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Texts -- Malachi 3:7-18 (NET)

Pericope

NET
- Mal 3:13--4:3 -- Resistance to the Lord through Self-sufficiency
Bible Dictionary

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Window
[ebd] properly only an opening in a house for the admission of light and air, covered with lattice-work, which might be opened or closed (2 Kings 1:2; Acts 20:9). The spies in Jericho and Paul at Damascus were let down from the wi...
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Tithe
[ebd] a tenth of the produce of the earth consecrated and set apart for special purposes. The dedication of a tenth to God was recognized as a duty before the time of Moses. Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek (Gen. 14:20; Heb. 7:6...
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TRADE
[isbe] TRADE - trad: I. GENERAL 1. Terms 2. Position of Palestine 3. Trade Products of Palestine 4. Palestinian Traders II. HISTORY 1. To David 2. Solomon 3. Maritime Trade 4. To the Exile 5. The Exile and After LITERATURE I. Gener...
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Malachi, Prophecies of
[ebd] The contents of the book are comprised in four chapters. In the Hebrew text the third and fourth chapters (of the A.V.) form but one. The whole consists of three sections, preceded by an introduction (Mal. 1:1-5), in which t...
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Malachi
[ebd] messenger or angel, the last of the minor prophets, and the writer of the last book of the Old Testament canon (Mal. 4:4, 5, 6). Nothing is known of him beyond what is contained in his book of prophecies. Some have supposed ...
[isbe] MALACHI - mal'-a-ki: 1. Name of the Prophet 2. The Prophet's Times 3. Contents 4. Style 5. Message LITERATURE 1. Name of the Prophet: The last book of the Old Testament. Nothing is known of the person of Malachi. Because his...
[nave] MALACHI Last of the minor prophets, Mal. 1:1. Reproves the church for its impiety, Mal. 1; 2; 3:7-15. Foretells the coming of the Messiah, Mal. 3:1-6; the judgments on the wicked and consolations of the righteous, Mal. 4:1...
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LAW IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
[isbe] LAW IN THE OLD TESTAMENT - || I. TERMS USED 1. Torah ("Law") 2. Synonyms of Torah (1) Mitswah ("Command") (2) `Edhah ("Witness," "Testimony") (3) MishpaTim ("Judgments") (4) Chuqqim ("Statutes") (5) Piqqudhim ("Precepts") II...
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JOEL (2)
[isbe] JOEL (2) - (yo'el; Ioel): I. THE PROPHET II. THE BOOK 1. Literary Form 2. Outline of Contents 3. Interpretation (1) Literal (2) Allegorical 4. Indications of Date (1) Place in the Canon (2) Language and Style (3) Quotations ...
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JEWEL
[isbe] JEWEL - ju'-el, joo'-el: An ornament of gold, silver or of precious stones in the form of armlet, bracelet, anklet, nose-ring, etc. Oriental dress yields itself freely to such adornment, to which there are many allusions in ...
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HEREWITH
[isbe] HEREWITH - her-with', Hebrew ba-zo'th, bezo'th, "in," "by," or "with this" (Ezek 16:29; Mal 3:10, "Prove me now herewith, saith Yahweh"). The Revised Version (British and American) has "herein" for "to do this" (Ezr 4:22); f...
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GOD, 3
[isbe] GOD, 3 - III. The Idea of God in the New Testament. 1. Dependence on the Old Testament: The whole of the New Testament presupposes and rests upon the Old Testament. Jesus Christ and His disciples inherited the idea of God re...
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Firmament
[ebd] from the Vulgate firmamentum, which is used as the translation of the Hebrew raki'a. This word means simply "expansion." It denotes the space or expanse like an arch appearing immediately above us. They who rendered raki'a b...
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FATHER
[isbe] FATHER - fa'-ther (Anglo-Saxon, Foeder; German, Vater; Hebrew 'abh, etymology uncertain, found in many cognate languages; Greek pater, from root pa, "nourisher," "protector," "upholder"): 1. Immediate Male Ancestor: Immediat...
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DISCERN
[isbe] DISCERN - di-zurn': Five Hebrew words are thus translated: bin, yadha`, nakhar, ra'ah and shama`. It may simply mean "observe" (bin), "I discerned among the youths" (Prov 7:7); or discriminating knowlege, "A wise man's heart...
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DELIGHTSOME
[isbe] DELIGHTSOME - de-lit'-sum: chephets, is rendered "delightsome": Mal 3:12, "Ye shall be a delightsome land," literally, "a land of delight."
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DAY
[isbe] DAY - da (yom; hemera): This common word has caused some trouble to plain readers, because they have not noticed that the word is used in several different senses in the English Bible. When the different uses of the word are...
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Condescension of God
[nave] CONDESCENSION OF GOD In reasoning with his creatures: Sets forth his reasons for sending the flood, Gen. 6:11-13. Enters into covenant with Abraham, Gen. 15:1-21; 18:1-22. Indulges Abraham's intercession for Sodom, Gen. 18...
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CRIME; CRIMES
[isbe] CRIME; CRIMES - krim, krimz: This. term is used in English as the equivalent of the Hebrew mishpaT, "judgment," "verdict" (Ezek 7:23); zimmah, "a heinous crime" (Job 31:11); 'asham = "a fault," "sin" (Gen 26:10, English Vers...
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CONVERSION
[isbe] CONVERSION - kon-vur'-shun: I. The Words "Conversion," "Convert," in Biblical Usage. 1. In the English Bible: The noun "conversion" (epistrophe) occurs in only one passage in the Bible, "They passed through both Phoenicia an...
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BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE
[isbe] BOOK OF REMEMBRANCE - re-mem'-brans (cepher zikkdron, "book of record"): Is related in meaning to the "Book of Life." It refers to a list of the righteous, recorded in a book that lies before God (Mal 3:16; compare Dan 7:10)...
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ASTRONOMY, III
[isbe] ASTRONOMY, III - III. Physiography. 1. The Circle of the Earth: It has generally been assumed that the Hebrews considered the earth to be a vast circular plain, arched over by a solid vault--"the firmament"--above which were...
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Questions

