the Week of Proper 23 / Ordinary 28
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King James Version
Malachi 4:6
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Elijah will help the parents become close to their children, and he will help the children become close to their parents. This must happen, or I will come and completely destroy your country."
"He will turn the hearts of the fathers back to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and strike the land with complete destruction."
Elijah will help parents love their children and children love their parents. Otherwise, I will come and put a curse on the land."
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers; or else I will come and smite the earth with a curse.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
"He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance], so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse [of complete destruction]."
And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction."
He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."
And he schal conuerte the herte of fadris to sones, and the herte of sones to fadris of hem, lest perauenture Y come, and smyte the erthe with curs.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse."
He will lead children and parents to love each other more, so that when I come, I won't bring doom to the land.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
And by him the hearts of fathers will be turned to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers; for fear that I may come and put the earth under a curse.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
[3:24] And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers; lest I come and smite the land with utter destruction.
And hee shall turne the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse."
And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers. Or else I will come and destroy the land with a curse."
He will turn the hearts of parents to their children and the hearts of children to their parents, so that I will not come and strike the land with a curse.
And he shall turne the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with cursing.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children and the heart of the children to their fathers before I come and smite the earth to ruin.
And he shall bring back the heart of the fathers unto the children, and the heart of the children unto their fathers, - lest I come, and smite the land, with utter destruction.
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers: lest I come, and strike the earth with anathema.
And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse."
He shal turne the heart of the fathers to their children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with cursing.
who shall turn again the heart of the father to the son, and the heart of a man to his neighbour, lest I come and smite the earth grievously.
He will bring fathers and children together again; otherwise I would have to come and destroy your country."
And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise, I will come and strike the land with a curse.”
He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the eretz with a curse."
And he will bring back the hearts of the fathers to the sons, and the hearts of the sons to their fathers, so that I will not come and strike the land with a ban."
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers, that I not come and strike the earth with utter destruction.
And he hath turned back the heart of fathers to sons, And the heart of sons to their fathers, Before I come and have utterly smitten the land!
He shall turne the hertes of the fathers to their children and the hertes of the children to their fathers, that I come not, and smyte the earth with cursynge.
He will encourage fathers and their children to return to me, so that I will not come and strike the earth with judgment."
And he will turn The hearts of the fathers to the children, And the hearts of the children to their fathers, Lest I come and strike the earth with a curse."
"He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, so that I will not come and smite the land with a curse."
And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land, devoting it to destruction."
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
turn: Luke 1:16, Luke 1:17, Luke 1:76
lest: Isaiah 61:2, Daniel 9:26, Daniel 9:27, Zechariah 11:6, Zechariah 13:8, Zechariah 14:2, Matthew 22:7, Matthew 23:35-38, Matthew 24:27-30, Mark 13:14-26, Luke 19:41-44, Luke 21:22-27
and smite: Deuteronomy 29:19-29, Isaiah 24:6, Isaiah 43:28, Isaiah 65:15, Daniel 9:11, Zechariah 5:3, Zechariah 14:12, Mark 11:21, Hebrews 6:8, Hebrews 10:26-31, Revelation 22:3, Revelation 22:20, Revelation 22:21
Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 28:16 - in the city 1 Kings 18:37 - thou hast turned 2 Chronicles 19:4 - brought Psalms 85:4 - turn us Isaiah 11:4 - and he shall Isaiah 40:3 - Prepare Jeremiah 26:6 - a curse Jeremiah 31:18 - turn Matthew 11:13 - General Matthew 17:10 - Why Matthew 17:11 - and restore Mark 9:12 - restoreth Luke 3:4 - Prepare Luke 7:27 - Behold John 1:6 - a man Acts 3:21 - the times Revelation 2:5 - and do
Cross-References
And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the Lord .
And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the Lord .
And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the Lord had respect unto Abel and to his offering:
But unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.
And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.
And now art thou cursed from the earth, which hath opened her mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;
And Cain said unto the Lord , My punishment is greater than I can bear.
For wrath killeth the foolish man, and envy slayeth the silly one.
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord : though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Thus saith the Lord , What iniquity have your fathers found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain?
