Malachi 3

1 Lo, I am sending My messenger, And he hath prepared a way before Me, And suddenly come in unto his temple Doth the Lord whom ye are seeking, Even the messenger of the covenant, Whom ye are desiring, Lo, he is coming, said Jehovah of Hosts.

"Look, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me; and the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, look, he comes." says 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 can endure the day of his coming? And who will stand when he appears? For he is coming like a refiner's fire, and like launderer's soap.

3 And he hath sat, a refiner and purifier of silver, And he hath purified the sons of Levi, And hath refined them as gold and as silver, And they have been to Jehovah bringing nigh a present in righteousness.

And he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi, and refine them as gold and silver; and they shall offer to Jehovah offerings in righteousness.

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

Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to Jehovah, as in the days of old, and as in ancient 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 an hireling, Of a widow, and of a fatherless one, And those turning aside a sojourner, And who fear Me not, said Jehovah of Hosts.

I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against the perjurers, and against those who oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and who deprive the foreigner of justice, and do not fear me," says Jehovah of hosts.

6 For I [am] Jehovah, I have not changed, And ye, the sons of Jacob, Ye have not been consumed.

"For I, Jehovah, do not change; therefore you, sons of Jacob, are not consumed.

7 Even from the days of your fathers Ye have turned aside from My statutes, And ye have not taken heed. Turn back unto Me, and I turn back to you, Said Jehovah of Hosts. And ye have said, 'In what do we turn back?'

From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my ordinances, and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says Jehovah of hosts. "But you say, 'How shall we return?'

8 Doth man deceive God? but ye are deceiving Me, And ye have said: 'In what have we deceived Thee?' The tithe and the heave-offering!

Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. But you say, 'How have we robbed you?' In tithes and offerings.

9 With a curse ye are cursed! And Me ye are deceiving — this nation — all of it.

You are cursed with the curse; for you rob me, even this whole nation.

10 Bring in all the tithe unto the treasure-house, And there is food in My house; When ye have tried Me, now, with this, Said Jehovah of Hosts, Do not I open to you the windows of heaven? Yea, I have emptied on you a blessing till there is no space.

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, and test me now in this," says Jehovah of hosts, "if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough for.

11 And I have pushed for you against the consumer, And He doth not destroy to you the fruit of the ground, Nor miscarry to you doth the vine in the field, Said Jehovah of Hosts.

I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast its fruit before its time in the field," says Jehovah of hosts.

12 And declared you happy have all the nations, For ye are a delightful land, said Jehovah of Hosts.

"All nations shall call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land," says Jehovah of hosts.

13 Hard against Me have been your words, Said Jehovah, and ye have said: 'What have we spoken against Thee?'

"Your words have been stout against me," says Jehovah. "Yet you say, 'What have we spoken against you?'

14 Ye 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 Jehovah of Hosts?

You have said, 'It is vain to serve God;' and 'What profit is it that we have followed his instructions, and that we have walked mournfully before Jehovah of hosts?

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

Now we call the proud blessed; indeed, evildoers prosper. They even tempt God and escape.'

16 Then have those fearing Jehovah spoken one to another, And Jehovah doth attend and hear, And written is a book of memorial before Him Of those fearing Jehovah, And of those esteeming His name.

Then those who feared Jehovah spoke one with another; and Jehovah listened, and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before him, for those who feared Jehovah, and who honored his name.

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

They shall be mine," says Jehovah of hosts, "my own possession in the day that I make, and I will spare them, as a man spares his own son who serves him.

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

Then you shall return and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him who serves God and him who doesn't serve him.