Malachi 3
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
1 “See, I am going to send My messenger,
and he will clear the way before Me. Then the Lord you seek will suddenly come
to His temple, the Messenger of the covenant you desire—see, He is coming,”
says the Lord of Hosts. 2 But who can endure the day of His coming? And who
will be able to stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire and
like cleansing lye. 3 He will be like a refiner and purifier of silver; He will
purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will
present offerings to the Lord in righteousness. 4 And the offerings of Judah
and Jerusalem will please the Lord as in days of old and years gone by.
5 “I will come to you in judgment, and I
will be ready to witness against sorcerers and adulterers; against those who
swear falsely; against those who oppress the widow and the fatherless, and
cheat the wage earner; and against those who deny justice to the foreigner.
They do not fear Me,” says the Lord of Hosts. 6 “Because I, Yahweh, have not
changed, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed.
Robbing God
7 “Since the days of your fathers, you have
turned from My statutes; you have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will
return to you,” says the Lord of Hosts.
But you ask: “How can we return?”
8 “Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing
Me!”
You ask: “How do we rob You?”
“By not making the payments of the tenth
and the contributions. 9 You are suffering under a curse, yet you—the whole
nation—are still robbing Me. 10 Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so
that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this way,” says the Lord of
Hosts. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing
for you without measure. 11 I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will
not ruin the produce of your land and your vine in your field will not fail to
produce fruit,” says the Lord of Hosts. 12 “Then all the nations will consider
you fortunate, for you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Hosts.
The Righteous and the Wicked
13 “Your words against Me are harsh,” says
the Lord.
Yet you ask: “What have we spoken against
You?”
14 You have said: “It is useless to serve
God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully
before the Lord of Hosts? 15 So now we consider the arrogant to be fortunate.
Not only do those who commit wickedness prosper, they even test God and
escape.”
16 At that time those who feared the Lord
spoke to one another. The Lord took notice and listened. So a book of
remembrance was written before Him for those who feared Yahweh and had high
regard for His name. 17 “They will be Mine,” says the Lord of Hosts, “a special
possession on the day I am preparing. I will have compassion on them as a man
has compassion on his son who serves him. 18 So you will again see the
difference between the righteous and the wicked, between one who serves God and
one who does not serve Him.(Note: Read Chapter 4)
Key: Bold - Verse of the Day
Reflection: Again, in biblical prophecy, we are encouraged by the promise of the One who will judge mankind. What does God do? He warns those who are in sin to repent. Judgment could have taken place that very day if the Lord so chose, but again, in His love and patience He continues to give the world time to repent. Every moment of every day is an opportunity for those living in sin to repent and give their life to the Lord.
Discussion Topic: God
has created a "book of remembrance."
It is a special book for those who fear Yahweh and have high regard for
His name. Not only is our name written
in the Book of Life, but now we see that it's also written in the Book of
Remembrance. We need to fill up those
pages!!! Most likely all of us have been
procrastinating about doing more in regards to our spiritual walk with the
Lord. What are some of the things you
want to accomplish before the Lord returns... what are those things you want to
do that will end up in the Book of Remembrance?
Join the Discussion on G+
Prayer: Oh heavenly Father, I know that You have so much more for me to accomplish before the Bridegroom returns to take us to the bridal chamber. I pray that You will give me the opportunity and the encouragement to go beyond what I have already accomplished through Jesus, and to enter in to a new area of discipleship. Please lead me into a deeper walk with You as Your Holy Spirit guides me toward new opportunities to share Your word and make new disciples of Jesus Christ. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen!
Acknowledgements: Scripture - BibleGateway.com, Image - Glowing Book: teachinglikeits2999.blogspot.com
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