Malachi Chap. 1

Intro.

Malachi 1:1 CSB

1 A pronouncement: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.

Malachi 1:1 ASV

1 The burden of the word of Jehovah to Israel by Malachi.

Malachi was the last of the prophets before the “inter-testimental period” which saw no new words from God until John the Baptist was given to Elizabeth. By his time, prophesying somewhere around 420 BC, it had been about 100 years since the return of Judah from Babylon.

They had come back to their homeland, they had been instructed to rebuild the Temple and completed it, they had continued their sacrifices.

But, not everything was right. As you’ll see in the ASV, it was the burden of the word of God given to Malachi — hard things needed to be said to the people here in order to get them straightened out.

As we study this book we will see several sins such as:

Abuse

Adultery

Lying

Half-heartedness

Cruelty

Theft

Lack of Responsibility

Some shocking statements are going to come from our Lord to those who were His people at the time. And Malachi begins his book in a sort of back-and-forth fashion; God knowing their questionings and answering them frankly.

The Questions

There are many questions which people often ask in relation to the goodness of God.

Have you ever heard any of these?

If God is so good, then why does all this bad happen?

If God was good, why does anyone go to hell?

If God is good, then why do “innocent” people and children get sick and die?

These can be very tricky to the person who doesn’t know well enough the character of Almighty God — for those of as that do understand His goodness, we should be able to call out these questions as foolish talk!

But these questions are nothing new to the world or to the way that people think. Humans have been asking bad questions in order to remain disobedient for a very long time. Even Israel had some of these kinds of questions.

Malachi 1:1–2 (CSB)

Malachi 1:1–2 CSB

1 A pronouncement: The word of the Lord to Israel through Malachi. 2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord. Yet you ask, “How have you loved us?” “Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” This is the Lord’s declaration. “Even so, I loved Jacob,

Let’s name a few ways in which God had loved Israel:

Exodus

Provision in the Wilderness

Giving the covenant

Giving them the oracles and prophetic words

Living in the Temple among them

Let’s see what the Lord said in this particular context:

Malachi 1:2–5 CSB

2 “I have loved you,” says the Lord. Yet you ask, “How have you loved us?” “Wasn’t Esau Jacob’s brother?” This is the Lord’s declaration. “Even so, I loved Jacob, 3 but I hated Esau. I turned his mountains into a wasteland, and gave his inheritance to the desert jackals.” 4 Though Edom says, “We have been devastated, but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of Armies says this: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called a wicked country and the people the Lord has cursed forever. 5 Your own eyes will see this, and you yourselves will say, ‘The Lord is great, even beyond the borders of Israel.’

Loved Jacob, hated Esau? What do you think the Lord means here?

This is a common text for the Calvinist to cite for their belief that God hates the non-elect for their sins. But, does God mean “hate” the same way we do when we hate someone?

I would say no, because hatred in the heart of man is akin to murder and we know no sin resides in the heart of God. Instead, I say it this way:

Hatred/Love in this kind of context are not about feeling or ill-will, but whether or not one has been given favor from God.

Jacob was given divine favor over Esau, and thus Israel instead of Edom. Had Edom walked in the ways of God, obeying the covenant and Law of Israel, they would have been okay! But Edom walked in wickedness, even back to their father Esau who married the women of Canaan whom he was told not to. God sovereignly chose Jacob the younger brother and gave him the seed-line promise through which Jesus came, and gave his descendants the Law through Moses.

God had certainly shown divine favor to Jacob where He showed none to Esau.

After reminding Israel of this fact, the Lord goes on to assure them again of Edom’s downfall in Mal. 1.4

Malachi 1:4 CSB

4 Though Edom says, “We have been devastated, but we will rebuild the ruins,” the Lord of Armies says this: “They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called a wicked country and the people the Lord has cursed forever.

By this point Edom seems to have been at least partially judged, and God assures Israel that they will never be built back — because God judged them for their wickedness and gave them no favor. And God was going to continue not giving that nation any favor until they were gone.

Now, what does God say will be an outcome of this happening to Edom?

Malachi 1:5 CSB

5 Your own eyes will see this, and you yourselves will say, ‘The Lord is great, even beyond the borders of Israel.’

This is a recurring motif in Malachi that Israel will know God is great in all the earth.

He says that their own eyes would see His actions on Edom and they would know for themselves that God was in charge in all the earth! In this day and age, religion was sort of nationalized. Babylon’s deities ruled only in Babylon, Assyria’s only in Assyria, so it was assumed in a general way that Israel’s God would only be over the people of Israel — yet God was telling them that they would come to understand that God was not stuck in their borders, but He was to be exalted by all peoples in all nations!

Conclusion

I stop us here because I just want us to whet our appetites for what Malachi has to say, and to cover the next piece of thought would take us well over the time that we have. So, I think for now it is better to just get a bit of introduction to this prophet.

What have we learned so far:

Malachi is a prophet of judgment or correction on Israel

Israel has some questionings for God which He will continue answer them. They likely are not asking these questions in good faith, but desiring to remain in their current disobedience.

God favored Israel over Edom her brother and proves it to them by how He has dealt with them (permanent judgment)

Israel is going to learn that God is sovereign over all the earth, that His wonderful name is to be magnified in all places! All tongues are to praise His wonderful Name!