Malachi — The Coverdale Bible (1535)

Malachi, the last of the twelve minor prophets, rebukes priests and people and promises the coming of Elijah. In Coverdale’s Bible of 1535 it stands in the Prophets under the heading “The Prophet Malachy”. Coverdale’s summary of the chapters stands before the text; the 1535 Bible has no verse numbers, so the text keeps its own paragraphs, in 3 chapters, with the marginal notes and references printed after each chapter.

What Malachy conteyneth.

• Chap. I. The benefites of God, shewed specially vnto Israel before all other: Agayne, the punyshment of the vnthanfulnesse, vnfaithfulnesse and covetousnesse of the prestes and the people.
• Chap. II. He threatneth punyshment and confucion vnto the prestes, and commaundeth men to loue their wyues.
• Chap. III. Of Christes commynge, and of him that maketh redy his waye before him. Off the abrogacion of the olde▪ leuiticall prest-heade. Of the power of the iudge for to come and of that fearfull daye.

Chapter 1

The first Chapter. The heuy burthen which the LORDE sheweth agaynst Israel by Malachy.

I Haue loued you, sayeth yᵉ LORDE: ād yet ye saye: wherin hast thou loued vs? Was not Esau [A] Iacobs brother, sayeth the LORDE? yet haue I loued Iacob,⁽¹⁾ and hated Esau: Yee I haue made his hilles waist, and his heretage a wyldernesse for dragōs. And though Edom sayde: well, we are destroyed, we wil go buylde vp agayne the places that be waisted: yet (sayeth yᵉ LORDE of hoostes) what they buylded, that brake I downe: so that it was called a cursed londe,⁽²⁾ and a people, whom the LORDE hath euer bene angrie withall.

Youre eyes haue sene it, ād ye youre selues must confesse, that yᵉ LORDE hath brought the londe of Israel to greate honoure. Shulde not a sonne honoure his father, and a seruaūt his master? Yf I be now a father, where is myne honoure?⁽³⁾ yf I be the LORDE, where am I feared? sayeth the LORDE of hoostes.

Now to you prestes, that despise my name. [B] And yf ye saye: wherin haue we despised thy name? In this, that ye offre vnclene bred vpō myne aulter. And yf ye wil saye: wherin haue we offred eny vnclene thynge vnto the? In this that ye saye: the aulter of the LORDE is not to be regarded. Yf ye offre yᵉ blynde, is not yᵗ euell? And yf ye offre the lame and sick,⁽⁴⁾ is not that euell? Yee offre it vnto thy prynce, shal he be cōtent with the, or accepte thy personne, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes?

And now make youre prayer before God, that he maye haue mercy vpon vs: for soch thinges haue ye done. Shal he regarde youre personnes (thynke ye) sayeth the LORDE of hoostes? Yee what is he amonge you, that wil do so moch as to shut yᵉ dores, or to kyndle yᵉ fyre vpō myne aulter for naught? I haue no pleasure in you, sayeth the LORDE off hoostes: and as for the meatofferinge, I wil not accepte it at youre honde.⁽⁵⁾ For from the rysinge vp of yᵉ sonne vnto yᵉ goinge downe [C] of the same,⁽⁶⁾ my name is greate amonge the Gentiles: Yee in euery place shal there sacrifice be done, and a clene meatofferinge offred vp vnto my name: for my name is greate amonge the Heithē, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes. But ye haue vnhalowed it, in that ye saye, the aulter of yᵉ LORDE is not to be regarded, and the thinge that is set thervpon, not worthy to be eaten.

Now saye ye: It is but laboure and trauayle, and thus haue ye thought scorne at it, (sayeth the LORDE off hoostes) offerynge robbery, yee the lame and the sicke. Ye haue brought me in a meatofferynge, shulde I accepte it of youre honde, sayeth the LORDE? Cursed be the dyssembler, which hath in his flocke one that is male, and when he maketh a vowe, offereth a spotted one vnto the LORDE. For I am a greate kynge (sayeth the LORDE of hoostes) and my name is fearfull amonge the Heithen.

