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Malachi 3

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1
Behold, I send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant, whom ye desire, behold, he cometh, saith Jehovah of hosts. ​
2
But who can abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: ​
3
and he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi, and refine them as gold and silver; and they shall offer unto Jehovah offerings in righteousness. ​
4
Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto Jehovah, as in the days of old, and as in ancient years.
5
And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the sojourner from his right, and fear not me, saith Jehovah of hosts. ​
6
For I, Jehovah, change not; therefore ye, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed. ​

Robbing God Through Neglected Tithes 7–12

7
From the days of your fathers ye have turned aside from mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto me, and I will return unto you, saith Jehovah of hosts. But ye say, Wherein shall we return? ​
8
Will a man rob God? yet ye rob me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. ​
9
Ye are cursed with the curse; for ye rob me, even this whole nation.
10
Bring ye the whole tithe into the store-house, that there may be food in my house, and prove me now herewith, saith Jehovah of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. ​
11
And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast its fruit before the time in the field, saith Jehovah of hosts.
12
And all nations shall call you happy; for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith Jehovah of hosts.

The Lord Remembers the Faithful 13–18

13
Your words have been stout against me, saith Jehovah. Yet ye say, What have we spoken against thee? ​
14
Ye have said, It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept his charge, and that we have walked mournfully before Jehovah of hosts? ​
15
and now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are built up; yea, they tempt God, and escape.
16
Then they that feared Jehovah spake one with another; and Jehovah hearkened, and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before him, for them that feared Jehovah, and that thought upon his name. ​
17
And they shall be mine, saith Jehovah of hosts, even mine own possession, in the day that I make; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. ​
18
Then shall ye return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not. ​

Bible text: American Standard Version (1901) · Public domain

Study Notes for Malachi 3

Verse 1

my messenger… the messenger of the covenant — Two come: the first prepares the way, and Christ says of John the Baptist, 'This is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face' (Matt 11:10; Mark 1:2). The second is 'the Lord' himself, who 'shall suddenly come to his temple'. It answers the cry of 2:17, 'Where is the God of judgment?'

Verse 2

a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap — The question 'who shall stand?' is the one of Rev 6:17, 'who shall be able to stand?' The 'refiner' (tsaraph) smelts metal; the 'soap' is borith, an alkali for washing, found elsewhere only in Jer 2:22. One cleanses by fire and the other by washing, as in Zech 13:9, 'refine them as silver is refined'.

Verse 3

he shall purify the sons of Levi — He 'shall sit as a refiner' at the work of purifying silver. He begins with the priests whose covenant was 'corrupted' (2:8), 'that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness'. The offering (minchah) is the very word of 1:10–11 and 2:12–13: what was refused is to be received. Isa 1:25 is the same promise to 'purely purge away thy dross'.

Verse 5

a swift witness against the sorcerers — The LORD 'will come near' (qarab), the verb of the 'offer' of 1:8. Each sin named was already forbidden in the law: sorcery (Ex 22:18), false swearing (Lev 19:12), the hired servant's wages (Deut 24:14–15), the stranger, widow and fatherless (Ex 22:21–22). The last charge, 'fear not me', returns to the question of 1:6, 'where is my fear?'

Verse 6

I change not — The divine name stands first: 'I am the LORD', shanah (to alter) negated. Because his purpose does not change, 'ye sons of Jacob are not consumed', recalling 'yet I loved Jacob' (1:2). Lam 3:22 gives the same ground, 'the LORD'S mercies', and James says there is with the Father 'no variableness, neither shadow of turning' (Jas 1:17).

Verse 7

Return unto me, and I will return unto you — 'Gone away' (sur) is the verb of 2:8, 'departed out of the way'. The call is that of Zech 1:3, 'Turn ye unto me… and I will turn unto you', and James 4:8 gives the same promise, 'Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you'. Shub, to turn back, is used three times here; the people answer with another 'Wherein…?'

Verse 8

Will a man rob God? — Qava', to rob, is found only here and in v.9 and Prov 22:23. The charge is 'tithes and offerings' (terumah, the portion set apart). 'all the tithe of the land… is the LORD'S' (Lev 27:30), and he gave it to Levi 'for their service' (Num 18:21); when it was withheld the Levites 'were fled every one to his field' (Neh 13:10).

Verse 10

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse — The 'storehouse' (otsar) is the treasure house of the temple (Neh 10:38; 13:12). 'Windows of heaven' (arubbah) is the word of the flood, when they 'were opened' (Gen 7:11) and later 'stopped' (Gen 8:2). Here the same windows give a blessing so great that 'there shall not be room enough to receive it'.

Verse 13

Your words have been stout against me — 'Stout' is chazaq, strong or hard. 'Words' (dabar) is the word of 2:17, 'wearied the LORD with your words'. The people's 'spoken' is a reflexive form of dabar, and the same form is used in v.16 of those who 'spake often one to another': first talk against God, then talk among those who feared him.

Verse 14

It is vain to serve God — Shav, vain or empty, and 'profit' is betsa, gain. 'Walked mournfully' is qedoranith, found only here, a word for going about in mourning. The thought was known: 'Verily I have cleansed my heart in vain' (Ps 73:13), and 'what profit should we have, if we pray unto him?' (Job 21:15).

Verse 16

a book of remembrance — 'Spake often one to another' is the same verb form as 'spoken' in v.13. The record is sepher zikkaron; in Est 6:1–2 the king's 'book of records' preserved Mordecai's deed. 'Thought upon his name' is chashab, to reckon or value, the verb of Isa 53:3, 'we esteemed him not'; it stands against 'despise my name' in 1:6.

Verse 17

when I make up my jewels — 'Jewels' is segullah, treasure that is one's own: 'a peculiar treasure unto me above all people' (Ex 19:5), 'Israel for his peculiar treasure' (Ps 135:4). Peter gives the word to believers, 'a peculiar people' (1 Pet 2:9). The sparing is that of a father: 'as a man spareth his own son that serveth him', the verb of 'serve' in vv.14, 18.

Verse 18

Then shall ye return, and discern — 'Return' is shub of v.7, answering 'Wherein shall we return?' 'Discern' is literally 'see'. The doubt of v.14 that serving God is vain is met by the seeing of Ps 73:17, where the psalmist 'went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end'. The pairs 'righteous' and 'wicked', 'serveth' and 'serveth not' answer vv.14–15.