Malachi 3:14
You have said, 'It is futile to serve God. What have we gained by keeping His requirements and walking mournfully before the LORD of Hosts?
You have said
This phrase introduces a direct accusation from God against the people of Israel. In the Hebrew text, the verb used here is "אָמַרְתֶּם" (amartem), which is in the perfect tense, indicating a completed action. This suggests that the people have repeatedly made this statement, reflecting a persistent attitude or belief. The use of direct speech highlights the personal nature of the people's complaint against God, emphasizing their boldness and lack of reverence.

It is futile
The Hebrew word for "futile" is "שָׁוְא" (shav), which can also mean vain, empty, or worthless. This reflects a deep-seated cynicism among the people regarding their religious practices. Historically, this sentiment may have arisen during a time of economic hardship or political instability, leading the Israelites to question the tangible benefits of their covenantal relationship with God. Theologically, this statement challenges the very purpose of worship and obedience, suggesting that the people have lost sight of the intrinsic value of serving God.

to serve God
The phrase "to serve God" in Hebrew is "לַעֲבֹד אֶת־אֱלֹהִים" (la'avod et-Elohim). The verb "עָבַד" (avad) means to work or serve, often used in the context of worship or religious duty. This service is not merely ritualistic but encompasses a life devoted to God's commandments and purposes. The people's declaration that serving God is futile indicates a spiritual malaise and a failure to recognize the covenantal blessings promised to those who faithfully serve Him. This reflects a broader theme in Malachi, where God calls His people back to genuine worship and covenant faithfulness.

What have we gained
The Hebrew phrase "מַה־בֶּצַע" (mah-betsa) translates to "what profit" or "what gain." This language reveals a transactional view of religion, where the people expect tangible rewards for their service. This perspective is reminiscent of the complaints found in the book of Job, where the question of righteous suffering and divine justice is explored. Theologically, this challenges the notion of disinterested piety, where worship and obedience are offered to God not for material gain but out of love and reverence.

by keeping His requirements
The phrase "by keeping His requirements" in Hebrew is "מִשְׁמַרְתּוֹ" (mishmarto), which refers to the observance of God's laws and commandments. This term underscores the covenantal relationship between God and Israel, where obedience to divine statutes is a central aspect of their identity as God's chosen people. The people's complaint suggests a disconnect between their religious observance and their expectations of divine blessing, highlighting a need for a deeper understanding of the purpose and joy found in living according to God's will.

and walking mournfully
The Hebrew phrase "וְהָלַךְ קְדֹרַנִּית" (vehalakh qedoranit) can be translated as "walking in mourning" or "walking as mourners." This imagery conveys a sense of sorrow or penitence, possibly reflecting the people's perception of their religious life as burdensome or joyless. Historically, this may relate to the post-exilic period's challenges, where the restoration of Jerusalem and the temple did not meet the people's expectations of glory and prosperity. Spiritually, this phrase calls for a reevaluation of one's attitude towards worship, encouraging believers to find joy and fulfillment in their relationship with God.

before the LORD of Hosts?
The title "LORD of Hosts" (יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת, Yahweh Tseva'ot) emphasizes God's sovereignty and power as the commander of heavenly armies. This title is often used in contexts where God's majesty and authority are highlighted, reminding the people of His ultimate control over all creation. The rhetorical question posed here challenges the people's understanding of their relationship with God, urging them to recognize His greatness and the privilege of serving Him. It calls believers to trust in God's purposes and timing, even when immediate benefits are not apparent.

Persons / Places / Events
1. Malachi
The prophet who delivered God's message to the Israelites. His name means "my messenger" in Hebrew, and he is the last of the twelve minor prophets in the Old Testament.

2. Israelites
The people of God to whom Malachi is speaking. They are questioning the value of their devotion and service to God.

3. The LORD of Hosts
A title for God emphasizing His sovereignty and command over the heavenly armies. It underscores His power and authority.

4. Temple Worship
The context of the Israelites' service, which included sacrifices and adherence to the Law. This was central to their relationship with God.

5. Post-Exilic Period
The time after the Israelites returned from Babylonian exile, during which Malachi prophesied. This period was marked by spiritual apathy and disillusionment among the people.
Teaching Points
The Danger of Spiritual Apathy
Spiritual apathy can lead to questioning the value of serving God. It's crucial to guard our hearts against becoming indifferent to our faith.

The Importance of Perspective
Our perspective on serving God should be eternal rather than temporal. Earthly rewards may not always be evident, but eternal rewards are promised.

