INTRODUCTION
1. Background
Unlike most other prophets, Malachi mentioned no datable persons or events in his brief prophecy. Any clues to the origin and time of his book must come from the text and its implications. Tradition, however, gives us some information. Malachi is and always has been placed last in the Minor Prophets, and there is an approximate chronological arrangement within the three major prophets and the twelve minor ones. In fact, the Talmud regularly classes Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi together as the three postexilic prophets.
From the contents of Malachi, we deduce that the prophet wrote sometime after Ezra. Zerubbabel, the first governor after the return from the Babylonian exile, had, with the aid of the prophets Haggai and Zechariah, encouraged the people to rebuild the temple (515 B.C.). Ezra returned with another group of exiles in 458 B.C. Thirteen years later, Nehemiah returned and led the people in rebuilding the walls of the city of Jerusalem. In the twelfth year of his governorship, Nehemiah returned to Persia for an unknown period of time (cf. Ne 5:14; 13:6). It was during this interim, perhaps in 434 B.C., that Malachi took the helm of spiritual affairs in Jerusalem.
Some of the exiles had returned, the temple had been rebuilt, and the sacrificial system had been reestablished. Indeed, it had been functioning long enough to develop certain abuses against which Malachi contended at some length in his book.
In 1:8 another hint appears. The Persian word for “governor” (pehah; GK 7068) had been given to Nehemiah (Ne 5:14; 12:26), but the use here probably does not indicate Nehemiah because (1) his name is not given and its absence is hard to explain, and (2) the tone of the verse indicates a pagan ruler. Thus pehah in 1:8 likely refers to an interim governor who filled the office during Nehemiah’s absence, so that Malachi’s work preceded Nehemiah’s second term as governor.
Many similarities exist between the thrust of Malachi’s message and Nehemiah’s reforms, such as mixed marriages (Ne 10:30; 13:23–27; Mal 2:11; cf. Ezra 9–10); corrupt priesthood (Ne 13:4–9; Mal 1:6–2:9); financial abuses (Ne 13:10–13; Mal 3:5–10). This is why the two are usually connected.
Thus the exiles had returned; the temple had been rebuilt; the city of Jerusalem had returned to a substantial degree of normalcy; and the inevitable lethargy, laxity, and leniency in spiritual matters had developed. A measure of comfort and security under Persian suzerainty encouraged the people of Judah to let their hands fall in their task of building their nation under God. To this declining state of affairs the last prophet of the OT addressed himself.
2. Authorship
Nothing is known of Malachi apart from his book. Even his name is in question. Some doubt that “Malachi” is a name and translate it as a title, meaning either “my messenger” or “the LORD’s messenger.” The suggestion has ancient support in the LXX. Some scholars affirm that the book is actually only the last of three sections of Zechariah, which was cut off in order to make the Minor Prophets amount to the sacred number twelve. The total obscurity of the author of the book is underlined by the absence of the name Malachi in all the rest of the Bible. Even in NT quotations, no name is given (Mt 11:10; Mk 1:2; Lk 7:27).
On the other hand, each of the other writing prophets is named in the opening verses of his book. If a man named Malachi did not write the book bearing this name, he would be the only exception. Moreover, Malachi is neither an unlikely name nor an unsuitable one for the author of this last book of the prophets. After all, Malachi was the Lord’s messenger. His trumpet made no uncertain sound. Clearly and unmistakably he indicted his people and the priests for their sin and summoned them to righteousness.
3. Date
Malachi’s book cannot be earlier than 516/515 B.C., because that was when the second temple was finished. Scholars have placed him anytime from then on through the administration of Nehemiah in Jerusalem. Ezra came to Jerusalem in 458 B.C. and Nehemiah in 445 (according to the traditional reckoning).
4. Occasion and Purpose
Apathy toward the temple ritual and especially toward the law of Moses had reached such proportions in postexilic Judah that God raised up the prophet Malachi to reprimand the people. The battle for truth and righteousness had waned because their obvious political enemies were gone. Yet this left room for the not-so-obvious enemies—namely, smugness, pride, and compromise.
