Mal 3:1 “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.
Mal 3:2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.
Mal 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,
Mal 3:4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.
Mal 3:5 “So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the LORD Almighty.
Robbing God
Mal 3:6 “I the LORD do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.
Mal 3:7 Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’
Mal 3:8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings.
Mal 3:9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me.
Mal 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
Mal 3:11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty.
Mal 3:12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.
Mal 3:13 “You have spoken arrogantly against me,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against you?’
Mal 3:14 “You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the LORD Almighty?
Mal 3:15 But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.'”
The Book of Remembrance
Mal 3:16 Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name.
Mal 3:17 “On the day when I act,” says the LORD Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him.
Mal 3:18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.
1 Of the messenger, majesty, and grace of Christ.
7 Of the rebellion,
8 sacrilege,
13 and infidelity of the people.
16 The promise of blessing to them that fear God.
Mal 3:1 “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty.
1. My messenger. God replies to the closing question of the previous chapter by affirming with certainty that He is coming in judgment and righteousness. To the people of Malachi’s day this message was a warning that God would deal with their sins.
However, in addition to its warning message for the Jews of Malachi’s day, this prophecy also had a Messianic import (see on Mark 1:2; see DA 161). John the Baptist was the “messenger” who prepared “the way before” the Lord by preaching repentance (see Isa. 40:3–5; Matt. 3:1–3; 11:10, 11; Luke 3:2–14).
Come to his temple. That is, to the most holy place for the work of the investigative judgment (GC 426).
Messenger of the covenant. Or, “angel of the covenant” (see on Haggai 1:13). The Lord, or “messenger of the covenant,” is none other than Christ, the second person of the Godhead (see on Ex. 3:2), and is to be clearly distinguished from the previously mentioned “messenger” of this verse.
This prophecy regarding the “messenger of the covenant” applies not only to the time when Christ came to His Temple during His first advent (see DA 161), but also to the events connected with the close of earth’s history and the second advent (see GC 424; PP 339).
Mal 3:2 But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap.
2.Who may abide? See Joel 2:11. The Jews believed that the Messiah was coming to punish the heathen in judgment. On the contrary, Malachi warns the Jews they will be the first to suffer judgment (see Amos 5:18).
Refiner’s fire. As a fire separates the metal from the dross, so God by His judgment separates the righteous from the wicked (see on v. 1).
Fullers’ soap. Not a true soap, which was probably unknown in ancient times, but a vegetable alkali obtained from the burning of certain plants, and used for washing purposes.
Mal 3:3 He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,
3. He shall sit. The previous thought (v. 2) is repeated for emphasis.
The sons of Levi. The priests are mentioned especially as those most responsible for leading the people in righteousness by their example and teaching (see Mal. 2:1–9; see on 2 Chron. 15:3).
Purge. The chastisement upon the “sons of Levi” is designed not only to cleanse their souls by ridding them of evil, but also to foster an advance in holiness by fitting them to “offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness” (see Rom. 12:1; 2 Peter 3:18; DA 161).
Offering. Heb. minchah (see on ch. 1:10).
Of Purge. The chastisement upon the “sons of Levi” is designed not only to cleanse their souls by ridding them of evil, but also to foster an advance in holiness by fitting them to “offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness” (see Rom. 12:1; 2 Peter 3:18; DA 161).
Offering. Heb. minchah (see on ch. 1:10).fering. Heb. minchah (see on ch. 1:10).
Mal 3:4 and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.
Acceptable. The removal of sin by priests and people will restore the divine favor (see PK 706).
Former years. The Jews considered such periods as those of Abraham, Moses, and David as more or less ideal times.
Mal 3:5 “So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the LORD Almighty.
On trial. In other words, “Here is the judgment!” the divine answer to the question, “Where is the God of judgment?” (ch. 2:17).
Sorcerers. The divine displeasure was especially directed against those who practiced heathen magical arts (see Ex. 22:18; Deut. 18:10), for example, those arts prevalent in Babylon (see on Dan. 2:2).
Adulterers. Another group to come especially under the indictment of God were those guilty of immorality, including those who secured unlawful divorces (see on ch. 2:14–16). How sweepingly would this same indictment apply to thousands of persons living today!
False swearers. The LXX reads “them that swear falsely by my name” (see Lev. 19:12).
