Malachi 3 Study Notes: The Coming Messenger and Refiner
The LORD promises to send a messenger to prepare His way, after which the Lord will suddenly arrive at His temple to refine the priests and judge the wicked. He calls the people to return, charges them with robbing Him of tithes and offerings, and promises to remember and spare those who fear Him.
General
In 3:13-15, what harsh complaint had the people spoken against the LORD?
Answer: That serving God brought them no gain
God says the people's words against Him have been harsh, and once again they ask what they have said (3:13). They had claimed that serving God was useless: what good had it done them to keep His commands and go about in mourning before Him (3:14)? They even called the proud blessed, saying evildoers not only prosper but also put God to the test and get away with it (3:15). This is the voice of people who served God only for what they could get. The wicked in Job's day asked the same question (Job 21:15), and Asaph confessed that he once envied the prosperous wicked and felt his own purity had been for nothing (Psalm 73:3, 13).
- Malachi 3:13-15 (BSB)““Your words against Me have been harsh,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully before the LORD of Hosts? So now we call the arrogant blessed. Not only do evildoers prosper, they even test God and escape.’””The LORD exposes the people's harsh words claiming that obeying Him is pointless.
- Job 21:15 (BSB)“Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, and what would we gain if we pray to Him?’”Job quotes the wicked who ask what they would gain by serving or praying to the Almighty.
- Psalm 73:13 (BSB)“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in innocence I have washed my hands.”Asaph confesses that he once thought he had kept his heart pure for nothing.
- Psalm 73:3 (BSB)“For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”Asaph admits he was jealous of proud people when he saw the wicked thrive.
Theological
What harsh words against the LORD does 3:13-15 expose?
Answer: That serving God brought them no gain
The final disputation concerns harsh words against the LORD (3:13). The people had concluded that serving God is futile, asking what profit came from keeping His charge and going about in mourning before Him (3:14), and they had pronounced the arrogant blessed because evildoers prosper and test God without consequence (3:15). Their religion was mercenary, measured by visible return. The complaint echoes the godless in Job 21:15 and the temptation Asaph confessed in Psalm 73:3 and 73:13.
- Malachi 3:13-15 (BSB)““Your words against Me have been harsh,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we spoken against You?’ You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully before the LORD of Hosts? So now we call the arrogant blessed. Not only do evildoers prosper, they even test God and escape.’””The LORD exposes the people's harsh words claiming that obeying Him is pointless.
- Job 21:15 (BSB)“Who is the Almighty, that we should serve Him, and what would we gain if we pray to Him?’”Job quotes the wicked who ask what they would gain by serving or praying to the Almighty.
- Psalm 73:13 (BSB)“Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure; in innocence I have washed my hands.”Asaph confesses that he once thought he had kept his heart pure for nothing.
- Psalm 73:3 (BSB)“For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.”Asaph admits he was jealous of proud people when he saw the wicked thrive.
General
According to the New Testament's use of 3:1, who is the Lord who suddenly comes to His temple after the messenger?
Answer: Jesus Christ, whose way John prepared
In 3:1 God says He will send His messenger ahead of Him, after which the Lord the people are seeking will come without warning to His temple. This Lord also bears the title Messenger of the covenant. When Jesus quotes this verse, He speaks of the messenger being sent ahead of You, preparing Your way (Matthew 11:10). The One whose way John prepared is Jesus Himself. So, by the New Testament's own application of the verse, the Lord who comes to His temple is Jesus Christ. Zechariah's prophecy about John also says he would go before the Lord (Luke 1:76).
- Malachi 3:1 (BSB)““Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.”After the forerunner, the Lord Himself, the covenant's Messenger, comes suddenly to His temple.
- Matthew 11:10 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”In applying the verse, Jesus speaks of the messenger going ahead of You, showing that the Lord whose way is prepared is Jesus Himself.
- Luke 1:76 (BSB)“And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,”John goes ahead of the Lord to make His way ready, the Lord being the One who came after him.
Theological
In light of the New Testament's application of 3:1, who is the Lord who comes suddenly to His temple?
Answer: Jesus Christ, whose way John prepared
Malachi 3:1 distinguishes the forerunner from the Lord who follows him, the Lord whom the people seek, who comes suddenly to His own temple, the One titled Messenger of the covenant. Jesus applies the verse in Matthew 11:10 with the messenger going ahead of You and preparing Your way, identifying Himself as the One whose coming John prepared. By the New Testament's own application, then, the Lord of the temple is Christ: the coming that the LORD of Hosts announces in 3:1 is fulfilled in the coming of Jesus, whose way John prepared. Luke 1:76 likewise places John before the Lord.
