Day Sixty-Eight -- Bridging the Prophetic Witness

Malachi and Matthew 1:1--4:25

The last words in the Old Testament are spoken by Malachi, whose name means "my messenger."  The LORD uses Malachi to speak his warnings about breaking the Covenant through the offering of blemished sacrifices, by the dishonorable actions of priests, by unfaithfulness in their relationships, in the injustices that are practiced and the withholding of offerings to God.  Since unrighteousness is so widespread, God will once again have to work with a faithful remnant to get things turned around.  It will take a huge event, and Malachi reaches back into the history of the people for the remedy.  "See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the great and dreadful day of the LORD comes.  He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction." (Malachi 4:5-6.  The end of the Old Testament).

We now move on to our reading of the New Testament, but anyone looking for a complete historical timeline and history will be disappointed.  The canon of the Hebrew scriptures basically comes to an end with their return from exile and the rebuilding of the Temple and the city of Jerusalem.  Malachi was prophesying in that age, which was approximately five hundred years before the start of the New Testament period.  What happens during those intervening centuries?  You will have to look elsewhere, but with regards to Malachi there are those that see his final words (see above) as a prophecy of the arrival of John the Baptist.  Of course this is a Christian interpretation, but as we begin our reading of the New Testament with the Gospel according to Matthew we will read many references and should hear many echoes of the thoughts and events in the life of the children of Abraham.  Starting with a genealogy that places Jesus within the original promise to Abraham and also the House of David, we see the faithfulness of God's Covenant continuing , albeit in a new and life-giving way.  Jesus is born in Bethlehem (David's hometown), John the Baptist gives the prophetic announcement using words from the prophet Isaiah, and we're off and running into a new age.