1The forerunner, and coming of the Messiah to cleanse his church, and to judge the wicked. 7The people are warned to repent, and turn from their sins, 8particularly their sacrilege, 13and impious blasphemy. 16God's blessing promised to those that fear him.
1BEHOLD,a1I will send 2my messenger, and he 3shall prepare the way before me: and 4the Lord, whom 5ye seek, shall 6suddenly come 7to his temple, even 8the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts.
a Mat. 11:10; Mark 1:2; Luke 1:76; 7:27.
1 These are the words of the Lord Christ.
2 Or, my angel, namely, John the Baptist, Mat. 11:10; Mark 1:2; Luke 1:76; 7:27.
3 Hebr. shall empty, that is, shall remove and take away all impediments by his preaching, etc., disposing and preparing the people for the receiving of Christ. See Isa. 40:3, etc.; Mat. 3:3.
4 I, the Lord Jesus Christ.
5 That is, Whose coming ye wish and long for, or at least seem to be desirous after. The godly among the Jews did indeed earnestly long and hope for the coming of the Messiah, as their Savior, Mat. 13:17; Luke 10:24.
6 Or, soon, that is, very soon after the coming of John the Baptist and who shall have prepared the way.
7 That is, Christ shall appear in the flesh in the newly rebuilt temple, whereby also is typified His church.
8 Namely, Christ Himself, as the Mediator of the covenant of grace between God and His church. See 2 Cor. 5:19.
2But 9who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like 10a refiner’s fire, and like 11fullers’b soap:
9 The sense is: Who shall there be found void of sin or so pure that he shall be able to abide and pass the trial when Christ shall come? There shall be none at all who shall not stand in need of Christ the Mediator. See Mat. 3:10, 11, 12.
10 Hebr. of a smelter or refiner.
11 Others understand it of fullers-earth.
b bleacher or cleaner of cloth*
3And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify 12the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering 13in righteousness.
12 That is, He shall begin with the priests, in order that they may shine as lights among a wicked and adulterous generation. Yet some do understand hereby the sons of Levi all true believers and true Christians, whom the Lord Christ doth make priests, to offer up spiritual and well-pleasing sacrifices unto Him. See Rom. 12:1; 1 Peter 2:5, 9; Rev. 1:6.
13 That is, as God has instituted it in His laws, and demands from us. See Psalm 51:19.
4Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be 14pleasant unto the LORD, 15as in the days of old, and as 16in former years.
14 That is, acceptable and well-pleasing, as Jer. 6:20; Hos. 9:4.
15 Hebr. according to the days of age, namely, before the Babylonian captivity; or, when they were better and more pious than now; or, understand it of those days wherein the former temple stood and flourished.
16 That is, in the years past.
5And I will come near to you 17to judgment; and 18I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against falsec swearers, and against those 19that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow,d and the fatherless, and that turn aside 20the stranger from his right, and fear not 21me, saith the LORD of hosts.
17 This refers to the words of the wicked, when they said: Where is the God Who punishes? Mal. 2:17.
18 That is, I will convince them of and punish them for their wickedness. Nothing is hid from God. He sees all we do and practice, yea, all we think and devise, and therefore He can soon and easily convince us.
c Exod. 20:7.
19 Or, that oppress or deceive the day laborer in his wages. See Lev. 19:13; Deut. 24:14, 15.
d Exod. 22:22; Deut. 24:17; Amos 27.
20 Hebr. perverting the stranger.
21The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, on the contrary, not to fear God is the beginning of all folly.
6For I am the LORD, I 22changee not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
22 The sense is: While I am merciful and gracious, and will remain as such always, this is the reason why you are not totally consumed and destroyed, as you otherwise deserve it truly by your manifold sins, Lam. 3:22, 23. Compare Hab. 1:12.
e Psalm 33:11; Prov. 19:21; Isa. 14:26, 27; 25:1; 46:10.
7¶Even from the days of your fathers ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have 23not kept them. 24Returnf unto me, and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, 25Wherein shall we return?
23 That is, not done accordingly.
24 See Zech. 1 on verse 3.
f Zech. 1:3.
25 As if they meant to say: What have we done amiss? Or, when did we depart from Thee that Thou bidst us to return?
8 ¶ 26Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. 27But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In 28tithes and 29offerings.
26 As if He said: It is against all sense and reason that a man would dare to rob God; and yet many among the Jews did it. See Neh. 13:10.
27 Or, if ye say.
28 The priests lived of the tenths, and had their share in the offerings, which, not being duly paid, was a robbing of God and shortchanged His service. See verse 9.