Gill's Notes on the Bible
And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children,.... Or "with" the children, as Kimchi; and Ben Melech observes, that
×¢× is put for ×¢×, and so in the next clause:
and the heart of the children to their fathers; or "with" their fathers; that is, both fathers and children: the meaning is, that John the Baptist should be an instrument of converting many of the Jews, both fathers and children, and bringing them to the knowledge and faith of the true Messiah; and reconcile them together who were divided by the schools of Hillell and Shammai, and by the sects of the Sadducees and Pharisees, and bring them to be of one mind, judgment, and faith, and to have a hearty love to one another, and the Lord Christ; see Matthew 3:5
Matthew 3:5- :. The Talmudists t interpret this of composing differences, and making peace.
Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse; the land of Judea; which, because the greater part of the inhabitants of it were not converted to the Lord, did not believe in the Messiah, but rejected him, notwithstanding the preaching and testimony of John the Baptist, and the ministry and miracles of Christ, it was smitten with a curse, was made desolate, and destroyed by the Roman emperors, Vespasian and Adrian, as instruments doing what God here threatened he would do; for not the whole earth is intended, as the Targum and Abarbinel suggest; but only that land, and the people of it, are intended, to whom the law of Moses was given; and to whom Elias, or John the Baptist, was to be sent; and to whom he was sent, and did come; and by whom he was rejected, and also the Messiah he pointed at; for which that country was smitten with a curse, and remains under it to this day.
t Massachet Ediot, c. 8. sect. 7.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
And he shall turn the hearts of the fathers unto the children - Now they were unlike, and severed by that unlikeness from each other. Yet not on earth, for on earth parents and children were alike alienated from God, and united between themselves in wickedness or worldliness. The common love of the world or of worldly pursuits, or gain or self-exaltation, or making a fortune or securing it, is, so far, a common bond of interest to those of one family, through a common selfishness, though that selfishness is the parent of general discord, of fraud, violence, and other misdeeds. Nay, conversion of children or parents becomes rather a source of discord, embittering the unconverted. Whence our Lord says, âThink not, that I Mat 10:34-36. am come to send peace on the earth. I came not to send peace on earth, but a sword. For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law: and a manâs foes shall be they of his own household;â a prophecy fulfilled continually in the early persecutions, even to the extent of those other words of our Lord Matthew 10:21, âthe brother shall deliver up the brother to death, and the father the child; and the children shall rise up against their parents, and cause them to be put to death.â
It is fulfilled also in the intense hatred of the Jews at this day, to any who are converted to Christ; a hatred which seems to have no parallel in the world. Nor do the words seem to mean that fathers and children should be united in one common conversion to God, as one says Ibn Ezra. The Jews, although mostly agreed, that Elijah will come, are disagreed as to the end of his coming. By some he is spoken of as a Redeemer. Tanchuma (f. 31. 1), âGod said to Israel, In this world I sent an angel to east out the nations before you, but in the future (or, in the world to come, Yalkut Shimâoni f. 98-29) myself will lead you and will âsend you Elijah the prophet.ââ Pesikta rabbathi (in Yalkut Shimâoni ii. f. 32. 4)â Both redeemed Israel: Moses in Egypt, and Elias in that which is to come.â (Id. ib. f. 53. 2), âI send you a redeemer.â Midrash Shocher tof Ibid. f. 884, âIsrael said, âIt is written of the first redemption, âHe sent Moses His servant, Aaron whom He had chosen; send me two like them.â God answered; âI will send you Elijah the prophet: this is one, the other is he, of whom Isaiah spoke Isaiah 42:1. Behold, my servant whom I have chosen.ââ âShemoth Rabba (Sect. 3. col. 108. 2. ad loc.) âIn the second redemption, ye shall be healed and redeemed by the word I, i. e., I will send.â Or, as a comforter, âI will send you Elias, he shall come and comfort you.â Debarim rabba sect. 3. fin. Or to pronounce some things clean, others unclean. Shir hashirim rabba f. 27. 3. (all the above in Schottgen ad loc.) Others, in different ways, to settle, to Which tribe each belongs. Kimchi on Ezekiel 47:0 and this with differcut explanations as to strictness. (See Edaioth fin. Mishnah T. iv. p. 362. Surenhus.) âRabbi Simeon says, âTo remove controversies.â And the wise and doctors say, To make peace in the world, as is said, âBehold I send.â Rabbi Abraham ben David explains the peace to be âfrom the nations,â and adds, âto announce to them the coming of the redeemer, and this in one day before the coming of the Messiah;â and to âturn the hearts etc.