Shabbat Shalom everyone. Let's open our Bibles to the book of Malachi. Malachi chapter 2 is where we are studying today. The ministry today comes from Malachi, chapter 2, and I would like to read for us this ministry meeting the first nine verses of Malachi, Malachi, chapter 2. Malachi was a prophet of Israel who spoke to our people about 400, 430 years before Yohanan Hamadbil, John the Baptizer, proclaim about Yeshua the Messiah, behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of this world. There was 400 years of silence, there was no message to our people Israel, and now you might say the final message from God to our forefathers Israel before that long silence until the Messiah had come and proclaimed to be the Shepherd of Israel, the Messiah of Israel.

So Malachi is speaking to the priests of Israel, to the spiritual leaders of our forefathers and look what he says to them at that time in Malachi, Malachi chapter 2 verses 1 to 9. He said, and now all ye priests, verse 1, and now all ye priests, this commandment is for you, if ye will not heal, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings, yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart. Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts, and one shall take you away with it.

And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the Lord of hosts. My covenant was with him of life and peace, of Chayim and Shalom. And I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me and was afraid before my name. The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips. He walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from iniquity. For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law of his mouth, for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.

But ye are departed out of the way. Ye have caused many to stumble at the law. Ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, sayeth the Lord of hosts. Therefore have I also made you contemptible and base before all the people, according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law. And I'm stopping here after reading Malachi chapter 2 and verses 1 to 9. This is a very, you might say, sad commentary upon the Kohanim, the priests that God has raised among our forefathers, the people of Israel. It's rather a sad commentary that God gives us as he directing his message to those priests using Malachi, that is Malachi, the prophet of Israel.

Imagine dear brothers and sisters how sad the condition here 430 years about before the coming of the Messiah because here 430 years about bc these nation of Israel our own forefathers have now returned back to the promised land after there were 70 years in Babel from 605 bc after the destruction of the temple at 586 BC, now a few years have passed by. They are already back in the land. They now should have said, you know, we used to be by the rivers of Babylon. We wept there. We have seen how sad it is to be away from the Lord. And now the Lord have restored us back to our promised land.

He has helped us to rebuild the temple in the city of Yerushalayim. And now we should enjoy him, we should live for him, we should be the kind of a people that will honor the God of our fathers, give glory to his name. But it didn't happen, it didn't take too long when there was again a departure from the Lord. We read just earlier in 2 Timothy chapter 3, we read the whole chapter, in which the Apostle Shaul Paul said the very same thing about the last days in the assembly in the church age. Many shall depart from the truth. They will not want to hear the word of God as they begin in the early days.

And now that time has passed by, now I tell you, Paul is saying, the apostle Paul said to Timothy, he said, perilous times shall come, for men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, without natural affection. In verse 5 he said having a form of godliness but denying the power thereof he said to Timothy but thou has fully known my doctrine and manner of life and so on he's saying to Timothy Timothy i'm telling you that's what's going to happen in the last days of the church age and as we are studying the book of Malachi this is exactly what happened in the last days of Israel history before the Mashiach, the Messiah, came to pronounce himself as the Savior of sinners, as the promised Messiah of Israel.

So as we study, as we learn the prophet Malachi, we can see the things that happened in those days, not even the people first, but the priesthood, the spiritual leaders of the people of God. And here we learn how God pronouncing, you might say, judgment upon the priesthood who are descendants of the tribe of Levi. If you remember, in our previous ministry meeting, we have looked at chapter 1, verses 6 to verse 14, and found, if you remember, the twofold statement that God said about the priests of Israel from verses 7 to verse 14. Two ways in which the priests despised the name of the Lord. That which we already read in chapter 1 verses 7 to 14.

Number one, the priests offered unacceptable sacrifices on the altar in the temple. They offered as we read it, the blind, the lame and the sick they gave God the left over they gave God the no good animals which were not acceptable by him and secondly they dishonored the name of the God of Israel and the name we mentioned earlier that the name represents the character of God, what is in a name, in a name of God as we read from the book of Exodus where God proclaimed the name of the Lord to Moshe, to Moses. And he said to him, God is merciful. God is gracious.

God is long-suffering. God is a good God. But he's also, not only that he's a loving God, he's also a holy God that he will have to judge sin because he's a holy God. And so the priests dishonored the Lord in two ways. Number one, they have offered polluted animals. And number two, they dishonored the name of the Lord himself. So now in the continuance of the message to the priests in Malachi chapter 2 verses 1 to 9, The Lord is presenting and showing the priests how unfaithful they were in comparison to the early days of the tribe of Levi, of the early day of the priesthood. Isn't it so, beloved brothers and sisters, everything usually starts very well.

