Malachi prophesied at a time when God’s people had just come through a difficult time but had seen God’s great providence for them proven true once again.  At the time Malachi wrote, things had been going well for a while.  God’s people were coasting along, and following the Lord began to lose its luster.  The outside world was becoming a snare once again for the leadership and the people alike. These strong words from Malachi were meant to get God’s people back on track as they would likely be among the last they would hear from a prophet of God for the next 400 years.  The path of redemptive history was set towards Jesus and His redeeming work.  Malachi pointed the people in the right direction, but would they listen?

What Malachi provided was perspective for those who follow after God.  Relationship with Him then and through Christ today needs to first be genuine.  A dry religious exercise is not what God is looking for.  Treating with contempt the ways God has given us to relate to Him is not what He wants either.  In fact, trying to fake our way through our faith is something Malachi calls out right off the bat. It’s a faithful faith he is calling for.