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Malachi 4

Malachi closes with God's promise to judge wickedness, heal those who fear him, and send Elijah before his coming day.

YHWH of Armies speaks through Malachi to Israel about a coming day of judgment. The proud and those who practice wickedness will be consumed like stubble, while those who fear God's name will receive healing and leap like calves released from a stall. God then commands Israel to remember the law given through Moses at Horeb. Before that terrible day, Elijah will come to turn fathers' and children's hearts toward each other.

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1“For behold, the day comes, burning like a furnace, when all the proud and all who work wickedness will be stubble. The day that comes will burn them up,” says the LORD of Armies, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.
2But to you who fear my name shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in its wings. You will go out and leap like calves of the stall.
3You shall tread down the wicked; for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I make,” says the LORD of Armies.
4“Remember the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded to him in Horeb for all Israel, even statutes and ordinances.
5Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.
6He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.”
World English BibleRead in NIV in Psalmlog →Highlighted verses are the most connected.
Key verses
Malachi 4:2The image of sunrise promises healing and joy to those who fear God's name amid the announcement of judgment.
Malachi 4:1The furnace and stubble images establish the coming day's severity: God's judgment leaves wickedness neither root nor branch.
Malachi 4:5God promises Elijah's arrival before the day of judgment, linking the final warning with a work of restoration.
Where this chapter reaches

Isaiah shares images of dawning light and healing, while Joel shares the warning of the coming day of YHWH. Luke connects John's work with Elijah and the turning of hearts, and Matthew identifies John the Baptist with the expected Elijah.

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After reading the whole chapter

How do the furnace and the healing sunrise shape your understanding of God's coming day?

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What do you notice about the command to remember Moses alongside the promise to send Elijah?

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Questions people ask about Malachi 4

What does the sun of righteousness mean in Malachi 4:2?

The sunrise image describes the healing and joy God's coming day brings to those who fear his name. It contrasts with the furnace that consumes the wicked. Christians have read this promise in relation to Christ, though the verse itself uses an image rather than naming a person.

Is Elijah in Malachi 4 John the Baptist?

Malachi promises Elijah before the great and terrible day of YHWH, without explaining how he will come. Luke describes John the Baptist's work in terms of Elijah's spirit and power. Matthew identifies John with the expected Elijah. These connections concern John's prophetic role and his call to repentance.

What is the day of YHWH in Malachi 4?

It is the coming day when God acts in judgment against the proud and those who practice wickedness, while bringing healing and vindication to those who fear him. The chapter presents this day as decisive and terrible. It gives no date, but places Elijah's coming before it.

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Malachi · 4 chapters
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What the Bible says about anger →What the Bible says about fear →

Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY). Scripture from the World English Bible (public domain). Arc diagram after Chris Harrison and Christoph Römhild (2007).