Even in our own personal life, we begin our walk with the Lord when we are born by the Spirit of God. We begin very well. We make commitment to the Lord. We make resolution. We say, God, I'm going to follow you. I'm going to live for you. I'm going to do everything for you, God. Just help me. Help me so I can live for you in my life. But then time passes by, and we forget our relationship with the Lord. Sin easily beset us. We look to the world around us. We are attacked by Satan, our enemy. The flesh is running within us. And we neglect, slowly but surely, we depart from that place where we were at the beginning.

And it's in our own personal life, it is in our own family life, in our own assembly life, and it's in a national way among the people of Israel, the assembly, the church at Lod, it's slowly but surely we are drifting like a ship drifting from shore. And we always have to keep ourselves in check. Always have to remember to give short account, to keep short account with the Lord because we are a failing people. We have an inclination to go astray like anyone who has been before us. And so God has shown the leaders of Israel, the priests, how they have gone astray and how they dishonoring by offering wrong sacrifices, unacceptable sacrifices, and not giving glory to his name.

Now he's moving on in chapter 2 and verses 1 to 9. He's really showing the priests of Israel how they were unfaithful to the covenant that God made with their father, Levi. And so notice what he does here in the first three verses. Of our chapter, Malachi chapter 2 and verse 1, he first warned them, and he warned those unfaithful priests for the consequence of their wrongdoing. He began, of course, in verse 1, and notice what he says. He says, And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. He's directing the message through Malachi to the priests. The spiritual leaders of Israel, he says, I want to tell you something.

I'm directing my message now to you. I'm not going to talk about what the people have done, the rest of the nation of Israel. But I'm directing the attention of my message to you, he's saying, to the priests, to the kohanim, to the leaders, the spiritual leaders of Israel. And why he's saying this to them, because he wants them to, you might say, to pause and to realize that they have to take it to heart, they have to take the things of the God of Israel seriously and not to assume that God doesn't see and that God is not going to deal with them, to take the things of the Lord seriously.

And therefore it said, oh, and now. Notice the word and now. In Hebrew, what is ve'ata? It's right this moment. I'm directing my attention now to you And I want to tell you, priests, oh ye priests, this is the commandment that is addressed unto you. And so in verse 1, he's directing this to them. Why, beloved brothers and sisters? Because the priests of Israel were spiritual leaders. They are responsible over the nation. Number two, the priests were guilty in leading our forefathers, Israel, astray. They were not an example to them. Just yesterday, I received a text or an email from someone who said that in one of the congregations here locally, somebody was teaching from the pulpit that Yeshua is not the Lamb of God.

Now I don't know how you can be a believer and reject the fact that Yeshua is the Lamb of God is the one who came to die for the sin of this world so you can be a teacher and you can stand in a pulpit and you can preach the word with the Bible in your hand and yet you can reject what the Scriptures say and you can teach others and others ending up to adapt it and turn away from the ABC of the word of God. So the priests of Israel were the spiritual leaders of Israel and they were responsible to teach the people of Israel and therefore God gives them a warning and he began his warning.

He says, this commandment is for you, O ye priests. Hakohanim in Hebrew, the priests. And he continues now, and I want you to notice that in verse 2, the Lord warns that if the priest will not heal and give heed to his word, eventually the Lord will discipline them. Notice what he says to them in verse 2. If you will not heal, and if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name, saith the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings, yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart.

In other words, the Lord is saying through Malachi to the Kohanim, the priest of Israel, he says, listen, I'm going to give you a warning that if you will not, as it says here in verse to will hear or listen to what I'm telling you and lay it to heart. In other words, don't only have it in your head but bring it down to your heart, appropriate it to your life and make changes in your life. If you will not listen to my word and hear what I have to say, eventually, as he says to them, I will send curse upon you. Now, in a moment, I'm going to mention the thought about that word for curse here.

In Hebrew, it's called ve'aroti, or me'era, or arur. It comes from the Hebrew word arur, one who is being cursed by God. Now, first, I want you just to notice that expression here in verse 2, where he said to them, if you will not hear and if you will not lay it to heart to give glory to my name. You remember, beloved brothers and sisters, the whole theme here in the book of Malachi is that the priesthood of Israel didn't give God the glory to his name that he deserved. He already began, if you remember, the whole book of Malachi in chapter 1 and verse 6 to show them that they did not give glory to his name.

You remember what it said in chapter 1 verse 6? A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I be a father, where is my honor? And if I be a master, where is my fear? Sayeth the Lord of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise, notice that, despise my name. And ye say, wherein have we despised thy name? You notice that the priests, by their behavior, despise the name of Jehovah, the name of the God of Israel. And so now he's telling them in chapter 2 and verse 2 that if they will not hear it and if they will not appropriate it in their hearts and make changes in their life to give glory to God's name.

