Psalm 150 (continued, part 40)
The promise in Malachi 3:10 was linked to the covenant the Israelites had made with the Lord (Deut. 28:1–14), so if they faithfully obeyed Him, He would faithfully keep His promises. But the spiritual principle behind this promise is echoed in Luke 6:38 and 2 Corinthians 9:6–8, so believers today can lay hold of it. For some Christians in America, a tithe would be much too small an amount, but each believer must be fully persuaded in his or her heart what the Lord wants him or her to do.4
It's a serious thing to serve the Lord, and we're commanded to "serve the Lord with gladness" (Ps. 100:2). It's a sad thing when servants of God drudge, merely doing a job because that's what they have to do or for what they get out of it. Philippians 2:1–12 is God's portrait of Christ, God's ideal Servant, and His example is the one that we should follow.
The believers (3:16–18). There was a group of true believers in this remnant, and they remained faithful to the Lord. They feared the Lord, which means they held Him in awe and worshipped Him as the Lord Almighty. They met together, not to complain but to encourage and edify each other. They spoke about the Lord and they weren't afraid for Him to hear what they were saying!
They were robbing others (v. 12). The remnant that returned to Judah after the exile had a great opportunity to trust God and bear witness to the other nations that their God was the true and living God. Had the Jews trusted the Lord, He would have done great things for them and they would have been a testimony to others. As it was, they floundered in their
Their assembly probably wasn't a large one, and
Malachi 3—4
man of prayer empowered by the Spirit, a man who lived alone in the wilderness, and a servant who turned many people back to the Lord, but he was not Elijah returned to earth.
they may have thought that very little was happening because they met and worshipped, but God was paying attention and keeping a record of their words. Their neighbors may have laughed at them, but God was pleased with them. They weren't wasting their time because they were investing in eternity.
However, for those who believed on Christ during His earthly ministry, John the Baptist performed the work of Elijah in their lives: he prepared them to meet the Lord. "And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come" (Matt. 11:14 niv). "Elijah is come already," said Jesus, "and they know him not." The disciples understood Jesus to mean John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah (17:10–13).
God claimed them as His own, and God promised to spare them in the future judgment when everybody would see that there is a difference between the righteous and the wicked and that this difference is important.
One of the sins of the priests was that they failed to make the distinction between the way of holiness and the way of sin. To them, one sacrifice was just as good as another, yet they were supposed to teach the people "the difference between the holy and the common, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean" (Ezek. 44:23).
C.The evildoers—4:1–3 D.The preachers—4:4–6
But Malachi 4:5 promises that Elijah himself will come, and that his coming is related to the "day of the Lord" that will burn the wicked like stubble (v. 1). That's why Jesus said, "Elijah truly shall first come, and restore all things" (Matt. 17:11). Many students believe that Elijah is one of the two witnesses whose ministries are described in Revelation 11:3–12. (They believe the other is Moses.) It's worth noting that both Moses and Elijah appeared with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration (Matt. 17:3), which explains why the three apostles asked about Elijah.
Many of God's faithful servants become discouraged because the times are difficult, the crowds are small, and their work seems to be unappreciated. People who aren't really walking with the Lord seem to be getting more attention than are the faithful servants. But the day will come when God will reveal "his jewels" ("treasured possession," niv; see Ex. 19:5; Deut. 7:6), and then the faithful will receive their reward. Every discouraged servant of God needs to read and ponder 1 Corinthians 4:1–5.
Inasmuch as "the great and terrible Day of the Lord" did not occur in New Testament times, we have to believe that John the Baptist was not the promised Elijah, even though he ministered like Elijah. Therefore, this prophecy is yet to be fulfilled. It may well be that Elijah will return to earth as one of the two witnesses (Rev. 11:3–12), for the signs that these two men will perform remind us of the miracles of Elijah. After the ministry of the witnesses, the Lord will pour out His wrath upon the earth (v. 18; 16:1ff.) and the day of the Lord will burst upon the world in its fury.
The evildoers (4:1–3). Once again, Malachi returns to the theme of the coming day of the Lord, when God will punish all evildoers. Sinners will be burned up the way fire eats up the stubble; they will become like ashes under the feet of the saints! But the true believers will see the dawning of a new day as the "Sun of righteousness" rises (Luke 1:78–79). Then Jesus will reign as King of Kings and His people will frolic like calves let out of their stalls!
