More on Malachi 3:1-6

Malachi 3:1-6

1 Behold, I will send my messenger [John the Baptist], and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord [the Messiah - Jesus], whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple [so the Temple had to exist], even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts.

2 But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: [just because they were Jews didn't guarantee salvation],

3 and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness [both John the Baptist and Jesus insisted on purity of heart; and, at that time, on a purer adherence to the Law].

4 Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in former years [multitudes in all Judaea responded with repentance; their offerings which they offered under the Law therefore became sincere and once again pleasing to the Lord, as at an earlier time in Israel's history].

5 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 [John warned the Jews about the consequences that awaited those who still did not repent],

6 For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed [it was therefore only because of God's purpose, and not through any righteousness of their own, that the nation of Israel still existed].

Only once in history did all of that come to pass with precise detail in Israel, at a time when the specified Levites, offerings and Temple still existed - and that was in the ministries to Israel of John the Baptist and of the Lord Jesus.

If the prophecy had not been fulfilled before the Temple and Levitical system of offerings ceased (in AD70), then the prophecy would have forever lost its opportunity to be fulfilled in exact accord with the details described in the prophecy.

But all of the criteria were met, therefore we have a HISTORICAL basis for asserting that Jesus is both Lord and Christ.

But if we instead spiritualise the meaning of the temple, Levites, Jerusalem, Judah, offerings and sons of Jacob, then we take away from the text its ability to set the precise circumstances and historical timeframe in which Messiah was to come. We lose an important exhibit in evidence for the historical JESUS being Lord and Messiah. 

(NB: this takes nothing away from the fact that only repentant Jews were truly Jewish in spirit; takes nothing away from the fact that Gentiles also would later be saved; and takes nothing away from the fact that their new, joint-identity would be called spiritual Zion/Jerusalem; it doesn't even necessarily take away anything of what the Church can be expected to achieve in future history.)