Faithfulness in Obedience
Obedience to God should not be based on immediate gain but on trust in His character and promises. Faithfulness is rewarded in God's timing.

The Role of Suffering in Faith
Walking "mournfully" before God can be a part of the Christian journey. Suffering and trials can deepen our faith and reliance on God.

God's Sovereignty and Justice
Trust in God's ultimate justice and sovereignty. He sees and knows all, and His timing and ways are perfect, even when we don't understand.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the sentiment expressed in Malachi 3:14 reflect a common struggle in the Christian walk today?

2. In what ways can we combat spiritual apathy and maintain a vibrant faith in our daily lives?

3. How can the perspective of eternal rewards versus earthly rewards change our approach to serving God?

4. What are some practical ways to remain faithful in obedience to God, even when immediate benefits are not visible?

5. How can we find comfort in God's sovereignty and justice when we face trials and feel that our efforts in serving Him are futile?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Ecclesiastes 1:2
This verse echoes the sentiment of futility, as the Preacher declares "Vanity of vanities! All is vanity." It reflects a similar questioning of life's purpose without God.

Isaiah 58:3-4
The Israelites question why their fasting and religious observance seem to go unnoticed by God, similar to their complaint in Malachi.

Hebrews 11:6
This verse emphasizes that faith is essential to please God and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him, countering the Israelites' claim of futility.
Accusing GodMalachi 3:14
Is Religion UselessG. Cubitt.Malachi 3:14
Religion Delineated and DepreciatedHomilistMalachi 3:14
The Service God DemandsR. Croxton.Malachi 3:14
The Worshipping Service Required of ChristiansJ. Leifchild, D. D.Malachi 3:14
Unacceptable SacrificesG. Cubitt.Malachi 3:14
Religion Delineated and DepreciatedD. Thomas Malachi 3:13, 14
Doubt of Profit in Serving GodR. Tuck Malachi 3:14, 15
People
Jacob, Levi, Levites, Malachi
Places
Jerusalem
Topics
Almighty, And'what, Armies, Black, Carrying, Charge, Clothing, Followed, Gain, Hosts, Instructions, Keeping, Kept, Mourners, Mournfully, Mourning, Orders, Ordinance, Profit, Requirements, Serve, Sorrow, Vain, Walk, Walked, Walking, Worshipping
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Malachi 3:14

     5465   profit
     5818   contempt
     5864   futility
     7160   servants of the Lord
     8710   atheism
     8741   failure

Malachi 3:13-15

     5821   criticism, among believers

Malachi 3:14-15

     1075   God, justice of

Library
The Lord Coming to his Temple
Westminster Abbey. November, 1874. Malachi iii. 1, 2. "The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple. . . . But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire, and like fuller's sope." We believe that this prophecy was fulfilled at the first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that it will be fulfilled again, in that great day when He shall judge the quick and the dead. But it is of neither of these events
Charles Kingsley—All Saints' Day and Other Sermons

January 19. "Prove Me Now Herewith" (Mal. Iii. 10).
"Prove me now herewith" (Mal. iii. 10). We once heard a simple old colored man say something that we have never forgotten. "When God tests You it is a good time for you to test Him by putting His promises to the proof, and claiming from Him just as much as your trials have rendered necessary." There are two ways of getting out of a trial. One is to simply try to get rid of the trial, and be thankful when it is over. The other is to recognize the trial as a challenge from God to claim a larger blessing
Rev. A. B. Simpson—Days of Heaven Upon Earth

The Unchanging Lord
'I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.' MALACHI iii. 6. The scriptural revelations of the divine Name are always the basis of intensely practical admonition. The Bible does not think it worth while to proclaim the Name of God without building on the proclamation promises or commandments. There is no 'mere theology' in Scripture; and it does not speak of 'attributes,' nor give dry abstractions of infinitude, eternity, omniscience, unchangeableness, but lays stress
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

A Dialogue with God
'Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith the Lord of Hosts. But ye say, Wherein shall we return?'--MALACHI iii. 7 (R.V.). In previous sermons we have considered God's indictment of man's sin met by man's plea of 'not guilty,' and God's threatenings brushed aside by man's question. Here we have the climax of self-revealing and patient love in God's wooing voice to draw the wanderer back, met by man's refusing answer. These three divine utterances taken together cover the whole ground of
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Last Word of Prophecy
'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, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, He shall come, saith the Lord of Hosts. 2. But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth? for He is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: 3. And He shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and He shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

