TEXT [Commentary]

black diamond   Superscription: Malachi, Yahweh’s Messenger (1:1)

1 This is the message[*] that the LORD gave to Israel through the prophet Malachi.[*]

NOTES

1:1 the message. Lit., “An oracle: the word of the Lord.” The word “oracle” (massa’ [TH4853A, ZH5363]) impregnates Malachi’s message with a certain urgency; the audience is expected to pay attention and respond.

the LORD gave. The phrase “the word of the LORD” (debar-yhwh [TH1697/3068, ZH1821/3378]) comprises one element of the prophetic word formula. The second element of the formula, the verb “to be” (hayah [TH1961, ZH2118]), is omitted here (but assumed in the NLT rendering “gave”). The formula commonly introduces a report of a prophetic revelation in the oracular speech of the OT. See further the notes for Hag 1:1.

through. The expression “by the hand of” (beyad [TH8712/3027, ZH928/3338]) can denote the act of writing or speaking, a so-called genitive of authorship (Waltke and O’Connor 1990:9.5.1c).

prophet. The word “prophet” is an expansion of the NLT; the MT simply says “by the hand of Malachi.” Typically, the title designates an emissary, one who speaks with the authority of the commissioning agent—in this case, Malachi speaking for God.

COMMENTARY [Text]

The literary form of the opening verse is that of superscription. A superscription is a statement of classification prefixed to a literary work. It is unclear whether these superscriptions were added by the author or by later editors during the process of collecting and arranging the contents of the Old Testament canon. Here, Malachi is classified as a prophetic text and an “oracle” or “message” (NLT). Typically the superscriptions prefixed to the prophetic books identify author, audience, date, and sometimes the occasion prompting the prophet’s sermons and visions, as well as the source of the prophetic revelation—God himself. In some cases the superscription may provide the title for a composition. The superscription is understood as distinct from an introduction in that it stands outside or independent of the body of literature it prefaces.