“For I, Yahweh, don’t change; therefore you, sons of Jacob, are not consumed.
Parallel Translations
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“For I, Yahweh, don’t change; therefore you, sons of Jacob, are not consumed.
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For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
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For I the LORD change not; and ye, O sons of Jacob, are not consumed.
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Cross-references (31)
Passages linked to Malachi 3:6 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie, nor a son of man, that he should repent. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not make it good?
- Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
- James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, nor turning shadow.
- Lamentations 3:22-23 It is because of Yahweh’s loving kindnesses that we are not consumed, because his compassion doesn’t fail. They are new every morning. Great is your faithfulness.
- Jeremiah 32:27 “Behold, I am Yahweh, the God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for me?
- Isaiah 40:28-31 Haven’t you known? Haven’t you heard? The everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth, doesn’t faint. He isn’t weary. His understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the weak. He increases the strength of him who has no might. Even the youths faint and get weary, and the young men utterly fall; but those who wait for Yahweh will renew their strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles. They will run, and not be weary. They will walk, and not faint.
- Romans 8:28-32 We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to his purpose. For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. Whom he predestined, those he also called. Whom he called, those he also justified. Whom he justified, those he also glorified. What then shall we say about these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who didn’t spare his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how would he not also with him freely give us all things?
- Exodus 3:14-15 God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM,” and he said, “You shall tell the children of Israel this: ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” God said moreover to Moses, “You shall tell the children of Israel this, ‘Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and this is my memorial to all generations.
- Hebrews 6:18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to take hold of the hope set before us.
- 1 Samuel 15:29 Also the Strength of Israel will not lie nor repent; for he is not a man, that he should repent.”
- Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
- Revelation 22:13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.
- Psalms 102:26 They will perish, but you will endure. Yes, all of them will wear out like a garment. You will change them like a cloak, and they will be changed.
- Isaiah 45:5-8 I am Yahweh, and there is no one else. Besides me, there is no God. I will strengthen you, though you have not known me, that they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is no one besides me. I am Yahweh, and there is no one else. I form the light and create darkness. I make peace and create calamity. I am Yahweh, who does all these things. Rain, you heavens, from above, and let the skies pour down righteousness. Let the earth open, that it may produce salvation, and let it cause righteousness to spring up with it. I, Yahweh, have created it.
- Isaiah 44:6 This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Yahweh of Armies, says: “I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God.
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 But we are bound to always give thanks to God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because God chose you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which he called you through our Good News, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- Philippians 1:6 being confident of this very thing, that he who began a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ.
- Psalms 103:17 But Yahweh’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting with those who fear him, his righteousness to children’s children,
- Isaiah 41:13 For I, Yahweh your God, will hold your right hand, saying to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I will help you.’
- Psalms 78:57 but turned back, and dealt treacherously like their fathers. They were twisted like a deceitful bow.
- Isaiah 42:5-8 God Yahweh, he who created the heavens and stretched them out, he who spread out the earth and that which comes out of it, he who gives breath to its people and spirit to those who walk in it, says: “I, Yahweh, have called you in righteousness. I will hold your hand. I will keep you, and make you a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations, to open the blind eyes, to bring the prisoners out of the dungeon, and those who sit in darkness out of the prison. “I am Yahweh. That is my name. I will not give my glory to another, nor my praise to engraved images.
- Psalms 78:38 But he, being merciful, forgave iniquity, and didn’t destroy them. Yes, many times he turned his anger away, and didn’t stir up all his wrath.
- Romans 11:28-29 Concerning the Good News, they are enemies for your sake. But concerning the election, they are beloved for the fathers’ sake. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
- Genesis 15:7 He said to Abram, “I am Yahweh who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.”
- Isaiah 43:11-12 I myself am Yahweh. Besides me, there is no savior. I have declared, I have saved, and I have shown, and there was no strange god among you. Therefore you are my witnesses”, says Yahweh, “and I am God.
- Hosea 11:9 I will not execute the fierceness of my anger. I will not return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God, and not man; the Holy One among you; and I will not come in wrath.
