THE BOOK OF MALACHI; PROPER CONTEXT IS THE KEY

>> Question; has a Christian been made by God to be "contemptible and base before all the people"? NO! Keep reading, you'll understand why that question is asked...

There are two types of scriptures in God's Word; scriptures written directly to Christians and scriptures written indirectly to Christians. 

The difference is that scriptures written indirectly to Christians are not commandments or promises directed by God to the Christian. When God commanded Noah to build an Ark He was not talking directly to Christians, no Christian is instructed by God in His word to build an Ark. We can learn biblical basic principles such as obedience to God from the record of Noah and the flood, but we have no direct instructions from God to build an Ark. 

On the other hand, as an example, Christians are instructed by God to "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." - 2 Timothy 2:15. That verse, being part of the New Testament, is written directly to Christians, and is a direct commandment to us, not a suggestion. Also, it tells us that we need to learn how to "rightly divide the word of God." Divide what? For one thing; divide between what was written directly to us and what was written indirectly to us. 

Knowing the difference between scriptures written directly and indirectly to Christians is very important. Tithers and tithing teachers often use the Old Testament book of Malachi in an attempt to teach or justify "Christian tithing" sadly ignoring all of the obvious clues in Malachi that makes it clear that Malachi was not addressing or instructing New Testament Christians to tithe. The book of Malachi is in no manner instructing Christians, or for that matter, anyone but the Nation of Israel, to tithe under the Law of Moses; of said law Christians are not under.

>> Using Malachi's words in his book, here is why attempting to use the book of Malachi to coerce Christians into tithing is taking scripture written indirectly to Christians and use them as scripture written directly to Christians; that is to say take them out of proper context... 

THE BOOK OF MALACHI; was directly written...

>> Malachi Chapter One, verses;

1 "The burden of the word of the LORD to Israel by Malachi.

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

5 "And your eyes shall see, and ye shall say, The LORD will be magnified from the border of Israel."

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

6 "A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?"

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

9 "And now, I pray you, beseech God that he will be gracious unto us: this hath been by your means: will he regard your persons? saith the LORD of hosts."

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

10 "Who is there even among you that would shut the doors for nought? neither do ye kindle fire on mine altar for nought. I have no pleasure in you, saith the LORD of hosts, neither will I accept an offering at your hand."

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

12 "But ye have profaned it, in that ye say, The table of the LORD is polluted; and the fruit thereof, even his meat, is contemptible."

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

13 "Ye said also, Behold, what a weariness is it! and ye have snuffed at it, saith the LORD of hosts; and ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick; thus ye brought an offering: should I accept this of your hand?" saith the LORD.

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

14 "But cursed be the deceiver, which hath in his flock a male, and voweth, and sacrificeth unto the LORD a corrupt thing: for I am a great King, saith the LORD of hosts, and my name is dreadful among the heathen."

- to Israel, not a New Testament Christian.


>> Malachi Chapter Two, verses;

1 "And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you."

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

3 "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."

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, not a New Testament Christian.

4 "And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the LORD of hosts."

- to Israel, Tribe of Levi, not a New Testament Christian.

7 "For the priest's lips should keep knowledge, and they should seek the law at his mouth: for he is the messenger of the LORD of hosts."

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, those who were under the Law of Moses, not a New Testament Christian.

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."

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, those who were under the Law of Moses, not a New Testament Christian.

9 "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."

- to the corrupt Priests of Israel, those who were under the Law of Moses, not a New Testament Christian; has a Christian been made by God to be "contemptible and base before all the people?" NO!

11 "Judah hath dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the LORD which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god." - to Israel, to Judah; to Israelis who had married the daughter of a strange god.

- to Israel, to Judah, not a New Testament Christian.


>> Malachi Chapter Three, verses;


3 "And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness."

- to Israel, the sons of Levi, not a New Testament Christian.

4 "Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years."

- "to Israel, to Judah and Jerusalem, not a New Testament Christian."

6 "For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.

- to Israel, to sons of Jacob (i.e.; the sons of Israel), not a New Testament Christian."

7 "Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?"

- to Israel, to those who God had departed from in Israel, not a New Testament Christian; God NEVER departs from us and does not have to return unto us; "Teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” - Matthew 28:20

10 "Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

- to Israel, referring to the Storehouse attached to the Temple in Jerusalem, Israel; not a New Testament Christian. God has NEVER designated a New Testament fellowship or ministry as a "storehouse to be tithed to."

11 "And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts."

- to Israel, the Land of Israel, not a New Testament Christian. 

12 "And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts."

