The Meaning of Malachi 2:3 Explained

Malachi 2:3

KJV: 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.

YLT: Lo, I am pushing away before you the seed, And have scattered dung before your faces, Dung of your festivals, And it hath taken you away with it.

Darby: Behold, I will rebuke your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, the dung of your feasts; and they shall take you away with it.

ASV: Behold, I will rebuke your seed, and will spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your feasts; and ye shall be taken away with it.

Discover Malachi 2:3

CONTEXT: What is the Context of Malachi 2:3?

MEANING: What does Malachi 2:3 Mean?

WORDS: What do the individual words in Malachi 2:3 mean?

RELATIONS: What do the major concepts mean in Malachi 2:3?

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Malachi 2:3 Mean?

Verse Meaning

Part of this curse involved rebuking the priests" offspring (Heb. zera", physical descendants) and spreading (Heb. zarah) refuse from their feasts on their faces (cf. Zechariah 3:3-4). The disgusting picture is of God taking the internal waste of the sacrificial animals and smearing it on the priests" faces. Consequently both sacrifices and priests would have to be taken outside for disposal. This play on words communicates a double curse (cf. Malachi 2:2). The priests" descendants would not continue because the priests would cease to bear any or many children, and their inferior sacrifices would render them unclean. They would not, then, be able to continue to function in their office.

Context Summary

Malachi 2:1-17 - The Transgression Of The Covenant
As a contrast to the disgraceful attitude which the prophet had described as characteristic of the priesthood, he paints the picture of the noble priest, whose burning zeal for God's honor averted evil and punishment from the people. It is desirable that each servant of God should seek to exemplify these traits of character, for it is only they who walk with God in peace and equity who can turn away "many from iniquity." The prophet reproves those who had put away their Jewish wives and had contracted marriage with foreigners. In doing this they had ignored the fact that God was the Father of the Hebrew race, of the women as well as the men, in an especial sense in which He was not the Father of the heathen. In answer to the argument of the Jews, who demanded a plurality of wives, Malachi says that God originally made only one woman for one man, though He could have made many. It was a sin, therefore, against the original constitution of the race for a man to have more than one wife, and this is the argument that our Lord employed in Matthew 19:4. The one man for the one woman is the secret of a happy home-life and of a godly seed. [source]

Chapter Summary: Malachi 2

1  He sharply reproves the priests for neglecting their covenant;
10  and the people for marrying strange wives;
13  and for putting away their former ones,
17  and for infidelity

What do the individual words in Malachi 2:3 mean?

Behold I will rebuke your - descendants and spread refuse on your faces the refuse of your [solemn] feasts and [one] will take away you with it
הִנְנִ֨י גֹעֵ֤ר לָכֶם֙ אֶת־ הַזֶּ֔רַע וְזֵרִ֤יתִי פֶ֙רֶשׁ֙ עַל־ פְּנֵיכֶ֔ם פֶּ֖רֶשׁ חַגֵּיכֶ֑ם וְנָשָׂ֥א אֶתְכֶ֖ם אֵלָֽיו

הִנְנִ֨י  Behold 
Parse: Interjection, first person common singular
Root: הֵן  
Sense: behold, lo, though hypothetical part.
גֹעֵ֤ר  I  will  rebuke 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: גָּעַר  
Sense: (Qal) to rebuke, reprove, corrupt.
לָכֶם֙  your 
Parse: Preposition, second person masculine plural
אֶת־  - 
Parse: Direct object marker
Root: אֹות 
Sense: sign of the definite direct object, not translated in English but generally preceding and indicating the accusative.
הַזֶּ֔רַע  descendants 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: זֶרַע  
Sense: seed, sowing, offspring.
וְזֵרִ֤יתִי  and  spread 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Piel, Conjunctive perfect, first person common singular
Root: זָרָה 
Sense: to scatter, fan, cast away, winnow, disperse, compass, spread, be scattered, be dispersed.
פֶ֙רֶשׁ֙  refuse 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: פֶּרֶשׁ  
Sense: faecal matter, dung, offal.
פְּנֵיכֶ֔ם  your  faces 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: לִפְנֵי 
Sense: face.
פֶּ֖רֶשׁ  the  refuse 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: פֶּרֶשׁ  
Sense: faecal matter, dung, offal.
חַגֵּיכֶ֑ם  of  your  [solemn]  feasts 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine plural
Root: חַג  
Sense: festival, feast, festival-gathering, pilgrim-feast.
וְנָשָׂ֥א  and  [one]  will  take  away 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: נָשָׂא  
Sense: to lift, bear up, carry, take.
אֵלָֽיו  with  it 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).

What are the major concepts related to Malachi 2:3?

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