And this have ye done again, covering the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping, and with crying out, insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand.
Y esta otra vez haréis cubrir el altar del SEÑOR de lágrimas, de llanto, y de clamor; porque yo no miraré más al presente, para tomar ofrenda voluntaria de vuestra mano.
Ver. 13. And this have ye done again , etc.] Or “in the second” place; to their rejection and ill treatment of Christ they added their hypocritical prayers and tears, as follows: covering the altar of the Lord with tears and weeping, and with crying out ; for the Messiah they vainly expect, pretending great humiliation for their sins: though some, as Kimchi and Aben Ezra, make the first evil to be their offering illegal sacrifices on the altar, complained of in the former chapter ( Malachi 1:1-14); and this second, their marrying strangewives, on account of which their lawfulwives came into the house of God, and wept over the altar before the Lord, complaining of the injury that was done them: insomuch that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand ; which expresses an utter rejection and abrogation of legal sacrifices; and which some make to be the reason of their covering the altar with tears and weeping: or the altar is represented as weeping, because sacrifice is no more offered upon it; (see Daniel 9:27Hosea 3:4).
Verses 10-17 - Corrupt practices are the fruit of corruptprinciples; and he who is false to his God, will not be true to his fellow mortals. In contemp of the marriagecovenant, which God instituted, the Jews put away the wives they had of their own nation, probably to make room for strang wives. They made their lives bitter to them; yet, in the sight of others, they pretend to be tender of them. Consider she is thy wife thy own; the nearest relation thou hast in the world. The wife is to be looked on, not as a servant, but as a companion to the husband. Ther is an oath of God between them, which is not to be trifled with. Ma and wife should continue to their lives' end, in holy love and peace Did not God make one, one Eve for one Adam? Yet God could have mad another Eve. Wherefore did he make but one woman for one man? It wa that the children might be made a seed to serve him. Husbands and wive must live in the fear of God, that their seed may be a godly seed. The God of Israel saith that he hateth putting away. Those who would be kept from sin, must take heed to their spirits, for there all sin begins. Men will find that their wrong conduct in their familie springs from selfishness, which disregards the welfare and happiness of others, when opposed to their own passions and fancies. It is wearisom to God to hear people justify themselves in wicked practices. Those wh think God can be a friend to sin, affront him, and deceive themselves The scoffers said, Where is the God of judgement? but the day of the Lord will come __________________________________________________________________