- to Israel, the Land of Israel, not a New Testament Christian.


>> Malachi Chapter Four, verses;

4 "Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments."

- to Israel, the People of Israel, not a New Testament Christian. A New Testament Christian is NOT under the Law of Moses; "For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace." - Romans 6:14, and concerning tithing; "For there is verily a disannulling [ENDING] of the commandment [to tithe] going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof." - Hebrews 7:18

5 "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:"

- to Israel, the People of Israel, not a New Testament Christian.


>>> CONCLUSION; In fact, EVERY SINGLE VERSE in the Book of Malachi, EVERY LAST ONE, without exception, in one manner or another, makes it VERY CLEAR that the book of Malachi was written DIRECTLY TO THE NATION OF ISRAEL WHO WERE UNDER THE LAW; not directly to New Testament Christians.

The Book of Malachi was written to correct the unscriptural, unlawful and corrupt behavior of the Israelites – in particular; the priests – in post-exilic Jerusalem).


Any attempt to coerce Christians into "tithing" with the Book of Malachi, including using Malachi 3:10, is blatantly taking scripture out of proper context and is a deceptive practice. The Book of Malachi instructs NO CHRISTIAN to "tithe" anything to anyone at any time.


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Copyright 2019-2020, Anthony Todd, All rights reserved. Permission to copy and distribute this article must be obtained in writing from Tithing Study Online.

Permission can be requested at: tithingstudyonline@gmail.com. Upon permission to do so, it is granted under the strict condition that no content of any article be removed or altered, and that all articles are to remain intact as is when used. You must include a notation that any article distributed originated from Tithing Study Online, and include our blog URL as: https://ExaminingTithingDeceptions.blogspot.com.

Malachi 3:10...out of context!

Malachi 3:10...out of context!

"Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts..." - Malachi 3:10

Why do tithing teachers use Malachi 3:10 in an attempt to persuade people to tithe to them? 

Simple answer; because it's in the Bible, and it's easy to twist and falsify. What I mean by "because it's in the Bible," is that tithing teachers hope you assume that simply because Malachi 3:10 is in the Bible, simply because it exists as a verse, it therefore MUST BE TALKING TO YOU DIRECTLY, CHRISTIAN, and instructing YOU to tithe. Nothing could be further from the truth.

To tithing teachers, it never occurs to them that they're taking Malachi 3:10 completely out of... 

1. Historic context (when it was written; before the New Testament, and during a time of the robbery of the Temple tithe from the Jerusalem Temple Storehouse; Malachi 3:8-10, by the corrupt priests; Malachi 2:1).

2. Textual context (what scriptures it was written around; Malachi 1:1, Malachi 2:1, Malachi 4:4, Nehemiah 10:37-38, Nehemiah Chapter 13, etc., let scripture interpret scripture; 2 Peter 1:20-21 - "Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation, For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost).

3. Situational context (why it was written, what situation it was addressing; Malachi 2:1, Malachi 3:8, Malachi 4:4).

4. Linguistic context (what language it was written in; Hebrew).

5. National context (to whom it was written; Israelis, the Nation of Israel; Malachi 1:1, Malachi 1:6, the the New Testament Church).

6. Locational context (where it was written; the Land of Israel; Malachi 1:1, The Book of Malachi was written to correct the unscriptural and corrupt behavior of the Israelites – in particular; the priests – in post-exilic Jerusalem).

...thus ignoring all six contents, and ignoring the important and proper disciplines of Biblical Hermeneutics, Biblical Exegesis, and rightly dividing the Word of Truth...

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." - 2 Timothy 2:15

"Rightly Dividing;" >>>

Greek: ὀρθοτομέω
Transliteration: orthotomeō
Pronunciation: or-thot-om-eh'-o
Definition: From a compound of G3717 and the base of G5114; to make a straight cut that is (figuratively) to dissect (expound) correctly (the divine message): - rightly divide.
KJV Usage: rightly divide


>> Nowhere in the Word of God has God ever levied a tithe of any kind on a man or woman's income...NOWHERE, and certainly NOT in Malachi 3:10.

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Copyright 2019-2020, Anthony Todd, All rights reserved. Permission to copy and distribute this article must be obtained in writing from Tithing Study Online.

Permission can be requested at: tithingstudyonline@gmail.com. Upon permission to do so, it is granted under the strict condition that no content of any article be removed or altered, and that all articles are to remain intact as is when used. You must include a notation that any article distributed originated from Tithing Study Online, and include our blog URL as: https://ExaminingTithingDeceptions.blogspot.com.