The people in general and the priests in particular had lost their sense of “chosenness” (1:2). Not respecting his codes and regulations (1:6) showed they had stopped honoring God. Among them intermarriage with unbelievers was rampant (2:11). The view of domestic commitment was low, and divorce was the result (2:16). In 3:5 is a list of abuses and unacceptable practices: sorcery, adultery, perjury, fraud, oppression, and injustice. These were the things that occasioned Malachi’s angry indictment.
No prophet or preacher who loves his people enjoys pointing out their sin or warning them of doom to come. So Malachi must have found his assignment, which was so packed with judgment of the people and the priests, a hard one. All the threats, challenges, encouragements, and promises were for the spiritual upbuilding of the repatriated exiles and their children. God and Malachi wanted a righteous nation, a pure and devoted priesthood, happy homes, God-fearing children, and a people characterized by truth, integrity, generosity, gratitude, fidelity, love, and hope.
5. Theology
The paramount theme of theology is the person and work of God himself. Malachi presents the sovereign Lord as the God of Israel and the God of the whole world. In 3:6 not only is the immutability of God affirmed—“I the LORD do not change”—but the corollary of the impossibility of his promises being nullified is also stated: “So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” God has determined to maintain a people for himself; and it will happen—if not in Malachi’s day, then in a later age.
Malachi was in accord with the great OT prophets in reminding the people he was addressing of the universality of God. God was concerned with all nations, not just Israel (cf. 1:5).
It may seem that Malachi was overly concerned with the proper execution of the ritual parts of the Hebrew religion (cf. 1:8, 13; 3:8), but a careful reading will show that he was actually concerned with what Jesus called the “more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness” (Mt 23:23).
Malachi preached a God of justice who would condemn sinners but would also reward the righteous. Tithing would produce blessing (3:10); the righteous would be spared on that “day” (v.17). Those who revered God’s name would bask in the “sun of righteousness” (4:2). So Malachi was a prophet of both malediction and benediction, because he preached a God who was altogether fair in his dealings with people.
Malachi’s most notable contribution to the OT’s corpus of messianic prophecy was his reference to the forerunner. The first allusion is in 3:1. “My messenger” there cannot be Malachi but rather some Elijah who would announce for the last time in the OT God’s terms of repentance (4:5; cf. Mt 11:14; 17:12–13; Mk 9:11–13; Lk 1:17).
EXPOSITION
I. The Favor of the Lord (1:1–5)
1 This verse tells us the three barest minimum facts about the “oracle” (GK 5363): (1) it is from the Lord, (2) it is for Israel, and (3) Malachi is its agent.
2–3 The prophecy begins with the beautiful words “I have loved you.” The popular attitude was that God had forsaken his people. Though the Exile might have prompted such feelings, one would think that the near miraculous turn of events that led to the repatriation of many of the Hebrews would have given the people cause to think about God’s faithfulness. That return, though unaccompanied by the miracles of the Exodus from Egypt, was nevertheless viewed exultingly as the work of the hand of God. In the absence of any subsequent marvels, however, there came despair born of unfulfilled hopes.
The divine rejoinder to the people’s question alludes to a crucial event in Isaac’s family. While it is not baldly stated in Ge 25:23, in his sovereignty God chose Jacob over Esau, a choice that was tantamount to “hating” Esau. Paul used this to illustrate the doctrine of election (Ro 9:13). Malachi describes the result of God’s rejection of Esau; his territory, ancient Edom, became a wasteland inhabited by desert jackals. In the fourth century B.C., the Nabataeans moved through Edom—driving the Edomites westward out of their centuries-old homeland—to the southern part of Judah. This area later came to be known as Idumea (cf. Mk 3:8).