29 Or, oblation, or, sacrifice.
9Ye are cursed 30with a curse: for ye have robbed me, 31even this whole nation.
30 That is, ye are so cursed that nothing thrives nor prosper whatever you take in hand.
31 Understand herewith: rob me, or, even all the people is also cursed, because they also rob Me. Other, they are all heathen, that is, all those greedy Jews deal so basely and wickedly with withholding the tithes as if they were all mere pagans.
10Bring ye all the tithes 32into the store house, that there may be meat in mine house, and 33prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not 34open you 35the windows of heaven, and 36pour you out a 37blessing, 38that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
32 That is, into My storehouse, where all was laid up which appertained to the maintenance of God’s public worship. See 1 Chron. 26:20; Neh. 10:38.
33 Namely, whether I shall not bless you, if you do uprightly pay your tithes, and whatsoever else belongs to the worship of God.
34 Namely, in due season. The sense is: Then shall I give you copious and timely rain.
35 Or, floodgates. See Gen. 7 on verse 11.
36 Hebr. empty, or, make void. The sense is: In such abundance, that it shall seem as if I emptied or poured out all My storehouses all at once.
37Blessing is here to say: fruitful and plentiful rain.
38 Hebr. unto not enough. The sense is: I shall give you such plenty and abundance of fruit that you shall not be able to gather them all, nor shall have barns and vessels enough in which to store them.
11And I will 39rebuke the 40devourer 41for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit 42before the time in the field, saith the LORD of hosts.
39 That is, turn away, or drive away, or refrain.
40 Hereby are understood the caterpillars, grasshoppers and other such similar harmful vermin, which consume and spoil the fruits of the fields and of the trees. See Joel 1:4.
41 Or, for your good, for your advantage.
42 That is, not be unfruitful nor miscarry. Compare Lev. 26:19; Deut. 11:14, 15; Job 12:14; Amos 4:7; Hag. 1:10.
12And all nations shall call you blessed: for ye shall be 43a delightsome land, saith the LORD of hosts.
43 Hebr. a land of pleasure. We would say: Your land shall be a cheerful land. Compare Dan. 11:16; Zech. 7:14.
13 ¶ 44Yourg words have been 45stout against me, saith the LORD. 46Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee?
44 This is yet a sin about which the prophet reproves the people, namely, that they dared to speak against the Lord.
g Job 21:14, 15.
45 Too bold, too daring, too presumptuous.
46 Other, but if ye say.
14Ye have said, 47It is vain to serve God: and what profit is it 48that we have kept his ordinance, and 49that we have walked mournfully before the LORD of hosts?
47 Compare Job 21:15.
48 That is, that we keep and observe what He has charged us to keep and observe.
49 That is, that we grieve and mourn in black clothes. See Job 30:28; Psalm 38:6; 42:9; 43:2.
1550And now we call 51the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness 52are set up; yea, they that 53tempt God are even 54delivered.
50 These are the words of the wicked.
51 The haughty, the insolent.
52 That is, they have happiness and prosperity; they grow and bloom and obtain great wealth and riches in this world; thus the words are set up are likewise taken in Prov. 24:3.
53 See Psalm 95:9.
54 Namely, out of all trouble and danger, also from all miseries and difficulties; or, they escape, that is, they are not punished.
16 ¶ 55Then they that feared the LORD 56spake often one to another: and the LORD 57hearkened, and heard it, and 58a book of remembrance was written 59before him for them that feared the LORD, and 60that thought upon his name.
55 Namely, when they hear such words of the wicked.
56 Namely, the following words, to comfort one another.
57 Namely, what the wicked utter so blasphemously, which God will not suffer to go unpunished, either here or hereafter.
58 That is, the Lord does not forget those who fear Him. See Deut. 32:34; Psalm 139:16; Rev. 20:12.
59 Spoken of God after the manner of men.
60 The sense is: for such as have the Lord always before their eyes, who stand in awe and honor Him.
17And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, 61in that day when I make up my jewels; and 62I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
61 Namely, in that day when I shall punish the wicked and deliver My people; they shall be as My own peculiar inheritance, a people appertaining to Me hereditarily. See Psalm 135:4; Titus 2:14; 1 Peter 2:9. Other, in that day when I shall make me a special treasure, that is, when I shall separate My people from the wicked children of the world. Other, in that day when I shall separate my most precious jewels.
62 That is, I will not destroy them with the wicked.
1863Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.
63 Other, Therefore, repent ye, so shall ye see, etc. This regards especially the wicked, spoken of in verses 14, 15. The sense is: Then you would be made to think and speak otherwise, which you were wont to do previously.