Notes to Chapter 1

⁽¹⁾ Gen. 25. c Ro 9 b Iosu. 24. a Gen. 36. a

⁽²⁾ Abd. 1. a

⁽³⁾ Exo. 20. a Deu. 32. a

⁽⁴⁾ Leu. 22. ⟨illegible⟩ Eze. 43. c

⁽⁵⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽⁶⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

Chapter 2

ANd now (o ye prestes) this commaundement [A] toucheth you: yf ye will not heare it, ner regarde it, to geue the glory vnto my name (sayeth the LORDE off hoostes) I wil sende a curse vpon you,⁽¹⁾ & will curse youre blessinges: yee curse them will I yf ye do not take hede. Beholde, I shal corruppe youre sede, and cast donge in youre faces: euen the donge of youre solempne feastes and it shal cleue fast vpon you. And ye shall knowe, that I haue sent this commaundement vnto you: that my couenaunt which I made with Leui, might stonde, sayeth yᵉ LORDE of hoostes.

I made a couenaunt of life and peace wᵗ him: this I gaue him, that he might stonde in awe of me: and so he dyd feare me, ād had my name in reuerence. The lawe of treuth was in his mouth, and there was no wickednesse founde in his lippes. He walked with me in peace ād equyte,⁽²⁾ and dyd turne many one awaye from their synnes. For the prestes lippes shulde be sure knowlege, that men maye seke the lawe at his mouth, for he is a messaunger of the LORDE of hoostes. But as for you, ye are gone clene out off the waye, and haue caused the multitude to be offended at the lawe: ye haue broken the couenaunt of Leui,⁽³⁾ sayeth the LORDE of hoostes. Therfore wil I also make you to be despised, and to be of no reputacion amonge all yᵉ people: because ye haue not kepte my wayes, but bene parciall in the lawe.

Haue we not all one father? Hath not one God made vs?⁽⁴⁾ why doth euery one off vs then despyse his owne brother, and so breake the couenaunt of oure fathers? Now hath Iuda offended: yee the abhominacion is done in Israel and in Ierusalē,⁽⁵⁾ for Iuda hath defyled the Sāctuary of the LORDE, which he loued, and hath kepte the doughter of a straunge God. But the LORDE shal destroye the mā that doth this (yee both the master & the scolar) out off the tabernacle of Iacob, with him that offreth vp meatofferynge vnto the LORDE off hoostes. Now haue ye brought it to this poynte agayne, that the aulter of the LORDE is couered with teares wepynge and mournynge: so that I will nomore regarde the meatofferynge, nether wil I receaue or accepte eny thinge at youre hōdes.

[C] And yet ye saye: wherfore? Euen because that where as the LORDE made a couenaūt betwixte yᵉ and the wife off thy youth, thou hast despysed her: Yet is she thyne owne cōpanyon and maried wife.

So dyd not ⁽⁶⁾ the one, & yet had he an excellent sprete. What dyd then the one? He sought the sede promised of God. Therfore loke well to youre sprete, & let no man despyse yᵉ wife of his youth. Yf thou hatest her, put her awaye, sayeth the LORDE God of Israel and geue her a clothinge for the scorne, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes. Loke well then to youre sprete, and despyse her not. Ye greue the LORDE with youre wordes, and yet ye saye: wherwithall haue we greued him? In this, that ye saye: All that do euell are good in the sight of God, and soch please him. Or els where is the God that punysheth?.

Notes to Chapter 2

⁽¹⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽²⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽³⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽⁴⁾ ⟨illegible⟩. 4. a ⟨illegible⟩. 7. b ⟨illegible⟩. c

⁽⁵⁾ ⟨illegible⟩. 9. a ⟨illegible⟩ ▪ ⟨illegible⟩1. c

⁽⁶⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

Chapter 3

[A] BEholde, I wil sende my messaunger, which shal prepare the waye before me:⁽¹⁾ and the LORDE whom ye wolde haue, shal soone come to his temple, yee euen the messaunger of the couenaunt whom ye longe for.

Beholde, he commeth, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes. But who maye abyde the daye of his commynge? Who shalbe able to endure, when he appeareth? For he is like a goldsmythes fyre, ād like wasshers sope. He shall syt him downe to trye and to clense yᵉ syluer, he shal pourge the children of Leui, and purifie them like as golde and syluer: that they maye brynge meatofferinges vnto the LORDE in rightuousnes. Then shall the offeringe of Iuda and Ierusalem be acceptable vnto the LORDE, like as from the begynninge & in the yeares afore tyme. I will come & punysh you, & I my self wil be a swift wytnes agaynst the witches, agaynst the aduouterers, agaynst false swearers: yee ād agaynst those, that wrōgeously kepe backe the hyrelynges dewty: which vexe the wyddowes & the fatherlesse, & oppresse the straunger, and feare not me, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes. For I am the LORDE yᵗ chaunge not, & ye (o children of Iacob) wil not leaue of: ye are [B] gone awaye fro myne ordinaūces,⁽²⁾ & sens yᵉ tyme of youre forefathers haue ye not kepte them.