- This is a loaded question and several issues are involved and need clarification. Here are a few random thoughts that come to mind based on my understanding of giving in the New Testament. First, we are not now under the ...
- When you come to a subject like tithing, I think it is important to see that there are two extremes to avoid. The first is the temptation to conclude that tithing is not for this age, so that I feel no obligation to give, and...
- The following material from The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia should be helpful here: III. Significant numbers Numbers are also used with a symbolical or theological significance. One is used to convey th...
- We have a study on our web site called, Financial Faithfulness which will answer some of your questions especially in regard to the tithe. I would also suggest that you carefully read 1 Cor. 16:1-3 and 2 Cor. 8-9 for some bas...
Sermon Illustrations

Why Give 10% or More of Your Income to the Lord's Work;
Ten Biblical & Practical Reasons to Give to the Lords Work;
What to Expect from Your Pastor;
Elements in Prayer
Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)
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The breastplate was a pocket of material of the same fabric as the ephod. Twelve precious stones fastened to the front of it, and two objects, the Urim and Thummim that were probably stones also, lay within it.The 12 jewels r...
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To make atonement (v. 30) means to obtain a covering for sin.We see Moses' great love for the Israelites as their mediator in his willingness to die for them (cf. Rom. 9:3). Being blotted out of God's book may refer to physic...
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Because the people had failed to bring their tithes to the temple the Levites had to abandon their service in the temple to provide for their own physical needs. This failure may have resulted in rooms standing vacant for Tob...
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The reading of the equivalent of the Congressional Recordwould have put the king to sleep under normal circumstances as it probably had done on many previous occasions (cf. Mal. 3:16). Normally the king rewarded people who di...
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The trust of the wise son (vv. 5-6) comes from heeding sound teaching (vv. 1-4), and it leads to confident obedience (vv. 7-9)."Teaching"(v. 1, Heb. torah) means "law"or, more fundamentally, "direction."Here the context sugge...
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Many of the Israelites were relying on their practice of the Mosaic rites to satisfy God. The true meaning of the rites had not affected their lives. God intended the system of worship He prescribed to illustrate the importan...
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Sometimes God used the events in the lives of His prophets to speak to the people as well as their messages."Hosea's unhappy marriage (Hos. 1-3), Isaiah's family (Isa. 7-8), the death of Ezekiel's wife (Ezek. 24:15-27), and J...
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44:15-16 The Levites from Zadok's branch of the priestly family, however, would have special privileges since Zadok and his sons had served the Lord faithfully in the past (cf. 40:46; 1 Sam. 2:35; 2 Sam. 8:17; 15:24-29; 1 Kin...
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7:9 In many versions, this verse and some that follow (vv. 10, 13-14) are in poetic form. This indicates a difference in the original language (Aramaic), which sets these verses off as distinct and more elevated in literary f...
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2:12-13a Speaking for the Lord, Joel urged his hearers even now--even though judgment was threatened--to repent. However, he clarified that their repentance needed to be wholehearted, not just external. Fasting, weeping, and ...
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That this pericope introduces the whole book seems clear since verse 7 introduces the eight night visions that follow it (1:7-6:8). Its content is also foundational to all that follows."It strikes the keynote of the entire bo...
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"Haggai and Zechariah . . . are noteworthy for the chronological precision with which they related their lives and ministries to their historical milieu. This is not the case at all with Malachi. In fact, one of the major pro...
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Malachi was one of the three post-exilic writing prophets along with Haggai and Zechariah, and he was quite certainly the last one chronologically, even though we cannot be dogmatic about a date for his writing.The first grou...
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Malachi's style is quite different from that of any other writing prophet. Instead of delivering messages to his audience, he charged them with various sins, six times in all. His was a very confrontational style of address. ...