- Malachi 3:1 (BSB)““Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.”After the forerunner, the Lord Himself, the covenant's Messenger, comes suddenly to His temple.
- Matthew 11:10 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”In applying the verse, Jesus speaks of the messenger going ahead of You, showing that the Lord whose way is prepared is Jesus Himself.
- Luke 1:76 (BSB)“And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,”John goes ahead of the Lord to make His way ready, the Lord being the One who came after him.
General
According to 3:6, why have the descendants of Jacob not been destroyed?
Answer: Because the LORD Himself does not change
God says that because He, the LORD, does not change, Jacob's descendants were not wiped out (3:6). Their survival did not come from their own faithfulness; in fact, ever since their ancestors' time they had turned away from His laws (3:7). They still exist because God stays true to His promises. Yet He also calls them to come back to Him, promising that He will return to them (3:7). James calls God the Father who never changes or shifts (James 1:17), and Lamentations confesses that God's people are not consumed because His mercy never runs out (Lamentations 3:22). Paul says God's gifts and calling are never taken back (Romans 11:29), which is why God keeps His people to the end.
- Malachi 3:6-7 (BSB)““Because I, the LORD, do not change, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed. Yet from the days of your fathers, you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD of Hosts. “But you ask, ‘How can we return?’”The LORD explains why Jacob's descendants still survive despite generations of disobedience, and calls them to return.
- James 1:17 (BSB)“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.”James describes the Father of lights as One who never varies or shifts.
- Lamentations 3:22 (BSB)“Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail.”Lamentations confesses that God's people are not consumed because of His loving devotion and unfailing mercies.
- Romans 11:29 (BSB)“For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.”Paul affirms that what God gives and the call He issues can never be revoked.
Theological
What reason does 3:6 give for the preservation of Jacob's descendants?
Answer: Because the LORD Himself does not change
The LORD grounds Israel's survival in His own immutability: because He does not change, the sons of Jacob are not consumed (3:6). Their continuance owes nothing to their faithfulness, for they had turned from His statutes since the days of their fathers (3:7). God's unchanging character secures His covenant faithfulness to His people, even as He summons them to return with the promise that He will return to them (3:7). James 1:17 confesses the Father who has no variation, Lamentations 3:22 attributes Israel's preservation to unfailing mercy, and Romans 11:29 declares God's calling irrevocable, the same unchanging faithfulness by which He preserves His people to the end.
- Malachi 3:6-7 (BSB)““Because I, the LORD, do not change, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed. Yet from the days of your fathers, you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD of Hosts. “But you ask, ‘How can we return?’”The LORD explains why Jacob's descendants still survive despite generations of disobedience, and calls them to return.
- James 1:17 (BSB)“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, with whom there is no change or shifting shadow.”James describes the Father of lights as One who never varies or shifts.
- Lamentations 3:22 (BSB)“Because of the loving devotion of the LORD we are not consumed, for His mercies never fail.”Lamentations confesses that God's people are not consumed because of His loving devotion and unfailing mercies.
- Romans 11:29 (BSB)“For God’s gifts and His call are irrevocable.”Paul affirms that what God gives and the call He issues can never be revoked.
General
Jesus applies the promise of 3:1 about God's messenger who prepares the way. Whom does He identify as that messenger?
Answer: John the Baptist
God promises to send His messenger to clear the road ahead of Him, and then the Lord Himself will suddenly arrive at His temple (3:1). Centuries later, Jesus spoke of John the Baptist and said that this Scripture was written about John (Matthew 11:10; Luke 7:27). John's work was to get the people ready for the Lord's arrival by calling them to repent (turn from sin back to God). Even at John's birth, his father Zechariah prophesied that the child would go ahead of the Lord to make His way ready (Luke 1:76). Malachi's promise was fulfilled when John came before Jesus.
- Malachi 3:1 (BSB)““Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD of Hosts promises to send a forerunner and then to come Himself to His temple.
- Matthew 11:10 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”Jesus identifies John the Baptist as the one this Scripture was written about.
- Luke 7:27 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”Luke records the same words of Jesus applying Malachi's promise to John.
- Luke 1:76 (BSB)“And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,”Zechariah prophesies that his son John will go ahead of the Lord to make His way ready.
Theological
Whom does Jesus identify as the messenger promised in 3:1 who prepares the way?
