Study Desk

The Lord says to his people, "I have always loved you." But they reply, "How have you shown your love for us?" The Lord answers, "Esau and Jacob were brothers, but I have loved Jacob and his descendants,

The Lord Almighty says to the priests, "Children honor their parents, and servants honor their masters. I am your father—why don't you honor me? I am your master—why don't you respect me? You despise me, and yet you ask, ‘How have we despised you?'

The Lord Almighty says, "I wish one of you would close the Temple doors so as to prevent you from lighting useless fires on my altar. I am not pleased with you; I will not accept the offerings you bring me.

The Lord Almighty says to the priests, "This command is for you:

"I hate divorce," says the Lord God of Israel. "I hate it when one of you does such a cruel thing to his wife. Make sure that you do not break your promise to be faithful to your wife."

The Lord Almighty says, "I will appear among you to judge, and I will testify at once against those who practice magic, against adulterers, against those who give false testimony, those who cheat employees out of their wages, and those who take advantage of widows, orphans, and foreigners—against all who do not respect me.

"You have said terrible things about me," says the Lord . "But you ask, ‘What have we said about you?'

You have said, ‘It's useless to serve God. What's the use of doing what he says or of trying to show the Lord Almighty that we are sorry for what we have done?

"They will be my people," says the Lord Almighty. "On the day when I act, they will be my very own. I will be merciful to them as parents are merciful to the children who serve them.

The Lord Almighty says, "The day is coming when all proud and evil people will burn like straw. On that day they will burn up, and there will be nothing left of them.