8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you say, 'How have we robbed Thee?' In tithes and offerings. 9
"You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing Me, the whole nation of
you! (Mal 3:8-9 NAS)
הֲ (h¦) Interrogative particle. h¦ is
prefixed to the first word of a sentence or a clause, mostly involving direct
questions. When h¦ appears in a question that question is not asking
primarily for information but rather is a rhetorical question to which usually
a negative answer is expected. “Will a man rob God?” The implied answer would
be “no” however the writer continues with “yet you do!” Malachi is warning the priest and leaders of
Judah that their tithes and offerings were not considered a voluntary
contribution to God’s work. The tithe was a contractual agreement that dated
back to the Passover in Exodus. On the night of the Passover, God sanctified
the first born of every Hebrew family when the angel of death swooped down to kill the first
born of all of Egypt in the final pleague before the Exodus. When
the angel of death came to a house that had the blood of the lamb painted over
the door post it passed over and spared the son from death (Ex. 12:7,12-13).
From that day forward every first born male was considered to be God’s
possession. God had set them apart with the blood of the Passover lamb and they
were now His (Ex 13:1)! Later God “called out” the tribe of Levi to take the
place of the first born (Num 3:12-13). In
exchange every family was to give God a tithe (Num 18:21) to support those who
took the place of their sons. By withholding the tithe, Israel was indeed
“robbing God”. In response to this betrayal, God was about to judge Israel
through famine 3:11, invasion, and captivity 4:1.
In relation to the word קבע that is
translated “rob” the Halot lexicon has an interesting observation.
קֹבְעֵיהֶם congegated as a verb participle plural absolute has a disputed meaning.
It either means “1. to walk behind one another (KBL); or
2. to rob, steal; The Sept. πτερυίζειν (to betray) supports the first suggestion, in which case קבע would be an intentional alteration
of עקב . For Mal 3:8 the decision is
difficult; within the context, ‘to betray’ is more acceptable than ‘to rob’”, (HALOT Lexicon)
The Septuagint (Greek
translation of the Old Testament) helps clarify the disputed Hebrew meaning, by
conveying the first hebrew meaning to “walk behind.” Perhaps today one might say to go behind someone’s
back… to betray.
The context of the passage supports the idea
of going behind God’s back, or disobeying him. If this is correct, the verse might read “Will
a man betray God?” The nuance of betrayal in ones understanding of disobedience
brings a relational aspect to the sin. Betrayal implies the breaking of
relationship, which seems to be more personal than breaking a law. The robbery
noted in Malachi 3:8 is not just financial, and while the corruption of the
priests and leaders of Israel may have yielded a short term gain, God was aware of the
betrayal, and sent Malachi to warn them!
Unlike Israel, the
church today is not obligated by the Jewish law to tithe. Yet I wonder if, when we withhold our giving to God, there could be a nuance of betrayal? The answer is both yes and no. For it is not
the act of our giving that wins favor with God, but the motivation in why we
give that pleases Him (2 Cor 9:7). There is a common thread that is woven
throughout the Old and New Testament that is deeper than the law. The law was given to Israel to bring a consciousness
of their sin. (Rom 3:20; Heb 10:1-2), not salvation. Ones relationship with God has
always been measured through faith! (Gen 15:6, Rom 1:17, Hebrew 11). The seat of
betrayal lies in the heart, not the wallet. Without God, the heart of man is deceitful
and wicked! (Jer 17:9). God searches our hearts and tests us through our deeds
(Jer 17:10)! The Law was given as a
measurement to Israel to enable them to see what God already has seen in their
hearts! It is easy to miss the point and fall to the
misperception that one's relatrionship to God is based on how one can or cannot keep the law. Even today some carry the misconception that their salvatoin is based on their works. When tempted to think this way, it is healthy remeber the wonderful truth that we are saved by grace, not by works! (Eph 2:8-9). Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart (1 Sam 16:7).
"As in water face reflects
face, So the heart of man reflects man." (Pro 27:19 NAS). How one gives to the Lord, (motivation of heart, not the amount)
reflects the heart of Man.
Because the O.T. law was
broken;
*Israel’s leaders
sacrificed rotten food, blind and diseased animals to a holy God, ! (Mal
1:7-8,)
*Priests teaching did not
teach word of God , but caused people to stumble in their walk( 2:7-8)
*Israel divorced their
Jewish wives of the same faith, to marry women who worshiped other Gods
(2:11-16)
*they withheld their tithes
Israel had betrayed God.
Taken in context, the withholding
of tithes, was just one of several problems that reflected the heart of the
leaders of Israel.
Jesus said to those
seeking to follow him; “where your
treasure is there your heart will be also” (Lk 12:34).
God loves a cheerful
giver because it reflects his/her heart and He will bless that person to enable
him give generously (2 Cor 9:6-11).
In answer to my above
reflection; Yet I wonder if, when we
withhold our giving to God, there could be a nuance of betrayal? My answer was both yes and no. No because we are not obligated under the law to tithe. And yes, becasue our heart betrays our motivation. When one gives out of anxiety and fear, one may withold their giving, or even give extra in attempt to earn favor with God or men. When one gives to the Lord out of thankfulness, contentment, or even out of a healthy fear and reverence of who God is; he will give with a cheerful heart. God will know our heart and motivation in giving and promises is to bless those who give from a heart that reflects their love for Him. For God loves a cheerful giver! (2 Cor 9:7).
