2 And unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth and leap like fatted calves.
And the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that Jehovah bindeth up the breach of his people, and healeth the wound of their stroke.
Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world; he that follows me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Behold, I will apply a healing dressing to it and cure, and I will heal them, and will reveal unto them an abundance of peace and truth.
And [he shall be] as the light or the morning, [like] the rising of the sun, A morning without clouds; [When] from the sunshine, after rain, The green grass springeth from the earth.
But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon him, and with his stripes we are healed.
In the midst of its street, and of the river, on this side and on that side, [the] tree of life, producing twelve fruits, in each month yielding its fruit; and the leaves of the tree for healing of the nations.
Then they that feared Jehovah spoke often one to another; and Jehovah observed [it], and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared Jehovah, and that thought upon his name.
for thus has the Lord enjoined us: I have set thee for a light of the nations, that thou shouldest be for salvation to the end of the earth.
And the nations have been full of wrath, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead to be judged, and to give the recompense to thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to those who fear thy name, small and great; and to destroy those that destroy the earth.
and his mercy [is] to generations and generations to them that fear him.
Again, I write a new commandment to you, which thing is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing and the true light already shines.
We ought to thank God always for you, brethren, even as it is meet, because your faith increases exceedingly, and the love of each one of you all towards one another abounds;
for ye were once darkness, but now light in [the] Lord; walk as children of light, (for the fruit of the light [is] in all goodness and righteousness and truth,) proving what is agreeable to the Lord; and do not have fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather also reprove [them], for the things that are done by them in secret it is shameful even to say. But all things having their true character exposed by the light are made manifest; for that which makes everything manifest is light. Wherefore he says, Wake up, [thou] that sleepest, and arise up from among the dead, and the Christ shall shine upon thee.
Brethren, sons of Abraham's race, and those who among you fear God, to you has the word of this salvation been sent:
[As to] every branch in me not bearing fruit, he takes it away; and [as to] every one bearing fruit, he purges it that it may bring forth more fruit. Ye are already clean by reason of the word which I have spoken to you. Abide in me and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abide in the vine, thus neither [can] ye unless ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye [are] the branches. He that abides in me and I in him, *he* bears much fruit; for without me ye can do nothing.
Jesus therefore said to them, Yet a little while is the light amongst you. Walk while ye have the light, that darkness may not overtake you. And he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While ye have the light, believe in the light, that ye may become sons of light. Jesus said these things, and going away hid himself from them.
I must work the works of him that has sent me while it is day. [The] night is coming, when no one can work.
And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we have contemplated his glory, a glory as of an only-begotten with a father), full of grace and truth;
a light for revelation of [the] Gentiles and [the] glory of thy people Israel.
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, [the city] that kills the prophets and stones those that are sent unto her, how often would I have gathered thy children as a hen gathers her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!
{To the chief Musician. On stringed instruments. A Psalm: a Song.} God be gracious unto us, and bless us, [and] cause his face to shine upon us; Selah,
Surely his salvation is nigh them that fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.
He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.
But the path of the righteous is as the shining light, going on and brightening until the day be fully come.
then shall the lame [man] leap as a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and torrents in the desert.
-- and he saith, It is a small thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel; I have even given thee for a light of the nations, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
saying to the prisoners, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Shew yourselves. They shall feed in the ways, and their pasture shall be on all bare hills. They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them will lead them, and by the springs of water will he guide them.
Who is among you that feareth Jehovah, that hearkeneth to the voice of his servant? he that walketh in darkness, and hath no light, -- let him confide in the name of Jehovah, and stay himself upon his God.
For ye shall go out with joy, and be led forth with peace; the mountains and the hills shall break forth before you into singing, and all the trees of the field shall clap their hands. Instead of the thorn shall come up the cypress, and instead of the nettle shall come up the myrtle; and it shall be to Jehovah for a name, for an everlasting sign [that] shall not be cut off.
I have seen his ways, and will heal him; and I will lead him, and will restore comforts unto him and to those of his that mourn. I create the fruit of the lips: peace, peace to him [that is] afar off, and to him [that is] nigh, saith Jehovah; and I will heal him.
Arise, shine! for thy light is come, and the glory of Jehovah is risen upon thee. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the peoples; but Jehovah will arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen on thee. And the nations shall walk by thy light, and kings by the brightness of thy rising.
Thus saith Jehovah: The heavens are my throne, and the earth is my footstool: what is the house that ye will build unto me? and what is the place of my rest? Even all these things hath my hand made, and all these things have been, saith Jehovah. But to this man will I look: to the afflicted and contrite in spirit, and who trembleth at my word.
They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them; I will cause them to walk by water-brooks, in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble; for I will be a father to Israel, and Ephraim is my firstborn. Hear the word of Jehovah, ye nations, and declare [it] to the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd his flock. For Jehovah hath ransomed Jacob, and redeemed him from the hand of one stronger than he. And they shall come and sing aloud upon the height of Zion, and shall flow together to the goodness of Jehovah, for corn, and for new wine, and for oil, and for the young of the flock and of the herd; and their soul shall be as a watered garden, and they shall not languish any more at all. Then shall the virgin rejoice in the dance, and the young men and old together; for I will turn their mourning into gladness, and will comfort them, and make them rejoice after their sorrow. And I will satiate the soul of the priests with fatness, and my people shall be satisfied with my goodness, saith Jehovah.
And by the river, upon its bank, on the one side and on the other, shall grow all trees for food, whose leaf shall not fade, nor their fruit fail: it shall bring forth new fruit every month, for its waters issue out of the sanctuary; and the fruit thereof shall be for food, and the leaf thereof for medicine.
and we shall know, -- we shall follow on to know Jehovah: his going forth is assured as the morning dawn; and he will come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain which watereth the earth.
I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely; for mine anger is turned away from him. I will be as the dew unto Israel: he shall blossom as the lily, and cast forth his roots as Lebanon. His shoots shall spread, and his beauty shall be as the olive-tree, and his smell as Lebanon. They shall return and sit under his shadow; they shall revive [as] corn, and blossom as the vine: the renown thereof shall be as the wine of Lebanon.
Blind [men] see and lame walk; lepers are cleansed, and deaf hear; and dead are raised, and poor have glad tidings preached to them:
Who forgiveth all thine iniquities, who healeth all thy diseases;
The sun shall be no more thy light by day, neither for brightness shall the moon give light unto thee; but Jehovah shall be thine everlasting light, and thy God thy glory. Thy sun shall no more go down, neither shall thy moon withdraw itself; for Jehovah shall be thine everlasting light, and the days of thy mourning shall be ended.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Malachi 4
Commentary on Malachi 4 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 4
We have here proper instructions given us (very proper to close the canon of the Old Testament with),
Mal 4:1-3
The great and terrible day of the Lord is here prophesied of. This, like the pillar of cloud and fire, shall have a dark side turned towards the Egyptians that fight against God, and a bright side towards the faithful Israelites that follow him: The day cometh, that is, the Lord cometh, the day of the Lord; and it has reference both to the first and to the second coming of Jesus Christ; the day of both was fixed, and should answer the character here given of it.
Mal 4:4-6
This is doubtless intended for a solemn conclusion, not only of this prophecy, but of the canon of the Old Testament, and is a plain information that they were not to expect any more sayings nor writing by divine inspiration, any more of the dictates of the Spirit of prophecy, till the beginning of the gospel of the Messiah, which sets aside the Apocrypha as no part of holy writ, and which therefore the Jews never received.
Now that prophecy ceases, and is about to be sealed up, there are two things required of the people of God, that lived then:-