It seems odd that the Old Testament Scriptures should end with the word curse. When we get near the end of the New Testament, we read, "And there shall be no more curse" (Rev. 22:3). All of creation is eagerly awaiting the return of the Savior, expecting Him to deliver creation from the bondage of sin (Rom. 8:18–23). We too should be expecting Him and, while we're waiting, witness of Him to others. For when the Sun of righteousness arises, it will mean either burning or blessing (Mal. 4:1–2): blessing to those who have trusted Him, burning to those who have rejected Him.
The preachers (4:4–6). Malachi has been faithful as God's messenger, and he closes his book by reminding the people of two other faithful prophets, Moses and Elijah. The law of Moses was still God's rule of life for the Jews, and if they obeyed, God would bless them. Of course, believers today aren't under the law (Rom. 6:15; Gal. 5:1–4), but they still practice the righteousness of the law through the power of the indwelling Spirit of God (Rom. 8:1–4).
The promise in Malachi 4:5 was often discussed and debated by the Jewish rabbis, who asked, "Who is the Elijah whom the Lord will send?" The Jewish leaders interrogated John the Baptist about it (John 1:19–21); and Peter, James, and John asked Jesus about it (Matt. 17:10).
Nobody can afford to argue with God the way the Israelites did when they heard Malachi, because God will always have the last word.
For you, will that last word be salvation or judgment?
The prophet Elijah is mentioned at least thirty times in the New Testament, and ten of those references relate him to John the Baptist. But John the Baptist said plainly that he was no Elijah (John 1:21, 25). He did come in the "spirit and power" of Elijah and turn the hearts of fathers and children (Luke 1:16–17). Like Elijah, John was a courageous man, a
1 Keep in mind that the old covenant was not ended by the birth of Jesus in the manger but by the death of Jesus on the cross. John's ministry took place at the close of the old dispensation, so strictly speaking, he was an Old Testament prophet. 2 Some of the old editions of the Bible made this same mistake
Malachi
Gentile believers to give aid to the Jewish Christians in Jerusalem. 4 Multitudes of people have testified to the blessing of regular systematic proportionate giving. However, we must remember that even after we've given generously to the Lord, what remains is still His, for we are stewards of everything He gives us. Giving a tithe doesn't mean we have the right to use the remaining 90 percent for ourselves.
in their chapter headings. If the chapter was about blessing, the caption read "God's blessing on the church," but if it was about judgment the heading said, "God's judgment on the Jews." Yet the Bible tells us that "judgment must begin at the house of God" (1 Peter 4:17). 3 The offering mentioned in 1 Corinthians 16:1–3 was not a regular weekly offering received at a meeting of God's people. It was a special "relief offering" Paul was receiving from the
B I B L E V E R S I O N S
Scripture quotations marked nasb are taken from the New American Standard Bible, © Copyright 1960, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; niv are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved; and nkjv are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked asv are from The American Standard Version © Copyright 1901. (Public Domain); ph are taken from J. B. Phillips: The New Testament in Modern English, revised editions © J. B. Phillips, 1958, 1960, 1972, permission of Macmillan Publishing Co. and Collins Publishers; and wms are from The New Testament in the Language of the People, by Charles B. Williams. Copyright 1937 by Bruce Humphries, Inc.; assigned 1949 to Moody Bible Institute, Chicago.
Scripture quotations marked wuest are taken from The New Testament: An Expanded Translation by Kenneth S. Wuest. © Copyright Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 1961. All rights reserved; ab are taken from The Amplified Bible. Copyright © 1954, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission; and rsv are taken from the Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971], Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations marked tlb are taken from The Living Bible, © 1971, Tyndale House Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60189. Used by permission; nlt are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved; and sco and srb are taken from the New Scofield Reference Bible, King James version, © 1967 by Oxford University Press, Inc. Reprinted by permission.
Scripture quotations marked breck are taken from the Breckinridge Bible, published in 1841 by Case, Tiffany and Burnham. (Public Domain); kjv are taken from the King James Version of the Bible. (Public Domain); and brv are taken from the New Berkeley Version in Modern English. © 1969 Zondervan. All rights reserved. Used by permission.