Bible Verse Lookup
Malachi
John J. Collins
The three chapters that make up the last book of the prophetic corpus are, like Deutero‐Zechariah, anonymous—we do not know who wrote them. Malachi is not a proper name but means “my messenger.” The word is taken from 3, 1 (“Lo, I am sending my messenger”) to designate the one through whom this word of the Lord was given. The book is made up of 6 oracles: 1, 2–5; 1, 6–2, 9; 2, 10–16; 2, 17–3, 5; 3, 6–12; and 3, 13–21 . There are two short appendixes in 3, 22–24 .
The first oracle, 1, 2–5 , is a standard polemical oracle against Edom, Judah's neighbor and bitter enemy in the postexilic period. This oracle is rather atypical of Malachi, however, as the others are all critical of Judah itself. He is especially critical of the priesthood and of breaches of faith by the people.
