New Living Translation
Malachi 1:9
9“Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Malachi 1:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the Lord of hosts.
- New International Version (NIV)“Now plead with God to be gracious to us. With such offerings from your hands, will he accept you?”—says the Lord Almighty.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And now entreat the favor of God, that he may be gracious to us. With such a gift from your hand, will he show favor to any of you? says the Lord of hosts.
- New King James Version (NKJV)“But now entreat God’s favor, That He may be gracious to us. While this is being done by your hands, Will He accept you favorably?” Says the Lord of hosts.
Context of Malachi 1:9
7“You have shown contempt by offering defiled sacrifices on my altar. “Then you ask, ‘How have we defiled the sacrifices?’ “You defile them by saying the altar of the Lord deserves no respect. 8When you give blind animals as sacrifices, isn’t that wrong? And isn’t it wrong to offer animals that are crippled and diseased? Try giving gifts like that to your governor, and see how pleased he is!” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “Go ahead, beg God to be merciful to you! But when you bring that kind of offering, why should he show you any favor at all?” asks the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. 10“How I wish one of you would shut the Temple doors so that these worthless sacrifices could not be offered! I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “and I will not accept your offerings. 11But my name is honored by people of other nations from morning till night. All around the world they offer sweet incense and pure offerings in honor of my name. For my name is great among the nations,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Read all of Malachi 1Malachi 1:9 word by word
וְעַתָּ֛ה חַלּוּ־נָ֥א פְנֵי־אֵ֖ל וִֽיחָנֵ֑נוּ מִיֶּדְכֶם֙ הָ֣יְתָה זֹּ֔את הֲיִשָּׂ֤א מִכֶּם֙ פָּנִ֔ים אָמַ֖ר יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And now, I pray you, beseechפָּנֶהpânîym · face ofH6440
- And now, I pray you, beseechחָלָהchâlâh · to begH2470
- Godאֵל'êl · GodH410
- that he will be graciousחָנַןchânan · be graciousH2603
- unto us: this hath been by your meansיָדyâd · hand: powerH3027
- will he regardנָשָׂאnâώâ' nâsâh · to lift: kindnessH5375
- your personsפָּנֶהpânîym · face: kindnessH6440
- saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635
Cross-references for Malachi 1:9
- 2 Chronicles 30:27Then the priests and Levites stood and blessed the people, and God heard their prayer from his holy dwelling in heaven.
- Jeremiah 27:18If they really are prophets and speak the Lord’s messages, let them pray to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Let them pray that the articles remaining in the Lord’s Temple and in the king’s palace and in the palaces of Jerusalem will not be carried away to Babylon!’
- Joel 1:13Dress yourselves in burlap and weep, you priests! Wail, you who serve before the altar! Come, spend the night in burlap, you ministers of my God. For there is no grain or wine to offer at the Temple of your God.
- Joel 2:17Let the priests, who minister in the Lord’s presence, stand and weep between the entry room to the Temple and the altar. Let them pray, “Spare your people, Lord! Don’t let your special possession become an object of mockery. Don’t let them become a joke for unbelieving foreigners who say, ‘Has the God of Israel left them?’”
- Zechariah 3:1Then the angel showed me Jeshua the high priest standing before the angel of the Lord. The Accuser, Satan, was there at the angel’s right hand, making accusations against Jeshua.
- John 9:31We know that God doesn’t listen to sinners, but he is ready to hear those who worship him and do his will.
- Hebrews 7:26He is the kind of high priest we need because he is holy and blameless, unstained by sin. He has been set apart from sinners and has been given the highest place of honor in heaven.
- Exodus 32:11But Moses tried to pacify the Lord his God. “O Lord!” he said. “Why are you so angry with your own people whom you brought from the land of Egypt with such great power and such a strong hand?
- Jeremiah 26:19But did King Hezekiah and the people kill him for saying this? No, they turned from their sins and worshiped the Lord. They begged him for mercy. Then the Lord changed his mind about the terrible disaster he had pronounced against them. So we are about to do ourselves great harm.”
- Lamentations 2:19Rise during the night and cry out. Pour out your hearts like water to the Lord. Lift up your hands to him in prayer, pleading for your children, for in every street they are faint with hunger.
- Acts 19:15But one time when they tried it, the evil spirit replied, “I know Jesus, and I know Paul, but who are you?”
- Romans 2:11For God does not show favoritism.
- 1 Peter 1:17And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.”
Commentaries on Malachi 1:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Beseech God - There were evident marks of God's displeasure in the land, and it was occasioned by these pollutions through the priests. And now he exhorts them to pray to God that they may be pardoned: for, if this practice be persisted in, God will not accept any offering made by them.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And now entreat, I pray you, God o that He will be gracious unto you - This is not a call to repentance, for he assumes that God would not accept them. It is rather irony; “go now, seek the favor of God, as ye would not that of your governor.” “From your hand,” not from your fathers, not from aliens, “hath this been: will He accept persons from you?” The unusual construction seems to imply a difference of meaning; as if he would say, that it consisted not…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 6-14Verses 6-14 We may each charge upon ourselves what is here charged upon the priests. Our relation to God, as our Father and Master, strongly obliges us to fear and honour him. But they were so scornful that they derided reproof. Sinners ruin themselves by trying to baffle their convictions. Those who live in careless neglect of holy ordinances, who attend on them without reverence, and go from them under no concern, in effect say, The table of the Lord is…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 6-14Malachi’s second message confirms the Lord as God and father of Israel. God alone deserves true worship. The first part (Malachi 1:6–14) shows how the Israelites dishonored God despite his fatherly care and great power. The second part (Malachi 2:1–9) warns the priests of Judah against sacrificing sick and defective animals and criticizes them for not teaching God’s instructions (2:6–8).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. now ... beseech God that he will be gracious--Ironical. Think you that God will be persuaded by such polluted gifts to be gracious to you? Far from it. this hath been by your means--literally, "hand." These contemptible offerings are your doing, as being the priests mediating between God and the people; and think you, will God pay any regard to you (compare Mal 1:8, 10)? "Accept thy person" ("face"), Mal 1:8, answers to "regard your persons," in this…Read the comment
Topics related to Malachi 1:9
In the dictionaries
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
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