Prophet: Malachi

The Jews had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon. They’d obeyed the messages of God from the prophets Haggai and Zechariah. They’d rebuilt the temple of God. However, none of the things promised took place... no Messiah, no world-wide kingdom of God. This led the people to become indifferent. They offered faulty sacrifices (Malachi 1:8), married pagan women (Malachi 2:11), were unfaithful to their wives (Malachi 2:14), and withheld tithes and offerings (Malachi 3:8). Furthermore, the priests of God were misleading the people and disrespecting the God who had called them to ministry (Malachi 2:8).

The prophet Malachi points out the great disconnect between God and His people. The people and the priests have become estranged to God, and the disconnect has grown to a point where the people no longer understand God’s nature and expectations. 

Here are a few ways the disconnect takes shape in the people:

They doubt His love for them (Malachi 1:2).
They don’t understand how God view their offerings (Malachi 2:13–14).
They forget the way God values justice (Malachi 2:17).
They neglect their tithes and offerings (Malachi 3:8).
They claim that serving God is useless (Malachi 3:13–14).

Fortunately, Malachi’s message resonates with some of the people. The Jews who still revere God write their names in a book, and God promises to purify Israel: punishing the wicked, but sparing the righteous.

The heart of Malachi's message was to point to the fact that as long as they neglected the things of God, they could never expect to prosper. If they would repent, then God would bless them. Then he speaks of the approaching day of the Lord which will be ushered in by Elijah, who will be a forerunner of the Messiah. The New Testament identifies Elijah as John the Baptizer and Jesus as the Messiah (Matthew 3:1-12; Matthew 11:14).

The book of Malachi closes the Old Testament and a prophet is not revealed in the Scriptures for approximately 400 years until the beginning of the New Testament.