MALACHI 1: GOD DOTH LOVE YOU 

MALACHI 1 

In the beginning, the author Malachi lets us know who this message is from and who it’s to.  Malachi opens his book by letting us know that what follows is a proclamation of YHWH. The message of this final Old Testament book is addressed to “Israel.”  This name helps us understand that these words were for all covenant people belonging to God.  All God’s people were to listen. 

VERSES 2-5 

God starts out His message to us with a declaration of truth: “I have loved you” in verse 2.  The language in the original Hebrew helps us understand that this love God has for us started long long ago, and its effects are still with us. God has an unchanging love for His people. 

The people respond with a question: “How have you loved us?”  The Israelites had been through a lot of tough circumstances at the time this book was written.  Malachi was written after the people return from the exile in Babylon and after they had rebuilt the temple.   

The people did not see God’s love.  The people saw that the monarchy and the Kingdom of Israel had not been reestablished—they had a Persian appointed governor instead.  The people saw no sight of the glorious priest-king predicted by the prophets; they did not see the Messiah anywhere.  The people knew that they were not a great or powerful people but were a small backwater pitiful nation in the Persian Empire.  Prosperity had not returned nor had many worshippers in the temple.  Their neighbors who threatened them were not beaten back or defeated.  The Israelites at this time were a beaten and humiliated group and they did not see God’s love for them. 

God answers their question by reminding them of people they would be familiar with.  He reminded them of Jacob and Esau.  God reminded the people of their history and the history of their neighbors.  Jacob’s people were blessed.  Esau’s descendants were an unblessed people.  God was saying to them, “if you doubt my covenant love with you, remember what I did and started with Jacob and Esau.”  God tells them that He loved Jacob and hated Esau.  From the text, we can see that God did not “hate” Esau as we would think of hate, but God showed such love to Jacob that in comparison it seemed that God cared nothing for Esau.  Jacob was the chosen one of God.  God’s love is great and never ends for His covenant people. 

God goes on to tell the Israelites of the misfortune that Edom (Esau’s descendant’s) would have.  The Edomites made boasts about how they would rebuild their destroyed land, but God had other ideas.  He would never let them rebuild.  Edom’s future was as bleak as their present.  We can see that God kept His promises because from Malachi’s time on the Edomites were conquered and destroyed by the armies of the Maccabees around 125 BC. They were never able to rebuild their nation. 

Israel would be able to observe all this from a distance.  They would be safe and secure from all the tragedies and calamities that would fall on the land of Edom.  Israel would have its share of setbacks; Edom’s more miserable hopeless circumstances would demonstrate God’s watchfulness over His people.  God displays His love for Israel and there should be no question that He loves them. 

All the nations had their own gods, but YHWH is God of gods (verse 5). Those territorial powers were no match for the God of the Universe Who crosses all borders. God will take back the nations that He allotted to other spiritual beings. We might term it differently with the Gospel going to all nations, but it is the same truth. 

TMB BMD