He said to them, I will even send a curse upon you and I will curse your blessing. Yeah, I have cursed them already because you do not lay it to heart. Now, just for a moment, if you don't mind to go with me back to the book of Deuteronomy for a moment. And in Deuteronomy chapter 28, Moses and our people, Israel, were just before entering into the promised land, and there God promised Israel that he will give Israel all the promised land, what we call today Knaan, the land of Canaan. But at the same time, as he gave Israel these promises, he also gave them a warning that he will bless them if they obey, and that he will curse them if they disobey.

And so we read in chapter 28 of the book of Deuteronomy, and I'm just going to read a few verses. You notice the first verses there, chapter 28, verse 1. There God said, it shall come to pass, verse 1, that if you shall hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord thy God to observe and to do all his commandments, which I commend thee this day, that the Lord thy God will set thee on high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings, notice the word blessing, in Hebrew the word bracha or brachot in plural. All these brachot, blessings, shall come on thee and overtake thee if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.

Verse 3, blessed shalt thou be in the city, and blessed thou shalt be in the field. Verse 4, Blessed be the fruit of thy body, and the fruit of thy ground, and the fruit of thy cattle, the increase of thy kin, and the flocks of thy sheep. Verse 5, Blessed shall be thy basket, and thy store. Verse 6, Blessed shall thou be when thou comest in, and blessed shall thou be when thou goest out. Look at the blessing that God promised to the people of Israel just before they have entered to the land of Canaan to possess the land of Israel. And it is all depended upon the fact that they will hearken diligently unto the voice of the Lord, the God of our fathers, the God of Israel.

But on the other hand, beloved brothers and sisters, look a little bit further down in verse 15 of Deuteronomy chapter 28. In Deuteronomy chapter 28 from verse 15 to verse 19, he reverses that if they will not hearken unto the voice of the Lord. Listen to verse 15, Deuteronomy 28, 15, but it shall come to pass that if thou will not hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe, to do all his commandments and his statutes, which I commended thee this day, that all these curses, the Hebrew word arur, all these klalot in Hebrew, all these curses shall come upon thee and overtake thee. And he continued, notice verse 16, 17, 18, 19, just listen to this, cursed shall thou be in the city, and cursed shall thou be in the field, cursed shall thy basket and thy store be, cursed shall be the fruit of thy body and the fruit of thy land, the increase of thy kin and the flocks of thy sheep, cursed shall thou be when thou comest in, and cursed shall thou be when thou goest out you see beloved brothers and sisters these are the people of God to whom God said even though you came out of the land of Egypt you were under the blood you are just now ready the new generation is ready to enter into the promised land but you can be sure that even though you are the chosen people, I will have to deal with you as a father dealeth with his own children.

I will discipline you if you will disobey me and I will bless you if you will obey me. Now time passes by and Israel now is on the other side of their history you might say. Before now they are now in the land and now they are in the last days as you might say, before the 450 or 430 years of silence. And now the Lord is speaking to the leadership of Israel. And he's saying to them in verse 2, If you will not hear, and if you will not lay it to heart to give glory unto my name, sayeth the Lord of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you.

And I will curse your blessings, yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart. Now, let me remind you, beloved brothers and sisters, that God is a sovereign God. What is a sovereign God? A sovereign God is a God who is in full control over the affairs of this world. Nothing is hidden from Him. Not your life, neither my life. Not your thoughts, neither my thoughts. Nor your ways neither my ways God knows everybody's situation in their lives and God yet want to save us of course but he want to bless his own people but if his people live the kind of a life that dishonor him as a sovereign God he can send and you notice his expression as it says here I will send a curse upon you what does that mean I will send because God is sovereign and he is in full control he can send you might say as we read it here in verse 2 as a sovereign God he is divine he can send a supernatural hindrance to one's life when he blesses someone he sends you might say a divine blessing to aid in the life of an individual.

That's why we sometimes say this person has been blessed by the Lord. What do we mean by that? That this person, God, has sent along to his life a situation and circumstances and people in his life that will help him and will bless him and will reward him, whether it is physically, and also it could be spiritual as well. But at the same time, God is able, as a sovereign God, to send judgment upon those who refuse to obey his word. That's why he used this expression, if you will not lay it to heart to give glory unto my name, says the Lord of hosts, I will even send the curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings.