â he explains âthe hearts of the fathers and children (on whom softness had fallen from fear, and they fled, some here, some there, from their distresses) on that day they shall return to their might and to one another and shall comfort each other.â Abarbanel says, that Elijah shall be the instrument of the resurrection, and that, through those who rise, the race of man shall be directed in the recognition of God and the true faith.â Ibn. Ezra, âthat he shall come at the collection of the captives, as Moses at the redemption of Egypt, not for the resurrection.â (These are collected by Frischmuth de Elite adventu. Thes. Theol. Phil. V. T. T. i. pp. 1070ff) R. Tanehum, from Maimonides, says, âThis is without doubt a promise of the appearance of a prophet in Israel, a little before the coming of the Messiah; and some of the wise think that it is Elias the Tishbite himself, and this is found in most of the Midrashoth, and some think that it is a prophet like him in rank, occupying his place in the knowledge of God and the manifesting His Name and that so he is called Elijah. And so explained the great Gaon, Rab Mosheh ben Matmon, at the end of his great book on jurisprudence, called âMishneh Torah.â And, perhaps he (the person sent) may be Messiah ben Joseph, as he says again - And the exactness of the matter in these promises will only be known, when they appear: and no one has therein any accredited account, but each of them says what he says, according to what appears to him, and what preponderates in his mind of the explanation of the truth.â âThe turning of the heart of the father to the children,â he explains to be, âthe restoration of religion, until all should be of one heart in the obedience to God.â) âAll shall be one heart to return to the Lord, both fathers and children;â for he speaks primarily of their mutual conversion to one another, not to God.
The form of the expression seems to imply that the effect of the preaching of Elijah shall be, to bring back the children, the Jews then in being, to the faith and love which their fathers, the patriarchs, had; that John 8:56 âas these believed, hoped for, longed exceedingly for, and loved Christ to come, so their sons should believe, hope in, long exceedingly for and love Christ, Who was come, yea is present; and so the heart of fathers, which before was turned from their unbelieving children, he should turn to them, now believing, and cause the patriarchs to own and love the Jews believing in Christ, as indeed their children, for âyour father Abraham rejoiced to see My day; he saw it and was glad, Christ saith. ââ
Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse - , i. e., with an utter destruction, from which there should be no redemption. In the end, God will so smite the earth, and all, not converted to Him. The prayer and zeal of Elijah will gain a reprieve, in which God will spare the world for the gathering of His own elect, the full conversion of the Jews, which shall fulfill the Apostleâs words Romans 11:26, âSo shall all Israel be saved.â
After the glad tidings, Malachi, and the Old Testament in him, ends with words of awe, telling us of the consequence of the final hardening of the heart; the eternal severance, when the unending end of the everlasting Gospel itself shall be accomplished, and its last grain shall be gathered into the garner of the Lord. The Jews, who would be wiser than the prophet, repeat the previous verse , because Malachi closes so awfully. The Maker of the heart of man knew better the hearts which He had made, and taught their authors to end the books of Isaiah and Ecclesiastes with words of awe, from which manâs heart so struggles to escape. To turn to God here, or everlasting destruction from His presence there, is the only choice open to thee.â âThink of this, when lust goads thee, or ambition solicits thee, or anger convulses thee, or the flesh blandishes thee, or the world allures thee, or the devil displays his deceitful pomp and enticement. In thy hand and thy choice are life and death, heaven and hell, salvation and damnation, bliss or misery everlasting. Choose which thou willest. Think, âA moment which delighteth, eternity which tortureth;â on the other hand, âa moment which tortureth, eternity which delighteth.ââ
âI see that all things come to an end:
Thy commandment is exceeding broad.â
Psalms 119:96
âAs the hart panteth after the water brooks,
So panteth my soul after Thee, O God.â
Psalms 42:1
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse Malachi 4:6. And he shall turn (convert) the heart of the fathers (×¢× al, WITH) the children — Or, together with the children; both old and young. Lest I come, and, finding them unconverted, smite the land with a curse, ××¨× cherem, utter extinction. So we find that, had the Jews turned to God, and received the Messiah at the preaching of John the Baptist and that of Christ and his apostles, the awful ××¨× cherem of final excision and execration would not have been executed upon them. However, they filled up the cup of their iniquity, and were reprobated, and the Gentiles elected in their stead. Thus, the last was first, and the first was last. Glory to God for his unspeakable gift!
