Malakhi was a prophet who lived about 2500 years ago, at the time of שִׁיבַת צִיּוֹן (shivat tziyon, the return to Zion/Yerushalayim). The Jewish people were coming back from גָּלוּת בָּבֶל (galut Bavel, the Babylonian exile), and beginning to serve God again in the second בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ (Beit Ha-Mikdash, Holy Temple).

Though shivat tziyon was a happy time, Malakhi points out that the עֲבֹדָה (avodah, service) in the second Beit Ha-Mikdash had some major problems. The biggest issue was that the כֹּהֲנִים (kohanim, priests) weren’t doing a good job. Malakhi says that they were making God’s name profane by bringing unfit animals as sacrifices. He warns that God will send curses to kohanim who act this way, and that we owe it to God to do better because, after all, God showed great love to Yaakov, our ancestor, and completely rejected Esav.

Malakhi’s message includes some words and phrases that echo בִּרְכַּת כֹּהֲנִים (birkat kohanim), the special prayer that God gave to Aharon and his sons for blessing Benei Yisrael (Bemidbar 6:24-26).

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