Have we not all one father? has not one God created us? why do we deal treacherously every man against his brother, by profaning the covenant of our fathers?
all.
Malachi 1:6 A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a father, where is mine honour? and if I be a master, where is my fear? saith the LORD of hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy name?
Joshua 24:3 And I took your father Abraham from the other side of the flood, and led him throughout all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac.
Isaiah 51:2 Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
hath.
Job 31:15 Did not he that made me in the womb make him? and did not one fashion us in the womb?
Psalm 100:3 Know ye that the LORD he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Isaiah 43:1,7,15 But now thus saith the LORD that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel, Fear not: for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine…
why.
Malachi 2:11,14,15 Judah hath dealt treacherously, and an abomination is committed in Israel and in Jerusalem; for Judah hath profaned the holiness of the LORD which he loved, and hath married the daughter of a strange god…
Jeremiah 9:4,5 Take ye heed every one of his neighbour, and trust ye not in any brother: for every brother will utterly supplant, and every neighbour will walk with slanders…
Micah 7:2-6 The good man is perished out of the earth: and there is none upright among men: they all lie in wait for blood; they hunt every man his brother with a net…
by.
Malachi 2:8,11 But ye are departed out of the way; ye have caused many to stumble at the law; ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the LORD of hosts…
Exodus 34:10-16 And he said, Behold, I make a covenant: before all thy people I will do marvels, such as have not been done in all the earth, nor in any nation: and all the people among which thou art shall see the work of the LORD: for it is a terrible thing that I will do with thee…
Joshua 23:12-16 Else if ye do in any wise go back, and cleave unto the remnant of these nations, even these that remain among you, and shall make marriages with them, and go in unto them, and they to you: …
Did not one God create us?
This statement reaffirms the monotheistic belief central to Israelite faith, distinguishing them from surrounding polytheistic cultures. It echoes Genesis 1:27, where God creates humanity in His image, establishing the inherent dignity and worth of every person. The creation by one God implies a shared purpose and destiny, calling the Israelites to live in harmony and obedience to their Creator.
Why then do we break faith with one another
Breaking faith refers to acts of betrayal or unfaithfulness, particularly in the context of covenant relationships. In Malachi's time, this included issues like divorce and social injustice, which violated the community's covenantal obligations. The prophets frequently addressed such breaches, urging a return to faithfulness (Hosea 4:1-2, Jeremiah 5:1-2). This phrase challenges the Israelites to examine their actions and restore integrity in their relationships.
so as to profane the covenant of our fathers?
The covenant of the fathers refers to the agreements God made with the patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—and later with the nation of Israel at Sinai. Profaning the covenant means treating it with disrespect or irreverence, often through disobedience or idolatry. This phrase highlights the seriousness of covenant violations, which not only harm interpersonal relationships but also dishonor the sacred commitments made with God. The call is to uphold the covenant faithfully, reflecting God's holiness and justice.
– The prophet begins with a rhetorical reminder that every member of the covenant community shares the same Father—God Himself.
• Deuteronomy 32:6: “Is He not your Father and Creator, the One who formed you and established you?”
• Isaiah 63:16 affirms, “You, O LORD, are our Father; our Redeemer from of old is Your name.”
• Because God is Father, His people are siblings; family loyalty demands love, fairness, and mutual care (cf. Matthew 6:9; Ephesians 4:6).
– When believers forget their common Father, divisions, prejudices, and selfish aims creep in, rupturing family unity.
– Malachi deepens the argument: the one Father is also the single Creator who brought the nation—and indeed all humanity—into existence.
• Genesis 1:27 sets the foundational truth that God alone made mankind.
• Job 33:4 echoes, “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
• Isaiah 42:5 points to the Creator’s universal authority: “He who created the heavens and stretched them out… gives breath to the people upon it.”
– By recalling creation, the prophet roots covenant ethics in God’s ownership; the people owe both their origin and their ongoing identity to Him.
– Recognizing one Creator eliminates grounds for superiority complexes or factionalism—each person stands on equal footing before the Maker.
– “Break faith” exposes treachery among God’s people—particularly unfaithful marriages (Malachi 2:11–16) and wider social injustices.
