EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)
(3)
Sons of Levi.—Meaning especially the priests, the sons of Aaron, son of Amram, son of Kohath, son of Levi (
Exodus 6:16-20); for judgment must begin at the house of God. (Comp.
Jeremiah 25:29;
Ezekiel 9:6;
1Peter 4:17.)
In righteousness refers rather to the moral character of the offerer than to the nature of the sacrifices, as being such as were prescribed by the Law. This and the following verse do not, of course, imply that there are to be material sacrifices in Messianic times. The prophet speaks in such language as was suitable to the age in which he lived. (See Note onMalachi 1:11.)
Malachi 3:3-4.
And he shall sit as a refiner —He shall be diligently employed in his office, in performing which he shall resemble a refiner and purifier of silver.
And he shall purify the sons of Levi —And whereas the misconduct of the sons of Levi has been very great, (particularly of those who have been taken notice of and reproved in the foregoing chapters,) the Messiah when he comes will reform these abuses, and purify the worship of God from such corruptions.
And purge them as gold and silver —The effect of this fiery trial, and purifying furnace, shall be the thorough cleansing of the persons that are to pass through it. Not
all the sons of Levi,says Houbigant, “for the similitude is taken from gold and silver, which being purified there remains some dross behind. So it happened after the ministration of Jesus Christ: a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith,
Acts 6:7. Of the
othersons of Levi, who did not believe in Christ, it is just before said,
Who may abide the day of his coming,when, the metal being purified, he will cast the dross into the fire.” But those who should minister in holy things in the Christian Church, instead of the Levitical priests, are chiefly intended: or rather, all real Christians, who are made
a holy priesthood,and who, with hearts and minds purified by faith,
offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus Christ,1 Peter 2:5; yea, who even offer themselves, their souls and bodies, their faculties and members, their time and talents, all they are and have,
unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem —The services and duties of the Christian ministry, and of the whole Christian Church;
be pleasant unto the Lord —Acceptable and even well pleasing to him. The prophet describes the Christian worship, and the various services of the Christian Church, and of its true members, by expressions taken from the Jewish service, being that with which they were acquainted;
as in the days of old —As in the purest ages of the patriarchal or Mosaic dispensation, or, as in the times of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Samuel, David.
3:1-6 The first words of this chapter seem an answer to the scoffers of those days. Here is a prophecy of the appearing of John the Baptist. He is Christ's harbinger. He shall prepare the way before him, by calling men to repentance. The Messiah had been long called, He that should come, and now shortly he will come. He is the Messenger of the covenant. Those who seek Jesus, shall find pleasure in him, often when not looked for. The Lord Jesus, prepares the sinner's heart to be his temple, by the ministry of his word and the convictions of his Spirit, and he enters it as the Messenger of peace and consolation. No hypocrite or formalist can endure his doctrine, or stand before his tribunal. Christ came to distinguish men, to separate between the precious and the vile. He shall sit as a Refiner. Christ, by his gospel, shall purify and reform his church, and by his Spirit working with it, shall regenerate and cleanse souls. He will take away the dross found in them. He will separate their corruptions, which render their faculties worthless and useless. The believer needs not fear the fiery trial of afflictions and temptations, by which the Saviour refines his gold. He will take care it is not more intense or longer than is needful for his good; and this trial will end far otherwise than that of the wicked. Christ will, by interceding for them, make them accepted. Where no fear of God is, no good is to be expected. Evil pursues sinners. God is unchangeable. And though the sentence against evil works be not executed speedily, yet it will be executed; the Lord is as much an enemy to sin as ever. We may all apply this to ourselves. Because we have to do with a God that changes not, therefore it is that we are not consumed; because his compassions fail not.
And He shall sit - o as a King and Judge on His throne, with authority, yet also to try accurately the cause of each, separating seeming virtues from real graces; hypocrites, more or less consciously, from His true servants.
He shall purify o the sons of Levi - These had been first the leaders in degeneracy, the corrupters of the people by their example and connivance. ActuallyActs 6:7, "a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith." Barnabas also was a Levite.Acts 4:36. But more largely, as Zion and Jerusalem are the titles for the Christian Church, and Israel who believed was the true Israel, so "the sons of" Levi are the true Levites, the Apostles and their successors in the Christian priesthood.
