Malachi 1:2
Verse
Context
The LORD’s Love for Israel
1This is the burden of the word of the LORD to Israel through Malachi: 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 Jacob I have loved, 3but Esau I have hated, and I have made his mountains a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals. ”
Sermons
Robert Constable
G. Campbell Morgan
John Gill
Octavius Winslow
J.C. PhilpotG. Campbell MorganSummary
Commentary
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
I have loved you--above other men; nay, even above the other descendants of Abraham and Isaac. Such gratuitous love on My part called for love on yours. But the return ye make is sin and dishonor to Me. This which is to be supplied is left unexpressed, sorrow as it were breaking off the sentence [MENOCHIUS], (Deu 7:8; Hos 11:1). Wherein hast thou loved us?--In painful contrast to the tearful tenderness of God's love stands their insolent challenge. The root of their sin was insensibility to God's love, and to their own wickedness. Having had prosperity taken from them, they imply they have no tokens of God's love; they look at what God had taken, not at what God had left. God's love is often least acknowledged where it is most manifested. We must not infer God does not love us because He afflicts us. Men, instead of referring their sufferings to their proper cause, their own sin, impiously accuse God of indifference to their welfare [MOORE]. Thus Mal 1:1-4 form a fit introduction to the whole prophecy. Was not Esau Jacob's brother?--and so, as far as dignity went, as much entitled to God's favor as Jacob. My adoption of Jacob, therefore, was altogether by gratuitous favor (Rom 9:13). So God has passed by our elder brethren, the angels who kept not their first estate, and yet He has provided salvation for man. The perpetual rejection of the fallen angels, like the perpetual desolations of Edom, attests God's severity to the lost, and goodness to those gratuitously saved. The sovereign eternal purpose of God is the only ground on which He bestows on one favors withheld from another. There are difficulties in referring salvation to the election of God, there are greater in referring it to the election of man [MOORE]. Jehovah illustrates His condescension and patience in arguing the case with them.
John Gill Bible Commentary
I have loved you, saith the Lord,.... Which appeared of old, by choosing them, above all people upon the face of the earth, to be his special and peculiar people; by bestowing peculiar favours and blessings upon them, both temporal and spiritual; by continuing them a people, through a variety of changes and revolutions; and by lately bringing them out of the Babylonish captivity, restoring their land unto them, and the pure worship of God among them: Yet ye say, wherein hast thou loved us? the Targum renders it, "and if ye should say"; and so Kimchi and Ben Melech; which intimates, that though they might not have expressed themselves in so many words, yet they seemed disposed to say so; they thought it, if they said it not; and therefore, to prevent such an objection, as well as to show their ingratitude, it is put in this form; and an instance of his love is demanded, which is very surprising, when they had so many; and shows great stupidity and unthankfulness. Abarbinel renders the words, "wherefore hast thou loved us?" that is, is there not a reason to be given for loving us? which he supposes was the love of Abraham to God; and therefore his love to them was not free, but by way of reward to Abraham's love; and consequently they were not so much obliged to him for it: to which is replied, was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord; Jacob and Esau were brethren; they had one and the same father and mother, Isaac and Rebekah, and equally descended from Abraham; so that if one was loved for the sake of Abraham, as suggested, according to Abarbinel's sense, the other had an equal claim to it; they lay in the same womb together; they were twins; and if any could be thought to have the advantage by birth, Esau had it, being born first: but before they were born, and before they had done good or evil, what is afterwards said of them was in the heart of God towards them; which shows that the love of God to his people is free, sovereign, and distinguishing, Gen 25:23, yet I loved Jacob; personally considered; not only by giving him the temporal birthright and blessing, and the advantages arising from thence; but by choosing him to everlasting life, bestowing his grace upon him, revealing Christ unto him, and making him a partaker of eternal happiness; and also his posterity, as appears by the above instances mentioned; and likewise mystically considered, for all the elect, redeemed, and called, go by the name of Jacob and Israel in Scripture frequently; for what is here said of Jacob is true of all the individuals of God's people; for which