Malachi Chapter 3
The Messenger of the Covenant
A. The Coming of the Two Messengers
(Malachi 3:1)
“Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.”
The prophecy begins with the announcement of two messengers. The first is identified as “My messenger,” referring prophetically to John the Baptist, as confirmed in Matthew 11:10, Mark 1:2, and Luke 7:27. His role was to prepare the way for the Messiah, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy: “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God” (Isaiah 40:3). In ancient times, a royal herald would go before a king to prepare his route, clearing obstacles and announcing his arrival. Likewise, John came to call Israel to repentance and readiness for the coming King.
Israel had previously complained that God did not judge wickedness or fulfill His Messianic promises. The LORD answered through Malachi that His justice would indeed come, but it required preparation. The hearts of the people were not ready to receive the Messiah. Thus, before the LORD Himself would come to His temple, His messenger would go before Him.
The phrase “before Me” shows that it is the LORD Himself who promises to come, not merely another prophet. This reveals the deity of the Messiah. The second messenger, “the Messenger of the covenant,” is the LORD Jesus Christ. He is both the initiator and mediator of the New Covenant, as foretold in Jeremiah 31:31–34, fulfilled in His first coming, and fully realized at His return.
Christ’s coming to His temple has both a past and future sense. When He first came, He entered the temple literally (see John 2:13–17). Yet Malachi’s prophecy looks forward to His second coming, when He will once again come suddenly to His temple in Jerusalem, bringing cleansing, judgment, and restoration.
(Malachi 3:2–5)
“But who may 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: and He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years. 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 false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not Me, saith the LORD of hosts.”
Malachi now turns from comfort to solemn warning. The question “Who may abide the day of His coming?” refers to the second coming of Christ, when He will return not in meekness as the Lamb, but in majesty as the Lion of Judah. His first advent brought grace and salvation; His second will bring judgment and purification. Like many Old Testament prophets, Malachi blended the two advents into one prophetic vision, yet the New Testament makes clear the distinction between His first coming for redemption and His second for judgment.
The imagery of a refiner’s fire and fuller’s soap describes Christ’s purifying work. Both images convey cleansing, not destruction. The refiner removes the dross from silver and gold, while the fuller cleanses garments to restore their brightness. The Lord sits as the refiner, patiently overseeing the process. He watches until His reflection is seen in the purified metal, illustrating how He refines His people until His own image is reflected in them.
This refining begins individually in believers through sanctification, but its ultimate fulfillment will occur when Christ returns to purify Israel and establish His righteous kingdom. The sons of Levi, representing the priesthood, had become corrupt (as shown in Malachi 1–2). The Messiah will cleanse them so that their offerings will again be righteous and pleasing to God. This anticipates the restoration of temple worship during the Millennial Kingdom (Ezekiel 40–48).
The Lord’s purification extends beyond the priesthood to society at large. He declares, “I will come near to you to judgment.” At His return, sin will be swiftly dealt with. The list of offenses—sorcery, adultery, perjury, oppression, and social injustice—reflects the moral decay of Malachi’s day and foreshadows the sins of the last days. Each reveals rebellion against God’s authority and indifference to His fear.
This passage also foreshadows Christ’s zeal when He cleansed the temple (John 2:13–17), driving out the corruption that had defiled the worship of God. It reveals the dual nature of His coming: both merciful to the repentant and terrible to the unrepentant. His refining fire is not to destroy but to purify, to remove every trace of sin until His people shine in righteousness.
B. Returning to God Instead of Robbing God
(Malachi 3:6–7)
“For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances, and have not kept them. Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?”
Here God declares His unchanging nature and unending mercy toward Israel. The Lord’s immutability—His inability to change—stands as the foundation for His covenant faithfulness. If God were fickle or subject to mood, Israel would have perished long ago for their rebellion. But His unchanging love preserves them. The sons of Jacob remained alive not because of their faithfulness, but because of the Lord’s. As He said through Jeremiah, “It is of the LORD’s mercies that we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not” (Lamentations 3:22).
