Hi Sparrow,
Hmm... OK. Yeah, it's a narrow point, although I didn't cherry pick, I just followed the verse Paul was citing in Romans 9:13 that is abused so much ... but I see your point.
Almost the whole prophecy is written at Jacob AKA Israel (not the man, but his kids.), about their failings, esp: the curses Jacob will receive for various crimes of the priesthood "if" they don't repent, and some curses even if they do.
But, since Paul's brought us here -- and he also cited Genesis and Malachi together; I'd also like to point out that there is a connection; as Asyncritous kindly pointed out.... The priesthood was generally the father's duty, or when he died the eldest boy; Eg: before it was restricted to Levi *alone*.
So, I'll try to show an example of priestly abuse that ties the two together; the ancient and the new.
The word "Honor" is the root idea of Honorarium, which means money.
Matth 15:4 For God commanded, saying, Honour thy father and mother: and, He that curseth father or mother, let him die the death. [ eg: It's a deadly sin. damnable. ]
Matth 15:5 But ye say, Whosoever shall say to his father or his mother, It is a gift [korban], by whatsoever thou mightest be profited by me;
Matth 15:6 And honour not his father or his mother, he shall be free. Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition.
So, a priest claiming that the money he inherited from dad to take care of mom with, is a gift for the priesthood/temple/ and therefore mom dies of starvation, is a damnable priest.
So: That's one way, jacob AKA Israel talked back to God; saying how the religion's rules ought to work on a "technicality"
There are also many other violations whereby Israel tried to talk back to God listed in Malachi...
But, I'd rather not focus on all them... The first five sentences of the prophecy of malachi use Esau as an example. ( Recall, Esau wasn't his mother's favorite, but he was the one who was left to care for her when Jacob was messing around for an extra 7 years to obtain a second wife uh the one who brought idols with her. But he loved her.... )
Esau (the nation/tribe), by this time, was not worshiping God in the same way that Esau, their father had.
Therefore: Esau's seed (AKA: slip/clay), by this time, had been mixed with that of the women HE married, who brought their own religious ideas (and idols) into the fray, as did their children, and so forth....
In the end, they were utterly displeasing to God. Worthless.
Esau's nick-name is interesting, in that he was called "Edom" (red), like "red Clay"; a very similar sound to "Adam", earth.
But since man is made by God , eg: out of the dust of the earth, or clay, or the slip between spouses, as is metaphorically said so often in scripture:I think it important, to really focus a bit on what an ancient potter was, and how they did their art. If we don't know the thing the analogy is using to explain the point with, we really can't understand the point of the analogy. The more you know, the more you can discern.
Pottery is made by a potter first digging clay out of the ground, and then sifting it, picking out any roots, and rocks, that happen to be in it.
Then it has to be homogenized, and water added, and sometimes glass or other ingredients mixed in to improve it depending on problems the clay has;
(And most clay has at least some problems!!!)
This lump is then called a clay body. (technical term, too)
http://ceramicartsdaily.org/bookstore/additions-to-clay-bodies/
At this point, the clay may be formed, *carefully* dried, and finally tested in the fire of a kiln.
I've done this, myself, and a portion of even my best work -- has shattered and crumbled, so I'm familiar with why it's called an "art".
But, one has to realize that clay comes in different qualities; some clay is just better than others.
And sometimes one can improve clay by mixing it with another clay, or substance, and sometimes not.
Impurities, organic inclusions, sand, calcium, iron, can all reduce the strength, beauty, and utility of a clay, and some of them can flat ruin it.
SO, a potter has to know what a clay is like, and what it can be used for:
One does not, for example, make porcelain china plates from red clay, and I mean, not even from porcelain clay *mixed* with red clay. A thin plate made of pourous red clay will absorb water and likely be very fragile ; not to mention it will almost certainly crack in the kiln when being "fired".
But one CAN make porous bricks from red clay (and straw), or thick walled pots to hold various things.
So a potter must CHOOSE the RIGHT THING to make out of a piece of clay; and I mean something
compatible with the quality of the clay.
Now: If a piece of red clay brick, asked the brick worker "why didn't you make a china doll out of me?" I'd laugh in derision, and sell it for a comedy show.
In Romans 9:19-20 ; Isaiah 45:9 ; The idea's the same -- but it's not funny. It's just ignorance pretending to be knowledge.
God want to build a temple with living stone; and he's the potter which digs, chisels even hard rock, and fires stone bricks. ( Persians glazed stone with glassy clay glaze, for some of their most beautiful walls. )
If we are to become, living rock. then scripture says: look to Sarah, the "pit from which you were dug", and to Abraham "the rock from which you were hewn." ( Isaiah 51:1 )
God knows what he's doing with the clays that are available to make and decorate "living stone".
I simply trust, that God, seeing the quality of the clay -- and knowing the best that could be done with it; did that which was best.
For I know from experience, that it doesn't do any good to build a large pile of weak clay into beautiful objects, and put them in a kiln; just to have the weak ones shatter and bring the weight of the shelves down to crush the rest. Given enough defective jars, some will always shatter, the stacked shelves fall, and like an avalanche from a mountain -- crush the rest.
Unless God builds the house, the builder does so in vain. ( Psalm 127:1 )
And to be clear: To build a house, is to use your clay to beget holy children (Eg: the first wife, not the idol wife, Esau..)
Malachi 2:15(NIV)
Esau's nation definitely did talk back to God, wanting to make their children do their religion their way.
Malachi 1:4(NIV), Malachi 1:4(ESV)
