“Should I accept this of your hand?”
The full verse · Malachi 1:13 · KJV
Ye also, Behold, what a is it! and ye have at it, the of ; and ye that which was , and the , and the ; thus ye an : should I this of your ? the .
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Asked to
The priests of Israel, who bring blemished offerings and regard the service of God with contempt.
Why It Was Asked
The purpose behind the questionGod’s rhetorical question rejects the priests’ contemptuous offerings of torn, lame, and sick animals, asking whether He should accept such blemished gifts from those who regard His worship as a wearisome burden.
The Response
What Scripture recordsGod pronounces a curse on the deceiver who offers a blemished animal when he has an acceptable one, for God is a great King whose name is feared among the nations (Malachi 1:14).
The Bigger Picture
Where this fits in God's storyGod’s rhetorical question rejects the priests’ contemptuous offerings of torn, lame, and sick animals, asking whether He should accept such blemished gifts from those who regard His worship as wearisome. It points to Christ, the unblemished Lamb offered willingly, the one offering God fully accepts, so His people serve with reverence rather than contempt.
God will not accept worship given grudgingly or with contempt; He deserves our reverence and our best. The priests treated God’s service as wearisome and brought defective offerings. We should examine whether we serve God with gladness and reverence or with grudging contempt. Acceptable worship comes through Christ, the unblemished Lamb offered willingly, and His people are called to serve God with reverence rather than the wearied contempt Malachi exposed.
Built from the biblical text and checked against trusted commentaries and lexicons. References & Sources
Keep questioning
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