Chapter Three
The LORD told the people that He was going to send His messenger to clear the way before Him. It was the practice in the Near East to send messengers in advance of a visiting king to announce his coming and to remove all impediments or obstacles. The coming of the Messenger of the Covenant is a two-fold event. In the first part of the two-fold event, Jesus explicitly identified the coming messenger as John the Baptist. After the preparation by John the Baptist who protested against moral corruption and hollow religious formality, Christ the LORD who is the Messiah and Messenger of the Covenant came to emphasize regeneration and spiritual worship but the members of the postexilic community were not seeking God’s Messenger of the Covenant in true piety; they sought judgment for others than themselves.
…show more content…
This is a day when none of the wicked will be able to stand or endure; the LORD’S Second Coming will purify by purging out the wicked. Concentration here, however, is not on other nations but only on Israel with the result of a pure class of Levites, refined like gold and silver, so that they will bring offerings in righteousness as in days gone by. When priests are reformed, true religion returns to the people. The refining process will include the people also. The LORD will draw near to them for judgment and be a swift witness against adulterers, liars, oppressors, and those who lack respect for