It was through three centuries of persecutions that the Church was purified by fire.
That they may offer - , literally "and they shall be unto thy Lord offers of a meal-offering in righteousness," i. e., they shall be such, and that, habitually, abidingly. Again, here and in the next words, "and the meal-offering of Judah shall be pleasant unto the Lord," it is remarkable, that the "meal-offering," to which the holy eucharist corresponds, is alone mentioned. Of bloody offerings Malachi is silent, for they were to cease.
In righteousness - , as Zacharias prophesied, "that we might serve Him in holiness and righteousness before Him all the days of our life."
3. sit—The purifier sits before the crucible, fixing his eye on the metal, and taking care that the fire be not too hot, and keeping the metal in, only until he knows the dross to be completely removed by his seeing his own image reflected (Ro 8:29) in the glowing mass. So the Lord in the case of His elect (Job 23:10; Ps 66:10; Pr 17:3; Isa 48:10; Heb 12:10; 1Pe 1:7). He will sit down to the work, not perfunctorily, but with patient love and unflinching justice. The Angel of the Covenant, as in leading His people out of Egypt by the pillar of cloud and fire, has an aspect of terror to His foes, of love to His friends. The same separating process goes on in the world as in each Christian. When the godly are completely separated from the ungodly, the world will end. When the dross is taken from the gold of the Christian, he will be for ever delivered from the furnace of trial. The purer the gold, the hotter the fire now; the whiter the garment, the harder the washing [Moore].
purify … sons of Levi—of the sins specified above. The very Levites, the ministers of God, then needed cleansing, so universal was the depravity.
that they may offer … in righteousness—as originally (Mal 2:6), not as latterly (Mal 1:7-14). So believers, the spiritual priesthood (1Pe 2:5).
And he, King Messiah, Christ Jesus our Lord,
shall sit; as resolved to attend this work, he will set to it vigorously, and continue in it constantly, till it is finished.
As a refiner and purifier of silver; overlooking the furnace, that it be hot enough to melt down the silver and gold, and to consume the dross, and purify the best part of the gold.
He shall purify; the effect of this fiery trial, of this scouring, shall be the thorough cleansing of the persons that are to pass through it: these sufferings, together with his word, shall, by the power of the Spirit accompanying them, thoroughly purge the good, and they shall be a fire hot enough to burn up the wicked.
The sons of Levi; either the Jewish Levites, or all Christians, who are made priests unto God, to offer sacrifices to him, even prayers, praises, and alms, &c.; or such as should minister more immediately to God, in the services of the spiritual temple, as the Levites did in the material temple.
And purge them as gold and silver; that they may be vessels of honour, purified for holy employments.
That they may offer unto the Lord an offering: by the law phrase is set forth gospel worship, for it cannot be meant of legal offerings, which the Messiah did abolish at his coming.
In righteousness; in right manner, purely and uprightly.
And he, King Messiah, Christ Jesus our Lord,
shall sit; as resolved to attend this work, he will set to it vigorously, and continue in it constantly, till it is finished.
As a refiner and purifier of silver; overlooking the furnace, that it be hot enough to melt down the silver and gold, and to consume the dross, and purify the best part of the gold.
He shall purify; the effect of this fiery trial, of this scouring, shall be the thorough cleansing of the persons that are to pass through it: these sufferings, together with his word, shall, by the power of the Spirit accompanying them, thoroughly purge the good, and they shall be a fire hot enough to burn up the wicked.
The sons of Levi; either the Jewish Levites, or all Christians, who are made priests unto God, to offer sacrifices to him, even prayers, praises, and alms, &c.; or such as should minister more immediately to God, in the services of the spiritual temple, as the Levites did in the material temple.
And purge them as gold and silver; that they may be vessels of honour, purified for holy employments.
That they may offer unto the Lord an offering: by the law phrase is set forth gospel worship, for it cannot be meant of legal offerings, which the Messiah did abolish at his coming.
