1 tn (1:1) Heb "The burden." The Hebrew term aC*m^, usually translated "oracle" or "utterance" (BDB 672 [III]), is a technical term in prophetic literature introducing a message from the LORD (see Zech 9:1; 12:1). Since it derives from a verb meaning "to carry" its original nuance was that of a burdensome message, that is, one with ominous content. The grammatical structure here suggests that the term stands alone and is not to be joined with what follows, "the burden [or, "revelation"] of," etc.
2tn (1:1) Heb "The word of the LORD to Israel by the hand of Malachi." There is some question as to whether yk!a*l=m^ should be understood as a personal name or as simply "my messenger." Despite the fact that the word should be understood in the latter sense in 3:1 (where, however, it refers to a different person), to understand it that way here would result in the book being of anonymous authorship, something anomalous among all the prophetic literature of the OT.
3tn (1:3) Heb "and I loved Jacob, but Esau I hated." The context indicates this is technical covenant vocabulary in which "love" and "hate" are synonymous with "choose" and "reject" respectively (see Deut 7:8; Jer 31:3; Hos 3:1; 9:15; 11:1).
4tn (1:3) Heb "his"; the referent (Esau) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
5tn (1:3) Heb "desolate."
6tn (1:3) Or "inheritance."
7sn (1:4) Edom, a "brother" nation to Israel, became almost paradigmatic of hostility toward Israel and God (see Num 20:14-21; Deut 2:8; Jer 49:7-22; Ezek 25:12-14; Amos 1:11-12; Obad 10-12).
8tn (1:4) The name sovereign LORD (toab*x= hw´hy~), traditionally translated "LORD of hosts," emphasizes the majestic sovereignty of the LORD, an especially important concept in the post-exilic world of great human empires and rulers. For a thorough study of the divine title, see T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 123-57.
9tn (1:4) Heb "and they will call them." The third plural subject is indefinite; one could translate, "and people will call them."
10tn (1:5) Or "Great is the LORD."
11tn (1:6) The verb "respects" is not in the Hebrew text but is supplied in the translation. It is understood by ellipsis (see "honors" in the preceding line).
12tn (1:6) The pronoun "your" is supplied in the translation for clarification.
13tn (1:6) The pronoun "your" is supplied in the translation for clarification.
14sn (1:7) The word table, a synonym for "altar," has overtones of covenant imagery in which a feast shared by the covenant partners was an important element (see Exod 24:11). It also draws attention to the analogy of sitting down at a common meal with the governor (v. 8).
15sn (1:8) Offerings of animals that were lame or sick were strictly forbidden by the law (see Deut 15:21).
16tn (1:8) Heb "it." The English reader expects a plural pronoun to agree with "the lame and sick" in the previous question.
17tc (1:8) The LXX and Vulgate suggest "with it" (Whx@r+y]h&) rather than "with you" of the MT (;x=r+y]h&). The MT is to be preferred because of the parallel with ;yn\p* ("receive you").
18tn (1:9) Heb "seek the face of God."
19tn (1:9) After the imperative, the prefixed verbal form with vav conjunction indicates purpose.
20sn (1:10) As long as the priesthood and people remain disobedient, the temple may as well be closed because God is not "at home" to receive them or their worship there.
21sn (1:11) My name will be great among the nations. In what is clearly a strongly ironic shift of thought, the LORD contrasts the unbelief and virtual paganism of the post-exilic community with the conversion and obedience of the nations that will one day worship the God of Israel.
22tn (1:12) Heb "fruit." The following word "food" (olk#a*) appears to be an explanatory gloss to clarify the meaning of the rare byn], "fruit" (see Isa 57:19 Qere; bon, "fruit," in Kethib). In this cultic context the reference is to the offerings on the altar.
23tn (1:13) Heb "from your hand," a metonymy of part (the hand) for whole (the person).
24sn (1:14) The epithet great king was used to describe the Hittite rulers on their covenant documents and so, in the covenant ideology of Malachi, is an apt description of the LORD.