'Stout Words,' and their Confutation
'Your words have been stout against Me, saith the Lord: yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against Thee? 14. Ye have said, It is vain to serve God; and what profit is it that we have kept His ordinance, and that we have walked mournfully before the Lord of Hosts? 15. And now we call the proud happy; yea, they that work wickedness are set up; yea, they that tempt God are even delivered. 16. Then they that feared the Lord spake often one to another: and the Lord hearkened, and heard it; and a
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

The Lord Coming to his Temple
The LORD , whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple; even the messenger of the covenant in whom ye delight: Behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? For he is like a refiner's fire, and like a fuller's soap, -- and he shall purify the sons of Levi -- that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. W hereunto shall we liken the people of this generation? and to what are they like? (Luke 7:31)
John Newton—Messiah Vol. 1

The Immutability of God
"Great God, how infinite art thou, What worthless worms are we!" But while the subject humbles the mind it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe. He may be a naturalist, boasting of his ability to dissect a beetle, anatomize a fly, or arrange insects and animals in classes with well nigh unutterable names; he may be a geologist, able to discourse of the megatherium and the plesiosaurus, and all kinds of extinct
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 1: 1855

God's Jewels.
(Schools.) MALACHI III. 17. "They shall be Mine, saith the Lord of Hosts, in that day when I make up My jewels." There is a legend of old time which tells us how a certain Jewish Rabbi returned to his home after a long absence. His first question was--"Where are my boys?" for his wife had greeted him alone. Then, instead of answering her husband's question, the wife asked his advice. She told him that some years before someone had lent her something very precious, and she would know whether after
H. J. Wilmot-Buxton—The Life of Duty, a Year's Plain Sermons, v. 2

The Unchangeableness of God
The next attribute is God's unchangeableness. I am Jehovah, I change not.' Mal 3:3. I. God is unchangeable in his nature. II. In his decree. I. Unchangeable in his nature. 1. There is no eclipse of his brightness. 2. No period put to his being. [1] No eclipse of his brightness. His essence shines with a fixed lustre. With whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.' James 1:17. Thou art the same.' Psa 102:27. All created things are full of vicissitudes. Princes and emperors are subject to
Thomas Watson—A Body of Divinity

All Manner of Precious Stones
Gerhard Ter Steegen Mal. iii. 17 There it is fair, Where thousand, thousand flames for evermore In God's high palace glow, No more they light the dark and misty shore, As long ago: They burn, a crown of every radiant stone, For ever and for ever round the throne, Christ's diadem. Eternal lamps that never can be dim, Fed by the golden oil that flows to them For ever from the Heart whence flowed the Blood, They shine with light of every precious gem, Light of the joy of God. Past, pain and sorrow,
Frances Bevan—Hymns of Ter Steegen, Suso, and Others

They Shall He Mine, Saith the Lord. Mal 3:16-18

John Newton—Olney Hymns

The Fellowship of those who Fear the Lord. --Malachi iii. 16-18; iv. 1
The fellowship of those who fear the Lord.--Malachi iii. 16-18; iv. 1. When those who fear'd the Lord of old Met oft, and spoke with one accord, A book was written, and enroll'd Their faithful names before the Lord. They shall be mine, Jehovah said, And as a signet on my hand, A crown of glory for my head, Among my chosen jewels stand. And I will spare them in that day, Even as a father spares his son, When all the proud are swept away, The wicked, root and branch, undone. Then shall my righteousness
James Montgomery—Sacred Poems and Hymns

Whether this is True: "God was Made Man"?
Objection 1: It would seem that this is false: "God was made man." For since man signifies a substance, to be made man is to be made simply. But this is false: "God was made simply." Therefore this is false: "God was made man." Objection 2: Further, to be made man is to be changed. But God cannot be the subject of change, according to Malachi 3:6: "I am the Lord, and I change not." Hence this is false: "God was made man." Objection 3: Further, man as predicated of Christ stands for the Person of
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Whether it was Fitting for Christ to Ascend into Heaven?
Objection 1: It would seem that it was not fitting for Christ to ascend into heaven. For the Philosopher says (De Coelo ii) that "things which are in a state of perfection possess their good without movement." But Christ was in a state of perfection, since He is the Sovereign Good in respect of His Divine Nature, and sovereignly glorified in respect of His human nature. Consequently, He has His good without movement. But ascension is movement. Therefore it was not fitting for Christ to ascend. Objection
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Whether that Fire Will Engulf the Wicked?
Objection 1: It would seem that that fire will not engulf the wicked. For a gloss on Malachi 3:3, "He shall purify the sons of Levi," says that "it is a fire consuming the wicked and refining the good"; and a gloss on 1 Cor. 3:13, "Fire shall try every man's work," says: "We read that there will be a twofold fire, one that will cleanse the elect and will precede the judgment, another that will torture the wicked." Now the latter is the fire of hell that shall engulf the wicked, while the former is
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

