“Refused offerings”
I am a great King. —Malachi 1:14
Read Malachi 1
The Lord said to His people, “I have loved thee.” But the people just shrugged their shoulders and exclaimed innocently, “Wherein hast Thou loved us?” The Lord reminded His people of His burning love for Jacob and His hatred for Esau. When you have no desire for the Lord, then His electing love irritates you to no end. Maybe you can understand this.
In verses 6-14, the priests are called to give an account of their deeds, for they had desecrated God’s holy name. But they pro-tested indignantly: “How have we profaned Thy name, Lord; prove this accusation to us.” The last prophet in the Old Testament often spoke about the temple service and the place of offerings brought there. When some-one made a meat offering, he or she was to bring a pure offering of flour and oil. But according to the priests, a piece of bread that was handled by many dirty fingers was good enough. Moreover, the requirement of using unblemished animals was also ignored. According to them, a sickly sheep, almost at the point of death, was good enough. The priests’ abuses did not end there, for they did not regard their work as rewarding. They viewed their official task as the work of a slave (v.13). How could the Lord accept their offerings?
Why could the Lord not accept the offerings brought?