Answer: John the Baptist
The LORD of Hosts promises a forerunner to make ready the road ahead of Him, followed by the sudden coming of the Lord to His temple (3:1). Jesus explicitly identifies John the Baptist as the subject of this prophecy (Matthew 11:10; Luke 7:27). John's ministry of repentance readied Israel for the Lord's arrival, as Zechariah foretold at his birth when he said John would go ahead of the Lord to make His way ready (Luke 1:76). The forerunner promise therefore finds its fulfillment in John's ministry preceding Christ.
- Malachi 3:1 (BSB)““Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me. Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple—the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight—see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD of Hosts promises to send a forerunner and then to come Himself to His temple.
- Matthew 11:10 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”Jesus identifies John the Baptist as the one this Scripture was written about.
- Luke 7:27 (BSB)“This is the one about whom it is written: ‘Behold, I will send My messenger ahead of You, who will prepare Your way before You.’”Luke records the same words of Jesus applying Malachi's promise to John.
- Luke 1:76 (BSB)“And you, child, will be called a prophet of the Most High; for you will go on before the Lord to prepare the way for Him,”Zechariah prophesies that his son John will go ahead of the Lord to make His way ready.
General
In 3:2-4, what will the coming Lord do to Levi's priestly descendants?
Answer: He will refine the Levites as metal is purified
Malachi asks who will be able to bear the day the Lord comes, since He will act like a fire that melts metal to burn away impurities, and like a launderer's strong soap (3:2). Like a silversmith at work, He will cleanse the priestly tribe of Levi, refining them as precious metals are refined (3:3). The result is that their offerings will once again be pleasing to God, as in earlier days (3:3-4). Zechariah uses the same picture of God refining His people (Zechariah 13:9), and John the Baptist said the coming One would baptize with the Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11-12). Peter also speaks of believers' faith being tested and proven like gold in a fire (1 Peter 1:7).
- Malachi 3:2-4 (BSB)“But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap. And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the LORD in righteousness. Then the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will please the LORD, as in days of old and years gone by.”The coming Lord is pictured as a refiner who cleanses the priesthood so that its worship pleases the LORD.
- Zechariah 13:9 (BSB)“This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’””Zechariah pictures God refining a remnant like silver and testing them like gold, until they call on His name.
- Matthew 3:11-12 (BSB)“I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.””John the Baptist announces that the coming One will baptize with the Spirit and fire and will sort wheat from chaff.
- 1 Peter 1:7 (BSB)“so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”Peter compares the testing of believers' faith to gold refined by fire.
Theological
What does 3:2-4 say the coming Lord will do to Levi's priestly descendants?
Answer: He will refine the Levites as metal is purified
The Lord's coming is both a threat and a promise: none can endure it, for He comes as a refiner's fire and a launderer's soap (3:2). Seated like a silversmith over the crucible, He will cleanse Levi's descendants as precious metal is refined, so that they bring righteous offerings and the worship of Judah and its capital again pleases Him (3:3-4). His coming purges in order to restore true worship. The same refining imagery appears in Zechariah 13:9, John the Baptist announces the One who baptizes with the Spirit and fire (Matthew 3:11-12), and 1 Peter 1:7 applies it to the proving of genuine faith.
- Malachi 3:2-4 (BSB)“But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap. And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the LORD in righteousness. Then the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will please the LORD, as in days of old and years gone by.”The coming Lord is pictured as a refiner who cleanses the priesthood so that its worship pleases the LORD.
- Zechariah 13:9 (BSB)“This third I will bring through the fire; I will refine them like silver and test them like gold. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The LORD is our God.’””Zechariah pictures God refining a remnant like silver and testing them like gold, until they call on His name.
- Matthew 3:11-12 (BSB)“I baptize you with water for repentance, but after me will come One more powerful than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.””John the Baptist announces that the coming One will baptize with the Spirit and fire and will sort wheat from chaff.
- 1 Peter 1:7 (BSB)“so that the proven character of your faith—more precious than gold, which perishes even though refined by fire—may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”Peter compares the testing of believers' faith to gold refined by fire.
General
In 3:8-10, how does the LORD say the people of Judah were robbing Him?
Answer: By holding back tithes and offerings
When God calls the people to return to Him, they ask how (3:7). He answers with a startling charge: they are robbing God by withholding the tithes (a tenth of their produce) and offerings that His law required (3:8). The whole nation was under a curse for this. God commands them to bring the whole tithe to the storehouse so His house would have food, and He invites them to put Him to the test and see if He would not throw open heaven's windows with overflowing blessing (3:10). He also promises to hold back whatever would ruin their crops and vines, and says that the nations would then call Judah blessed (3:11-12). Under the law, tithes supported the Levites who served at the temple (Numbers 18:21); in Nehemiah's day, neglecting them left God's house without its workers (Nehemiah 13:10-12). God's promise here fits the covenant blessings He had pledged to Israel, such as rain in its season (Deuteronomy 28:12).