Turne you now vnto me, and I wil turne me vnto you, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes.⁽³⁾ Ye saye: Wherin shal we turne? Shulde a man vse falsede and disceate with God, as ye vse falsede and disceate with me? Yet ye saye: wherin vse we disceate with the? In Tythes and heaue offerynges.⁽⁴⁾ Therfore are ye cursed with penury, because ye dyssemble with me, all the sorte of you.

Brynge euery Tythe in to my barne, yᵗ there maye be meat in myne house: and proue me withall (sayeth the LORDE of hoostes) yf I wil not open the wyndowes of heauen vnto you, and poure you out a blessinge with plenteousnesse. Yee I shal reproue the consumer for youre sakes, so that he shall not eate vp the frute of youre grounde, nether shal yᵉ vynyarde be baren in the felde, sayeth yᵉ LORDE of hoostes: In so moch that all people shal saye, that ye be blessed, for ye shall be a pleasaunt lōde, sayeth the LORDE off hoostes.

Ye speake hard wordes agaynst me, sayeth [C] the LORDE. And yet ye saye: What haue we spoken agaynst the? Ye haue sayed: It is but lost laboure, to serue God: What profit haue we for kepynge his commaundementes,⁽⁵⁾ and for walkinge humbly before the LORDE off hoostes? Therfore maye we saye,⁽⁶⁾ that the proude are happie, and that they which deale with vngodlynesse, are set vp: for they tempte God, and yet escape.

But they that feare God, saye thus one to another: The LORDE cōsidreth and heareth it. Yee it is before him a memoriall boke written for soch as feare the LORDE, and remembre his name. And in the daye that I wil make (saieth yᵉ LORDE of hoostes) they shalbe myne owne possession: and I will fauoure them, like as a man fauoureth his owne sonne, that doth him seruyce. Turne you therfore, and considre what difference is betwixte the rightuous and vngodly: betwixte him that serueth God, ād him that serueth him not.

[D] For marck, the daye commeth that shall burne as an ouē:⁽⁷⁾ and all the proude, yee and all soch as do wickednesse, shalbe straw: and the daye that is for to come, shall burne thē vp (sayeth the LORDE of hoostes) so that it shal leaue them nether rote ner braunch. But vnto you that feare my name, shall the Sōne of rightuousnesse aryse, & health shal be vnder his winges. Ye shal go forth, & multiplie as yᵉ fat calues. Ye shal treaded ⟨illegible⟩ yᵉ vngodly: for they shalbe like the asshes vnder the soles of youre fete, in the daye yᵗ I shal make, sayeth the LORDE of hoostes.

Remembre the lawe of Moses my seruaunt,⁽⁸⁾ which I committed vnto him in Oreb for all Israel,⁽⁹⁾ with the statutes and ordinaunces. Beholde, I will sende you Elias yᵉ prophet: before the cōmynge off the daye of the great and fearfull LORDE. He shall turne the hertes of the fathers to their children and the hertes of the children to their fathers,⁽¹⁰⁾ that I come not, and smyte the earth with cursynge.

Notes to Chapter 3

⁽¹⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽²⁾ Deu. ⟨illegible⟩1. f 4. Re. 17. c

⁽³⁾ Zach. 1. a

⁽⁴⁾ Leui. 27. d Agg. 1. a b

⁽⁵⁾ Iob. 21. b Psal. 72. b

⁽⁶⁾ Iob. 21. a Iere. 12. ⟨illegible⟩

⁽⁷⁾ Psal. 17. a

⁽⁸⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽⁹⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

⁽¹⁰⁾ ⟨illegible⟩

The ende of the prophet Malachy.

Colophon

This page is an archival transcription of the printed text, not a Good Works Translation. Source: Biblia the Byble, that is, the holy Scrypture of the Olde and New Testament, faithfully translated in to Englyshe (M.D.XXXV; STC 2063.3), translated by Myles Coverdale, the copy in Cambridge University Library, keyed and encoded by the Text Creation Partnership (EEBO-TCP Phase I, text A10349, 2005) and released under the Creative Commons CC0 1.0 public-domain dedication.

5 places illegible in the Cambridge copy were filled from Samuel Bagster’s 1838 page-for-page reprint of the edition (archive.org, holyscriptures00cove), only where the reprint’s reading is certain; each fill is listed on this room’s Supplied Readings page; 20 places are still marked ⟨illegible⟩ (1 in the text, 19 in the marginal notes).

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