Book in a Day: Malachi
Prophet Malachi from St Mark’s Basillica - 12th C.
I am excited to be beginning a short series looking at entire books of the Old Testament. We will only be doing three books to start but I hope to revisit this series again regularly. This week we are beginning with the end! That's right, Malachi the last book in the Old Testament, will be the first book in this series. We're going to be asking questions of each of these books such as “ What value does this book have to a Christian living in the 21st century?” I know that a series like this will be valuable for many people to gain a better grasp of the Old Testament books and how they point us to Christ.
Anchor Texts:
Malachi 1 CEV - Reading Through the whole book in an easy-to-read translation.
Malachi 4:1-3 ESVUK - A Key point of the Book.
Questions to Ponder:
Have you read the Old Testament minor prophets before? If so, what was your impression of these books?
Malachi wrote to exiles who had returned and had been living in the land for 3-4 generations. What was the state of faith in the land at that time?
Malachi 1:6 introduces a summary of the problem: People and especially the priests have despised the NAME of the Lord. Malachi 4:2 states that those who fear his NAME...” The name of the Lord turns out to be a very important concept in the book. What's so important about His name?
Read Malachi 3:14-15 - These are the words of a jaded believer. What might your response look like to a Christian who is doubting whether God is really active in the world around us?
Read Malachi 3:16-4:3 - What do you think the “sun of righteousness” means? How would you try to explain it to someone reading the bible for the first time?
The Theme in Song:
Years ago I believe I included this song in a blog. The song is a wonderful tribute to one of the central passages in Malachi’s book of prophecy. The song is hopeful and encourages listeners to keep in mind that God corrects and disciplines us so that we can enjoy the glorious hope in store!