purpose the apostle refers to this passage in Rom 9:13, to prove the sovereignty and distinction of the love of God in their election and salvation: and this is indeed a clear proof that the love of God to his people is entirely free from all motives and conditions in them, being before they had done either good or evil; and therefore did not arise from any goodness in them, nor from their love to him nor from any good works done by them: the choice of persons to everlasting life, the fruit of this love, is denied to be of works, and is ascribed to grace; it passed before any were wrought; and what are done by the best of men are the effects of it; and the persons chosen or passed by were in an equal state when both were done; which appears by this instance: and by which also it is manifest that the love of God to men is distinguishing; it is not alike to all men; there is a peculiar favour he bears to own people; which is evident by the choice of some, and not others; by the redemption of them out of every kindred, tongue, people, and nation; by the effectual calling of them out of the world; by the application of the blessings of grace unto them; and by bestowing eternal life on them: and it may be further observed, that the objects of God's love have not always the knowledge of it; indeed they have no knowledge of it before conversion, which is the open time of love; and after conversion they have not always distinct and appropriating views of it; only when God is pleased to come and manifest it unto them.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
1:2-5 Malachi’s sermons are literary disputations—a format that calls to mind the setting of a courtroom and establishes the tone of a trial for the prophet’s message. This first disputation presents the truth that God loves Israel (1:2). The prophet then debates this thesis with his audience in the five messages that follow. 1:2 loved: In portraying a relationship between the Lord and Israel, love has covenant implications. The term may be equated with God’s choice, or election, of Israel as his people. Malachi’s message indicates that the other dimensions of God’s unconditional covenant love for Israel (such as his patient mercy; see 3:6, 17) are also still operative. See also Rom 9:13.
Malachi 1:2
The LORD’s Love for Israel
1This is the burden of the word of the LORD to Israel through Malachi: 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 Jacob I have loved, 3but Esau I have hated, and I have made his mountains a wasteland and left his inheritance to the desert jackals. ”
- Scripture
- Sermons
- Commentary
Abraham, My Friend: 02 in the Beginning god...
By Ron Bailey1.4K12:06AbrahamGEN 1:12CH 33:13PRO 8:22JER 18:4JON 3:1MAL 1:2JHN 17:23GAL 4:19This sermon is the second installment in a series on the life of Abraham, focusing on the theme of beginnings. The speaker emphasizes that every Christian biography should begin with the recognition that God is the ultimate beginning. He encourages listeners not to be discouraged by their past experiences, as God can take them from impossible situations and lead them forward. The sermon highlights the biblical concept of God's mindfulness of humanity, emphasizing that God's love and reach extends to all, even those who have strayed. The speaker references various biblical passages, including Psalm 8, Proverbs, Jonah, Jeremiah, and Galatians, to illustrate the theme of new beginnings and God's unchanging love.
God's Calls
By Robert Constable1.1K34:19CallingPRO 1:33MAL 1:2MAT 7:9MAT 11:28MRK 4:26HEB 1:1REV 3:20In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the danger of turning away from the call of God. He shares a story about a father who had done everything for his son, but the son wasted his opportunities and rebelled against his father. The preacher highlights the urgency of responding to God's call, as time is running out. He also uses various biblical metaphors, such as Jesus as a door waiting to be opened and God as an advocate, to illustrate God's desire to bless and provide for His children.
The Message of Malachi
By G. Campbell Morgan0God's LoveHuman FailureFellowshipNEH 13:10NEH 13:23NEH 13:29PRO 18:10MAL 1:2MAL 2:8MAL 3:8MAL 4:1PHP 4:8HEB 10:24G. Campbell Morgan delivers a profound sermon on 'The Message of Malachi,' emphasizing God's unfailing love and the human tendency to fail in maintaining true relationships with Him. He highlights the importance of love as the only motive that sustains our connection with God, contrasting it with the callousness that arises from a lack of love. Morgan also reveals the secrets of strength in an age of failure, urging believers to focus on the name of the Lord and to engage in continuous fellowship with one another. The sermon concludes with a call to recognize the significance of our attitude towards the coming of the Lord, which will determine our ultimate destiny.
Of the Hatred of God.
