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John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Malachi 3:3

Verse 3 The Prophet says, that Christ would sit to purify the sons of Levi; for though they were the flower, as it were, and the purity of the Church, they had yet contracted some contagion from the corruption which prevailed. Such then was the contagion, that not only the common people became corrupt, but even the Levites themselves, who ought to have been guides to others, and who were to be in the Church as it were the pattern of holiness. God however promises that such would be the... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Malachi 3:4

Verse 4 This verse shows, that though he had just spoken of the sons of Levi, he yet had regard to the whole people. But he meant to confine to the elect what ought not to have been extended to all, for there were among the people, as we have seen and shall again presently see, many who were reprobates, nay, the greater part had fallen away; and this is the reason why the Prophet especially addresses the few remaining who had not fallen away. But he names Judeah and Jerusalem, for that tribe... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:1

Behold, I will send ( I send ) my messenger. God answers that he is coming to show himself the God of judgment and justice. Are they ready to meet him and to bear his sentence? Who this "messenger" is is disputed. That no angel or heavenly visitant is meant is clear from historical considerations, as no such event took place immediately before the Lord came to his temple. Nor can Malachi himself be intended, as his message was delivered nearly four, hundred years before Messiah came.... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:1

Preparation work. "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me." It is fully recognized that the allusion here is to the ministry of John the Baptist. In him was realized the fulfilment of the promise that Elijah should come again. Our Lord declared that Elijah had come, in his time, and had not been recognized. And the disciples understood him to speak of John the Baptist. The more familiar figure of a "preparer of ways" is that given in Isaiah 40:3 , ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:1

The unexpectedness of the advent. "Shall suddenly come" Two messengers are spoken of in this verse. John, the messenger, prepares the way for Jesus; and Jesus, the Messenger, prepares the way for God. Each was a sent and commissioned one. The coming to the temple is a figure of speech, and means coming to the people, not our Lord's actually entering into the temple. The people of Israel were the temple of the Lord, and of that true temple the material building was a sign. The point... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:1-4

Christ as a spiritual Reformer. "Behold, I will send my messenger," etc. This passage seems to be an answer to the question of the sceptic in the last verse of the preceding chapter, "Where is the God of judgment?" It informs us that he will come, but that a preparatory work is necessary. It points to the advent of John the Baptist, the herald of that great Messiah predicted by ancient prophets, and who was the "Desire of all nations" ( Haggai 2:7 , Authorized Version). The passage... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:2

Who may abide the day of his comings? They had expected him to come and judge the heathen; the prophet warns them that they themselves shall be first judged (comp. Amos 5:18 ). "Malachi, like John the Baptist, sees the future Judge in the present Saviour" (Wordsworth); Joel 2:11 . Who shall stand! Who can stand up under the burden of this judgment? The Vulgate Version , Quis stabit ad videndum eum? points to the brightness of his presence, which eye of man cannot endure. Like a... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:2

The manifestation of Christ a testing time to all. We may apply this truth— I. TO CHRIST 'S FIRST MANIFESTATION TO THE WORLD . This truth was foreseen by Simeon ( Luke 2:34 , Luke 2:35 ). And when Jesus entered on his public ministry, his preaching and his very presence served as a testing time to all. 1 . His teaching was a process of sifting ( Matthew 3:12 ). Socrates used to go about Athens testing and refining men's ideas, and in his own unrivalled method... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:2

The severe side of Messiah's mission. "Like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's soap." It is usually shown that the triumphant side of Messiah's mission wholly occupied the mind of the Jews, and that consequently the stern, judgment side needed to be presented vigorously. But some recent accounts of the actual condition of Jewish thought in the first century suggest that the fears of Messiah's time were so extravagant that they needed to be corrected and qualified. The stern things of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Malachi 3:3

He shall sit. As a judge. The prophet confines himself to the first of the two images presented in the preceding verse. The sons of Levi. Especially the priests, who ought to set an example, and teach holiness and obedience. Thus judgment should begin at the house of God ( Ezekiel 9:6 ; 1 Peter 4:17 ). The purifying consists not only in exterminating the evil, but also in correcting and improving all who are not wholly incorrigible. We may call to mind Christ's purging of the temple,... read more

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