4–5 These verses elaborate God’s rejection of Esau’s land (cf. Isa 11:14; 34:5–6; Jer 49:7–22; Eze 25:12–14; 35:15; Joel 3:19; Am 1:11; Obadiah). Of all the enemies of Israel, Edom was perhaps the most long-lived and consistent one. The enmity began with Amalek, an Edomite (Ex 17:8–16), and continued through the Exodus (Nu 14:44–45), into the period of the Judges (Jdg 3:12–13), and to the time of Saul (1Sa 15:1–3) and David (1Sa 27:8). Moreover, the enemies mentioned by Ezra (4:7) and Nehemiah (4:7) probably included Edomites (Amalekites), and this special curse would be an oblique kind of encouragement to the Israelites.
Though the Edomites in some small measure rebuilt their country, though never regaining its former territory or power, God spoke of his intention to see it perpetually cursed. This evidence of God’s power beyond the borders of Israel will evoke from his people the doxology “Great is the LORD.” This is the first of three or four such phrases throughout the book that speak of God’s plans going beyond the boundaries of Israel (cf. 1:11, 14; 3:12; and perhaps 4:6).
II. The Failure of the Priests (1:6–14)
A. Disrespectful Service (1:6–7)
6–7 This first part of the indictment against the priests contains two more rhetorical questions. The first is God’s: “Where is the respect due me?” The unwritten answer is that they had not been honoring the Lord. The servants at the temple, who were the closest to sacred things, had defaulted in the most central obligation of all—honoring God. And if the leadership failed, what could the people be expected to do? But spiritual leaders have often run the risk of treating sacred things as ordinary.
From the general charge of failing to honor the Lord, the prophet moved to this specific one: “You place defiled food on my altar.” The priests countered this charge with a question. Then the prophet responded with an explanation of the charge: the priests say “that the LORD’s table is contemptible.”
B. Disqualified Sacrifices (1:8–9)
8 With four more questions, the prophet expanded the charge against the priests. Was it not wrong to sacrifice blind animals? Of course it was! The law forbade bringing lame, blind, blemished, or sick animals to the altar (Dt 15:21). The priests should have been reminding the people of these regulations. The second question is like the first. The third and fourth ones clearly imply that such offerings would be unacceptable to the governor. The context probably implies that this governor was not Nehemiah but one of the Persian appointees who served before Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, or perhaps during his absence from it. Furthermore, animals were probably not brought to him as sacrifices but as a form of tax. Despite their generally favorable attitude toward the exiles, the Persians would not tolerate any cutting of corners by their subjects.
9 The closing verse of this section, where God speaks of himself in the third person, seems loaded with irony. Most modern translations understand it as one more of Malachi’s ways of charging the priests with sin. The point is that God would not extend his favor when the gifts for thanksgiving and entreaty were given, because their shoddiness was an insult.
C. Disdainful Attitudes (1:10–14)
10 God, again speaking of himself in the first person (cf. v.9), wishes that the temple would go out of business. As long as it was not serving as a meeting place for God and his people, why should any perfunctory and self-deceiving rituals go on in it? Not only were the sacrifices ineffective, but the priests and the people were lulled into thinking that their deeds were winning God’s approval. So why not shut the temple doors and be done with what was for the priests merely a nuisance? God could hardly have spoken his mind more clearly than he did in the last part of v.10: “I am not pleased with you . . . and I will accept no offering from your hands.”
11 God told his faithless priests that he had others who in different places and in later times would bring acceptable offerings and give him with love and devotion the worship he demanded (cf. Heb 13:15–16; Rev 5:8). No doubt Christians are among those of the far-off nations living in the distant future, who in Malachi’s day were thought to be without hope because they had no contact with the religion of Jerusalem (cf. 1Pe 2:9).
12–13 Once more the altar of the temple was called a “table” (GK 8947; cf. v.7). The priests were charged with profaning the Lord’s name when they declared that his table was defiled and its food contemptible. The food, of course, was the grain and meat offerings the priests put on the Lord’s table. It was true that certain species of animals and others that were blemished defiled the altar. But it was the priests’ responsibility to keep such unacceptable offerings away from the altar. How strange that now they were the ones complaining of the defilement! Malachi put into words the thoughts of the priests. For them the holy service of God had become a bore, a labor of duty rather than of love, a yoke around their necks. The very men who were the mediators between God and his people (Ex 28:1, 43), the teachers of Israel (Lev 10:11; Dt 33:10; 2Ch 15:3), and the court of appeal (Dt 19:17–19) were, by their own choice, profaning their office and bringing shame on the name of the Lord. The question asked in v.13 lists the things that make animals unacceptable for sacrifice. “Should I accept [such animals from you]?” God asked.
