Section 1:2–5

The LORD loved the people of Israel very much

Paragraph 1:2–5

At the time when Malachi was writing, the people of Israel were discouraged. Some years earlier their enemies, the Babylonians, had defeated them in war and had taken them as slaves to Babylon.

After some time the people of Israel had been released and were now living again in their own land, but life was very difficult. Perhaps they felt that the LORD had failed to bless them as a nation. They questioned whether the LORD really loved them. The LORD answered this accusation by pointing out that he had chosen to love them more than other nations. He told them that he had shown this love when he chose their ancestor Jacob and entered into a covenant relationship with him and his descendants (Genesis 28:13–15, 35:9–12, 46:3–4).

1:2a

I have loved you: This is the first of the LORD’s statements of fact.

have loved: The tense of the verb “love” used here in Hebrew is not limited to present time. It can include past time as well as a present. Good News Translation makes this clear with:

I have always loved you. (Good News Translation)

1:2b

says the LORD: The speech clause, says the LORD (or “says the LORD of Hosts”), occurs many times throughout the text. This emphasizes repeatedly that this is a direct message from the LORD. See note 1 in “Literary structure and recurring features in Malachi” in the Introduction.

Notice that in the Berean Standard Bible this clause occurs after the speech. This is good English style. You should place your speech clause wherever it would naturally occur in your language.

1:2c

But you ask: This phrase introduces the first of the objections made by the people of Israel. Most English versions keep the second person pronoun you. This emphasizes the personal relationship which the LORD had with his people.

How have You loved us?: This question expresses surprise and disbelief.

1:2d

Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?: This is a rhetorical question. The LORD was speaking again. By using the question form, the LORD emphasized a fact that the people knew well. Esau and Jacob were children of the same father and the same mother. (In fact, they were twins. See Genesis 25:21–26.)

declares the LORD: See the note on 1:2b. Notice that in the Berean Standard Bible this speech clause again occurs after the question. This is good English style. You should place it wherever it would naturally occur in your language.

1:2e–3a

loved…hated: The Hebrew word which the Berean Standard Bible translates as hated needs to be understood in contrast to the word which the Berean Standard Bible translates as loved. In this context loved means “chosen,” “favored” (as in Deuteronomy 7:7–8; Jeremiah 31:3; Hosea 11:1), while hated is the opposite: “not chosen,” “rejected” or “set aside.” Jacob had been chosen to be the ancestor of the LORD’s special people. By choosing Jacob, the LORD, therefore, was not choosing Jacob’s twin brother, Esau.

In some languages it may be best to use words like “choose” and “reject.” For example:

yet I have accepted Jacob and have rejected Esau. (Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures)
-or-
yet I chose Jacob, and rejected Esau. (NET Bible)

Jacob…Esau: This verse is not referring only to the individuals, Jacob and Esau, but also to their descendants. Jacob was the ancestor of the nation of Israel, and Esau was the ancestor of a different nation. In some languages it may be necessary to make this explicit. For example:

2 Esau and Jacob were brothers, but I have loved Jacob and his descendants, 3 and have hated Esau and his descendants. (Good News Translation)

General Comment on 1:2e–3a

In some languages it may be helpful to reverse the order of 1:2e and 1:3a. For example:

3a but it was not Esau whom I chose ⌊to be the ancestor of my people.⌋ 2e ⌊Instead,⌋ I chose Jacob ⌊and his descendants⌋.

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