• Leviticus 19:11 warns, “You must not steal or lie or deceive one another.”
• Deuteronomy 7:3-4 forbids covenant-threatening intermarriage with idolaters; Nehemiah 13:23-27 records similar violations in Malachi’s era.
• Malachi equates mistreating fellow believers with profaning the ancient covenant given to “our fathers” (Abraham, Moses, David).
– Horizontal unfaithfulness (to spouse, neighbor, community) is ultimately vertical unfaithfulness toward God, because the covenant binds both realms together.
– For today’s believer, dishonesty, broken commitments, or divisive attitudes still desecrate the gospel covenant sealed by Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 11:17-22; Ephesians 4:25-32).
Malachi 2:10 confronts God’s people with three intertwined truths: we share one Father, we owe our existence to one Creator, and therefore faithfulness to one another is non-negotiable. Covenant relationship with God demands covenant faithfulness within the community. Whenever believers betray that trust—through injustice, broken promises, or relational treachery—they insult the very God who made and fathered them. Remembering our common Father and Creator fuels unity, integrity, and loving commitment among all who belong to Him.
(10-17) The prophet now rebukes the two great sins of the nation at this time: (1) marriage with idolatresses; (2) divorce of the first (Israelitish) wife. He introduces this rebuke by a general statement, similar to that of Malachi 1:2.(10) One father--i.e., not Adam, Abraham, or Jacob (as various commentators have held), but God Himself (Malachi 1:6; Deuteronomy 32:6; Deuteronomy 32:18), who is the spiritual Father of the nation, and in whom they are all brothers and sisters; so that when an Israelite married a heathen woman, or divorced an Israelitish wife, it was an offence against God, a "profaning the covenant of the fathers," and a violation of the fraternal relation. Moreover, "one God created" them for His glory (Isaiah 43:7), for the special purpose of being a witness to His unity. The admission of idolatresses into their families would be fatal to this object. . . .
Verses 10-16 - Part II. CONDEMNATION OF PRIESTS AND PEOPLE FOR ALIEN MARRIAGES AND FOR DIVORCES. Verse 10. - Have we not all one Father? In proceeding to his new subject, the violations of the law of marriage, the prophet pursues his habitual method. He starts with a general principle, here assuming an interrogative form, and on it builds his rebuke. The priests were guilty, if not of profane marriages, at any rate of sinful neglect in not warning the people against them. Many take the "one father" to be Abraham (Isaiah 51:2), and it is no objection to this view that he was also the progenitor of Ishmaelites, Edomites, etc., because there was at this time no question about marriage with these nations, but with Canaanites, Moabites, Egyptians, and so on. But the parallelism with the following clause shows that by the Father is meant Almighty God (comp. Malachi 1:6; Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 63:16). Hath not one God created us? Hath not God taken us as his peculiar people, so as to call us his sons and his firstborn (comp. Exodus 4:22, 23; Deuteronomy 32:18; Isaiah 1:2; Jeremiah 3:19)? Of course, God created all men; but the Jews alone recognized him as Creator. The prophet's proposition is that all Israelites were spiritual brothers and sisters, equally loved and chosen by God. From this he argues that in sinning against one another, they offended their common Father, and broke the family compact. Deal treacherously. Act faithlessly against one another. He does not yet say in what this treachery consists, but adds, by profaning the covenant of our fathers. He unites himself with them, because he suffered in their sin. They violated the covenant by which God chose them to be his peculiar people and placed himself in mysterious relation to them, on condition that they should keep themselves aloof from the evil nations around them, and avoid all connection with them and their practices. By intermarriages with the heathen, they profaned this covenant. This evil was one which Ezra had done his best to eradicate, using most stringent measures for its suppression (Ezra 9, 10.); Nehemiah, too, contended against those who had contracted these marriages, when he found on his return to Jerusalem many such transgressors (Nehemiah 13:23-28); and now the prophet lifts up his voice in the cause of purity and obedience. The warning against throe mixed unions is found in Exodus 34:16; Deuteronomy 7:3; Joshua 23:12, 18.