14 God spoke drastically but realistically: “Cursed is the cheat.” The opposite of “blessed” is “cursed,” and the opposite of an honest person is a cheat. God is an absolute sovereign. If the people he chose reject him, as Lord, he will choose others—i.e., Gentiles, foreigners—who will revere his holy name.
III. The Rebuke of the Lord (2:1–9)
1–2 This section is aimed at the priests. The “curse” (GK 826 and 4423) idea relates to 1:14. The “blessings” are probably the very things that ultimately benefited the priesthood. Two of them are named in 3:11—pest-free crops and fruitful vines. The Levites lived off the tithes the people brought. When the nation as a whole suffered from drought or any other calamity, the perquisites of the priests dropped off proportionately.
3–6 “Offal” (GK 7302) was the internal waste of the sacrificial animal that normally was carried outside the camp. But here it is first used as a gross insult to the officiating priests; they and it would be carried away.
The word “covenant” (GK 1382) appears six times in this little book. The first three (2:4–5, 8) refer to God’s covenant with Levi; then come references to the “covenant of the fathers” (v.10), the marriage covenant (v.14), and the new covenant (3:1). The covenant arrangement with the Levites was to endure unaltered. Obviously they were not meeting their responsibilities.
The description of what a priest should be simply did not fit the priests of Malachi’s day. “Life and peace,” “reverence,” “true instruction,” and “uprightness” were to be the hallmarks of those serving in the temple. There were to be the absence of falsehood on the lips and the ministry of turning many from sin. But in Malachi’s day, instead of turning people from sin, the priests were, by their words and deeds, turning them to sin.
Throughout vv.4–6 Levi is spoken of ideally. What little we know of him is not so favorable; Jacob’s “prophecy” in Ge 49:5–7 tells us something of what Jacob felt. Much more positive is the “blessing” of Moses on the ideal Levite (Dt 33:8–11) that Malachi was speaking of in this section. Doubtless many did their jobs conscientiously and with the required reverence and devotion.
7–8 The priests were the custodians of learning, both the preservers and the pioneers of scholarship. But those who sought to drink at those wells found them either dry or poisoned. Instead of turning people into “the way,” the priests did the opposite. Such irresponsibility violated the covenant of Levi. Sins of omission were compounded with sins of commission. Malachi made it clear that God could tolerate the situation no longer.
9 The verdict comes. The sentence on the priests involved shame and humiliation. The regrettable part was that all priests were painted with the same brush, even though there must have been some conscientious ones among them. An additional feature of the indictment comes right at the end of this verse: the offenders had shown partiality in matters of the law.
So ends the section charging the Levitical priests with various misdemeanors and failures. From these specific targets of his wrath, God next turns to the people as a whole.
IV. The Unfaithfulness of the People (2:10–16)
The balance of ch. 2 deals with the same social evils Ezra and Nehemiah addressed: the problem of intermarriage with unbelievers and the subsequent divorces (Ezr 9:2; Ne 14:23–28). Hand in hand with this sin went a certain compromise of true religion.
10–12 The broad introductory statement is, of course, addressed to the people of Israel, not to the Moabites, Tyrians, Philistines, Syrians, or others with whom the intermarriage had taken place. Since Hebrew makes no proper-noun distinctions, the translators must decide whether “father” refers to God or to Abraham. In either case the point is clear: “We Jews should cooperate, work harmoniously, and marry within our own people.” The implications of “breaking faith with one another” (cf. v.11) probably are broader than simply the matter of divorce. All betrayals, from the slightest unkindness to the grossest injustice, merit God’s disapproval.