Yet this very mercy was being abused. God said, “From the days of your fathers ye are gone away from Mine ordinances.” The nation had a long history of rebellion stretching back to their earliest generations. God’s faithfulness should have inspired repentance and obedience, but instead they presumed upon His patience, assuming His covenant grace meant they could live as they pleased.
Then God issues the invitation: “Return unto Me, and I will return unto you.” This is the timeless call of repentance—a two-way relationship of restoration. God does not move away from His people; they move away from Him. Yet He promises that when they turn back in humility, He will meet them with mercy. Repentance is not a mere emotional feeling, but a decisive turning from sin to God. It is the very act of returning itself.
Their reply, “Wherein shall we return?” reveals spiritual blindness and pride. They either would not or could not recognize their sin. They imagined that because they maintained outward forms of worship, all was well. But God saw their hearts and would now expose their hypocrisy through one specific area—how they handled what belonged to Him.
(Malachi 3:8–12)
“Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed Me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed Thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in Mine house, and prove Me now herewith, saith the LORD 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. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts. And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.”
God confronts them with a shocking accusation: “Will a man rob God?” The question itself conveys astonishment—it is bold, ungrateful, foolish, and self-destructive to steal from the Almighty. Yet Israel had done precisely that by withholding the tithes and offerings that rightfully belonged to Him. Everything in heaven and earth belongs to God, as Psalm 24:1 declares: “The earth is the LORD’s, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.” Yet He entrusted part of His resources to His people to manage on His behalf, requiring that the first tenth—the tithe—be returned to His house for sacred use.
By keeping the tithe, they unlawfully claimed possession of what was not theirs. God called this “robbery.” The tithe was a sacred acknowledgment that everything belonged to Him, and withholding it revealed a heart of unbelief and rebellion. The Law of Moses gave detailed instruction concerning tithes (Deuteronomy 14:22–29), and failure to tithe brought penalties (Leviticus 27:31–32). Yet even before the Law, Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek (Genesis 14:18–20), and Jacob vowed a tenth to God (Genesis 28:22), showing it is a timeless principle rooted in faith and gratitude rather than mere legal obligation.
Because they robbed God, He said, “Ye are cursed with a curse.” Their disobedience brought both spiritual and material drought. As Proverbs 11:24 teaches, “There is that scattereth, and yet increaseth; and there is that withholdeth more than is meet, but it tendeth to poverty.” God’s people found themselves struggling precisely because they had not honored Him first.
Then comes the gracious challenge: “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse.” Not some, not part, but all. Partial obedience was not enough. The “storehouse” was the temple treasury where food and provision were kept for the priests and Levites who served continually before the LORD (Nehemiah 13:10–12). Their failure to give faithfully had deprived God’s servants of sustenance, crippling the nation’s worship and ministry.
God then says something almost unheard of in Scripture: “Prove Me now herewith.” He invites His people to test His faithfulness. Normally, testing God is forbidden (Deuteronomy 6:16), but here the LORD commands it as a demonstration of His reliability. He challenges them: Give Me what is Mine, and see if I will not pour out abundant blessing.
The phrase “open you the windows of heaven” recalls Genesis 7:11, when the windows of heaven were opened to flood the earth—not with destruction this time, but with blessing. God promises not only to provide but to protect: “I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes.” The devourer refers to locusts or other pests that destroyed crops. God’s blessing thus includes supernatural protection over what they already have.
In response, He promises that “all nations shall call you blessed.” When God’s people walk in obedience and generosity, their land becomes a testimony to His goodness. Israel would again become a delightsome land, just as believers who honor God with their resources today demonstrate His faithfulness to a watching world.
Under the New Covenant, believers are not bound by the Mosaic tithe, but the principle of giving remains. The New Testament emphasizes generosity, faith, and joyful stewardship. Luke 6:38 declares, “Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over.” 1 Corinthians 16:2 calls for giving that is periodic, planned, proportional, and private. 2 Corinthians 9:6–7 adds that giving should be generous, free, and cheerful. The true question of the heart is not, “How little can I give?” but “How much can I give in gratitude to the God who gave everything for me?”
C. What Good Is It to Serve God?
(Malachi 3:13–15)
“Your words have been stout against Me, saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against Thee? Ye have said, It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts? And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered.”
