Judgement Will be Hot For The Wicked
April 6, 2021
Commentary
Malachi’s message up to this point has been bleak indeed. The Jews have spurned the love of God. But the hour of reckoning is about to come (v. 1). At the Messiah’s appearing God will intervene in a never to be forgotten fashion in Jewish history. Wrong will ultimately be avenged and the cause of right will triumph. I do not believe he is referring primarily in these verses to our Lord’s incarnation, but to His coming in glory to deal with the nations and to set up His earthly kingdom. Christ was rejected when He preached in Herod’s temple, but at His second coming He will enter the reconstructed temple described in Ezek. 40:5-43:17).
When He comes in majesty, He will separate evil men from good, even as a refiner separates precious metal from dross (vv. 2-4). Not only will the priesthood be purified but the land itself will be cleansed of its wicked inhabitants. Christ’s earthly kingdom will be made holy. Sorcerers, adulterers, perjurers, and oppressors will be dealt with (v. 5). This includes all who fear not the Lord. This is an interaction between a God who does not change and His creatures who do which is at the heart of the Bible. The figures of “a refiner’s fire” and “launder’s soap” points out the effectiveness of God’s spiritual purging of the nation. The refining process purifies a metal from all its alloys and dross. Applying the heat burns out whatever is worthless, leaving a pure product. From this passage we see God is just in his preparation (v.1a) in his coming (vv.1b-2) in his refining (vv. 3-4) and in his judgment (vv. 5-6).
Application
It is my desire to be willing to go through a refining process to change from my will to His will. However, I never want to give in to the pressures of this world to fit into its mold.
Malachi 3:1– 6 (NET)
1 āI am about to send my messenger, who will clear the way before me. Indeed, the Lord you are seeking will suddenly come to his temple, and the messenger of the covenant, whom you long for, is certainly coming,ā says the Lord of Heavenās Armies.
2 Who can endure the day of his coming? Who can keep standing when he appears? For he will be like a refinerās fire, like a laundererās soap. 3 He will act like a refiner and purifier of silver and will cleanse the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will offer the Lord a proper offering. 4 The offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in former times and years past.
5 āI will come to you in judgment. I will be quick to testify against those who practice divination; those who commit adultery; those who break promises; and those who exploit workers, widows, and orphans, who refuse to help the resident foreigner and in this way show they do not fear me,ā says the Lord of Heavenās Armies.
6 āSince, I, the Lord, do not go back on my promises, you, sons of Jacob, have not perished.
Illustration: How Ivy League Princeton Apostasized
How Ivy League Princeton Apostasized – In its charter it insisted faculty be Ć¢ā¬Åconvinced of the necessity of a religious experience for salvation.” But it was not required of students. How did they yield? Not by the presidents; every president from its 1746 founding to the turn-of-the-20th-century were evangelical! Also the trustees were evangelical. The real pressure finally came from alumni. It turned out more and more unsaved alumni, intent on a secular lifestyle, who could give or withhold donations. They demanded a change in the college’s management and educational policy. (Encyclopedia of Illustrations #348)