The mixture of the ideas of intermarriage and prostitution of the sanctuary is not unlike what Paul said in 2Co 6:14–16. Not to distinguish between Israelite women and heathen women—or between Christian spouses and unbelievers—is to deny the difference between the God of the Bible and the pagan deities. Malachi said there would be no exceptions to the rule: Intermarriage meant excommunication.
13 Apparently the people made a great display of grief over their spiritual barrenness. How exactly the lay people could be in a position to weep over the altar is uncertain. The people’s sorrow, however, was for the wrong reason; they should have been bemoaning their sins rather than their lack of divine acceptance and consequent blessing.
14 We might consider the “Why” as another of Malachi’s rhetorical questions. Having put the question in their mouths, the prophet proceeded to answer it. The reference to “wife of your youth” suggests that the men were divorcing their aging wives in favor of younger women.
15 This is the most difficult verse in the book grammatically. In effect it says that God made monogamous marriage and intends unions to last. Apparently the Israelites not only were marrying foreign women but were also divorcing their Israelite wives in the process. So they were really guilty of two sins—divorce and intermarriage with foreigners.
16 God succinctly gives his verdict: “I hate divorce.” Many today would accuse Malachi of having a rigid view of marriage and divorce. But the covenant made between a man and a woman in the presence of a priest, the vicar of God, must be taken with utmost seriousness. “What God has joined together, let man not separate” was Jesus’ way of saying it (Mt 19:6; Mk 10:9). Not even the man who is a part of that union may make such a separation.
V. The Coming Messenger of the Lord (2:17–3:5)
17 The question “Where is the God of justice?” points to the abuses in connection with worship and divorce. These have their roots in hearts destitute of the fear of God and culminate in avowed unbelief in the justice of Almighty God and his moral government of the world. God himself will answer their question, for 3:1 has “the LORD you are seeking will come to his temple.” And 3:5 reads, “So I will come near to you for judgment.” The first question in v.17 is “How have we wearied him [God]?” To this the prophet responds along now familiar lines. God was tired of hypocrisy, inverted morals, spiritual blindness, and obduracy.
3:1 This verse is quoted in the NT (Mt 11:10; Mk 1:2; Lk 7:27), all referring it to John the Baptist. Thus the one called “my messenger” is the forerunner of Christ, John the son of Zechariah and Elizabeth. The Lord who then follows is none other than Jesus Christ, the Son of God. The prophet’s choice of the word “Lord” (’adon; GK 123) rather than “LORD” (GK 3378) points to this (cf. Ac 2:36; 1Co 12:3; Php 2:11). Significantly, the “me” establishes an identification between the first and second persons of the Trinity. Christ came to the temple, first as a baby to be dedicated, then at least yearly for the festivals. Most notably he came the last week of his life.
The phrase “whom you desire” is significant: Even in their sin the people longed for deliverance through the Messiah. Amos had people in his audience who “desired” the Day of the Lord; but he bluntly told them that the Day of the Lord would be darkness and not light (Am 5:18–20). So, too, Malachi asked, “Who can endure the day of his coming?” The coming Messiah would bring judgement—vindication and exoneration for the righteous but condemnation and punishment for the wicked. Like most OT prophets, Malachi, in his picture of the coming Christ, mingled the two advents. So while the birth and earthly ministry of Christ are in view in v.1, we already have the returning Judge in v.2. It could be said that the latter days began with Bethlehem and continued through the present, to be culminated in the eternal state. The Day of the Lord is any day God steps into history to do a special work, whether of judgment or deliverance. This passage speaks of purification and judgment.
2–4 Malachi continues his use of rhetorical questions as he asked in two ways, “Who will stand when he appears?” Christ’s judgment, a Second Advent function, is likened to two purifying agents: fire for metals and soap for clothing. Just as these remove impurities, he will purify the latter-day Levites so that they will gleam and endure like “gold and silver.” As a result of that process, God will have an approved and accepted priesthood to carry out the sacred ministry in a right spirit. Verse 4 does not mean that descendants of Levi and Aaron will function in any NT temple; it is, rather, symbolic of a cleansed and sanctified church (cf. 1Pe 2:5, 9; Rev 1:6; 5:10; 20:6). The soundest logical and theological reason for the abolition of the sacrificial system is found in Heb 9:23–10:14.
