Catholic Commentary on Malachi 3

“Return to me, and I will return to you, says the LORD Almighty.” (Malachi 3:7)

The Messenger; The Covenant Kept

I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come, says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness. Return to me, and I will return to you, says the LORD Almighty. But you ask, 'How are we to return?' Will a mere mortal rob God? Yet you rob me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse. Test me in this, says the LORD Almighty, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.

The Catechism identifies the messenger who prepares the way as the figure of John the Baptist (CCC 719).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, test me in this. God rarely issues such a direct invitation to put him to the test. In the matter of the tithe, of the whole offering held back from the storehouse, God says: try it. See if I do not open the floodgates. The boldness of the invitation matches the boldness of the promise. The God who says test me has already decided what the test will prove.

Prayer

Lord God, we return to you. You promised to return to us. Open the floodgates of heaven over your returning people. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

3
I Will Send My Messenger
(Matthew 11:7-19; Luke 7:24-35)
1 “Behold, I will send My messenger, who will prepare the way before Me.* 3:1 Cited in Matthew 11:10, Mark 1:2, and Luke 7:27 Then the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to His temple-the Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight-see, He is coming,” says the LORD of Hosts.
 
2 But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He will be like a refiner’s fire, like a launderer’s soap.
 
3 And He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; He will purify the sons of Levi and refine them like gold and silver. Then they will present offerings to the LORD in righteousness.
 
4 Then the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will please the LORD, as in days of old and years gone by.
 
5 “Then I will draw near to you for judgment. And I will be a swift witness against sorcerers and adulterers and perjurers, against oppressors of the widowed and fatherless, and against those who defraud laborers of their wages and deny justice to the foreigner but do not fear Me,” says the LORD of Hosts.
Robbing God
 
6 “Because I, the LORD, do not change, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed. 7 Yet from the days of your fathers, you have turned away from My statutes and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the LORD of Hosts.
 
“But you ask, ‘How can we return?’
8 Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing Me!
 
But you ask, ‘How do we rob You?’
 
In tithes and offerings. 9 You are cursed with a curse, yet you-the whole nation-are still robbing Me. 10 Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in My house. Test Me in this,” says the LORD of Hosts. “See if I will not open the windows of heaven and pour out for you blessing without measure.† 3:10 Literally blessing for which there will be no room 11 I will rebuke the devourer ‡ 3:11 The devourer is probably a name for a crop-destroying pest. for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of your land, and the vine in your field will not fail to produce fruit,” says the LORD of Hosts.
 
12 “Then all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of delight,” says the LORD of Hosts.
The Book of Remembrance
 
13 “Your words against Me have been harsh,” says the LORD. “Yet you ask, ‘What have we spoken against You?’
14 You have said, ‘It is futile to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully before the LORD of Hosts? 15 So now we call the arrogant blessed. Not only do evildoers prosper, they even test God and escape.’ ”
16 At that time those who feared the LORD spoke with one another, and the LORD listened and heard them. So a scroll of remembrance was written before Him regarding those who feared the LORD and honored His name.
 
17 “They will be Mine,” says the LORD of Hosts, “on the day when I prepare My treasured possession. And I will spare them as a man spares his own son who serves him. 18 So you will again distinguish between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”

*3:1 3:1 Cited in Matthew 11:10, Mark 1:2, and Luke 7:27

†3:10 3:10 Literally blessing for which there will be no room

‡3:11 3:11 The devourer is probably a name for a crop-destroying pest.

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