In righteousness; in right manner, purely and uprightly.
And he, King Messiah, Christ Jesus our Lord,
shall sit; as resolved to attend this work, he will set to it vigorously, and continue in it constantly, till it is finished.
As a refiner and purifier of silver; overlooking the furnace, that it be hot enough to melt down the silver and gold, and to consume the dross, and purify the best part of the gold.
He shall purify; the effect of this fiery trial, of this scouring, shall be the thorough cleansing of the persons that are to pass through it: these sufferings, together with his word, shall, by the power of the Spirit accompanying them, thoroughly purge the good, and they shall be a fire hot enough to burn up the wicked.
The sons of Levi; either the Jewish Levites, or all Christians, who are made priests unto God, to offer sacrifices to him, even prayers, praises, and alms, &c.; or such as should minister more immediately to God, in the services of the spiritual temple, as the Levites did in the material temple.
And purge them as gold and silver; that they may be vessels of honour, purified for holy employments.
That they may offer unto the Lord an offering: by the law phrase is set forth gospel worship, for it cannot be meant of legal offerings, which the Messiah did abolish at his coming.
In righteousness; in right manner, purely and uprightly.
And he shall sit as a refiner, and purifier of silver,.... Kimchi interprets this, as he does the latter part of the preceding verse
Malachi 3:2, of the day, and not of the Lord, which he compares to a judge that sits and separates the guilty from the innocent; see
1 Corinthians 3:13 but it is to be understood of the Lord himself, and expresses his diligence in sitting and separating good men and principles from bad ones, just as silver is purified and refined from dross. Maimonides (a) understands the passage of the Messiah; for he says,
"in the days of the King Messiah, when his kingdom is restored, and all Israel shall be gathered to him, all will have their genealogies set right by his mouth, through the Holy Spirit that rests upon him, as it is said, "he shall sit a refiner and purifier":''
as a refiner sits and observes his metal while it is melting, and waits the proper time to pour it out and separate the dross from it; so Christ is here represented as sitting, while his people are purifying and refining by the various ways and means he makes use of: it denotes the continued care of Christ over them; his eye is upon them, that nothing be lost but their dross and corruption; and his patience in waiting to be gracious to them, and do them good; and his diligent attention to the proper season of doing it; designing by all that he does, not their hurt and damage, but their real good, for he saves them, though it be by fire; and indeed every trial and affliction is for the purifying of their souls, and the brightening of their graces, and increasing their spiritual experience, light, and knowledge.
And he shall purify the sons of Levi; the priests, either literally understood, some of these were converted from their evil principles and practices, and became obedient to the doctrines of the Gospel,Acts 6:7 or figuratively, the apostles of Christ and ministers of the Gospel, who were made clean by him; or rather all the people of God, who are made priests as well as kings, and are a royal priesthood, and are purified by Christ, both by his blood, and the imputation of his righteousness, by which they become without spot and blemish, and as white as snow; and by the Spirit in sanctification, he sprinkling clean water upon them, and purifying their hearts by faith in the blood of Jesus; and also by afflictive dispensations of Providence sanctified unto them. Mention is made of the priests and Levites, because these were so very corrupt in the times of Christ, and as appears from the preceding chapters.
And purge them as gold and silver; are purged in the fire from their dross: this shows of what worth and value, and in what esteem the Lord's people are to him; he reckons of them as gold and silver, and as his peculiar treasure: and it suggests, that before conversion they are joined unto and mixed with wicked men, comparable to dross; and that they have in them the dross, corruption, and impurity of sin; which is original and natural to them, and inherent in them, and which can only be removed by the grace of God and blood of Christ.
That they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness; themselves, their bodies and souls; the sacrifices of prayer, praise, and alms deeds; to the offering up of which in righteousness, in sincerity and truth, in an upright way, it is necessary that a person should be purified by the blood of Christ, and sanctified by the grace of his Spirit.
(a) Hilchot Melachim, c. 12. sect. 3.
And he shall sitas a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of{e} Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness.(e) He begins at the priests, that they might be lights, and shine unto others.