- Malachi 3:8-12 (BSB)“Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you ask, ‘How do we rob You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your land, and the vine in your field will not fail to produce fruit,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD charges the whole nation with robbing Him, calls them to bring the whole tithe to His house, and promises covenant blessing on their land.
- Numbers 18:21 (BSB)“Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting.”Under the law Israel's tithes belonged to the Levites as payment for their service.
- Nehemiah 13:10-12 (BSB)“I also learned that because the portions for the Levites had not been given to them, all the Levites and singers responsible for performing the service had gone back to their own fields. So I rebuked the officials and asked, “Why has the house of God been neglected?” Then I gathered the Levites and singers together and stationed them at their posts, and all Judah brought a tenth of the grain, new wine, and oil into the storerooms.”When the Levites' portions were withheld, they left their posts until Judah again brought its tenth to the storerooms.
- Deuteronomy 28:12 (BSB)“The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none.”The covenant promised that the LORD would open the heavens with rain and bless the work of Israel's hands.
Theological
According to 3:8-10, in what way was Judah robbing God?
Answer: By holding back tithes and offerings
The call to return (3:7) exposes a concrete covenant breach: the whole nation was robbing God by withholding the tithes and offerings required by the law, and so stood under a curse (3:8-9). The LORD commands the whole tithe brought to the storehouse to supply His house, and He invites Judah to put Him to the test and watch Him throw open heaven's windows with overflowing blessing (3:10). He further pledges to restrain what would ruin Judah's harvest and vines, so that the nations would call Judah blessed (3:11-12). The tithe sustained the Levites in their temple service (Numbers 18:21), and Nehemiah 13:10-12 shows how its neglect emptied God's house of its servants. The promised blessing is the covenant blessing pledged to Israel in the land, including rain in its season (Deuteronomy 28:12).
- Malachi 3:8-12 (BSB)“Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me! But you ask, ‘How do we rob You?’ In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse, yet you—the whole nation—are still robbing Me. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure. I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your land, and the vine in your field will not fail to produce fruit,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD charges the whole nation with robbing Him, calls them to bring the whole tithe to His house, and promises covenant blessing on their land.
- Numbers 18:21 (BSB)“Behold, I have given to the Levites all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance in return for the work they do, the service of the Tent of Meeting.”Under the law Israel's tithes belonged to the Levites as payment for their service.
- Nehemiah 13:10-12 (BSB)“I also learned that because the portions for the Levites had not been given to them, all the Levites and singers responsible for performing the service had gone back to their own fields. So I rebuked the officials and asked, “Why has the house of God been neglected?” Then I gathered the Levites and singers together and stationed them at their posts, and all Judah brought a tenth of the grain, new wine, and oil into the storerooms.”When the Levites' portions were withheld, they left their posts until Judah again brought its tenth to the storerooms.
- Deuteronomy 28:12 (BSB)“The LORD will open the heavens, His abundant storehouse, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations, but borrow from none.”The covenant promised that the LORD would open the heavens with rain and bless the work of Israel's hands.
General
In 3:16, how did the LORD respond when those who feared Him talked together?
Answer: He had a written record kept of them
In contrast to the complainers, the people who revered the LORD talked together, and the LORD paid attention and heard them (3:16). He had a scroll of remembrance recorded in His presence about those who feared Him and held His name in honor. God promises that they will be His own on the day He prepares His treasured possession, and that He will spare them the way a father spares a son who works for him (3:17). Then they will again be able to tell the difference between those who are righteous and those who are wicked (3:18). God had called Israel His treasured possession at Mount Sinai (Exodus 19:5). Jesus told His disciples to rejoice that their names are recorded in heaven (Luke 10:20) and promised that no one can seize His sheep from His hand (John 10:28).
- Malachi 3:16-18 (BSB)“At that time those who feared the LORD spoke with one another, and the LORD listened and heard them. So a scroll of remembrance was written before Him regarding those who feared the LORD and honored His name. “They will be Mine,” says the LORD of Hosts, “on the day when I prepare My treasured possession. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.””In contrast to the scoffers, those who fear the LORD are heard, remembered, and claimed by Him as His own.