1tn (2:2) Heb "and if you do not place upon [the] heart."
2tn (2:2) Heb "the curse."
3tc (2:3) The phrase "discipline your children" is disputed. The LXX and Vulgate suppose u^orz+ ("arm") for the MT ur~z\ ("seed," hence, "children"). Then, for the MT ru@g{ ("rebuking") the same versions suggest ur~G´ ("take away"). The resulting translation is "I am about to take away your arm." However, this reading is unlikely. It is common for a curse (v. 2) to fall on offspring (see, for example, Deut 28:18, 32, 41, 53, 55, 57), but a curse never takes the form of a broken or amputated arm. It is preferable to retain the reading of the MT here.
4tn (2:3) The Hebrew term vr\p# (p#r#v, "offal") refers to the entrails as ripped out in preparing a sacrificial victim (BDB 831). This graphic term has been variously translated: "dung" (KJV, RSV, NRSV, NLT); "refuse" (NKJV, NASB); "offal" (NEB, NIV).
5sn (2:3) For similar coarse imagery as reflecting cultic disqualification see Zech 3:3-4.
6sn (2:4) My covenant refers to the priestly covenant through Aaron and his grandson Phinehas (see Exod 6:16-20; Num 25:10-13; Jer 33:21-22). The point here is to contrast the priestly ideal with the disgraceful manner in which it was being carried out in post-exilic times.
7tn (2:6) Heb "True teaching was in his mouth."
8tn (2:7) Heb "from his mouth."
9tn (2:8) The definite article (hr´oTB^) may suggest that the Torah is in mind and not just "ordinary" priestly instruction, though it might refer to the instruction previously mentioned (v. 7).
10tn (2:8) Or "the levitical covenant."
11tn (2:9) Heb "the." The Hebrew article is used here as a possessive pronoun.
12sn (2:10) The rhetorical question Do we not all have one father? by no means teaches the "universal fatherhood of God," that is, that all people equally are children of God. The reference to the covenant in v. 10 as well as to Israel and Judah (v. 11) makes clear that the "we" is referring to God's elect people.
13tn (2:11) Or perhaps "secularized."
14tn (2:11) Heb "has married the daughter of a foreign god." Marriage here is a metaphor to describe Judah's idolatry, that is, her unfaithfulness to the LORD and "remarriage" to pagan gods. But spiritual intermarriage found expression in literal, physical marriage as well, as vv. 14-16 indicate.
15tn (2:12) Heb "tents."
16tn (2:12) Heb adds "him who is awake and him who answers." For "answers" the LXX reads hn´u* "to be humbled" and the whole phrase, "until he is humbled." This requires also that the MT ru@, "awake," be read as du@ (LXX e{w" [Jews], "until"). The idea seems to be a merism expressing totality, that is, everybody from the awakener to the awakened.
17sn (2:13) You cover the altar of the LORD with tears. These tears are the "crocodile tears" of hypocrisy, not repentance. The people weep because the LORD will not hear them, not because of their sin.
18tn (2:14) Heb "the LORD is a witness between you and [between] the wife of your youth."
19sn (2:14) Though there is no explicit reference to marriage vows in the OT (but see Job 7:13; Prov 2:17; Ezek 16:8), the term covenant here asserts that such vows or agreements must have existed. References to divorce documents (e.g., Deut 24:1-3; Jer 3:8) also presupposes the existence of marriage documents.
20tn (2:15) Heb "and not one has done, and a remnant of the spirit to him." The very elliptical nature of the statement suggests it is proverbial. The present translation is an attempt to restore the statement fully.
21sn (2:15) That one of our ancient times is an oblique reference to Abraham who sought to obtain God's blessing by circumventing God's own plan for him by taking Hagar as wife (Gen 16:1-6). The result of this kind of intermarriage was, of course, disastrous (Gen 16:11-12).
22sn (2:15) The wife he took in his youth probably refers to the first wife one married.
