Mark 9:11-13

9:11 Then ¹  they asked him, ²  “Why do the experts in the law ³  say that Elijah must come first?” 9:12 He said to them, “Elijah does indeed come first, and restores all things. And why is it written that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be despised? 9:13 But I tell you that Elijah has certainly come, and they did to him whatever they wanted, just as it is written about him.”

Malachi 4:5

4:5 Look, I will send you Elijah ⁴  the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord arrives.

[9:11]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[9:11]  ² tn Grk “And they were asking him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant and has not been translated.

[9:11]  ³ tn Or “Why do the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

[4:5]  ⁴ sn 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).