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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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
The Promised Messenger
1 #
Mt 11.10; Mk 1.2; Lk 1.76; 7.27. I, the Lord All-Powerful,
will send my messenger
to prepare the way for me.
Then suddenly the Lord
you are looking for
will appear in his temple.
The messenger you desire
is coming with my promise,
and he is on his way.
A Day of Change
2 #
Jl 2.11; Rev 6.17. On the day the Lord comes, he will be like a furnace that purifies silver or like strong soap in a washbasin. No one will be able to stand up to him. 3The Lord will purify the descendants of Levi,#3.3 descendants of Levi: The priests. as though they were gold or silver. Then they will bring the proper offerings to the Lord, 4and the offerings of the people of Judah and Jerusalem will please him, just as they did in the past.
Don't Cheat God
5The Lord All-Powerful said:
I'm now on my way to judge you. And I will quickly condemn all who practice witchcraft or cheat in marriage or tell lies in court or rob workers of their pay or mistreat widows and orphans or steal the property of foreigners or refuse to respect me.
6 #
Si 48.10. Descendants of Jacob, I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I never change. That's why you haven't been wiped out, 7even though you have ignored and disobeyed my laws ever since the time of your ancestors. But if you return to me, I will return to you.
And yet you ask, “How can we return?”
8You people are robbing me, your God. And, here you are, asking, “How are we robbing you?”
You are robbing me of the offerings and of the ten percent that belongs to me.#3.8 the ten percent … to me: The people of Israel were supposed to give a tenth of their harvests and of their flocks and herds to the Lord (see Leviticus 27.30-33; Deuteronomy 14.22-29). 9That's why your whole nation is under a curse. 10#Lv 27.30; Nu 18.21-24; Dt 12.5-19; 14.22-29; Ne 13.12. I am the Lord All-Powerful, and I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire ten percent into the storehouse, so there will be food in my house. Then I will open the windows of heaven and flood you with blessing after blessing.#3.10 open the windows … blessing: This may refer to rain, since there seems to have been a terrible drought at this time. 11I will also stop locusts#3.11 locusts: A kind of grasshopper that comes in swarms and causes great damage to plant life. from destroying your crops and keeping your vineyards from producing. 12Everyone of every nation will talk about how I have blessed you and about your wonderful land. I, the Lord All-Powerful, have spoken!
13You have said horrible things about me, and yet you ask, “What have we said?”
14Here is what you have said: “It's foolish to serve the Lord God All-Powerful. What do we get for obeying God and from going around looking sad? 15See how happy those arrogant people are. Everyone who does wrong is successful, and when they put God to the test, they always get away with it.”
Faithfulness Is Rewarded
16All those who truly respected the Lord and honored his name started discussing these things, and when God saw what was happening, he had their names#3.16 names: Or “deeds.” written as a reminder in his book.
17Then the Lord All-Powerful said:
You people are precious to me, and when I come to bring justice, I will protect you, just as parents protect an obedient child. 18Then everyone will once again see the difference between those who obey me by doing right and those who reject me by doing wrong.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.