Here the Lord confronts Israel for their arrogant and unbelieving speech. Their words were “stout”—that is, harsh, defiant, and resistant against God. Yet they were so spiritually blinded that they did not recognize their own rebellion. When challenged, they replied, “What have we spoken so much against Thee?” This reveals hearts hardened by self-righteousness. They did not see that their complaints and discouragements about God’s justice were, in fact, accusations against His character.
Their words expressed deep disillusionment: “It is vain to serve God.” To them, obedience had yielded no visible reward. They observed the proud and the wicked prospering, while the righteous struggled. In their distorted reasoning, serving God seemed useless. They said, “What profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts?” They had performed religious duties, perhaps fasting and mourning outwardly, but without inner faith or joy. Because they could not see immediate reward, they concluded that worship and obedience were a waste of effort.
This attitude echoes the age-old temptation to evaluate devotion to God through the lens of worldly success. When the wicked appear to flourish, the believer is tempted to envy them, forgetting that their prosperity is temporary. Psalm 73 mirrors this same struggle: “For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked... until I went into the sanctuary of God; then understood I their end” (Psalm 73:3, 17).
Israel went so far as to call the proud “happy” and the wicked “set up.” They even said that those who tempted God went “delivered,” meaning they escaped judgment. Their words reveal not only spiritual discouragement but a complete reversal of moral values. They honored the wicked as successful and saw righteousness as unprofitable. Yet such reasoning is built upon unbelief. They looked at temporary appearances instead of eternal truth. The Lord who hears every word of His people recorded this blasphemy against His justice, but as always, He had a faithful remnant who still feared His name.
(Malachi 3:16–18)
“Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon His name. And they shall be Mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth Him not.”
In contrast to the arrogant unbelievers, a godly remnant responded differently. “They that feared the LORD spake often one to another.” These faithful ones gathered together, not to complain but to strengthen one another in faith. They encouraged each other in the promises of God, reminding one another that He remains just and faithful even when the world appears otherwise. Fellowship among believers is a vital source of endurance. The Lord Himself “hearkened and heard it.” This simple statement reveals His delight in the conversations of the faithful. When His people speak words of reverence and trust, He listens and records them.
A “book of remembrance” was written before Him for those who feared the LORD and thought upon His name. This is not because God forgets, but because He chooses to honor His faithful servants by recording their devotion. Similar heavenly books are mentioned throughout Scripture. In Exodus 32:32–33, Moses interceded for Israel, referring to God’s book. Psalm 56:8 speaks of God writing the tears of His saints in His book. Daniel 12:1 describes a book of those written for deliverance, and Revelation 20:12 mentions the books opened in judgment. These divine records assure believers that every act of faith, every prayer, every tear is remembered before God.
The Lord further promises, “They shall be Mine... in that day when I make up My jewels.” The Hebrew word for “jewels” (segullah) means treasured possession. In times of corruption and compromise, God still has His precious people—those who fear His name and remain faithful. Though they may appear few and unnoticed, they are His crown jewels, carefully guarded and destined for glory.
Just as a gem is formed under pressure and refined by heat, so God’s people are shaped through trials to display His brilliance. Each believer is unique in size, shape, and luster, but all are prized by their Creator. They are durable, precious, and destined for royal use. Though the world may not recognize their value now, the coming day will reveal them as God’s treasured inheritance (Ephesians 1:18).
God also says, “I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.” This speaks of paternal compassion. God’s faithful ones will be preserved from His coming wrath, spared in the day of judgment, just as a loving father spares his obedient child.
Finally, the Lord declares, “Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked.” The day is coming when all confusion will vanish, and every false judgment will be reversed. The question, “What good is it to serve God?” will be answered in full when the righteous are vindicated and the wicked are condemned. Earthly appearances may now blur the distinction, but eternity will make it clear.
In that day, those who serve God will shine as jewels in His crown (Malachi 3:17, Zechariah 9:16), while those who rejected Him will face judgment. Thus, Malachi closes this section by affirming that God not only remembers His faithful but will publicly honor them when He gathers His treasure.