5 God simply says that he will at that time speedily bring to justice all sorts of malefactors. “Sorcerers” (GK 4175) is a category that takes in practitioners of the occult. “Adulterers” (GK 5537) includes any departure from God’s ordained pattern of family life. Next come “perjurers” (lit., “false swearers”). This covers everything from “white lies” to perjury in a high court. The indictment against oppressors of widows and orphans reflects Malachi’s interest in social justice. Like all true ministers of God, Malachi could not divorce responsibilities toward God from those toward other human beings. The number of laws in the Scriptures for the protection of aliens suggests it must have been common or easy to exploit expatriates among the Israelites. Hospitality was a requirement, any breach of which would come under the rubric of depriving aliens. All the offenders are categorized as those who “do not fear me.” Their sin testified to a lamentable absence of that godly fear that is “the beginning of knowledge” (Pr 1:7).
VI. The Robbery and Riches of God (3:6–12)
A. The Neglect of the Tithe (3:6–9)
6–7 First there is a declaration of the immutability of God, the attribute of changelessness that ultimately preserves the nation from destruction. God keeps his promises to the patriarchs. He knows this evil generation will pass and that a God-fearing one will yet come to inherit the promises. God next explains why he does not answer the people’s prayers: “You have turned away from my decrees.” God is still pledged to give attention to those who earnestly seek him. The invitation to “return” (GK 8740), which could as well have been translated “repent” or “convert,” was met with a cynical question: “How are we to return?” Malachi does not answer this question; his whole book and ministry tell how to get right with God.
8 Tithing (being fiscally responsible before God) is introduced by the blunt question “Will a man rob God?” Stealing means not only taking what is not yours but keeping back for yourself what belongs to someone else. In this case one-tenth of a man’s income was due God; failure to pay that debt amounted to robbery (cf. Ac 5:1–11). The tenth of all produce as well as of flocks and cattle belonged to the Lord and was by him assigned to the Levites for their services (Nu 18:21, 24). It may be that the people’s disobedience prompted some of the priestly grumbling that Malachi had earlier referred to. Nehemiah dealt with the same problem (Ne 10:32–39; 13:10). If Malachi predates the events of Ne 13, perhaps Malachi’s words in v.8 had been heeded.
9 That God condemned the whole nation suggests that this “robbery” was a rather widespread abuse of his generosity. Most churches still fall under this indictment; their budgets are generally nowhere near ten percent of the members’ income.
B. The Promise of Blessing (3:10–12)
10 The remedy for Israel was simply to start doing what was right—“bring the whole tithe into the storehouse.” The temple served as a warehouse for the produce the Israelites brought. The Levites then distributed it for sacrificial purposes, for their own domestic needs, and for whatever emergencies arose. It should be emphasized that the OT tithe is not the upper limit. In the NT Christians are urged to “excel in this grace of giving” (2Co 8:7), remembering that they owe everything to the one who for their sake “made himself nothing” (Php 2:7; cf. 2Co 8:9). God offers his people the challenge of testing him. By this offer he virtually guarantees them a direct and abundant return on their investment. His “storehouse” of blessings is unlimited.
11–12 From a general statement of blessing, Malachi next specifies what form that blessing might take. Since he was dealing with an agrarian society, the “blessings” had to do with crops and the like. Then, as is always the case, there was a purpose for the blessing. Not merely would God’s people be comfortable, healthy, and happy, but because of this the Lord’s name would be honored. Whatever good happens to us should be turned into a testimony to the goodness of our God. Then unbelievers will note our blessedness and be drawn to our God.
VII. The Servants of the Lord (3:13–18)
A. The Faithless (3:13–15)
13–14 Once more, and for the last time, Malachi opens with a statement about what people said, followed by a question in which they imply that the charge is unfounded. The third element then follows: an elaboration and explanation of the charge. The sin concerned lack of trust in God. By innuendo, if not by outright statement, God was represented as unfair and the keeping of the law a useless exercise.
