Questions & Answers
"Please explain the ESV's translation of Malachi 2:16."
Technically speaking, this is the hardest question I've ever been asked. In truth, it was asked sometime late last year, and I have put it off until now because I didn't really know how to answer it.
Since the English Standard Version of the Bible was published in 2001, preachers, elders, and Bible class teachers have been comparing it to their translation of choice. Some, such as myself, have even chosen to make the ESV their default translation for preaching and writing. As it is the case with all translations, the ESV has its strong points and weak points.
But I may never understand why it decided to break from every other major translation in its rendering of Malachi 2:16. Here is the verse, as the ESV translates it, within its context.
...the Lord was witness between you and the wife of your youth, to whom you have been faithless, though she is your companion and your wife by convenant. Did he not make them one, with a portion of the Spirit in their union? And what was the one God seeking? Godly offspring. So guard yoruselves in your spirit, and let none of you be faithless to the wife of your youth. For the man who hates and divorces, says the Lord, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the Lord of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless (emphasis has been added to the wording in question, D.K.).
A comparison with other translations (e.g. KJV, NKJV, ASV, NASB, and NIV) shows that the ESV separated itself from the herd by ascribing hatred to the man who divorces his wife; the rest ascribe hatred to God towards divorce. While this is a significant difference, it should be pointed out that none of the translations casts divorce in a positive light. Thus, I can detect no ulterior motives on the part of the ESV translation committee.
The problem is that Malachi 2:15-16 is very difficult to translate. Without getting too complicated, the subject for the verb "hate" is not named in the original. And it appears to be in the third person, although the statement is attributed to the Lord, making the translation "I hate" grammatically awkward. The ESV was evidently shooting for a clean rendering, complete with subject-verb agreement by assigning the hatred to the man who divorces.
A defense of this wording can be found in the footnotes. The Septuagint, and early Greek translation of the Old Testament, is mentioned. Like the ESV it connects the hatred in Malachi 2:16 to the husband. Rendered in English, it reads, "But if thou shouldest hate thy wife and put her away, saith the Lord God of Israel, then ungodliness shall cover thy thoughts."
The footnotes also allude to Deuteronomy 24:1-4, the classic Old Testament text on divorce, where Moses permits the Israelites to issue a certificate of divorce (cf. Mt. 19:3-9). In that text "hatred" is used in connection with the husband who divorces his wife.
It appears that the ESV translators felt that these two ancient witnesses built a strong case for making a departure from centuries of English translation. This is strange, because the ESV prides itself as being a word-for-word, literal translation of the inspired Hebrew and Greek texts of the Bible. As I have pointed out before on Truth and Repose, there have been times when the ESV has refused to lean on the Septuagint and other biblical passages. Why, then, does it choose to do so here at the expense of breaking a centuries-long translational tradition?
Since most authorities render the passage "I hate divorce," ascribing the hatred to God, that is the best translation in my judgment. If the concept of hatred seems incompatible with a loving and merciful God to some, they should know that there are many abominations of the Lord (cf. Lev. 18:22; Prov. 6:16-19). The capacity to love deeply necessitates a capacity to hate that which threatens the objects of one's affection. There are two sides to every coin.
I still prefer the ESV to other English Bibles because of its devotion to a word-for-word translation, its readability, and the dignity of its style. If there is a lesson to be learned out of this discussion, it is that all translations are from man and that we should keep several versions on hand for study, so that we can know we are discerning God's will for our lives.