- Exodus 19:5 (BSB)“Now if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My treasured possession out of all the nations—for the whole earth is Mine.”At Sinai God called Israel to be His own treasured people among the nations.
- Luke 10:20 (BSB)“Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.””Jesus tells His disciples to rejoice that their names are recorded in heaven.
- John 10:28 (BSB)“I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand.”Jesus promises that His sheep will never perish and that no one can seize them from His hand.
Theological
What did the LORD do in 3:16 in response to those who feared Him speaking together?
Answer: He had a written record kept of them
Over against the scoffers stand those who revered the LORD; they talked together, and He paid attention and heard (3:16). He had a scroll of remembrance recorded in His presence concerning those who feared Him and esteemed His name. He claims them as His own for the day when He prepares His treasured possession and promises to spare them like a father sparing a serving son (3:17), so that the distinction between righteous and wicked will again be evident (3:18). The language recalls Israel's calling at Sinai (Exodus 19:5). God knows, records, and keeps His own: Jesus bids His disciples rejoice that their names are recorded in heaven (Luke 10:20) and assures that none can snatch His sheep from His hand (John 10:28).
- Malachi 3:16-18 (BSB)“At that time those who feared the LORD spoke with one another, and the LORD listened and heard them. So a scroll of remembrance was written before Him regarding those who feared the LORD and honored His name. “They will be Mine,” says the LORD of Hosts, “on the day when I prepare My treasured possession. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.””In contrast to the scoffers, those who fear the LORD are heard, remembered, and claimed by Him as His own.
- Exodus 19:5 (BSB)“Now if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you will be My treasured possession out of all the nations—for the whole earth is Mine.”At Sinai God called Israel to be His own treasured people among the nations.
- Luke 10:20 (BSB)“Nevertheless, do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.””Jesus tells His disciples to rejoice that their names are recorded in heaven.
- John 10:28 (BSB)“I give them eternal life, and they will never perish. No one can snatch them out of My hand.”Jesus promises that His sheep will never perish and that no one can seize them from His hand.
General
True or False: In 3:5, the LORD says He will testify against those who cheat workers of their pay and oppress widows and orphans.
Answer: True
This is true. Answering the people's complaint about where God's justice is (2:17), the LORD says He will come near to judge and be a quick witness against sorcerers, adulterers, those who lie under oath, those who cheat hired workers of their wages, those who oppress widows and the fatherless, and those who deny justice to foreigners (3:5). At the root of all of these, He says, they do not fear Him. God's law had long protected the vulnerable (Exodus 22:22; Deuteronomy 24:14-15), and James warns that the Lord of Hosts hears the cry of unpaid workers (James 5:4).
- Malachi 3:5 (BSB)““Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD names the sins He will judge when He draws near, ending with failure to fear Him.
- Exodus 22:22 (BSB)“You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.”The law forbade mistreating widows or orphans.
- Deuteronomy 24:14-15 (BSB)“Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns. You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.”The law required paying hired workers promptly and not oppressing the poor or the foreigner.
- James 5:4 (BSB)“Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.”James warns that the Lord of Hosts hears the cry of workers whose pay was kept back.
Theological
True or False: In 3:5, the LORD promises to testify swiftly against those who cheat workers and oppress widows and the fatherless.
Answer: True
This is true. In answer to the charge that the God of justice is absent (2:17), the LORD announces that He will draw near for judgment and testify swiftly against sorcerers, adulterers, perjurers, those who cheat workers, oppressors of the widow and fatherless, and those who withhold justice from the foreigner (3:5). The root of every listed sin is the absence of the fear of God. The judgment vindicates the protections God built into His law (Exodus 22:22; Deuteronomy 24:14-15), and James 5:4 shows the Lord of Hosts still hearing the cry of defrauded workers.
- Malachi 3:5 (BSB)““Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.”The LORD names the sins He will judge when He draws near, ending with failure to fear Him.
- Exodus 22:22 (BSB)“You must not mistreat any widow or orphan.”The law forbade mistreating widows or orphans.
- Deuteronomy 24:14-15 (BSB)“Do not oppress a hired hand who is poor and needy, whether he is a brother or a foreigner residing in one of your towns. You are to pay his wages each day before sunset, because he is poor and depends on them. Otherwise he may cry out to the LORD against you, and you will be guilty of sin.”The law required paying hired workers promptly and not oppressing the poor or the foreigner.
- James 5:4 (BSB)“Look, the wages you withheld from the workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of Hosts.”James warns that the Lord of Hosts hears the cry of workers whose pay was kept back.