Chapter 3

Lo, I am sending My messenger, And he hath prepared a way before Me, And suddenly come in unto his temple Doth the Lord whom ye are seeking, Even the messenger of the covenant, Whom ye are desiring, Lo, he is coming, said Yehovah of Hosts.

And who is bearing the day of his coming? And who is standing in his appearing? For he is as fire of a refiner, And as soap of a fuller.

And he hath sat, a refiner and purifier of silver, And he hath purified the sons of Levi, And hath refined them as gold and as silver, And they have been to Yehovah bringing nigh a present in righteousness.

And sweet to Yehovah hath been the present of Judah and Jerusalem, As in days of old, and as in former years.

And I have drawn near to you for judgment, And I have been a witness, Making haste against sorcerers, And against adulterers, And against swearers to a falsehood, And against oppressors of the hire of an hireling, Of a widow, and of a fatherless one, And those turning aside a sojourner, And who fear Me not, said Yehovah of Hosts.

For I am Yehovah, I have not changed, And ye, the sons of Jacob, Ye have not been consumed.

Even from the days of your fathers Ye have turned aside from My statutes, And ye have not taken heed. Turn back unto Me, and I turn back to you, Said Yehovah of Hosts. And ye have said, `In what do we turn back?`

Doth man deceive God? but ye are deceiving Me, And ye have said: `In what have we deceived Thee?` The tithe and the heave-offering!

With a curse ye are cursed! And Me ye are deceiving -- this nation -- all of it.

Bring in all the tithe unto the treasure-house, And there is food in My house; When ye have tried Me, now, with this, Said Yehovah of Hosts, Do not I open to you the windows of heaven? Yea, I have emptied on you a blessing till there is no space.

And I have pushed for you against the consumer, And He doth not destroy to you the fruit of the ground, Nor miscarry to you doth the vine in the field, Said Yehovah of Hosts.

And declared you happy have all the nations, For ye are a delightful land, said Yehovah of Hosts.

Hard against Me have been your words, Said Yehovah, and ye have said: `What have we spoken against Thee?`

Ye have said, `A vain thing to serve God! And what gain when we kept His charge? And when we have gone in black, Because of Yehovah of Hosts?

And now, we are declaring the proud happy, Yea, built up have been those doing wickedness, Yea they have tempted God, and escape.`

Then have those fearing Yehovah spoken one to another, And Yehovah doth attend and hear, And written is a book of memorial before Him Of those fearing Yehovah, And of those esteeming His name.

And they have been to Me, said Yehovah of Hosts, In the day that I am appointing -- a peculiar treasure, And I have had pity on them, As one hath pity on his son who is serving him.

And ye have turned back and considered, Between the righteous and the wicked, Between the servant of God and him who is not His servant.