23tc (2:16) The verb anc appears to be a third person form, "he hates," which makes little sense in the context, unless one emends the following word to a third person verb as well. Then one might translate, "he [who] hates [his wife] [and] divorces her...is guilty of violence." A similar translation is advocated by Martin A. Shields, "Syncretism and Divorce in Malachi 2,10-16" (ZAW 111 [1999]: 81-85). However, it is possible that the first person pronoun ykna, "I," has accidentally dropped from the text after yK. If one restores the pronoun, the form anc can be taken as a participle and the text translated, "for I hate."
sn (2:16) Though "I hate divorce" may (and should) be understood as a comprehensive biblical principle, the immediate context suggests that the divorce in view is that of one Jewish person by another in order to undertake subsequent marriages. The injunction here by no means contradicts Ezra's commands to the Jews to divorce their heathen wives (Ezra 9-10).
24tn (2:16) Heb "him who covers his garment with violence." Here "garment" is a metaphor for appearance and "violence" a metonymy of effect for cause. God views divorce as an act of violence against the victim.
1tn (2:17) Heb "in the eyes of the LORD."
2tn (3:1) In Hebrew the phrase "my messenger" is yk!a*l=m^ (m^la*k!), the same form as the prophet's name (see note on the name "Malachi" in 1:1). However, here the messenger appears to be an eschatological figure who is about to come, as the following context suggests. According to 4:5, this messenger is "Elijah the prophet," whom the NT identifies as John the Baptist (Matt 11:10; Mark 1:2) because he came in the "spirit and power" of Elijah (Matt 11:14; 17:11-12; Lk 1:17).
3tn (3:1) Here the Hebrew term /oda*h* (Adon) is used, not hwhy (Yahweh, typically rendered LORD). Thus the focus is not on the Lord as the covenant God, but on his role as master.
4sn (3:1) This messenger of the covenant may be equated with my messenger (that is, Elijah) mentioned earlier in the verse, or with the Lord himself. In either case the messenger functions as an enforcer of the covenant. Note the following verses, which depict purifying judgment on a people that has violated the Lord's covenant.
5sn (3:2) The refiner's fire was used to purify metal and refine it by melting it and allowing the dross, which floated to the top, to be scooped off.
6tn (3:4) Or "offerings."
7tn (3:5) The first person pronoun (a reference to the sovereign LORD) indicates that the LORD himself now speaks (see also v. 1). The prophet speaks in vv. 2-4 (see also 2:17).
8tn (3:5) Heb "those who swear [oaths] falsely."
9tn (3:5) Heb "and against the oppressors of the worker for a wage, [the] widow and orphan."
10tn (3:5) Heb "those who turn aside."
11tn (3:5) Or "resident alien."
12tn (3:6) Heb "do not change." This refers to God's ongoing commitment to his covenant promises to Israel.
13tn (3:7) Heb "turned aside from."
14tn (3:7) Or "statutes."
15tc (3:8) The LXX presupposes bq^u*, "deceive," a metathesis of ub^q*, "rob," in all four uses of the verb here (vv. 8-9). The intent probably is to soften the impact of robbing God, but the language of the passage is intentionally bold and there is no reason to go against the reading of the MT.
16sn (3:8) The tithes and contributions mentioned here are probably those used to sustain the Levites (see Num 18:8, 11, 19, 21-24).
17tn (3:9) Heb "cursed with [i.e., under] a curse."
18tn (3:9) The phrase "is guilty" has been supplied in the translation for clarification and stylistic reasons.
19tn (3:10) The Hebrew phrase rx*oah* tyB@ refers to a kind of temple warehouse described more fully in Nehemiah (using the term hl*odg+ hK*v=l! ["great chamber"]) as a place for grain, frankincense, temple vessels, wine, and oil (Neh 13:5).
20tn (3:11) Heb "the eater" (lk@a)), a general term for any kind of threat to crops and livelihood.
21tn (3:11) Heb "and I will rebuke for you the eater and it will not ruin for you the fruit of the ground."