By John Gill0God's HatredSin and RighteousnessPSA 5:5PSA 97:10PRO 6:16ISA 63:10AMO 5:15ZEC 8:17MAL 1:2MAT 7:23ROM 3:5ROM 9:11John Gill addresses the concept of God's hatred, clarifying that while God does not hate His creatures, He does hate sin and the actions of sinners. He emphasizes that God's hatred is not a passion like human emotions but is rooted in His perfect holiness and justice. Gill explains that God's love for righteousness necessitates a hatred for unrighteousness, and this is reflected in His will to punish sin and sinners. He also discusses the distinction between God's love for the elect and His comparative hatred for the non-elect, which is based on His sovereign will rather than any inherent malice. Ultimately, God's hatred is directed towards sin, while His love remains steadfast for His chosen people.
Divine Love Questioned
By Octavius Winslow0Divine LoveTrust in GodMAL 1:2ROM 5:8EPH 1:4Octavius Winslow explores the theme of divine love as expressed in Malachi 1:2, where God declares His love for His people despite their doubts and ingratitude. He emphasizes that God's love is evidenced through His choice of Israel, the blessings bestowed upon them, and ultimately through the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ. Winslow challenges believers to recognize their own moments of questioning God's love during trials and to accept that even in hardship, God's love remains constant and unchanging. He encourages a deeper reflection on our love for Christ, urging believers to focus on God's unwavering love to inspire a more profound and obedient love in return. The sermon calls for humility and trust in God's eternal love, regardless of circumstances.
The Prayer of Jabez
By J.C. Philpot01CH 4:10JOB 42:5PSA 119:32PSA 135:4PRO 15:23ISA 19:25ISA 54:1MAL 1:2JHN 17:3Joseph Philpot preaches on the prayer of Jabez, highlighting the desires and breathings of a soul seeking God's blessings, spiritual enlargement, divine guidance, and deliverance from evil. Jabez's prayer reflects the experiences of all God's children, showing the need for a personal, spiritual knowledge of God, a longing for genuine blessings, an earnest desire for spiritual growth, a dependence on God's leading, and a plea to be kept from sin. Philpot emphasizes the importance of heartfelt prayers, the seeking of God's hand in all things, and the deep desire to be kept from evil to avoid grief and trouble.
The Divine Attitude
By G. Campbell Morgan0God's LoveTithing and BlessingMAL 1:2MAL 3:10G. Campbell Morgan emphasizes the profound love of God for His people as expressed through the prophet Malachi, who declares, 'I have loved you, saith the Lord.' Despite Israel's complacency and rebellion, God's call to bring tithes into the storehouse is rooted in His desire for their blessing and recognition of His love. Morgan highlights that true worship and giving must stem from love, not mere obligation, and that God's promises of blessing are contingent upon this heartfelt response. The sermon challenges believers to recognize the relationship between love, obedience, and the blessings that flow from God, urging the Church to awaken to its calling and reflect God's love to the world.
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
- Tyndale
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
I have loved you--above other men; nay, even above the other descendants of Abraham and Isaac. Such gratuitous love on My part called for love on yours. But the return ye make is sin and dishonor to Me. This which is to be supplied is left unexpressed, sorrow as it were breaking off the sentence [MENOCHIUS], (Deu 7:8; Hos 11:1). Wherein hast thou loved us?--In painful contrast to the tearful tenderness of God's love stands their insolent challenge. The root of their sin was insensibility to God's love, and to their own wickedness. Having had prosperity taken from them, they imply they have no tokens of God's love; they look at what God had taken, not at what God had left. God's love is often least acknowledged where it is most manifested. We must not infer God does not love us because He afflicts us. Men, instead of referring their sufferings to their proper cause, their own sin, impiously accuse God of indifference to their welfare [MOORE]. Thus Mal 1:1-4 form a fit introduction to the whole prophecy. Was not Esau Jacob's brother?--and so, as far as dignity went, as much entitled to God's favor as Jacob. My adoption of Jacob, therefore, was altogether by gratuitous favor (Rom 9:13). So God has passed by our elder brethren, the angels who kept not their first estate, and yet He has provided salvation for man. The perpetual rejection of the fallen angels, like the perpetual desolations of Edom, attests God's severity to the lost, and goodness to those gratuitously saved. The sovereign eternal purpose of God is the only ground on which He bestows on one favors withheld from another. There are difficulties in referring salvation to the election of God, there are greater in referring it to the election of man [MOORE]. Jehovah illustrates His condescension and patience in arguing the case with them.
John Gill Bible Commentary
I have loved you, saith the Lord,.... Which appeared of old, by choosing them, above all people upon the face of the earth, to be his special and peculiar people; by bestowing peculiar favours and blessings upon them, both temporal and spiritual; by continuing them a people, through a variety of changes and revolutions; and by lately bringing them out of the Babylonish captivity, restoring their land unto them, and the pure worship of God among them: Yet ye say, wherein hast thou loved us? the Targum renders it, "and if ye should say"; and so Kimchi and Ben Melech; which intimates, that though they might not have expressed themselves in so many words, yet they seemed disposed to say so; they thought it, if they said it not; and therefore, to prevent such an objection, as well as to show their ingratitude, it is put in this form; and an instance of his love is demanded, which is very surprising, when they had so many; and shows great stupidity and unthankfulness. Abarbinel renders the words, "wherefore hast thou loved us?" that is, is there not a reason to be given for loving us? which he supposes was the love of Abraham to God; and therefore his love to them was not free, but by way of reward to Abraham's love; and consequently they were not so much obliged to him for it: to which is replied, was not Esau Jacob's brother? saith the Lord; Jacob and Esau were brethren; they had one and the same father and mother, Isaac and Rebekah, and equally descended from Abraham; so that if one was loved for the sake of Abraham, as suggested, according to Abarbinel's sense, the other had an equal claim to it; they lay in the same womb together; they were twins; and if any could be thought to have the advantage by birth, Esau had it, being born first: but before they were born, and before they had done good or evil, what is afterwards said of them was in the heart of God towards them; which shows that the love of God to his people is free, sovereign, and distinguishing, Gen 25:23, yet I loved Jacob; personally considered; not only by giving him the temporal birthright and blessing, and the advantages arising from thence; but by choosing him to everlasting life, bestowing his grace upon him, revealing Christ unto him, and making him a partaker of eternal happiness; and also his posterity, as appears by the above instances mentioned; and likewise mystically considered, for all the elect, redeemed, and called, go by the name of Jacob and Israel in Scripture frequently; for what is here said of Jacob is true of all the individuals of God's people; for which purpose the apostle refers to this passage in Rom 9:13, to prove the sovereignty and distinction of the love of God in their election and salvation: and this is indeed a clear proof that the love of God to his people is entirely free from all motives and conditions in them, being before they had done either good or evil; and therefore did not arise from any goodness in them, nor from their love to him nor from any good works done by them: the choice of persons to everlasting life, the fruit of this love, is denied to be of works, and is ascribed to grace; it passed before any were wrought; and what are done by the best of men are the effects of it; and the persons chosen or passed by were in an equal state when both were done; which appears by this instance: and by which also it is manifest that the love of God to men is distinguishing; it is not alike to all men; there is a peculiar favour he bears to own people; which is evident by the choice of some, and not others; by the redemption of them out of every kindred, tongue, people, and nation; by the effectual calling of them out of the world; by the application of the blessings of grace unto them; and by bestowing eternal life on them: and it may be further observed, that the objects of God's love have not always the knowledge of it; indeed they have no knowledge of it before conversion, which is the open time of love; and after conversion they have not always distinct and appropriating views of it; only when God is pleased to come and manifest it unto them.
Tyndale Open Study Notes
1:2-5 Malachi’s sermons are literary disputations—a format that calls to mind the setting of a courtroom and establishes the tone of a trial for the prophet’s message. This first disputation presents the truth that God loves Israel (1:2). The prophet then debates this thesis with his audience in the five messages that follow. 1:2 loved: In portraying a relationship between the Lord and Israel, love has covenant implications. The term may be equated with God’s choice, or election, of Israel as his people. Malachi’s message indicates that the other dimensions of God’s unconditional covenant love for Israel (such as his patient mercy; see 3:6, 17) are also still operative. See also Rom 9:13.