Malachi: Messenger of Rebuke and Renewal

Top Highlights

“Those who married idolatrous women believed that God would forgive their sin if they brought the proper ‘offering unto the Lord’ (2:12). But they were wasting their time, for ‘The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord’ (Prov. 15:8). Here we see the epitome of hypocrisy and insensitivity. This calls to mind the judgment that struck Eli. He and his family were cut off from the priesthood because he refused to discipline the wicked practices of his two sons regarding their Tabernacle service (1 Sam. 2:29–35).” (Malachi 2:10–16)

“It was written about one hundred years after Cyrus decreed that Judah could return to their land (538 bc). During that time the Jewish faith was reformed under Ezra and Nehemiah, but soon the priests and people became apathetic, indifferent, and morally corrupt. Malachi revealed Judah’s sins and proclaimed that judgment would be forthcoming unless the people returned to God.” (source)

“The word burden (massa) has the idea of something heavy, a load to be lifted up. It is the equivalent of a weighty word full of meaning.” (Malachi 1:1–5)

“Third, God’s love for Israel is everlasting (Jer. 31:3)—a commitment He has not made with any other nation” (Malachi 1:1–5)

“Therefore, Malachi had to be written sometime between 433 and 400 bc.” (source)