Malachi 4:1 (DRB)

Passage

For behold the day shall come kindled as a furnace: and all the proud, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall set them on fire, saith the Lord of hosts, it shall not leave them root, nor branch.

Nearby Context

Malachi 4:1 For behold the day shall come kindled as a furnace: and all the proud, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall set them on fire, saith the Lord of hosts, it shall not leave them root, nor branch.

Malachi 4:2 But unto you that fear my name, the Sun of justice shall arise, and health in his wings: and you shall go forth, and shall leap like calves of the herd.

Malachi 4:3 And you shall tread down the wicked when they shall be ashes under the sole of your feet in the day that I do this, saith the Lord of hosts.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "shall", "come", "kindled", "furnace", "proud", and "wickedly". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The next verse adds "But unto you that fear my name...", so "behold" and "shall" should be read forward into that movement. In Malachi context, the local focus is covenant faithfulness, priestly corruption, divine justice, and the coming day of the LORD.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "behold" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.