Now some immediately come to my mind, if you remember the Yonah Hanavi Jonah, the prophet of Israel. When God sent him to preach the message of the gospel to this Gentile world, to tell them about the God of Israel, and Yonah did not want to obey the Lord, he didn't go instead of going to where he should have gone, He went into a boat in the city of Jaffo. He went down and he went all the way to another direction. And you remember what we read in the book of Jonah, the book of Jonah? That God sent a strong wind. And as he sent a strong wind, the whole ship was in a chaos there.

In turmoil, there was a toss to and fro. And then God allowed Jonah to be cast into the water. And then he sent the fish to swallow Jonah. And then after that, he told the fish to throw out Jonah on shore. And then God sent the gourd and he raised the gourd. And then he sent the son that the son will scorch the gourd, the plant, and the plant will die. God was in full control over the life of Jonah. He was his servant. And when he disobeyed him, the Lord had allowed him to experience challenges such as this. And he's saying to the priest of Israel, he's saying to them, listen, if you will not hear what I'm saying to you, if you will not lay it to your heart, I'm telling you, if you will not give me glory, I'm going to send your way curse.

And he said, I will curse your blessings. In other words, he will reverse the blessing that he intended for the tribe of Levi. The priest was supposed to enjoy to serve our people Israel. To be ministering to the people of God. To be a blessing to God's people. But when they turn away and they did not honor God. They were offering the blind and the lame and the sick upon an altar. And they were not giving glory to the name of the Lord. God was going to judge his very own people whom he loved and he wanted to bless them so much. And I would suggest, beloved brothers and sisters, that it is the same in our very own lives.

Whether we are in leadership or not in leadership, God is sovereign. We cannot live a life that dishonor Him willfully without Him intervening in our lives. As we read in Galatians, whatsoever man sows, that he will also reap. Be sure your sins will find you out. God has said it to our own people, Israel, years ago. And that is a principle that is carried on to this present day. The Lord disciplined the people whom he loved, whom the Lord loves, he chastens, and he scourges everyone whom he receives. We read in the book of Hebrews. So he is telling to the Kohanim, to the leaders of Israel, he says, listen, if you are not going to take it to heart, If you are not going to listen to what I'm saying to you and give glory to me, I will curse the very blessings that I have given to you.

I will reverse them. And instead of giving you a blessing, I will curse you. I will judge you. And then notice what he said at the end in verse 2. He said, and yes, he said, I have cursed them already. You know why? Because they didn't hearken unto the voice of the Lord. That is an amazing lesson that every believer ought to take to heart in every generation, before Israel was a nation, during the time that Israel as a nation was called by the Lord, after the assembly the church was born, during our present day. This is applicable in every generation for the people of God who need to learn to lay things to their hearts and take seriously the things of the Lord Yeshua the Messiah.

So he continued now in these next verses and after he said I will curse your blessings he showed them that he is sovereign that everything that he does, he is in full control. Nothing is hid from the eyes of the Lord. Listen to this verse in Psalm 115, just this verse, verse 3. The psalmist of Israel said, But our God is in the heavens. He has done whatsoever he has pleased. Our God, the God of Israel, is in heaven. And whatever he does, he does as he pleases. In Proverbs chapter 16, we read these words. Listen to this in verse 9. A man's heart devises his way, but it says the Lord is eventually directing his steps.

Let me read it as it is written. A man's heart devises his way, but the Lord directeth his steps. Even though we make plans and we try to have all kind of things in our own mind that we plan before the Lord, but then eventually the Lord is the one who is sovereign and He directs the steps of any man, anyone here in this world. Listen to another verse in 2 Chronicles chapter 20 and verse 6. And said, this is Yehoshaphat, he was the king of Judah. Look what he said. He said, O Lord God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? And rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathens?

And in thine hand is there not power and might? So that none is able to withstand thee? You see, God is the creator of the universe. No one can withstand him. He is sovereign. Even though we see things that are messed up here in the world in which we live in, yet God is sovereign and he chooses and allows things to happen and sends along the ways for those who disobey him. He does send discipline upon even His very own people. In Ephesians chapter 1 and verse 11 we read, this is a New Testament passage, New Covenant. We read about Yeshua the Messiah. It says, in whom also we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated according to the purpose of Him who works all things after the counsel of His own will.

God works all things after the counsel of his own will. No one can change God's plan and program. Chapter 3 of Ephesians and verse 20, Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us. He is the one who is in control over the affairs of men. And so he gave warning to the priests of Israel through the prophet Malachi. And he told them, listen, you better take it to heart. Because if you will not take it to heart, I will curse your blessing. And yes, I'm telling you, even I have already cursed you because you did not lay it to heart.

I have already cursed you. And this is speaking to us because we also want the blessing of the Lord. And if we want the blessing of the Lord, we need to submit to his authority. Therefore, he will bless us and lead us on in our life. Now, notice, I'm back to Malachi chapter 2 and verse 3. In verse 3, we find out that God will rebuke the seed of these priests. And God will spread dung upon them and eventually he will remove them out of their ministry. Notice chapter 2 and verse 3. Behold, I will corrupt or I will rebuke your seed and I will spread dung upon your faces even the dung of your solemn feasts and one shall take you away with it.

You see what he's saying to them? Okay, priests, you were privileged to serve me. You were privileged to be in the temple, in the house of the Lord. But you abuse your privileges. And if you don't take it to heart, what I'm going to do? I will rebuke your seed and I will spread dung upon your faces. The thought of rebuking their seed is that, can you imagine you sow the seeds? Because the Levites received a portion of the land, a little portion to receive for themselves to be fed by that. So you will spread the seed, but nothing will grow. And then not only that, he said, I will spread dung.

The Hebrew word is perish. He will spread dung upon your faces, that he says, even upon the dung of your solemn feasts. You know, they were celebrating the feasts. But celebrating the feasts with their hearts away from the Lord, going through the routine without their heart is really pricked and doing it unto the Lord, this becoming for God unacceptable. And that's why he's saying to them, I will put dung, spread tongue upon your faces and even the dung upon your soul and feasts and one shall take you away with it. You remember in the earlier chapter 1, he says, if there is anyone here to close the door, I don't need you to come to worship me anymore.

Here he says, I'm going to remove you completely after I took away from you the ability to grow any seed and I will judge you and I will discipline you priests because you did not honor me and you did not exalt my name. So these are the first three verses of Malachi chapter 2, the warning to the unfaithful priests. And again, I just think about us today, those of us that have a privilege of teach the Bible and preach the Word. How many times we know our own hearts, how we fail at the Lord. How we dishonor Him many times in our own life and how much we need to be careful.

James said to the early believers of the assembly, he said, brethren, James 3 verse 1, be not many teachers. Why? Knowing that we shall receive a greater condemnation. We shall receive a greater condemnation. Yaakov said to the early Hebrew believers of the assembly of the church. He gave them this warning. And he said to them, be careful because you need to realize it is a privilege to serve the Lord, but privilege comes with responsibility. And it's the same thing for the rest of the people of God. It is a privilege to be saved and forgiven and part of the people of God, but it also comes with responsibility.

It's not merely churchianity. It's not merely a form of religion. There's got to be a reality. God says to the apostles, said to the believers, to the leaders, he says, listen, there's got to be a reality. I know we all come short in many ways, but nevertheless, you cannot willfully go ahead and ahead and in your own way to the extent that God is set aside and you end up to be corrupting the truth of the word of God. That is unacceptable. And a judgment from the Lord will eventually come. God is love, but he's also light. He is holy and He demands glory from His people.

We didn't read Revelation 3.16 where Yeshua said to the church of Laodicea, I will spew you out of my mouth. We didn't read other passages that we could have read that shows us what the Lord is saying to the assemblies, how God warned the assemblies when they are going astray and the leadership as well, as he has warned the people of Israel in days of old. So, in the first three verses of Malachi chapter 2, verses 1 to 3, the Lord warns the unfaithful priests of judgment to come. But now, from verses 4 to 9, this is the second portion of this ministry meeting, the Lord is pointing to the contrast between Levi, the father of the priests, And the priests of those days, in the days of Malachi.

He's making a contrast. Look at the difference between the days of old, how it all began, and look at the way it is right now. And so in verse 4, notice that, brothers and sisters, God sent a commandment and he pointed to the covenant that he once made with the tribe of Levi. And he says in verse 4 ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you that my covenant listen, might be with Levi says the Lord of hosts I have sent to you priests now to realize and to remember that my covenant that I made with Levi, the tribe of Levi years earlier if you want to enjoy that covenant you have to submit to me because I have made a covenant with the tribe of Levi or Levi in Hebrew.

I made an agreement, a covenant with the tribe of Levi. And in a sense he takes the priests all the way back in their history and he remind them how God has selected the tribes of Levi to be the tribe that serve God, minister among the people of Israel. Now let me just for a moment remind you that Levi was one of the sons of Yaakov, Jacob. Yaakov, if you remember, had the two wives, Leah and Rachel. And the son Levi was one of the sons from Leah. He was the one that was born to Leah, one of the mothers of our people, the people of Israel.

