Question 1

What is the “day that burns as an oven” in this passage?

Accepted Answer

The “day that burns as an oven” points to a set time when God will act in open judgment. The proud and those who keep on doing evil are pictured like dry stubble in a hot furnace. They will not be able to stand against God’s anger at sin, and nothing of their pride or false strength will last, as if neither root nor branch remains. This looks both to past acts of judgment on a sinful nation and to the final reckoning when God makes clear the difference between those who fear him and those who refuse him.

Question 2

Who are “all the proud, and all that do wickedly” who become stubble?

Accepted Answer

“All the proud, and all that do wickedly” are those who lift themselves up against God, trust their own way, and live in open sin without turning back. They are pictured as stubble, dry plant remains that catch fire easily. The idea is not of a small warning burn but of a complete consuming. Their false security, their high places, and even what seems to be deep roots in this world will not protect them when God’s day of judgment comes.

Question 3

What does “Sun of righteousness with healing in his wings” mean?

Accepted Answer

The “Sun of righteousness” is a picture of Christ coming like the rising sun after a long dark night. He brings light, life, and what is right with God. The “healing in his wings” speaks of the restoring power that comes from him, like warm rays touching a cold, sick land. This healing is first of all about the heart: forgiveness, cleansing from sin, and a new life shaped to be like God. Those who fear God’s name are warmed, comforted, and strengthened by this rising Sun.

Question 4

What does it mean that believers “grow up as calves of the stall”?

Accepted Answer

“Grow up as calves of the stall” uses farm life to show the joy and freedom of those who fear God’s name. Calves kept in a stall are well fed and cared for. When they are let out, they leap and run with strength and delight. In the same way, those who live under Christ’s light and healing are set free from the bondage of sin and fear. They grow strong, are nourished by God’s grace, and rejoice openly, no longer shut in by the darkness that once held them.

Question 5

How will the righteous “tread down the wicked” and see them as ashes?

Accepted Answer

“Tread down the wicked” and seeing them as “ashes under the soles of your feet” shows the final defeat of evil. It does not picture harsh personal revenge, but God’s own judgment that removes the power of those who fight against him and his people. Ashes are what is left after complete burning. The picture is that, in the day God acts, those who feared his name will no longer be oppressed or harmed by the wicked. Instead, evil will be underfoot, powerless and finished by God’s hand.

Question 6

Why are God’s people told to remember the law of Moses?

Accepted Answer

God’s people are told to remember the law of Moses because a long stretch without fresh prophets was coming. In that waiting time before Christ and his forerunner, they were to hold fast to what God had already spoken at Horeb for all Israel. The law and its statutes would keep them in the true worship of God and guard them from false ways. Remembering here means more than recalling words; it means keeping, loving, and obeying what God has commanded as they watch for his promised salvation.

Question 7

Who is the “Elijah the prophet” that God promises to send?

Accepted Answer

The promised “Elijah the prophet” is not a return of the old Elijah in person, but someone who comes in a similar spirit and work. This points to John the Baptist, who prepared the way for Christ. Like Elijah, he called people to turn from sin and back to God, spoke boldly even to leaders, and helped restore right worship. He is sent before the great and dreadful day of the Lord so that many hearts would be ready when Christ appears and so they would not meet that day under a curse.

Question 8

What does it mean that he will turn the hearts of fathers to children?

Accepted Answer

When it says he will “turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers,” it speaks of a deep change of heart that affects families. As people turn back to God, old divisions soften. Parents and children are drawn together around the same faith. The children turn from unbelief to the living God of their fathers, and fathers are moved in love and care toward their children’s walk with God. This shared turning to the Lord brings peace where there had been distance and conflict.

Question 9

Why is this described as a “great and dreadful day of the Lord”?

Accepted Answer

It is called a “great and dreadful day” because the same act of God brings two very different outcomes. For those who go on in pride and wickedness, the day is dreadful, like a burning oven that leaves only ashes. For those who fear God’s name, it is great, because the Sun of righteousness rises with healing and joy. This double side of the day shows both God’s strict justice and his deep mercy. It shakes people awake so they will turn to him before that day comes in its full weight.

Question 10

How should believers today respond to this passage’s warning and promise?

Accepted Answer

This passage calls believers to take both sin and grace seriously. The warning about the day that burns like an oven should move you to turn from pride and hidden evil and to seek God while there is time. The promise of the Sun of righteousness invites you to trust Christ for healing, cleansing, and new life. Remembering God’s word, watching your heart, and seeking peace in your home and church fit what is pictured here. It is a call to genuine repentance, steady obedience, and quiet hope in God’s coming work.

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.

The Day of the LORD

The Day of the LORD

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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.

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The Day of the LORD

The Day of the LORD

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