Malachi 3:5

Malachi 3:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the Lord of hosts.
• New International Version (NIV)“So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me,” says the Lord Almighty.
• English Standard Version (ESV)"Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.
• New King James Version (NKJV)And I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness Against sorcerers, Against adulterers, Against perjurers, Against those who exploit wage earners and widows and orphans, And against those who turn away an alien— Because they do not fear Me,” Says the Lord of hosts.

Context of Malachi 3:5

3He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi [the priests], and refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord [grain] offerings in righteousness. 4Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasing to the Lord as in the days of old and as in ancient years. “Then I will come near you for judgment; I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers, and against those who oppress the laborer in his wages and widows and the fatherless, and against those who turn away the alien [from his right], and those who do not fear Me [with awe-filled reverence],” says the Lord of hosts. 6“For I am the Lord, I do not change [but remain faithful to My covenant with you]; that is why you, O sons of Jacob, have not come to an end. 7“Yet from the days of your fathers you have turned away from My statutes and ordinances and have not kept them. Return to Me, and I will return to you,” says the Lord of hosts. “But you say, ‘How shall we return?’

Malachi 3:5 word by word

וְקָרַבְתִּ֣י אֲלֵיכֶם֮ לַמִּשְׁפָּט֒ וְהָיִ֣יתִי׀ עֵ֣ד מְמַהֵ֗ר בַּֽמְכַשְּׁפִים֙ וּבַמְנָ֣אֲפִ֔ים וּבַנִּשְׁבָּעִ֖ים לַשָּׁ֑קֶר וּבְעֹשְׁקֵ֣י שְׂכַר־שָׂ֠כִיר אַלְמָנָ֨ה וְיָת֤וֹם וּמַטֵּי־גֵר֙ וְלֹ֣א יְרֵא֔וּנִי אָמַ֖ר יְהוָ֥ה צְבָאֽוֹת׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• And I will come nearקָרַבqârab · to present: comeH7126
• to you to judgmentמִשְׁפָּטmishpâţ · justice: judgementH4941
• and I will be a swiftמָהַרmâhar · to hastenH4116
• witnessעֵד‛êd · witnessH5707
• against the sorcerersכָּשַׁףkâshaph · to practice sorceryH3784
• and against the adulterersנָאַףnâ'aph · to commit adulteryH5003
• and against falseשֶׁ֫קֶרsheqer · deceptionH8267
• swearersשָׁבַעshâba‛ · to swearH7650
• and against those that oppressעָשַׁק‛âshaq · to oppressH6231
• the hirelingשָׂכִירώâkîyr · hiredH7916
• wagesשָׂכָרώâkâr · wagesH7939
• the widowאַלְמָנָה'almânâh · widowH490
• and the fatherlessיָתוֹםyâthôm · orphanH3490
• and that turn asideנָטָהnâţâh · to stretchH5186
• the strangerגֵּרgêr gêyr · sojournerH1616
• and fearיָרֵאyârê' · to fear: revereH3372
• not me, saithאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
• the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
• of hostsצָבָאtsâbâ' tsebâ'âh · HostsH6635

Cross-references for Malachi 3:5

• Malachi 2:17You have wearied the Lord with your words. But you say, “In what way have we wearied Him?” In that you say, “Everyone who does evil is good in the sight of the Lord, and He delights in them,” or [by asking], “Where is the God of justice?”
• Psalms 50:3May our God come and not keep silent; Fire devours before Him, And around Him a mighty tempest rages.
• Psalms 96:13Before the Lord, for He is coming, For He is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with righteousness And the peoples in His faithfulness.
• Psalms 98:9Before the Lord, for He is coming to judge the earth; He will judge the world with righteousness And the peoples with fairness.
• Ezekiel 34:20Therefore thus says the Lord God to them, “Behold, I Myself will judge between the [well-fed] fat sheep and the lean sheep.
• Hebrews 10:30For we know Him who said, “Vengeance is Mine [retribution and the deliverance of justice rest with Me], I will repay [the wrongdoer].” And again, “The Lord will judge His people.”
• James 5:8You too, be patient; strengthen your hearts [keep them energized and firmly committed to God], because the coming of the Lord is near.
• Jude 1:14It was about these people that Enoch, in the seventh generation from Adam, prophesied, when he said, “Look, the Lord came with myriads of His holy ones
• Malachi 2:14But you say, “Why [does He reject it]?” Because the Lord has been a witness between you and the wife of your youth, against whom you have dealt treacherously. Yet she is your marriage companion and the wife of your covenant [made by your vows].
• Psalms 50:7“Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you: I am God, your God.
• Psalms 81:8Hear, O My people, and I will admonish you— O Israel, if you would listen to Me!
• Jeremiah 29:23because they have acted foolishly in Israel and have committed adultery with their neighbors’ wives and in My Name have spoken false and concocted words, which I did not command them. I am He who knows and I am a witness,” says the Lord.’ ”
• Micah 1:2Hear, O peoples, all of you; Listen closely, O earth and all that is in it, And let the Lord God be witness [giving a testimony of the judgment] against you, The Lord from His holy temple [in the heavens].
• Matthew 23:14[Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you swallow up widows’ houses, and to cover it up you make long prayers; therefore you will receive the greater condemnation.]
• Leviticus 20:6‘As for the person who turns to mediums [who consult the dead] or to spiritists, to play the prostitute after them, I shall set My face against that person and will cut him off from his people [excluding him from the atonement made for them].
• Deuteronomy 5:11‘You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain [that is, irreverently, in false affirmations or in ways that impugn the character of God]; for the Lord will not hold guiltless nor leave unpunished the one who takes His name in vain [disregarding its reverence and its power].

Commentaries on Malachi 3:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5I will come near to you to judgment - And what fearful cases does he get to judge! Sorcerers, adulterers, false swearers, defrauders of the wages of the hireling, oppressors of widows and orphans, and perverters of the stranger and such as do not fear the Lord: a horrible crew; and the land at that time was full of them. Several were converted under the preaching of Christ and his apostles, and the rest the Romans destroyed or carried into captivity.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And I will come near to you to judgment - They had clamored for the coming of “the God of judgment;” God assures them that He will come to judgment, which they had desired, but far other than they look for. The few would be purified; the great mass of them (so that He calls them “you”), the main body of those who had so clamored, would find that He came as a Judge, not for them but against them. And I will be a swift witness - o“In judging I will bear…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5The phrase swift witness suggests a legal case where God acts as both the prosecutor and the main witness against Judah after the exile in Babylon. Sorcerers used witchcraft, black magic, or fortune-telling for personal gain. On the coming day of God’s judgment, sinful Judeans would either be purified (Malachi 3:3) or destroyed (4:1–2).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 55. I ... come near ... to judgment--I whom ye challenged, saying, "Where is the God of judgment?" (Mal 2:17). I whom ye think far off, and to be slow in judgment, am "near," and will come as a "swift witness"; not only a judge, but also an eye-witness against sorcerers; for Mine eyes see every sin, though ye think I take no heed. Earthly judges need witnesses to enable them to decide aright: I alone need none (Psa 10:11; 73:11; 94:7, &c.). sorcerers--a…Read the comment

Topics related to Malachi 3:5

• Aliens
• Children
• Employee
• Employer
• God Continued...
• Hireling
• Labor
• Malachi
• Master
• Oppression
• Orphan
• Perjury
• Servant
• Sorcery
• Strangers
• Wages
• Widow

In the dictionaries

• I Will Be
• Lord of Hosts
• Change
• Mournfully
• Prove
• Rob
• Sorcerer
• Wages
• Ethics
• Fatherless

Commentaries on Malachi 3

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings