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2
A warning to the priests
1 You priests, I will say something to warn you. 2 The Commander of the armies of angels says this: “Pay attention to what I am saying, and then decide [IDI] to honor me [MTY]. If you do not do that, I will curse you, and I will curse the things that I have done for you to bless you. And I have already cursed them, because you have not honored [IDI] me. 3 I will punish your descendants [MET], and it will be as though I will splatter on your faces some of the material inside the stomachs of the animals that are brought to be sacrificed, and you will be thrown away with the rest of that material.
4 When that happens, you will know that I warned you like this, in order that my agreement with you priests who are descendants of Levi will continue to be obeyed. That is what I, the Commander of the armies of angels, am saying to you. 5 My agreement with your ancestor Levi was because I wanted the priests to live prosperously and peacefully. And that is what I have done for them. I required that they greatly respect me and revere [DOU] me. 6 They told the people that what I instructed them to do was right. And they did not tell [MTY] lies. They worked for me peacefully and loyally, and they helped many people to stop sinning.
7 What priests say [MTY] should enable more people to know about me, and people should go to them [MTY] to be taught what I want them to know, because priests should be messengers from me, the Commander of the armies of angels. 8 But, you priests have stopped doing what I wanted you to do. What you have taught people has caused many of them to sin. You have rejected the agreement that I made with the descendants of Levi long ago. 9 Therefore I have caused all the people to despise you, and I have caused you to be humiliated, because you have not obeyed me. When you teach people my commands, you do not treat all people equally.”
Wrong things that they have done regarding marriage
10 Now I will warn you about something else. We all certainly [RHQ] have the same heavenly Father. We are certainly [RHQ] all created by the same God. So why are [RHQ] some of you disobeying/despising the agreement that Yahweh made with our ancestors, by not doing for each other what you said that you would do?
11 You people of Judah have been unfaithful toward Yahweh. You have done detestable things in Jerusalem and in other places in Israel. You Israeli men have defiled the temple that Yahweh loves. You have done that by marrying women who worship idols. 12 I wish that Yahweh would expel from Israel every man who has done that, even though they say that they are obeying the Commander of the armies of angels by bringing offerings to him.
13 This is another thing that you do: You cover Yahweh's altar with your tears. You wail because he no longer pays attention to your offerings; but he is not pleased with them. 14 You cry out, saying, “Why does Yahweh not like our offerings?” The answer is that Yahweh heard what each of you men solemnly promised to your wives when you were young. But you men have not done what you promised your wives; you sent them away, the ones with whom you made that agreement.
15 It is certainly [RHQ] Yahweh who joined you together. Your spirits and your bodies belong to him. So what he wants [RHQ] from you are godly children. So make sure that each of you men remain ◄with/loyal to► the woman that you married when you were young.
16 Yahweh, the God to whom we Israelis belong, says, “I hate divorce!” So if you men divorce your wives, you are overwhelming them by acting cruelly toward them. So be sure that you are ◄not disloyal/remain united► to your wives. That is what the Commander of the armies of angels says.
17 Yahweh also says, “What you have said has caused me to become disgusted.”
You reply, “What have we said that caused him to become disgusted?”
The answer is that you have caused him to become disgusted by saying that Yahweh is pleased with all those who do what is evil. You have caused him to become disgusted by constantly asking, “Why does God not act justly/fairly?”

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© 2008-2016 Ellis W. Deibler, Jr.