Malachi 4 · Verse 5

Malachi 4:5

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:
Malachi 4:5, King James Version

Malachi 4:5 in other translations

BSBBehold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and awesome Day of the LORD.
WEBBehold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the LORD comes.
ASVBehold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah come.
YLTLo, I am sending to you Elijah the prophet, Before the coming of the day of Jehovah, The great and the fearful.
DARBYBehold, I send unto you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and terrible day of Jehovah.
BBESee, I am sending you Elijah the prophet before the day of the Lord comes, that great day, greatly to be feared.
WebsterBehold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD:

What does Malachi 4:5 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
5. I send you Elijah--as a means towards your "remembering the law" (Mal 4:4). the prophet--emphatical; not "the Tishbite"; for it is in his official, not his personal capacity, that his coming is here predicted. In this sense, John the Baptist was an Elijah in spirit (Lu 1:16, 17), but not the literal Elijah; whence when asked, "Art thou Elias?" (Joh 1:21), He answered, "I am not." "Art thou that prophet?" "No." This implies that John, though knowing from the angel's announcement to his father that he was referred to by Mal 4:5 (Lu 1:17), whence he wore the costume of Elijah, yet knew by inspiration that he did not exhaustively fulfil all that is included in this prophecy: that there is a further fulfilment (compare Note, see on Mal 3:1). As Moses in Mal 4:4 represents the law, so Elijah represents the prophets. The Jews always understood it of the literal Elijah. Their saying is, "Messiah must be anointed by Elijah." As there is another consummating advent of Messiah Himself, so also of His forerunner Elijah; perhaps in person, as at the transfiguration (Mt 17:3; compare Mt 17:11). He in his appearance at the transfiguration in that body on which death had never passed is the forerunner of the saints who shall be found alive at the Lord's second coming. Re 11:3 may refer to the same witnesses as at the transfiguration, Moses and Elijah; Re 11:6 identifies the latter (compare 1Ki 17:1; Jas 5:17). Even after the transfiguration Jesus (Mt 17:11) speaks of Elijah's coming "to restore all things" as still future, though He adds that Elijah (in the person of John the Baptist) is come already in a sense (compare Ac 3:21). However, the future forerunner of Messiah at His second coming may be a prophet or number of prophets clothed with Elijah's power, who, with zealous upholders of "the law" clothed in the spirit of "Moses," may be the forerunning witnesses alluded to here and in Re 11:2-12. The words "before the ... dreadful day of the Lord," show that John cannot be exclusively meant; for he came before the day of Christ's coming in grace, not before His coming in terror, of which last the destruction of Jerusalem was the earnest (Mal 4:1; Joe 2:31).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet - This is meant alone of John the Baptist, as we learn from Luk 1:17 (note), in whose spirit and power he came.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Malachi 4:4-6

Here is a solemn conclusion, not only of this prophecy, but of the Old Testament. Conscience bids us remember the law. Though we have not prophets, yet, as long as we have Bibles, we may keep up our communion with God. Let others boast in their proud reasoning, and call it enlightening, but let us keep near to that sacred word, through which this Sun of Righteousness shines upon the souls of his people. They must…

Read the full comment on Malachi 4:4-6 →

Malachi 4:5 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

הִנֵּ֤הhi.Nehhere!H2009
אָֽנֹכִי֙'a.no.KhiIH595
שֹׁלֵ֣חַsho.Le.ach[am] about to sendH7971
לָכֶ֔םla.Khemto you
אֵ֖ת'et<obj.>H853
אֵלִיָּ֣ה'e.li.YahElijahH452
הַנָּבִ֑יאha.na.Vi'the prophetH5030
לִפְנֵ֗יlif.Nei<to> beforeH6440
בּ֚וֹאBo'comesH935
י֣וֹםYom[the] day ofH3117
יְהוָ֔הYah.wehYahwehH3068
הַגָּד֖וֹלha.ga.Dol<the> greatH1419
וְהַנּוֹרָֽא\׃ve.ha.no.Ra'and <the> awesomeH3372

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Malachi 4:5

  • Luke 1:17

    And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

  • Matthew 17:10-13

    And his disciples asked him, saying, Why then say the scribes that Elias must first come? And Jesus answered and said unto them, Elias truly shall first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, That Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of man suffer of them. Then the disciples understood that he spake unto them of John the Baptist.

  • Mark 9:11-13

    And they asked him, saying, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? And he answered and told them, Elias verily cometh first, and restoreth all things; and how it is written of the Son of man, that he must suffer many things, and be set at nought. But I say unto you, That Elias is indeed come, and they have done unto him whatsoever they listed, as it is written of him.

  • Matthew 11:13-14

    For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye will receive it, this is Elias, which was for to come.

  • Malachi 3:1

    Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.

  • Isaiah 40:3

    The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.

  • Joel 2:31

    The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.

  • John 1:21

    And they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? And he saith, I am not. Art thou that prophet? And he answered, No.

  • Malachi 4:1

    For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

  • Revelation 6:17

    For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

  • Matthew 27:47-49

    Some of them that stood there, when they heard that, said, This man calleth for Elias. And straightway one of them ran, and took a spunge, and filled it with vinegar, and put it on a reed, and gave him to drink. The rest said, Let be, let us see whether Elias will come to save him.

  • Luke 7:26-28

    But what went ye out for to see? A prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and much more than a prophet. This is he, of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee. For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
I will.
3:1; Isa 40:3; Mt 11:13,14; 17:10-13; 27:47-49; Mr 9:11-13
Lu 1:17; 7:26-28; 9:30; Joh 1:21,25
great.
1; Joe 2:31; Ac 2:19,20; Re 6:17

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Malachi 4:4

    Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments.

  • Malachi 4:5

    Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:

  • Malachi 4:6

    And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.

Read all of Malachi 4

Malachi 4:5 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		He aquí, yo os envío á Elías el profeta, antes que venga el día de Jehová grande y terrible.
German
Elberfelder 1871		Siehe, ich sende euch Elia, den Propheten, ehe der Tag Jehovas kommt, der große und furchtbare.
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Ecce ego mittam vobis Eliam prophetam, antequam veniat dies Domini magnus et horribilis.