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From: Malachi 3:1-4
Shortcoming of Priests (Continuation)
“For he is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap; [3] he will sit as a refiner and
purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and
silver, till they present right offerings to the LORD. [4] Then the offering of Judah
and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the LORD as in the days of old and as in
former years.”
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Commentary:
2:17-3:5. As at the start of the book, the question raised here is a fairly general
one: What is the point of keeping the Law if those who do evil are the ones who
have success in life? The question focuses on rewards in this life only (cf. 2:17),
but the prophet’s reply extends beyond that: he announces a day of judgment
when priests and ritual will be purified (3:3-4) and the oppressed will receive jus-
tice (3:5); on the day of the Lord, God will set everything right.
However, the force of the oracle lies not so much in the fact of divine judgment
as in the mysterious way in which that day is announced (3:1-2). We are told
that the Lord of hosts himself will come to His temple, and his coming will strike
fear into the hearts of men. The passage, in fact, seems to be speaking about
three different personages — the messenger who will precede the coming of the
Lord and who later on, in the epilogue, is identified as the prophet Elijah (cf. 4:5);
the Lord himself; and the angel (literally the “messenger”) of the Covenant (3:1).
In mentioning the first (the messenger who prepares the way: 3:1) the prophet
may have in mind the sort of protocol used by kings who had a herald announce
their arrival. This personage’s role is similar to that described in Isaiah 40:3ff.
However, a little further on there is the “messenger of the covenant”. It is not
clear what this means; it could be the Lord himself; a further messenger, whose
role is similar to that of Moses, that is, a mediator of the Covenant; or, finally,
the messenger mentioned earlier, the herald, who is now being given a new role.
No clear interpretation can be established beyond doubt.
The New Testament will resolve this question of interpretation. The Synoptic Gos-
pels (cf. Mk 1:2) and Jesus himself (Mt 11:7-15; cf. Lk 7:24-30) identify the first
messenger, the one who prepares the way, with Elijah, and sees his fulfillment in
the person of John the Baptist. This makes Jesus the Lord who comes to his tem-
ple. The Church reads it that way when the liturgy of the feast of the Presentation
of Jesus in the Temple (cf. Lk 2:22-40) includes Malachi 3:1-4 as a first reading.
But as can be seen from many passages of the New Testament (for example,
the episode of the Transfiguration: Mt 17:1-13 and par.), Jesus is also the me-
diator of the New Covenant.
In the tradition of the Church, the ambiguity here is seen as a way of indicating
the two-fold coming of the Lord—in the humility of the flesh, and in the glory and
splendor of the End: “We proclaim the coming of Christ: he comes not once, but
twice, and the second coming will be more glorious than the first. The first was
a time of suffering; in the second, however, he will wear the crown of divine king-
ship. Almost everything in the life our Lord Jesus Christ has two meanings. He
was born twice: once, of the Father, from all eternity; and then, of the Virgin, in
the fullness of time. He comes twice, too: he came first in silence, like rain fal-
ling on wool; and he will come again in glory. First, he was wrapped in swad-
dling clothes and laid in a manger; when he comes again, he will be robed in
light. First, he shouldered the cross, without fear of suffering; when he comes
again, he will come in glory, surrounded by the hosts of angels. Let us consider
not only the life of the Lord, but also his future coming [...]. Because of his great
mercy, he was made man to teach men and persuade them; when he comes
again, all men, whether they want to or not, will be made subject to the power
and authority of the King. The words of the prophet Malachy refer to both of
these events” (St Cyril of Jerusalem, “Catecheses Ad Illuminandos”, 15, 1-2).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.