The Meaning of Malachi 2:15 Explained

Malachi 2:15

KJV: And did not he make one? Yet had he the residue of the spirit. And wherefore one? That he might seek a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

YLT: And He did not make one only, And He hath the remnant of the Spirit. And what is the one alone! He is seeking a godly seed. And ye have been watchful over your spirit, And with the wife of thy youth, None doth deal treacherously.

Darby: And did not one make them? and the remnant of the Spirit was his. And wherefore the one? He sought a seed of God. Take heed then to your spirit, and let none deal unfaithfully against the wife of his youth,

ASV: And did he not make one, although he had the residue of the Spirit? And wherefore one? He sought a godly seed. Therefore take heed to your spirit, and let none deal treacherously against the wife of his youth.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And did not he make  one?  Yet had he the residue  of the spirit.  And wherefore one?  That he might seek  a godly  seed.  Therefore take heed  to your spirit,  and let none deal treacherously  against the wife  of his youth. 

What does Malachi 2:15 Mean?

Study Notes

spirit
Summary of the O.T. doctrine of the Holy Spirit:
(1) The personality and Deity of the Holy Spirit appear from the attributes ascribed to Him, and from His works.
(2) He is revealed as sharing the work of creation and therefore omnipotent Genesis 1:2 ; Job 26:13 ; Job 33:4 ; Psalms 104:30 as omnipresent Psalms 139:7 as striving with men Genesis 6:3 as enlightening Job 32:8 enduing with constructive skill; Exodus 28:3 ; Exodus 31:3 giving physical strength Judges 14:6 ; Judges 14:19 executive ability and wisdom; Judges 3:10 ; Judges 6:34 ; Judges 11:29 ; Judges 13:25 enabling men to receive and utter divine revelations; Numbers 11:25 ; 2 Samuel 23:2 and, generally, as empowering the servants of God; Psalms 51:12 ; Joel 2:28 ; Micah 3:8 ; Zechariah 4:6
(3) He is called holy Psalms 51:11 good Psalms 143:10 the Spirit of judgment and burning Isaiah 4:4 of Jehovah, of wisdom, understanding, counsel, might, good, knowledge, the fear of the Lord Isaiah 11:2 and of grace and supplications Zechariah 12:10 .
(4) In the O.T. the Spirit acts in free sovereignty, coming upon men and even upon a dumb beast as He will, nor are the conditions set forth (as in the N.T.) by complying with which any one may receive the Spirit. The indwelling of every believer by the abiding Spirit is a N.T. blessing consequent upon the death and resurrection of Christ John 7:39 ; John 16:7 ; Acts 2:33 ; Galatians 3:1-6 .
(5) The O.T. contains prediction of a future pouring out of the Spirit upon Israel Exodus 37:14 ; Exodus 39:29 and upon "all flesh" Joel 2:28 ; Joel 2:29 . The expectation of Israel, therefore, was twofold--of the coming of Messiah-Immanuel, and of such an effusion of the Spirit as the prophets described. See Matthew 1:18 .

Verse Meaning

The Israelites needed to be careful, therefore, that no one of them dealt treacherously with the wife he married in his youth by breaking his marriage covenant and divorcing her. The man is the responsible party in the text because in Israel husbands could divorce their wives. Wives divorcing their husbands was less common in Jewish patriarchal society.

Context Summary

Malachi 2:1-17 - The Transgression Of The Covenant
As a contrast to the disgraceful attitude which the prophet had described as characteristic of the priesthood, he paints the picture of the noble priest, whose burning zeal for God's honor averted evil and punishment from the people. It is desirable that each servant of God should seek to exemplify these traits of character, for it is only they who walk with God in peace and equity who can turn away "many from iniquity." The prophet reproves those who had put away their Jewish wives and had contracted marriage with foreigners. In doing this they had ignored the fact that God was the Father of the Hebrew race, of the women as well as the men, in an especial sense in which He was not the Father of the heathen. In answer to the argument of the Jews, who demanded a plurality of wives, Malachi says that God originally made only one woman for one man, though He could have made many. It was a sin, therefore, against the original constitution of the race for a man to have more than one wife, and this is the argument that our Lord employed in Matthew 19:4. The one man for the one woman is the secret of a happy home-life and of a godly seed. [source]

Chapter Summary: Malachi 2

1  He sharply reproves the priests for neglecting their covenant;
10  and the people for marrying strange wives;
13  and for putting away their former ones,
17  and for infidelity

What do the individual words in Malachi 2:15 mean?

But not one did He make [them] and Having a remnant of the Spirit To him and why one He seeks offspring Godly therefore take heed to your spirit and with the wife of his youth none let deal treacherously
וְלֹא־ ؟ אֶחָ֣ד עָשָׂ֗ה וּשְׁאָ֥ר ר֙וּחַ֙ ל֔וֹ וּמָה֙ ؟ הָֽאֶחָ֔ד מְבַקֵּ֖שׁ זֶ֣רַע אֱלֹהִ֑ים וְנִשְׁמַרְתֶּם֙ בְּר֣וּחֲכֶ֔ם וּבְאֵ֥שֶׁת נְעוּרֶ֖יךָ אַל־ יִבְגֹּֽד

וְלֹא־  But  not 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
؟ אֶחָ֣ד  one 
Parse: Number, masculine singular
Root: אֶחָד  
Sense: one (number).
עָשָׂ֗ה  did  He  make  [them] 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Perfect, third person masculine singular
Root: עָשָׂה 
Sense: to do, fashion, accomplish, make.
וּשְׁאָ֥ר  and  Having  a  remnant 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: שְׁאָר  
Sense: rest, residue, remnant, remainder.
ר֙וּחַ֙  of  the  Spirit 
Parse: Noun, common singular
Root: רוּחַ  
Sense: wind, breath, mind, spirit.
ל֔וֹ  To  him 
Parse: Preposition, third person masculine singular
וּמָה֙  and  why 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Interrogative
Root: לָמָּה 
Sense: what, how, of what kind.
؟ הָֽאֶחָ֔ד  one 
Parse: Article, Number, masculine singular
Root: אֶחָד  
Sense: one (number).
מְבַקֵּ֖שׁ  He  seeks 
Parse: Verb, Piel, Participle, masculine singular
Root: בָּקַשׁ  
Sense: to seek, require, desire, exact, request.
זֶ֣רַע  offspring 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: זֶרַע  
Sense: seed, sowing, offspring.
אֱלֹהִ֑ים  Godly 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: אֱלֹהִים  
Sense: (plural).
וְנִשְׁמַרְתֶּם֙  therefore  take  heed 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Nifal, Conjunctive perfect, second person masculine plural
Root: שָׁמַר  
Sense: to keep, guard, observe, give heed.
בְּר֣וּחֲכֶ֔ם  to  your  spirit 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct, second person masculine plural
Root: רוּחַ  
Sense: wind, breath, mind, spirit.
וּבְאֵ֥שֶׁת  and  with  the  wife 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition-b, Noun, feminine singular construct
Root: אִשָּׁה  
Sense: woman, wife, female.
נְעוּרֶ֖יךָ  of  his  youth 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, second person masculine singular
Root: נְעוּרִים 
Sense: youth, early life.
אַל־  none 
Parse: Adverb
Root: אַל  
Sense: not, no, nor, neither, nothing (as wish or preference).
יִבְגֹּֽד  let  deal  treacherously 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine singular
Root: בָּגַד  
Sense: to act treacherously, deceitfully, deal treacherously.