Malachi: Honor God

Malachi 4:1-6 ESV

4 [a] “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear my name, the sun of righteousness shall rise with healing in its wings. You shall go out leaping like calves from the stall. 3 And you shall tread down the wicked, for they will be ashes under the soles of your feet, on the day when I act, says the Lord of hosts.

4 “Remember the law of my servant Moses, the statutes and rules[b] that I commanded him at Horeb for all Israel.

5 “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the Lord comes. 6 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.”[c]

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Small Group Study
Malachi – Honor God
September 20, 2026

Malachi is the last prophetic book prior to the intertestamental period (between the Old and New Testament). His prophecies most likely took place in Judah around 420 B.C. after the Jews had returned from exile when Persia had conquered the land and appointed governors to rule. This generation was well established in that the temple had been rebuilt, temple worship had resumed, and the Jews had reestablished themselves in the land.
The main issue was that the social situation being somewhat stable led to reliance on themself and not God. This was evident in the lack of observance of God’s laws in the temple and in the homes and the influx of pagan worship and practices into the Jewish community.
Throughout the book of Malachi God uses a standard formula for communicating his “correction” to His people:

  1. God’s Complaint

  2. The People’s Objection

  3. God’s Evidence

  4. Outcomes

 
Read Malachi 1:1-5

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 2a)

  • God uses the example of choosing Jacob and judging Esau. How does this answer the people’s complaint?

  • Discuss the location and timing of God’s response in verse 5.

  • What relevance does this prophecy have for the world in which we live?

Read Malachi 1:1-5

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 2a)

  • God uses the example of choosing Jacob and judging Esau. How does this answer the people’s complaint?

  • Discuss the location and timing of God’s response in verse 5.

  • What relevance does this prophecy have for the world in which we live?

Read Malachi 1:1-5

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 2a)

  • God uses the example of choosing Jacob and judging Esau. How does this answer the people’s complaint?

  • Discuss the location and timing of God’s response in verse 5.

  • What relevance does this prophecy have for the world in which we live?

Malachi 1:6-2:9

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 1:6, 7)

God provides two examples of His complaint and the expectations of His people (verses 7b-11 and 12-14). For each of these sets of verses:

  • What is the evidence and what does God expect?

  • Chapter 2 verses 1-9 have an additional warning for the priests. 1 Peter 2:9 states, "But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light." As “priests” today what steps can we take to honor God (vs 2, 7)

Read Malachi 2:13-16

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection

  • Specifically, who is this complaint against (verse 14)?

  • What social situation does this speak to today? How can we better “sanctify” the marriage covenant within the church?

Read Malachi 2:17-3:6

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 17)

  • Discuss God’s evidence for His complaint in verse 17b. How do you see this manifesting itself in Christianity today?

  • What is God’s response (verse 3:1)?

    • Who is the “messenger?” (verse 3:2,3)

Read Malachi 3:6-12

  • Here there is a command and a complaint with an objection to each(verses 6-8).

  • What is God’s expectation of us? What does God promise for meeting those expectations?

Malachi 3:13-4:3

  • Identify the Complaint, the Objection (verse 13)

    • How do we “speak against God” today? Examples?

  • What were the circumstances in Malachi’s day (verse 14)?

    • This leads to the age-old theological “problem of evil.” Without spending the next two years discussing share how the evidence of evil in the world (apparent lack of justice and lack of benefits for doing good) lends itself to separation from God.

  • Discuss God’s response (note God’s timing) in verse 3:17 and 4:1

 
The Old Testament ends with a command and a promise (verse 4:4-6)

  • Discuss the command and how we can better observe it in the church and at home.

  • The “great and dreadful day” promise in verse 5 refers back to 3:17 and 4:1.

    • Discuss the “great” part of the promise (verse 6a).

    • Discuss the “dreadful” part of the promise (verse 6b).

Angela DickinsonComment