Bible Strands
Malachi 2:13
And this is another thing you do: You cover the altar of the LORD with tears, with weeping and groaning, because He no longer regards your offerings or receives them gladly from your hands.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet addresses Judah’s priesthood and people regarding their covenant violations, specifically intermarriage and ritual hypocrisy. He speaks at the moment of divine rejection, explaining why God no longer accepts their worship.
The words — כַּסּ֤וֹת (ka.Sot) means "to cover," and דִּמְעָה֙ (dim.'Ah) means "tears." The text literally describes the people covering Yahweh’s altar with tears, weeping, and groaning.
The thread — This motif of rejected worship appears in Isaiah 1:11, where God questions the value of sacrifices, and Jeremiah 14:12, where He refuses to hear cries despite fasting and offerings. It aligns with the pattern of divine refusal when ritual replaces covenant faithfulness.
Why it lands — The text demands acknowledgment that external religious acts cannot compensate for broken covenant relationships. It requires the reader to examine whether their worship addresses the root of disobedience rather than masking it.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
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.
Cross-references
- Isaiah 1:11 “What good to Me is your multitude of sacrifices?” says the LORD. “I am full from the burnt offerings of rams and the fat of well-fed cattle; I take no delight in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.
- Psalms 78:34 When He slew them, they would seek Him; they repented and searched for God.
- Jeremiah 14:12 Although they may fast, I will not listen to their cry; although they may offer burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them. Instead, I will finish them off by sword and famine and plague.”
- Deuteronomy 15:9 Be careful not to harbor this wicked thought in your heart: “The seventh year, the year of release, is near,” so that you look upon your poor brother begrudgingly and give him nothing. He will cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.
- Deuteronomy 26:14 I have not eaten any of the sacred portion while in mourning, or removed any of it while unclean, or offered any of it for the dead. I have obeyed the LORD my God; I have done everything You commanded me.
- 1 Samuel 1:9 So after they had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh, Hannah stood up. Now Eli the priest was sitting on a chair by the doorpost of the temple of the LORD.
- 2 Samuel 13:19 And Tamar put ashes on her head and tore her robe. And putting her hand on her head, she went away crying aloud.
- Nehemiah 8:9 Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to all of them, “This day is holy to the LORD your God. Do not mourn or weep.” For all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the Law.
- Proverbs 15:8 The sacrifice of the wicked is detestable to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight.
- Ecclesiastes 4:1 Again I looked, and I considered all the oppression taking place under the sun. I saw the tears of the oppressed, and they had no comforter; the power lay in the hands of their oppressors, and there was no comforter.