- Genesis 22:16 and said, “ ‘I have sworn by myself,’ says Yahweh, ‘because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son,
- Psalms 105:7-10 He is Yahweh, our God. His judgments are in all the earth. He has remembered his covenant forever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations, the covenant which he made with Abraham, his oath to Isaac, and confirmed it to Jacob for a statute; to Israel for an everlasting covenant,
- Romans 5:10 For if while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we will be saved by his life.
- Genesis 15:18 In that day Yahweh made a covenant with Abram, saying, “I have given this land to your offspring, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates:
- Nehemiah 9:7-8 You are Yahweh, the God who chose Abram, brought him out of Ur of the Chaldees, gave him the name of Abraham, found his heart faithful before you, and made a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Perizzite, the Jebusite, and the Girgashite, to give it to his offspring, and have performed your words; for you are righteous.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain Here the Prophet more clearly reproves and checks the…
Here the Prophet more clearly reproves and checks the impious waywardness of the people; for God, after having said that he would come and send a Redeemer, though not such as would satisfy the Jews, now claims to himself what justly belongs to him, and says that he changes not, because he is God. Under the name Jehovah, God reasons from his own nature; for he sets himself, as we have observed in our last lecture, in opposition to mortals; nor is it a wonder that God here disclaims all inconsistency, since the impostor Balaam was constrained to celebrate God’s immutable constancy —
“For he is not God,” he says, “who changes,” or varies, “like man.” (Numbers 23:19.)
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We now then understand the force of the words, I am Jehovah. But he adds as an explanation, I change not, or, I am not changed; for if we do not take the verb actively, the meaning is the same, — that God continues in his purpose, and is not turned here and there like men who repent of a purpose they have formed, because what they had not thought of comes to their mind, or because they wish undone what they have performed, and seek new ways by which they may retrace their steps. God denies that anything of this kind can take place in him, for he is Jehovah, and changes not, or is not changed.
The latter clause is variously explained. The verb כלה, cale, means, in the first conjugation, to be consumed; but in Piel, to complete, or to make an end; and this sense would be very suitable; but a grammatical reason interferes, for it is in the first conjugation. Did grammar allow, this meaning would be appropriate, “Ye children of Israel have not made an end:” Why? “From the days of your fathers,” etc.: then the verse which follows would be connected with this. But we must be content with the present reading; and a twofold view may be taken of it: the copulative “waw” may be taken as an adversative, “Though ye are not consumed, I yet am not changed:” as though it was said, “Think not that you have escaped, though I have long spared you and your sins: though then ye are not yet consumed, as I have borne with you in your great wickedness, I yet continue to be Jehovah, nor do I change my nature, and ye shall at length find that I am a just Judge; though I shall not soon execute my vengeance, punishment being held suspended, or as it were buried, yet the end will show that I am not changed.”
But the Prophet seems rather to accuse the Jews of ingratitude in charging God with cruelty or with negligence, because he did not immediately assist them; and at the same time they did not consider within themselves that they remained alive because God had a reason derived from his own nature for sparing them, and for not rendering to them what they had deserved. The meaning then is this, “I am God, and I change not; and ought ye not to have acknowledged that wonderful forbearance through which I have spared you? for how has it been that you have not perished, and that innumerable deaths have not swallowed you up? How is it that you are yet alive? Is it because you have dealt faithfully faith me, so that it behaved me to exercise care over you? Nay, it is indeed a wonder that I had not fulminated against you so as to destroy you long ago.” We hence see that he upbraids them with ingratitude for accusing him, because he did not immediately come forth in their defense: For he answers them and says, that had he been rigid and vehement in his displeasure, they could not have continued, for they had not ceased for many successive ages to seek their own ruin, as we find in what follows, for he says —
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain They murmured against God, because they saw not his…