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Malachi prophesied during the times of Nehemiah. The dates of Nehemiah's ministry were about 445-420 B.C. Possibly Malachi ministered during the time when Nehemiah returned to Babylon following the completion of Jerusalem's w...
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I. Heading 1:1II. Oracle one: Yahweh's love for Israel 1:2-5III. Oracle two: The priests' illicit practices and indifferent attitudes 1:6-2:9A. The priests' sins 1:6-141. Disrespectful service 1:6-72. Disqualified sacrifices ...
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The revelation that Yahweh gave Malachi for Israel consisted of six "heavy"messages. The first one reminded God's people of His love for them and of their ungratefulness.1:2a The Lord's first word to His people was short and ...
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The Lord had said that Israel's earlier history was a time when the priests and the people of Israel pleased Him (v. 4). Now He said that those early days were short-lived (cf. Exod. 32:7-9). In contrast to His faithfulness (...
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3:13 The people had spoken arrogantly against the Lord, yet when faced with their disrespect they asked for proof.3:14 The Lord obliged them. They had said that serving the Lord and obeying Him did not benefit them, that it d...
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Upon hearing the Lord's rebuke through His prophet, some of Malachi's hearers who genuinely feared the Lord got together. Evidently they discussed Malachi's message and agreed among themselves that they needed to repent. Yahw...
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3:17 Almighty Yahweh announced that He would honor those who feared Him as His own on the day He prepared His own possessions. This probably refers to the day of the Lord (cf. v. 2; 4:1, 3) when He will resurrect Old Testamen...
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Abbott-Smith, G. A. A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1937.Albright, W. F. and Mann, C. S. Matthew. The Anchor Bible series. Garden City: Doubleday, 1971.Alford, Henry. The Greek Testa...
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Luke stressed the joy that the Seventy experienced because they participated in God's program. As we have noted before, Luke often referred to the joy that Jesus brought to people (cf. 1:14, 46; 24:52; et al.). In view of Jes...
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Adams, Jay. Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible. Phillipsburg, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1980.Andrews, J. N. "May Women Speak in Meeting?"Review and Herald. January 2, 1879. Reprinted in Advent...
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Bailey, Mark L., and Thomas L. Constable. The New Testament Explorer. Nashville: Word Publishing Co., 1999.Balch, D. L. Let Wives Be Submissive: The Domestic Code in I Peter. Chico: Calif.: Scholars Press, 1981._____. "Let Wi...
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Jesus Christ held out blessings for the faithful few in the congregation to stimulate the rest to repent. White garments symbolic of one's works (19:8) are pure and free of defilement (cf. 7:9, 13; 19:14; Matt. 22:11-12). Sar...
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20:11 This "And I saw"introduces something else John saw in this vision (cf. 19:11, 17, 19; 20:1, 4, 12; 21:1, 2). The continuation of chronological progression seems clear from the continued use of "And"to introduce new info...
Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)
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A son honoureth his father, and a servant his master: if then I be a Father, where is Mine honour? and if I be a master, where is My fear? saith the Lord of Hosts unto you, O priests, that despise My Name. And ye say, Wherein...
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Behold, I will send My messenger, and he shall prepare the way before Me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the...
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Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of Hosts. But ye say, Wherein shall we return! '--Malachi 3:7. (R.V.).IN previous sermons we have considered God's indictment of man's sin met by man's plea of' not g...
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Your words have been stout against Me, saith the Lord: yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against Thee? 14. Ye have said, It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have w...
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Then they that feared the Lord spake one with another,' nourishing their faith by believing speech with like-minded. The more the truths by which we believe are contradicted, the more should we commune with fellow-believers. ...