Levi, later on, if you remember, when Levi's sister was taken by another man from the nations around, And he took her Dina, if you remember Dina, in English you say Dina, in Hebrew we say Dina, and they violated Dina. And then Levi and Shimon were so angry, if you remember, they told the people of Hamor there that if they are going to be part now of the nation of Israel, they all have to be circumcised. And after they were willing to be circumcised, what Levi did and Shimon, they killed all those people because they violated their sister Dina and they dishonored the God of Israel.

Jacob their father was not happy with that and Jacob said to them you have put me to shame in what you have done and he was not happy with them and their deeds at all and they ended up fleeing from this area. We can find it in the book of Genesis in chapter 34 and on. In chapter 49 when Jacob Genesis chapter 49 when when Jacob blessed them he reminded them Levi what they have done that they have killed all those descendants of shem and chamor because of they violated their sister dina but time passes by and you remember Jacob Yaakov ended up to be in Egypt in mitzrayim and then our forefathers had been in Egypt for 400 and so years they were away from the promised land for over 400 years, and finally God had brought the people of Israel outside of Egypt, and now they have arrived to the mountain that they call Har Sinai, Mount of Sinai.

There, by the time that they had been on Mount Sinai, God had given the commandments, the law, to our forefathers, the people of Israel. Now, while Moses went up to Mount Sinai and he delayed his coming, if you remember, and i would like you for a moment to turn with me to Exodus chapter 32 if you remember what happened there that Moses did not come right away took some time he was 40 days and 49 there on the mount so now because he did lay his coming if you remember beloved brothers and sisters Israel was so anxious that they say to aaron aaron you know what we have to build for ourselves golden calf.

We need a God. Make us a God. So Aaron took all the earrings and all that gold that they had and he formed for them and he made an idol the golden calf. Now by that time God is saying to Moshe, listen, look what your people have done. And then he sent him down and it says in verse 15 of Exodus 32, and Moses turned and he went down from the mount and the two tables of testimony were in his hand the tables were written on both of their sides on the one side and on the other side were they written and then we read listen what we read in verse 19 when Moses came and saw what Israel have done building a golden camp and saying this is the God that brought you out of Egypt it says that as he and it came to pass verse 19 as soon as he came nigh unto the camp He saw the calf and the dancing and Moses' anger wax hard and he cast the tablets out of his hand and he break them beneath the mound.

And he took the calf which they had made and he burned it in fire and he grounded it to powder and he strode it upon the water and he made the children of Israel to drink it. And when you read just a little bit further, beloved brothers and sisters, as you read in verse 26 of Exodus 32, Moses stood in the gate of the camp and he said, who is on the Lord's side? Let him come unto me. And notice what happened. And all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together unto him. And he said unto them, Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Put every man his sword by his side, and go in and out from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay every man his brother, and every man his companion, and every man his neighbor, and the children of Levi did according to the word of Moses.

And there fell of the people that day about 3,000 men. What Levi did, the tribe of Levi, when Moshe says, Mi la Adonai Eli, who is on the Lord's side, let him come unto me, the Levites, the whole tribe of Levi, Levi, took side with God against themselves and the rest of the nation. They took swords and they killed their own brethren who have dishonored God. They have took a stand for God in those days against their own brethren. Now you and I will say whatever you want to say today. How could they do such a thing? In the days when God had given the law to our forefathers, to the people of Israel, That's what Moses commanded him to do against his very own people who have sinned so grievously against the God of Israel.

Levi took a stand for God. Some time later passed by and there was again another disorder in the land among the people of Israel. In Numbers chapter 25, again the people of Israel abused themselves by allowing themselves to be influenced by daughters of Moab. And they ended up committing hudams there in the camp, right there beside the Lord, beside Moses, and beside the rest of the people of Israel. The Bible tells us in Numbers chapter 25 that people began to commit hudam with the daughters of Moab. This is chapter 25 and verse 1. What happened there? Even at that time, God was so displeased with the children of Israel that God, you might say, he demanded judgment upon his own people who were going around and abusing themselves and causing all kind of havoc in the camp.

Behold, one of the children of Israel, verse 6 says, came and he brought unto his brethren a Midianatish woman in the sight of Moses and in the sight of all the congregation of the children of Israel who were weeping before the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. There was such a chaos that existed there among the people of Israel in the camp where they were camping in the wilderness. So there was a man by the name of Pinchas who was a Kohen, he was a priest. And Pinchas, verse 7, the son of Eliezer, the son of Aharon, the priest, saw it, he rose up from among the congregation and he took a javelin in his hand and he went after the men of Israel into the tent and he thrust both of them through the men of Israel and the women through in her belly.

