“Are we not all children of the same Father? Are we not all created by the same God? Then why do we betray each other, violating the covenant of our ancestors? Judah has been unfaithful, and a detestable thing has been done in Israel and in Jerusalem. The men of Judah have defiled the Lord’s beloved sanctuary by marrying women who worship idols. May the Lord cut off from the nation of Israel every last man who has done this and yet brings an offering to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Here is another thing you do. You cover the Lord’s altar with tears, weeping and groaning because he pays no attention to your offerings and doesn’t accept them with pleasure. You cry out, “Why doesn’t the Lord accept my worship?” I’ll tell you why! Because the Lord witnessed the vows you and your wife made when you were young. But you have been unfaithful to her, though she remained your faithful partner, the wife of your marriage vows. Didn’t the Lord make you one with your wife? In body and spirit you are his. And what does he want? Godly children from your union. So guard your heart; remain loyal to the wife of your youth. “For I hate divorce!” says the Lord, the God of Israel. “To divorce your wife is to overwhelm her with cruelty,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. “So guard your heart; do not be unfaithful to your wife.””
Malachi 2:10-16 NLT
God takes some things very seriously and Israel offends many of them here. First, man is God’s direct representative in the marriage relationship. When man doesn’t provide for his wife, he paints a picture of a God who doesn’t provide. Secondly, God is faithful. He cannot abide when a man shows that he is not faithful. Third, God is jealous, he does not tolerate idolatry. Fourth God is relational, he will not approve of broken unions. Fifth, God is honest. He is offended by hypocritical platitudes of false humility. There are many things that are capable of marring God’s image in a marriage relationship. When we mishandle them, we should be unsurprised when God stops accepting our sacrifices. The way to fix this is not words or sacrifices. It is confession and repentance in our families. It is men owning their mistakes and truly seeking to remember their wives and children. It is actively creating a place for God in the union we have with our families and honoring him there.
JOSH McGARY. COM 