“Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes. 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.”” – Malachi 4:4-6 

Scripture reading: Romans 8:1-17

We now come to the end of this book. There will be about 400 years of silence between Malachi and the coming of John the Baptist and Jesus Himself. The book of Malachi shows us a covenant-keeping God Who still loves and pursues His people even though they have not remained faithful to Him. It’s not surprising that the final command in the book is to remember the covenant law of Moses. The word “remember” has the idea of bringing something to mind and acting accordingly. So when God commands His people to remember, He is calling them to be covenant-keeping people who put into practice His revealed will.

The LORD says He will send Elijah, the prophet, before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD. This is another reference to John the Baptist. In this case, the great and awesome day refers to the incarnation of Jesus Christ. He finally comes to save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).  Although the text mentions the turning of the hearts of the father to the children, the main idea here is that John’s role is to turn all hearts, fathers and children, to the LORD their God. John had a ministry of repentance and the same word (turn) is used here. The last words of the Old Testament speak of the judgment of God upon those who do not turn to the LORD in repentance and faith. These are sober final words. Make sure Christ is your Saviour today.

Suggestions for prayer

Praise the LORD that everything He promises to us in His Word has real substance and will come to pass. Thank the LORD that Christ comes to save His people from their sins so that we will not face the judgment to come.

Rev. Michael Jaatinen is the minister of Mount Zion Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church in Moncton, NB.