So the plague was stayed from the children of Israel. And Pinchas, we read of this Pinchas, verse 11, the son of Eliezer, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned my wrath, God is saying, away from the children of Israel, he was zealous for my sake. And then we read in verse 12, Wherefore say, Behold, I will give unto him, this is Pinchas, who is a Levite, my covenant of peace. And he shall have it, and he see after him even the covenant of an everlasting priesthood. And from there on, the tribe of Levi have entered into a covenant with God to have an everlasting priesthood among people of all the people of Israel.

But why I'm reading this, it is because the covenant that God made is a covenant that God wanted to give the tribe of Levi the privilege of serving him, of ministering to God's people. And so in the olden days, they were committed to the things of the Lord. But look what's happened now. They have led Israel astray. They have offered the blind, the lame, and the sick. They didn't give honor to the name of the Lord. And they, as if it were, despised the tabernacle, the temple, I should say, and dishonored the Lord. And now God is telling to the priests, You just look back and see how things begin.

You shall know that I made my covenant with Levi in days of old. And so in verse 5 of Malachi chapter 2, the Lord reminded the priest that it was his covenant that he made was for life and for peace. Look at verse 5. My covenant was with him, with Levi. It was a covenant of life, Chayim, and of peace, Shalom. I promised him a long life, and I promised to give him Shalom and blessing. That was the covenant that I made with the tribe of Levi, with your forefathers. And I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me and was afraid before my name.

In other words, he's looking back and he saw the faithfulness of Pinchas, the faithfulness of the Levi, the tribe of Levi, in the days where the rest of Israel were worshipping a golden calf. They made a decision for God. They were faithful. They took side with God against themselves, against their flesh, against their own brethren who dishonored him. Amazing to see. Where do you see something like that? It is only when one is committing himself and his life to the things of the Lord that he says, listen, I have decided to follow Yeshua the Messiah. I want to live for him. I want to follow him.

I know I will fail many times, but I decided to follow the Lord. And so now notice that. He continues and he says to them in these next verses, verse 6, The Lord reminds these priests of the godly history of their forefathers. Notice verse 6. It says four things about the priests' forefathers, the Levites. He says, the law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips. He walked with me in peace and equity, and he did turn many away from iniquity. Notice those four things that the Lord is mentioning about the tribe of Levi in the older days. Number one, the law of truth was in his mouth.

When he preached and he shared the word with the rest of the nation of Israel, he presented the truth of the word of God. The law of truth. Torat emet was in his mouth. Secondly, in other words, the same verse 6, not only this, but iniquity was not found in his lips. He was not speaking things that are evil. Iniquity was not found in his lips. Whatever he spoke, you wanted to hear that which will honor God and will give a word of encouragement. He didn't speak, his lips were not filled with words that were dishonoring the Lord. Thirdly, notice that verse 6. It says, he walked with me in peace and in equity or uprightness.

You know, Levi is saying to those priests at a time of Malachi. He says, you know what? When you look back, when I made a covenant with your forefathers, with the tribe of Levi, he walked with me. He walked with me in peace, shalom, as it says here in verse 6, and with uprightness. He was living a godly life. He was honoring me. And fourthly, he says in verse 6 at the end, and he says here, as he says here, and he did turn many away from iniquity. You see, the tribe of Levi was used by the Lord, the Kohanim, the priest, to turn away many who were going in the wrong direction, who were heading away from God.

They brought them back to the things of the Lord. They were used by God in olden days. Malachi speaks on behalf of God to the priests of those days. He says, but Levi of all, the fathers of these priests, the tribe of Levi. I love especially the expression at the end, he turned many away from iniquity. You know, the spiritual leaders of the people of Israel, like the spiritual leaders of the assembly today, They have the privilege and the responsibility to turn people away back to the fold, back to the truth, back to the Bible, back to the Lord. How many people are stray, trying to find satisfaction anywhere else and then neglect the things of the Lord?

I remember many years ago when I was, before I was even a believer, there was a dear brother, I was playing soccer in one of the fields in Niagara-on-the-Lake. And there was one brother who was constantly coming to have a visit with me. He was watching the game. And when I finished the game, he took half an hour with me and sat with me and shared with me the gospel. He took his time and his effort to show me the love of God that Yeshua was the Mashiach of Israel, the Savior of the world and somehow the Lord used him and many others to turn our hearts back to say wait a minute that's the truth it's better to to trust in the Lord than to put confidence in men I need to go back to the word of the Lord that's what the ministry beloved brothers and sisters of the priests in those days.

They were ministering unto the Lord and the Lord's people by leading people back to the Word of God. You know, James, in the end of his book, he said in chapter 5, James 5, verse 19, Brethren, if any of you err from the truth and another or one convert him or turn him around, Let him know that he which converteth or turn back the sinner from an error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins. What a privilege to be those that are used by the Lord to lead others to salvation on the one hand, but to also be used as a vessel to bring others back to the Scripture, back to the Word of God.

