Malachi 3
3
The Coming of the Messenger of the Promise
1“I’m going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way ahead of me. Then the Lord you are looking for will suddenly come to his temple. The messenger of the promise #3:1 Or “covenant.” will come. He is the one you want,” says the Lord of Armies.
2But who will be able to endure the day he comes? Who will be able to survive on the day he appears? He is like a purifying fire and like a cleansing soap. 3He will act like a refiner and a purifier of silver. He will purify Levi’s sons and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will bring acceptable offerings to the Lord. 4The offerings from Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the past, as in years long ago.
5“I will come to judge you. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers, lying witnesses, and those who cheat workers out of their wages and oppress widows and orphans. I will also testify against those who deprive foreigners of their rights. None of them fear me,” says the Lord of Armies.
The People Are Cheating God
6“I, the Lord, never change. That is why you descendants of Jacob haven’t been destroyed yet. 7Since the time of your ancestors you have turned away from my laws and have not followed them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of Armies.
“But you ask, ‘How can we return?’
8“Can a person cheat God? Yet, you are cheating me!
“But you ask, ‘How are we cheating you?’
“When ⌞you don’t bring⌟ a tenth of your income and other contributions. 9So a curse is on you because the whole nation is cheating me!
10“Bring one-tenth of your income into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the Lord of Armies. “See if I won’t open the windows of heaven for you and flood you with blessings. 11Then, for your sake, I will stop insects from eating ⌞your crops⌟. They will not destroy the produce of your land. The vines in your fields will not lose their unripened grapes,” says the Lord of Armies. 12“All nations will call you blessed because you will be a delightful land,” says the Lord of Armies.
13“You have used harsh words against me,” says the Lord.
“You ask, ‘How have we spoken against you?’
14“You have said, ‘It’s pointless to serve God. What do we gain if we meet his standards or if we walk around feeling sorry for what we’ve done? 15So now we call arrogant people blessed. Not only are evildoers encouraged, they even test God and get away with it.’ ”
16Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, and the Lord paid attention and listened. A book was written in his presence to be a reminder to those who feared the Lord and respected his name.
17“They will be mine,” says the Lord of Armies. “On that day I will make them my special possession. I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. 18Then you will again see the difference between righteous people and wicked people, between the one who serves God and the one who doesn’t serve him.
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Malachi 3: GW
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Malachi 3
3
1The Lord All-Powerful says, “I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way for me. Suddenly, the Lord you are looking for will come to his Temple; the messenger of the agreement, whom you want, will come.” 2No one can live through that time; no one can survive when he comes. He will be like a purifying fire and like laundry soap. 3Like someone who heats and purifies silver, he will purify the Levites and make them pure like gold and silver. Then they will bring offerings to the Lord in the right way. 4And the Lord will accept the offerings from Judah and Jerusalem, as it was in the past. 5The Lord All-Powerful says, “Then I will come to you and judge you. I will be quick to testify against those who take part in evil magic, adultery, and lying under oath, those who cheat workers of their pay and who cheat widows and orphans, those who are unfair to foreigners, and those who do not respect me.
Stealing from God
6“I the Lord do not change. So you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed. 7Since the time of your ancestors, you have disobeyed my rules and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord All-Powerful.
“But you ask, ‘How can we return?’
8“Should a person rob God? But you are robbing me.
“You ask, ‘How have we robbed you?’
“You have robbed me in your offerings and the tenth of your crops. 9So a curse is on you, because the whole nation has robbed me. 10Bring to the storehouse a full tenth of what you earn so there will be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord All-Powerful. “I will open the windows of heaven for you and pour out all the blessings you need. 11I will stop the insects so they won’t eat your crops. The grapes won’t fall from your vines before they are ready to pick,” says the Lord All-Powerful. 12“All the nations will call you blessed, because you will have a pleasant country,” says the Lord All-Powerful.
The Lord’s Promise of Mercy
13The Lord says, “You have said terrible things about me.
“But you ask, ‘What have we said about you?’
14“You have said, ‘It is useless to serve God. It did no good to obey his laws and to show the Lord All-Powerful that we were sorry for what we did. 15So we say that proud people are happy. Evil people succeed. They challenge God and get away with it.’ ”
16Then those who honored the Lord spoke with each other, and the Lord listened and heard them. The names of those who honored the Lord and respected him were written in his presence in a book to be remembered.
17The Lord All-Powerful says, “They belong to me; on that day they will be my very own. As a parent shows mercy to his child who serves him, I will show mercy to my people. 18You will again see the difference between good and evil people, between those who serve God and those who don’t.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.