15 This verse is a restatement of the age-old question so prominent in the book of Job: Why do the evil prosper and the righteous suffer? Malachi did not answer the complaint immediately.
B. The Faithful (3:16–18)
16 Malachi portrays God as listening to those who feared him. What they were saying, we do not know; perhaps it was an expression of love and worship. Then comes the remarkable statement that “a scroll . . . was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD.” This idea of God’s keeping written records appears frequently in Scripture (cf. Ex 32:32; Ps 69:28; Isa 4:3; Da 12:1; Lk 10:20; Php 4:3; Heb 12:23; Rev 3:5; 13:8; 17:8; 20:12, 15; 21:27). Perhaps the most beautiful expression of the idea is in Isa 49:16: “See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.”
17–18 God’s people will be his very own, and he will spare them. On that day, when all wrongs are rectified and all wickedness punished, it will be apparent that God does judge justly and that he does make a distinction between those who serve him and those who do not.
VIII. The Day of the Lord (4:1–6)
1 The eschatological theme of the Day of the Lord looms large in the OT prophets (cf. Isa 13:6; Jer 46:10; Joel 2:31; Zep 1:14–2:3) and also appears in the NT (cf. Mt 24:3–25:46; Ro 2:5; 2Pe 3:10; Rev 16:14). It continues into the second half of this somber verse in which Malachi alternately reproves and warns. The picture is cosmological. Fire will be the agent of destruction on that day as was water in Noah’s day.
The word for “arrogant” (GK 2294) is a relatively rare one, but Malachi uses it also in 3:15. So those “blessed” arrogant ones of the former reference will now be burned as stubble (cf. Am 2:9). The mention of roots and branches indicates the complete termination of growth. As with the two extremities of a plant, all the wicked—without exception—will be destroyed.
2–3 Verse 2 focuses on the blessed future of the righteous. “Sun” is capitalized in the KJV, giving rise to the idea that the figure is messianic. No use is made of this figure, however, in the NT. Therefore most modern translations have not capitalized “sun.” The righteous, now enlightened and healed, will gambol like calves, frisking about in their new-found freedom. An added reward is that the righteous will trample the wicked on that great judgment day (cf. Mic 2:12–13).
4 Malachi now gives two somewhat unrelated “appendixes” to the book. The first is an injunction to heed the law of Moses. Malachi began with an illustration from Genesis (Jacob and Esau) and spent most of the first half of the book reminding priests and people of the need to keep the Mosaic Law. Now, close to the end of his book, he gives another terse reminder of their continuing obligation to those laws.
5–6 The second “appendix” (vv.5–6) relates to Elijah’s coming to announce the Messiah’s
arrival. Elijah, as has already been stated, was John the Baptist (Mt 11:14; 17:12; Mk 9:11–13; Lk 1:17). His ministry was to prepare for the Day of the Lord and to “turn the hearts of the fathers to their children” and vice versa, “before that great and dreadful Day of the LORD.” The first Christmas was a day of the Lord. So were all the other days when God stepped into history and did something extraordinary. But all these are preparatory for “that great and dreadful day” when the curtain will drop on world history and the Lord, who came the first time as Savior and Friend, will come as King and Judge.
The mission of reconciling families has been successful insofar as people have come to Christ. Where this has not happened, God will “strike the land with a curse.” “Land” probably refers to the Promised Land, where God’s people were dwelling. Through the Exile the land had been denied them; now they had it back, but still only on probation. If they failed to honor that land and him who gave it to them, it would be denied them. Malachi has set before Israel the age-old alternatives: respond to the God who loves them (1:2), or suffer the terrible consequences (4:1, 6).
The Old Testament in the New
| OT Text | NT Text | Subject |
| Mal 1.2–3 | Ro 9:13 | Love for Jacob, not Esau |
| Mal 3:1 | Mt 11:10; Mk 1:2; Lk 7:27 | Messenger sent ahead |
| Mal 4:5–6 | Mt 17:10–11 | Elijah comes |