You see, the world tells us, you don't need God. You don't need Yeshua the Messiah. You don't need the Bible. You don't need to pray. You don't need to come to meetings. Why should you? That's what the world tells us. That's what Satan does to us. But the Lord said, hey, listen, it is good for you to trust me. It is good for you to read the word. It is good for you to speak with me. It is good for you to turn to me. And I'm going to send my servants to minister to your heart so you will be restored back to me. This is the ministry of the servant of the Lord.

What a privilege was the priest's ministry among our own people, the people of Israel. The law of truth was in His mouth. Iniquity was not found in His lips. He walked with me in peace and in uprightness. And He turned many away from iniquity. One day the Lord will honor those who do so. He will reward those who serve Him. Because the day coming, for we must all appear before the judgment seat of the Messiah. And anything that we have done for the Lord Yeshua, the Messiah, He will reward His own people. He's a just God and He will do so. And so now, Malachi continue and God now declares through Malachi the true ministry of the priest, of the Kohen.

Notice verse 7. For the priest's lips should keep knowledge and they should seek the law of his mouth for he is the messenger of the Lord of hosts what is the priest's ministry? Well the priest's lips should keep knowledge they should share the truth that they have learned from God through his word then the result will be that they meaning the nation of Israel they will seek the law at his mouth if somebody want to know about the things of God, what God has to say in Israel, he would come to the priest. The priest represents the truth of God to our people, Israel. And eventually, as it says here in verse 7, the priest, the Kohen, is the messenger of the Lord of hosts.

This word messenger is again the second time where you get in the book of Malachi the word Malach. Malach, messenger. Actually, it is the only time in Scripture that the word Malach is applied to a priest, to the Kohen. And the word Malach simply means a messenger. You remember, it is the second time because the first one who is called Malach or Malachi is the servant himself, Malachi, the prophet. He is called, as it says in chapter 1, verse 1, the burden of the word of the Lord by Malachi, Malachi, Malach. This time is the second time in the book of Malachi that the word Malach is mentioned.

Now it is in reference to the priests, to the Kohanim, the Job, the ministry of the priest. He is a messenger. Malach, he is the messenger of the Lord on behalf of the Lord for the people of Israel. This is the work the priest was called to do. And when he does his work right, the people would seek law at his mouth. I want to know more about God, I'm going to go to the priest. I want to learn more about the things of the Lord, I'm going to come to the spiritual leaders who can help me spiritually. And we too today, if we want to know some more things about the Lord and we have a question, we usually go to someone who is teaching us the Word of God so we can glean some more.

Now, that does not mean that we don't pray and ask the Lord ourselves, but God gave us leadership in the body of Messiah who will teach and minister the Word of God among God's people. Now, just to sum it all up in verse 8, he shows them the contrast now. The contrast, these priests have done exactly the opposite of what their forefathers did notice that in verse 8 but ye are departed out of the way ye have caused many to stumble at the law ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi saith the Lord of hosts while in verse 6 of Malachi chapter 2 he said what the priests the Levites of all have done now he's telling them what they have done the priests in the time of Malachi they have done exactly the opposite instead of turning people back to God they cause many to stumble at the law instead of being speaking the word of God for encouragement and fulfilling the covenant that God made with Levi they corrupted the covenant that God made with the tribe of Levi look at the sad condition beloved brothers and sisters that existed there in the days of Malachi that's why there are 400 of silence years that are coming until the Messiah will finally come and even then unfortunately and sadly Israel did not accept Yeshua his first coming so here's.

The final punishment that God gave to the priests in those days, and that is found in verse 9. And look what we read here. Therefore have I also made you contemptible, or despised, and base, or humiliated, before all the people according as ye have not kept my ways, but have been partial in the law. In other words, they have been, you might say, they didn't have, they had respect of person. They were partial in dealing with the people of Israel. So here's the verdict. God said to them, I've also made you despised. You will not be honored by your people. The people of Israel will not respect you because of the manner whereby you have behaved.

God despised and humiliated the priests because they have despised him and humiliated the name of the Lord himself. And the lesson for us, dear brothers and sisters, is that we also can learn this and apply this to ourselves. We need to ask the Lord as well Lord help us guide us raise in our midst godly brothers and godly sisters that can be good example for us in our lives and help us to be used by you Lord to bring honor to your name and to be a blessing to the people of God well may the Lord bless these thoughts to us all we have covered today Malachi chapter 2 verses 1-9.

Can we say Amen to them?