There are three remarkable predictions in this chapter: -
1. The advent of John Baptist, in the spirit and authority of Elijah.
2. The manifestation of Christ in the flesh, under the emblem of the Sun of righteousness.
3. The final destruction of Jerusalem, represented under the emblem of a burning oven, consuming every thing cast into it.
These three prophecies, relating to the most important facts that have ever taken place in the history of the world, announced here nearly four hundred years before their occurrence, have been most circumstantially fulfilled.
In most of the Masoretic Bibles the fifth verse is repeated after the sixth - "Behold, I send unto you Elijah the prophet, before the great and terrible day of Jehovah come;" for the Jews do not like to let their sacred book end with a curse; and hence, in reading, they immediately subjoin the above verse, or else the fourth - "Remembering ye the law of Moses my servant."
In one of my oldest MSS. the fifth verse is repeated, and written at full length: "Behold, I send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord." In another, only these words are added: "Behold, I will send you Elijah." It is on this ground that the Jews expect the reappearance of Elijah the prophet, and at their marriage-feast always set a chair and knife and fork for this prophet, whom they suppose to be invisibly present. But we have already seen that John the Baptist, the forerunner of our Lord, was the person designed; for he came in the spirit and power of Elijah, (see on Malachi 3:1), and has fulfilled this prophetic promise. John is come, and the Lord Jesus has come also; he has shed his blood for the salvation of a lost world; he has ascended on high; he has sent forth his Holy Spirit; he has commissioned his ministers to proclaim to all mankind redemption in his blood; and he is ever present with them, and is filling the earth with righteousness and true holiness. Hallelujah! The kingdoms of this world are about to become the kingdoms of God and our Lord Jesus! And now, having just arrived at the end of my race in this work, and seeing the wonderful extension of the work of God in the earth, my heart prays: -
O Jesus, ride on, till all are subdued, Thy mercy make known, and sprinkle thy blood; Display thy salvation, and teach the new song, To every nation, and people, and tongue!
In most MSS. and printed Masoretic Bibles there are only three chapters in this prophet, the fourth being joined to the third, making it twenty-four verses.
In the Jewish reckonings the Twelve Minor Prophets make but one book; hence there is no Masoretic note found at the end of any of the preceding prophets, with accounts of its verses, sections &c.; but, at the end of Malachi we find the following table, which, though it gives the number of verses in each prophet, yet gives the total sum, middle verse, and sections, at the end of Malachi, thereby showing that they consider the whole twelve as constituting but one book.
MASORETIC NOTES
On the Twelve Minor Prophets
Hosea has . . . . . . . . . . 197 verses.
Joel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Amos . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
Obadiah . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Jonah . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Micah . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Nahum . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Zephaniah . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Habakkuk . . . . . . . . . . . 56
Haggai . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Zechariah . . . . . . . . . . 211
Malachi . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
The sum of all the verses of the Twelve Minor Prophets is 1060
The middle verse is Micah, Micah 3:12.
Number of Sections, 21.
TO GOD THE FATHER, SON, AND HOLY GHOST, BE ETERNAL PRAISES. AMEN.
I have this day completed this Commentary on which I have laboured above thirty years; and which, when I began, I never expected to live long enough to finish. May it be a means of securing glory to God in the highest, and peace and good will among men upon earth! Amen, Amen.
ADAM CLARKE.
Heydon Hall, Middlesex,
Monday, March 28, A.D. 1825.
