Malachi 1:4

Malachi 1:4 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)Whereas Edom saith, We are impoverished, but we will return and build the desolate places; thus saith the Lord of hosts, They shall build, but I will throw down; and they shall call them, The border of wickedness, and, The people against whom the Lord hath indignation for ever.
• English Standard Version (ESV)If Edom says, "We are shattered but we will rebuild the ruins," the Lord of hosts says, "They may build, but I will tear down, and they will be called 'the wicked country,' and 'the people with whom the Lord is angry forever.'"
• New King James Version (NKJV)Even though Edom has said, “We have been impoverished, But we will return and build the desolate places,” Thus says the Lord of hosts: “They may build, but I will throw down; They shall be called the Territory of Wickedness, And the people against whom the Lord will have indignation forever.
• New Living Translation (NLT)Esau’s descendants in Edom may say, “We have been shattered, but we will rebuild the ruins.” But the Lord of Heaven’s Armies replies, “They may try to rebuild, but I will demolish them again. Their country will be known as ‘The Land of Wickedness,’ and their people will be called ‘The People with Whom the Lord Is Forever Angry.’

Context of Malachi 1:4

2“I have loved you,” says the Lord. “But you ask, ‘How have you loved us?’ “Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob, 3but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.” Edom may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild the ruins.” But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord. 5You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’ 6“A son honors his father, and a slave his master. If I am a father, where is the honor due me? If I am a master, where is the respect due me?” says the Lord Almighty. “It is you priests who show contempt for my name. “But you ask, ‘How have we shown contempt for your name?’

Malachi 1:4 word by word

כִּֽי־תֹאמַ֨ר אֱד֜וֹם רֻשַּׁ֗שְׁנוּ וְנָשׁוּב֙ וְנִבְנֶ֣ה חֳרָב֔וֹת כֹּ֤ה אָמַר֙ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת הֵ֥מָּה יִבְנ֖וּ וַאֲנִ֣י אֶהֱר֑וֹס וְקָרְא֤וּ לָהֶם֙ גְּב֣וּל רִשְׁעָ֔ה וְהָעָ֛ם אֲשֶׁר־זָעַ֥ם יְהוָ֖ה עַד־עוֹלָֽם׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Whereas Edomאֱדוֹם'ĕdôm 'ĕdôm · EdomH123
• saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• We are impoverishedרָשַׁשׁrâshash · to beatH7567
• but we will returnשׁוּבshûb · to return: rescueH7725
• and buildבָּנָהbânâh · to buildH1129
• the desolate placesחׇרְבָּהchorbâh · desolationH2723
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635
• but I will throw downהָרַסhâras · to overthrowH2040
• and they shall callקָרָאqârâ' · to call: call byH7121
• them, The borderגְּבוּלgebûl gebûl · border: areaH1366
• of wickednessרִשְׁעָהrish‛âh · wickednessH7564
• and, The peopleעַם‛am · peopleH5971
• hath indignationזָעַםzâ‛am · be indignantH2194
• forעַד‛ad · tillH5704
• everעוֹלָם‛ôlâm ‛ôlâm · forever: enduringH5769

Cross-references for Malachi 1:4

• Isaiah 9:9All the people will know it— Ephraim and the inhabitants of Samaria— who say with pride and arrogance of heart,
• James 4:13Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”
• Job 9:4His wisdom is profound, his power is vast. Who has resisted him and come out unscathed?
• Job 12:14What he tears down cannot be rebuilt; those he imprisons cannot be released.
• Job 34:29But if he remains silent, who can condemn him? If he hides his face, who can see him? Yet he is over individual and nation alike,
• Psalms 127:1Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.
• Proverbs 21:30There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the Lord.
• Isaiah 10:4Nothing will remain but to cringe among the captives or fall among the slain. Yet for all this, his anger is not turned away, his hand is still upraised.
• Lamentations 3:37Who can speak and have it happen if the Lord has not decreed it?
• Matthew 12:30“Whoever is not with me is against me, and whoever does not gather with me scatters.
• Jeremiah 31:17So there is hope for your descendants,” declares the Lord. “Your children will return to their own land.
• Ezekiel 11:10You will fall by the sword, and I will execute judgment on you at the borders of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord.
• Amos 6:2Go to Kalneh and look at it; go from there to great Hamath, and then go down to Gath in Philistia. Are they better off than your two kingdoms? Is their land larger than yours?
• Malachi 1:3but Esau I have hated, and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.”
• Psalms 137:7Remember, Lord, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. “Tear it down,” they cried, “tear it down to its foundations!”
• Isaiah 11:14They will swoop down on the slopes of Philistia to the west; together they will plunder the people to the east. They will subdue Edom and Moab, and the Ammonites will be subject to them.

Commentaries on Malachi 1:4

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 4They shall build, but I will throw down - We have already seen enough of the wickedness of the Edomites to justify the utmost severity of Divine justice against them. The pulling down predicted here was by Judas Maccabeus; see 1 Maccabees 5:65; and by John Hyrcanus; see Joseph Antiq., lib. 13 c. 9. s. 1. They shall call them, The border of wickedness - A wicked land. Among this people scarcely any trace of good could ever be noted.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 4Whereas Edom saith - oWe are impoverished - oידשׁשׁ .), or, more probably, “we were crushed.” Either gives an adequate sense. Human self-confidence will admit anything, as to the past; nay, will even exaggerate past evil to itself, “Crush us how they may, we will arise and repair our losses.” So Ephraim said of old Isaiah 9:9-10, “in the pride and stoutness of heart, The bricks are fallen down, but we will build with hewn-stones: the sycamores are cut…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 4the LORD of Hosts (Hebrew Yahweh tseba’oth): This name for God is important in Old Testament prophetic writings. Hosts are the angelic forces under God's command. This phrase emphasizes God's power, which cannot be defeated. the Land of Wickedness: Esau was selfish and showed disrespect for the Lord’s covenant symbols (see Genesis 25:34). The nation of Edom came to represent the pride of a self-centered life (see Jeremiah 49:16). The Edomites also allied…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 44. Whereas--"But if" Edom say [Maurer]. Edom may strive as she may to recover herself, but it shall be in vain, for I doom her to perpetual desolation, whereas I restore Israel. This Jehovah states, to illustrate His gratuitous love to Israel, rather than to Edom. border of wickedness--a region given over to the curse of reprobation [Calvin]. For a time Judea seemed as desolate as Idumea; but though the latter was once the highway of Eastern commerce, now…Read the comment

Topics related to Malachi 1:4

• Edomites

In the dictionaries

• Edom
• Edom; Edomites
• Edom, Edomite, Idumea
• Lord of Hosts
• Malachi, Prophecies of
• Malachi
• Nabataeans; Nabathaeans
• Obadiah, Book of

Commentaries on Malachi 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings