is as if they were saying: Either evil is not abhorrent to Him, or He does not pay attention.
Metzudat Zion
"You have wearied [Him]." The word is derived from the terms for toil and exhaustion.
Chafetz. The matter of desire:
Malbim
“You have wearied the Lord with your words.” After having reproached them for the evil of their deeds, He comes to reproach them for the evil of their thoughts, namely thoughts of heresy and denial. He says: You attribute weariness to the Lord, as if there is toil and weariness before Him, and He is unable to attend to the details of deeds in order to recompense each person according to his actions. And He explains [this] in your statement, “All who do evil are good in the sight of the Lord,” meaning: You bring proof from the prosperity of the wicked and the sufferings of the righteous [to claim] that there is no Divine providence and no judgment and reckoning. For you would say that inevitably one of two things must be the case: either there is providence, but doing evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and therefore He does not punish the evildoer.
Or, since this is a falsehood, one should ask: “Where is the God of justice?” And why does He not punish the doer of evil according to justice and righteousness? (And the phrase “and He delights in them” means either that evil is not truly evil but rather good in the sight of the Lord, or that if it is evil, He delights in evil and does not delight in good at all; or else, where is the God of justice?) Thus you question and argue. To answer them, the following verse is brought forth:
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Radak
Metzudat David
Malbim