Sunday-School Hymns.
SHEPHERD OF TENDER YOUTH. [Greek: Stomion polon adaon] We are assured by repeated references in the patristic writings that the primitive years of the Christian Church were not only years of suffering but years of song. That the despised and often persecuted "Nazarenes," scattered in little colonies throughout the Roman Empire, did not forget to mingle tones of praise and rejoicing with their prayers could readily be believed from the much-quoted letter of a pagan lawyer, written about as long
Theron Brown—The Story of the Hymns and Tunes

In the Temple at the Feast of Tabernacles.
(October, a.d. 29.) ^D John VII. 11-52. ^d 11 The Jews therefore sought him at the feast, and said, Where is he? [It was now eighteen months since Jesus had visited Jerusalem, at which time he had healed the impotent man at Bethesda. His fame and prolonged obscurity made his enemies anxious for him to again expose himself in their midst. John here used the word "Jews" as a designation for the Jerusalemites, who, as enemies of Christ, were to be distinguished from the multitudes who were in doubt
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

The Never Changing One.
"JESUS Christ the same yesterday, and to-day and forever" (Heb. xiii:8). Blessed truth and precious assurance for us poor, weak creatures, yea, among all His creatures the most changing; He changeth not. "For I am the Lord, I change not" (Mal. iii:6). "Of old hast Thou laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Thy hands. They shall all perish, but Thou shalt endure: yea all of them shall wax old like a garment, as a vesture shalt Thou change them, and they shall be changed;
Arno Gaebelein—The Lord of Glory

The Sinner Sentenced.
1, 2.The sinner called upon to hear his sentence.--3. God's law does now in general pronounce a curse.--4. It pronounces death.--5. And being turned into hell.--6. The judgement day shall come.--7, 8. The solemnity of that grand process described according to scriptural representations of it.--9. With a particular illustration of the sentence, "Depart, accursed," &c.--10. The execution wilt certainly and immediately follow.--11. The sinner warned to prepare for enduring it. The reflection of a sinner
Philip Doddridge—The Rise and Progress of Religion in the Soul

Jesus, the Mediator of the New Covenant
"I give thee for a covenant of the people."--ISA. xlii. 6, xlix. 8. "The Lord shall suddenly come to His temple, even the Messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in."--MAL. iii. 1. "Jesus was made Surety of a better covenant."--HEB. vii. 22. "The Mediator of the Better Covenant, established upon better promises . . . The Mediator of the New Covenant. . . Ye are come to Jesus, the Mediator of the New Covenant."--HEB. viii. 6, ix. 15, xii. 24. WE have here four titles given to our Lord Jesus in
Andrew Murray—The Two Covenants

Troubles of Lingering at the Crossing
TROUBLES OF LINGERING AT THE CROSSING Some time ago I consecrated to God for entire sanctification and thought I was sanctified. Then I began to doubting whether I was wholly sanctified; so I consecrated again. This I have done a number of times; in fact, so many times that I don't know what to do. Can you help me any in this difficulty? I am in doubts about my consecration. I am as consecrated as I know how to be, yet there is a feeling of unreality and uncertainty about it that is distressing,
Robert Lee Berry—Adventures in the Land of Canaan

His Schools and Schoolmasters.
(LUKE 1.) "Oh to have watched thee through the vineyards wander, Pluck the ripe ears, and into evening roam!-- Followed, and known that in the twilight yonder Legions of angels shone about thy home!" F. W. H. MYERS. Home-Life--Preparing for his Life-Work--The Vow of Separation--A Child of the Desert Zacharias and Elisabeth had probably almost ceased to pray for a child, or to urge the matter. It seemed useless to pray further. There had been no heaven-sent sign to assure them that there was any
F. B. Meyer—John the Baptist

Whether God is Altogether Immutable?
Objection 1: It seems that God is not altogether immutable. For whatever moves itself is in some way mutable. But, as Augustine says (Gen. ad lit viii, 20), "The Creator Spirit moves Himself neither by time, nor by place." Therefore God is in some way mutable. Objection 2: Further, it is said of Wisdom, that "it is more mobile than all things active [Vulg.'mobilior']" (Wis. 7:24). But God is wisdom itself; therefore God is movable. Objection 3: Further, to approach and to recede signify movement.
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

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