22tn (3:12) Heb "will be."
23tn (3:13) Heb "your words are hard [or, "strong"] against me."
24tn (3:14) Heb "What [is the] profit?"
25sn (3:14) The people's public display of self-effacing piety has gone unrewarded by the LORD. The reason, of course, is that it was blatantly hypocritical.
26tn (3:15) Heb "built up."
27tn (3:15) Or "test."
28tn (3:16) Or "fear."
29tn (3:16) Heb "heard and listened."
30sn (3:16) The scroll mentioned here is a "memory book" (/orK*z] rp#s@) in which the LORD keeps an ongoing record of the names of all the redeemed (see Exod 32:32; Isa 4:3; Dan 12:1; Rev 20:12-15).
31sn (3:17) The Hebrew word hL*g%s=, "special property," is a technical term referring to all the recipients of God's redemptive grace, especially Israel (Exod 19:5; Deut 7:6; 14:2; 26:18). The LORD says here that he will not forget one individual in the day of judgment and reward.
32tn (3:18) Heb "you will see between."
1sn (3:19) Beginning with 4:1, the verse numbers through 4:6 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 4:1 ET = 3:19 HT, 4:2 ET = 3:20 HT, etc., through 4:6 ET = 3:24 HT. Thus the book of Malachi in the Hebrew Bible has only three chapters, with 24 verses in ch. 3.
2sn (3:19) This day is the well-known "day of the LORD" so pervasive in OT eschatological texts (see Joel 2:30-31; Amos 5:18; Obad 15). For the believer it is a day of grace and salvation; for the sinner, a day of judgment and destruction.
3tn (3:19) Heb "so that it."
4tn (4:2) Here the Hebrew word hq*d´x=, usually translated "righteousness," has been rendered here as "vindication" because it is the vindication of God's people that is in view in the context. Cf. BDB 842 (6): "righteousness as vindicated, justification, salvation, etc."
sn (4:2) The expression the sun of vindication will rise is a metaphorical way of describing the day of the LORD as a time of restoration when God vindicates his people (see 2 Sam 23:4; Isa 30:26; 60:1, 3). Their vindication and restoration will be as obvious and undeniable as the bright light of the rising sun.
5sn (4:2) The point of the metaphor of healing wings is unclear. The sun seems to be compared to a bird. Perhaps the sun's "wings" are its warm rays. "Healing" may refer to a reversal of the injury done by evildoers (see Mal 3:5).
6sn (4:4) Horeb is another name for Mount Sinai (cf. Exod 3:1).
7tn (4:4) Heb "which I commanded him in Horeb concerning all Israel, statutes and ordinances."
8sn (4:5) I will send you Elijah the prophet. In light of the ascension of Elijah to heaven without dying (2 Kgs 2:11), Judaism has always awaited his return as an aspect of the messianic age (see, e.g., John 1:19-28). Jesus identified John the Baptist as Elijah, because he came in the "spirit and power" of his prototype Elijah (Matt 11:14; 17:1-13; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36).
9tn (4:6) Heb "he will turn the heart[s] of [the] fathers to [the] sons, and the heart[s] of [the] sons to their fathers." This may mean that the messenger will encourage reconciliation of conflicts within Jewish families in the post-exilic community (see Mal 2:10). Another option is to translate, "he will turn the hearts of the fathers together with those of the children [to me], and the hearts of the children together with those of their fathers [to me]. In this case the prophet encourages both the younger and older generations of sinful society to repent and return to the LORD (cf. Mal 3:7). See B. Glazier-McDonald, Malachi, 256.
10tn (4:6) Heb "[the] ban" (<r\j@). God's prophetic messenger seeks to bring about salvation and restoration, thus avoiding the imposition of the covenant curse, that is, the divine ban that the hopelessly unrepentant must expect (see Deut 7:2; 20:17; Judg 1:21; Zech 14:11). If the wicked repent, the purifying judgment threatened in 4:1-3 will be unnecessary.