Oppress the hireling. God calls on His professed followers to be just, yes, even liberal, with those who are dependent upon wages for their daily sustenance (see Deut. 24:14, 15; James 5:4).
Widow … fatherless … stranger. The Lord made special provisions to guard the rights of those who are in any degree defenseless, helpless, or in need of protection (Ex. 22:21, 22; Deut. 24:17; 27:19). The Jews were forbidden to take advantage of the “stranger,” or foreigner, among them.
Mal 3:6 “I the LORD do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.
I change not. Here the Lord effectively refutes the charge that He winks at evil (ch. 2:17). God’s holiness is everlastingly constant and unalterable (see Num. 23:19; James 1:17). It is precisely because God does not change that His eternal purpose toward His people will stand. He may punish, discipline, and correct them, but all this is for the purpose of bringing repentance and salvation to them.
Mal 3:7 Ever since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD Almighty. “But you ask, ‘How are we to return?’
Turned away. God had been true to His promises (see on v. 6), yet the people had not been true to Him, particularly in tithes and offerings (vs. 8, 9).
Return unto me. The burden of the prophet’s message (see on ch. 1:1) is not a pronouncement of judgment upon sinners, but a call to repentance and fidelity to God, accompanied by a solemn reminder of the past history of Israel. To “return” to God is to repent of sin and make a thorough reformation in the life. This is the theme of the book of Joel (see Joel 2:12, 13).
Wherein? Again (see on ch. 1:2) the people reveal their hypocritical self-justification in questioning God.
Return unto me. The burden of the prophet’s message (see on ch. 1:1) is not a pronouncement of judgment upon sinners, but a call to repentance and fidelity to God, accompanied by a solemn reminder of the past history of Israel. To “return” to God is to repent of sin and make a thorough reformation in the life. This is the theme of the book of Joel (see Joel 2:12, 13).
Wherein? Again (see on ch. 1:2) the people reveal their hypocritical self-justification in questioning God. See p. 1122.
Mal 3:8 “Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. “But you ask, ‘How are we robbing you?’ “In tithes and offerings.
Strong language indeed! Mincing no words, Malachi shows specifically in what way the people have “robbed” God: by withholding from Him the “tithes and offerings” that are His due (see Lev. 27:30, 32; Num. 18:21; Neh. 10:37–39).
Offerings. Some fail to realize that it is possible to “rob” God in “offerings” even as in tithe. One who senses his obligations as a steward of God’s bounties will freely give the Lord offerings according to his ability, “as God hath prospered him” (1 Cor. 16:2).
Mal 3:9 You are under a curse—your whole nation—because you are robbing me.
The immediate context (v. 11) suggests that the “curse” was that of crop scarcity and field devastation (see Haggai 1:6; Mal. 2:2). The “curse” automatically followed disobedience as blessing followed obedience. There is no neutral ground; a man is either right or wrong in his conduct, and God rewards him accordingly.
Your whole nation. In strong condemnation the prophet refers to Judah as “this whole nation” rather than as God’s people. It is evident that this robbery of God was practiced by all.
Mal 3:10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.
All the tithes. Or, “the full tithes.” This implies that if the people paid tithe, they did not pay a full or honest tithe. Let us be sure that we do not make the same mistake as the people of Malachi’s day (cf. 1 Cor. 10:6–10). The Giver of all has a right to expect us to render Him an honest tithe, and also willing gifts as we are able.
Meat. Better, “food.”
Windows of heaven. Compare Gen. 7:11; 8:2. Not only will there be plenty of rain to remove all fear of drought, but through these openings, so to speak, the divine blessing will be poured out in great abundance (see Lev. 26:3–5).
Blessing. Not necessarily a material blessing, though that seems to be emphasized here (see on v. 11). For the material blessings God designed to bestow upon His people,
Windows of heaven. Compare Gen. 7:11; 8:2. Not only will there be plenty of rain to remove all fear of drought, but through these openings, so to speak, the divine blessing will be poured out in great abundance (see Lev. 26:3–5).
Blessing. Not necessarily a material blessing, though that seems to be emphasized here (see on v. 11). For the material blessings God designed to bestow upon His people.
The devourer. Probably a reference to locusts, which were so destructive of crops (see on Joel 1:4). The Lord here promises material prosperity to those who are faithful in tithe paying.
