Malachi · chapter 4 of 4
Updated on
Malachi 4 describes the day of the Lord, which will burn like a furnace for the arrogant and the wicked but bring healing for those who fear his name, on whom the sun of righteousness will rise. The prophet calls the people to remember the law of Moses and closes the Old Testament with the promise that God will send the prophet Elijah before that day to turn the hearts of fathers to their children and of children to their fathers.
This is the last chapter of the Old Testament in Christian Bibles. In the Hebrew text these verses are the end of chapter 3, but English and Spanish Bibles separate them as a fourth chapter. It is the closing of Malachi's message: the judgment and hope of the day of the Lord, and a bridge to the New Testament.
The prophet announces that the day is coming, burning like a furnace. All the arrogant and all who do wickedness will be like stubble, and the coming day will consume them, leaving neither root nor branch. But for those who fear the Lord's name the sun of righteousness will rise, with healing in its wings. They will go out and leap like calves from the stall (vv. 1-2).
On that day the righteous will tread down the wicked, who will be ashes under the soles of their feet, on the day when the Lord acts (v. 3). Then the Lord commands them to remember the law of his servant Moses, the statutes and rules he commanded at Horeb for all Israel (v. 4).
The book, and with it the Old Testament, ends with a promise. The Lord will send the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. He will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, so that God does not come and strike the land with total destruction (vv. 5-6).
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
For those who fear the Lord's name the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. The image of a rising sun promises light, restoration and joy, and Christians see it fulfilled in Christ.
God asks the people to remember the law of his servant Moses, given at Horeb for all Israel. While they wait for the promised messenger, they are to remain faithful to what they have already been taught.
The Lord will send the prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day comes. The Gospels apply this promise to John the Baptist, who came in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luke 1:17; Matthew 11:14).
Elijah will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and of children to their fathers, so that God does not strike the land with destruction. The Old Testament ends with a call to reconciliation and the restoration of families.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: As a burning furnace, in which the arrogant and the wicked will be like stubble. — Malachi 4:1
Answer: The sun of righteousness, with healing in its wings. — Malachi 4:2
Answer: To calves leaping from the stall. — Malachi 4:2
Answer: The law of his servant Moses, given at Horeb for all Israel. — Malachi 4:4
Answer: The prophet Elijah. — Malachi 4:5
Answer: Turn the hearts of fathers to their children and of children to their fathers. — Malachi 4:6
Malachi 4 reminds us that God has a day for justice and that it will be a day of hope for those who fear him. A small group can talk about how to live with that horizon: without fear of the future, but taking seriously how we live today.
The closing speaks about families. The promise that the hearts of fathers and children will turn to one another is an invitation to seek reconciliation in our homes and in the church, and to pass the faith from one generation to the next. Ask whom we need to approach this week.
With Malachi 4 the Old Testament ends, leaving the reader waiting for the messenger, the day of the Lord and the sun of righteousness. The New Testament begins with Matthew and the Gospels, which announce that John the Baptist prepared the way and that Jesus is the Lord who comes.
The Hebrew text divides the book into three chapters and places the verses about the day of the Lord at the end of chapter 3. English and Spanish translations follow the division of the old Latin translation and separate them as chapter 4. The content is the same.
Jesus said that John the Baptist is the Elijah who was to come (Matthew 11:14; 17:10-13), and the angel announced that John would go in the spirit and power of Elijah (Luke 1:17). Some Christians also expect a future fulfillment before Christ's return. Others see that John fulfilled the promise completely.