Malachi 3

1 “Behold, I am sending My messenger, And he has prepared a way before Me, And suddenly the Lord whom you are seeking comes into His temple, Even the Messenger of the Covenant, Whom you are desiring, Behold, He is coming,” said YHWH of Hosts.

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; And the messenger of the covenant, whom ye desire, Behold, he shall come, saith Jehovah of hosts.

2 “And who is bearing the day of His coming? And who is standing in His appearing? For He [is] as fire of a refiner, And as soap of a fuller.

But who shall abide the day of his coming? And who shall stand when he appeareth? For he shall be like the fire of the refiner, And like the soap of the fuller.

3 And He has sat, a refiner and purifier of silver, And He has purified the sons of Levi, And has refined them as gold and as silver, And they have been bringing a present near to YHWH in righteousness.

And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, And he shall purify the sons of Levi, And shall refine them as gold and silver, That, being holy to Jehovah, they may bring an offering in righteousness.

4 And the present of Judah and Jerusalem has been sweet to YHWH, As in days of old, and as in former years.

Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasing to Jehovah, As in the days of old, And as in former years.

5 And I have drawn near to you for judgment, And I have been a witness, Making haste against sorcerers, and against adulterers, And against swearers to a falsehood, And against oppressors of the hire of a hired worker, Of a widow, and of a fatherless one, And those turning aside a sojourner, And who do not fear Me,” said YHWH of Hosts.

And I will come near to you to judgment; And I will be a swift witness Against sorcerers, and against adulterers, and against false swearers, And against those who defraud the hireling of his hire, And oppress the widow and the fatherless, And turn aside the stranger from his right, And fear not me, saith Jehovah of hosts.

6 “For I, YHWH, have not changed, And you, the sons of Jacob, You have not been consumed.

For I am Jehovah; I change not; Therefore, ye sons of Jacob, are ye not consumed.

7 Even from the days of your fathers You have turned aside from My statutes, And you have not taken heed. Return to Me, and I return to you,” said YHWH of Hosts. “And you have said, In what do we turn back?

From the days of your fathers have ye turned aside from my statutes, And have not kept them; Return to me, and I will return to you, Saith Jehovah of hosts. But ye say, “Wherein shall we return?”

8 Does man deceive God? But you are deceiving Me, And you have said, In what have we deceived You? The tithe and the raised-offering!

Shall a man rob God, That ye have robbed me? But ye say, “Wherein have we robbed thee?” In tithes and offerings.

9 You are cursed with a curse! And you are deceiving Me—this nation—all of it.

Ye are cursed with a curse, For ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

10 Bring in all the tithe to the treasure-house, And there is food in My house; When you have tried Me, now, with this,” said YHWH of Hosts, “Do I not open the windows of the heavens to you? Indeed, I have emptied on you a blessing until there is no space.

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, That there be food in my house; And try me now in this, Saith Jehovah of hosts, Whether I will not open to you the windows of heaven, And pour out upon you a blessing, until there is none left.

11 And I have pushed against the consumer for you, And He does not destroy the fruit of your ground, Nor does the vine in the field miscarry to you,” said YHWH of Hosts.

And I will rebuke for you the devourer, And he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground, Nor shall your vine be barren in the field, Saith Jehovah of hosts.

12 “And all the nations have declared you blessed, For you are a delightful land,” said YHWH of Hosts.

And all nations shall call you blessed; For ye shall be a delightful land, Saith Jehovah of hosts.

13 “Your words have been hard against Me,” said YHWH, “And you have said, What have we spoken against You?

Your words have been bold against me, saith Jehovah; Yet ye say, “What have we spoken against thee?”

14 You have said, A vain thing to serve God! And what gain when we kept His charge? And when we have gone in black, Because of YHWH of Hosts?

Ye have said, “It is a vain thing to serve God”; And, “What profit is it that we have kept his ordinances, And that we have walked mournfully before Jehovah of hosts?

15 And now, we are declaring the proud blessed, Indeed, those doing wickedness have been built up, Indeed, they have tempted God, and escape.

Therefore we call the proud happy; Yea, they that do wickedness are built up; Yea, they tempt God, and are delivered.”

16 Then have those fearing YHWH spoken to one another, And YHWH attends and hears, And a scroll of memorial is written before Him Of those fearing YHWH, And of those esteeming His Name.

Then they that feared Jehovah spake to one another, And Jehovah gave ear and heard; And a book of remembrance was written before him, For them that feared Jehovah, And that thought upon his name.

17 And they have been to Me,” said YHWH of Hosts, “In the day that I am appointing—a peculiar treasure, And I have had pity on them, As one has pity on his son who is serving him.

And they shall be to me, saith Jehovah of hosts, In the day which I appoint, as my own possession; And I will spare them, As a father spareth his own son that serveth him.

18 And you have turned back and considered, Between the righteous and the wicked, Between the servant of God and him who is not His servant.”

Then shall ye return and see What is the difference between the righteous and the wicked, Between him who serveth God And him who serveth him not.