Windows of heaven. Compare Gen. 7:11; 8:2. Not only will there be plenty of rain to remove all fear of drought, but through these openings, so to speak, the divine blessing will be poured out in great abundance (see Lev. 26:3–5).
Blessing. Not necessarily a material blessing, though that seems to be emphasized here (see on v. 11).
Mal 3:11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe,” says the LORD Almighty.
Mal 3:12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land,” says the LORD Almighty.
Call you blessed. God desired that His people be an object lesson of the results of obedience.
Mal 3:13 “You have spoken arrogantly against me,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against you?’
The LXX reads, “Ye have spoken grievous words against me.” The prophet here contrasts the wicked murmuring of the people (Mal. 3:13–15) with the reward that those faithful to God will receive (vs. 16–18).
Yet ye say. See on ch. 1:2.
Mal 3:13 “You have spoken arrogantly against me,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against you?’
The LXX reads, “Ye have spoken grievous words against me.” The prophet here contrasts the wicked murmuring of the people (Mal. 3:13–15) with the reward that those faithful to God will receive (vs. 16–18).
Yet ye say. See on ch. 1:2.
Mal 3:13 “You have spoken arrogantly against me,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we said against you?’
The LXX reads, “Ye have spoken grievous words against me.” The prophet here contrasts the wicked murmuring of the people (Mal. 3:13–15) with the reward that those faithful to God will receive (vs. 16–18).
Yet ye say. See on ch. 1:2.
Mal 3:14 “You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What do we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the LORD Almighty?
It is futile. That is, nothing is to be gained. Evidently the prophet is condemning them because what little they did for God was from selfish motives.
Mal 3:15 But now we call the arrogant blessed. Certainly evildoers prosper, and even when they put God to the test, they get away with it.'”
We call the arrogant blessed. The murmurers do not consider that the humble and meek are “happy,” or blessed by the Lord, but consider that the “proud” and arrogant enjoy good fortune and well-being in the world (see Isa. 13:11).
They put God to the test. That is, those who put God to the test and provoke Him by reason of their wickedness. The LXX reads, “They have resisted God.”
The Book of Remembrance
Mal 3:16 Then those who feared the LORD talked with each other, and the LORD listened and heard. A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the LORD and honored his name.
Feared the Lord. Malachi brings a message of hope and comfort to those who are still faithful to the Lord. What a contrast between the iniquitous complainers mentioned above (vs. 13–15) and those who are truly righteous!
A book of remembrance. The prophet encourages those who are endeavoring to do what is right with the thought that God remembers the devoted service of His people (see on Dan. 7:10).
What a contrast between the iniquitous complainers mentioned above (vs. 13–15) and those who are truly righteous!
Mal 3:17 “On the day when I act,” says the LORD Almighty, “they will be my treasured possession. I will spare them, just as a father has compassion and spares his son who serves him.
17. They shall be mine. In the day when the sinners in Israel are arraigned before the bar of divine justice, God promises to recognize His “jewels” and spare them from the fate of the wicked.
Jewels. Heb. segullah, “[private] property,” or “special possession” (see on Ex. 19:5; Deut. 7:6; Ps. 135:4; cf. 1 Peter 2:9).
I will spare them. Note the two reasons for God’s mercy toward His faithful children: they are His sons (see John 1:12; Rom. 8:14; Gal. 3:26), and they serve Him as obedient children (see Ps. 103:13; Rev. 14:12).
Jewels. Heb. segullah, “[private] property,” or “special possession” (see on Ex. 19:5; Deut. 7:6; Ps. 135:4; cf. 1 Peter 2:9).
I will spare them. Note the two reasons for God’s mercy toward His faithful children: they are His sons (see John 1:12; Rom. 8:14; Gal. 3:26), and they serve Him as obedient children (see Ps. 103:13; Rev. 14:12).
Jewels. Heb. segullah, “[private] property,” or “special possession” (see on Ex. 19:5; Deut. 7:6; Ps. 135:4; cf. 1 Peter 2:9).
Mal 3:18 And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.
Distinction between. The prophet points forward to the time when all will be made plain, a time when the questions raised by the people of his day (see chs. 2:17; 3:14) will be finally and satisfactorily answered. Both in the nation’s history and in the individual Israelite’s life many incidents had witnessed to the fact that God deals differently with the godly and the ungodly. However, in the day of the Lord convincing evidence will be given of God’s judgment and justice (see Ps. 58:11).