Malachi 2:9--The Priests Were Partial in the Law

In Malachi 2:9 specific mention is made concerning the priest being ‘partial in the law’ or ‘partiality in your instruction’ (ESV, NET). In what way this partiality was being manifested is not divulged. Obviously, there were multiple ways from priest to priest. The partiality could have been in the instruction of the law. Thus they were teaching some parts of the Mosaic Law while ignoring other parts or it could have been in the application of the law. In the application of the law, one can imagine a scenario in which the ‘junk’ sacrifice of the rich is acceptable while a poor person brings the same kind of sacrifice to the altar and he is instructed in the law. What is relevant for us today is the way the same thing can occur in a church today. Here are a few possible example for the 21st century:

 Faith in Christ is taught, but repentance toward God is never mentioned
 Grace is emphasized, but any form of church discipline is completely absent
 Smoking is sin, but the preacher’s overeating can be ignored
 Homosexuality is the deadly sin, but references to heterosexual adultery are avoided
 Jesus is presented as Savior on a regular basis, but his LORDSHIP is missing
 Salvation in Christ is preached, but denying oneself and taking up a cross to follow Jesus might offend someone
 The LGBT movement is nailed, but heterosexual cohabitation is swept under the pulpit rug
 God is fine, but the Creator God who made all things in six days is never mentioned
 Being generous to the Salvation Army’s red bucket is encouraged, but instruction in tithing to the local church might turn someone off
 God’s love is the constant message, but His abiding wrath against sin simply isn't politically correct anymore
 Church attendance is fine, but a formal commitment to a single body of believers led by shepherds who care for your soul seems a bit too much
 Adultery is sin, but window shopping is what everyone does…right?
 Man’s freewill is emphasized, but God’s Sovereignty is gone
 The sin of the rich is ignored, while the sin of the poor is hammered
 The existence of Jesus is good, but his exclusivity cannot be tolerated
 The Bible contains truth, but it can’t be the single source of revelation from God

Dung in Your Face is an Apologetic for Inspiration of the Bible

The nasty or grotesque picture found in Malachi 2:3 serves as an apologetic, a defense, that the Bible must be the Word of God.  No human author intending upon manufacturing a narrative about a god and his people would include such an abhorrent description of the action of the god against his people as rubbing animal waste, literally ‘crap’, in their faces for their failure to do what was instructed. Malachi writes as a man inspired by God—he is a messenger on a mission from the One True God of the Universe—the LORD of the Hosts. He must say what the LORD tells him to say without regard to the potential fallout of his message. Having dung rubbed in your face is nasty. What were the priests doing that was ‘that bad?’ Read Malachi 2 to discover the issue.