In chapter 40 the Almighty continues His challenge to Job. In verse 1 the LORD accuses Job of being a faultfinder without a cause. From verses 2-5 Job acknowledges his fault and promises that he will listen

in silence. Again, out of the whirlwind His Sovereign says, dress like a man in a contest and answer if you're able. Begin by considering the awesome majesty of the Almighty. God will abase all who are lifted up in pride. From verses 15-24 Job's attention is drawn to the wild river ox - most likely the hippopotamus. The hippo symbolises untameable human pride. Of all our ugly lusts pride is the worst. It creates a mighty chasm between ourselves and our Creator. The hippo has an incredible girth and a great appetite for procreation. He has the tiniest tail, yet waves it as though it's a mighty cedar - in our pride the easiest person to deceive Is ourself. The hippo's hide is legendarily tough - meaning that he is immune to correction. The hippo luxuriates in the filthiest parts of the river. Hippos kill more people in the rivers they inhabit than any other creatures of those habitats.

Malachi 2verses1-9 contain a rebuke to the priests for a failure to fulfil the commission of their Sovereign. The responsibility of priests is to lead the nation in their reverence for Yahweh. The priests were to comprehend God's Word, break it small and dispense it to the people. They were the LORD's "messengers" - but they had failed in their duty. They bore no resemblance to Phinehas, from the tribe of Levi, who demonstrated his loyalty to His Sovereign; even at the great cost of slaying the guilty, even his own relatives. And for that reverence of the Almighty, God made a covenant with Phinehas of an everlasting priesthood - Phinehas will be among the immortal priests in Messiah's kingdom. Contrary to Phinehas' example the priests of the prophet's era were corrupt and partial. From verse 10 to the end of the chapter the prophet tells of one of the great abuses of that epoch - Jews were divorcing their covenant wives to marry younger, attractive Gentile brides - which was forbidden by God (compare Nehemiah 13, which describes the same evils of that era). The prophet, on God's behalf, upbraided them for their failure to uphold their Father's covenant. Verse 11 spells out the problem; in marrying these foreign wives they were in effect joining themselves to the foreign god. So, the person bringing an offering, while committing this evil, was an unacceptable hypocrite. The refused and rejected Jewish wives were imploring Yahweh to put an end to this evil. Examine your attitude towards your wife, says the prophet; and see that your own lustful and covetous motives cause you to be faithful to your marriage covenant which was made with your Sovereign as your witness. In the beginning, Genesis 2, the LORD made man and woman one by His creative act and His accompanying declarationverses read Genesis 2verses20-25. True marriage typifies the union of Christ and his brideverses Ephesians 5verses22-33. The oneness of husband and wife must be in thinking, even more than by just a physical union (which is characteristic of the lower created beings). The Almighty still had uncalled on reserves of power, but He is zealous over the faithfulness of His peopleverses James 4verses4-10. Your actions and callous disregard for your covenant wives and for the law of your God is tiresome to Him, says the prophet.