They murmured against God, because they saw not his help ever present to defend them: and therefore he accuseth them of ingratitude, and showeth that in that they are not daily consumed, it is a token, that he doth still defend them, and so his mercy toward them never changeth.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain Mal 3:6 For I [am] the LORD, I change…
Mal 3:6 For I [am] the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
Ver. 6. For I am the Lord, I change not] I am Jehovah. This is God’s proper and incommunicable name. It imports three things: 1. That God is of himself. This Plato acknowledged, calling God το ον, and το ον οντως. Julius Scaliger, by a wonderful word, calleth God αυταυτον, One that hath his being or existence of himself, before the world was, Isa 44:6 2. That he giveth being to all things else, for in him they both are and consist. He sustains all, both in respect of being, excellences, and operations, Heb 1:8. The greatest excellences in us do as much depend upon God as the effigies in the glass upon the presence of the face that causeth it. 3. That he giveth being to his word, effecting whatsoever he speaketh. Hence, when either some special mercy is promised, or some extraordinary judgment threatened, the name of Jehovah is affixed. See Exo 6:3 Isa 45:2-3 Eze 5:17. The ancient Jewish doctors make this distinction between Elohim and Jehovah. By Elohim, say they, is signified Middah din, a quality or property of judgment. By Jehovah, middath Rachamim, a quality or property of mercy. And hereunto they apply that text, Psa 56:10, In God (Elohim) I will praise the word, in Jehovah I will praise the word; that is, sive iure agat mecum, sive ex aequo et bono, whether he deal strictly with me, or graciously, I will praise him howsoever. But this distinction, as it holds not always; so not here. For, to show the certainty of the judgment denounced Mal 3:5, is this subjoined, "I am Jehovah," &c. And if Jehovah come of Hovah (which signifies contrition or destruction), as Hieronymus from Oleastro will have it, what can be more suitable to the prophet’s purpose? it is somewhat like that in Isa 13:6, Shod shall come from Shaddai, destruction from the Almighty, or from the destroyer, as some interpret God’s name, Shaddai.
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I change not] I am neither false nor fickle, to say and unsay, to alter my mind, or to eat my word, Psa 89:34. The eternity of Israel cannot lie, nor repent, said Samuel to Saul (and it was heavy tidings to him, as Ahijah said to Jeroboam’s wife, I come unto thee with heavy tidings); for he is not a man that he should repent, 1Sa 15:29. Men are mutable, and there is no hold to be taken of what they say. Of many it may be said, as Tertullian of the peacock, all in changeable colours; as often changed as moved. Italians all, as Aeneas Sylvius said of Italy, Novitate quadam nihil habet stabile, there is no taking their words. Of a certain pope and his nephew the story is told, that the one never spake as he thought, the other never performed what he spake. But God is not a man that he should repent; or if he do, it is after another manner than man repents. Repentance with man is the changing of his will; repentance with God is the willing of a change. It is mutatio rei non Dei, effectus non affectus, facti non consilii. God’s repentance is not a change of his will, but of his work. It noteth only (saith Mr Perkins) the alteration of things and actions done by him, and no change of his purpose and secret decree, which is immutable. What he hath written he hath written (as Pilate said peremptorily), there is no removing of him. If the sentence be passed, if the decree be come forth, none can avert or avoid it, Zep 3:3. Currat ergo poenitentia ne praecurrat sententia (Chrysolog.). Go quickly and make an atonement, as Moses said to Aaron, Num 16:46 "Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel," Amo 4:12. Mitte preces et lachrymas cordis legatos; meet him with entreaties of peace, agree with him quickly; who knows if he will return, and repent? "for he is gracious, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil," Joe 2:13-14. It should seem so indeed by this text; for, even while he is threatening, and ratifying what he had threatened, his heart is turned within him, his repentings are kindled together, Hos 11:8. And hence the following words,
Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed] A strange inference (considering the sense and occasion of the foregoing words, as hath been set forth), and not unlike that, Hos 2:13-14 "I will visit upon her the days of Baalim … she went after her lovers, and forgat me, saith the Lord. Therefore" (mark that "Therefore"), "behold, I will allure her, and bring her into the wilderness, and speak comfortably to her. And I will give her," &c. So Isa 57:17-18 "For the iniquity of his covetousness was I wroth, and smote him: I hid me, and was wroth, and he went on frowardly," &c. "I have seen his ways, and will heal him." Ways? what ways? his covetousness, frowardness, &c.; and yet I will heal him. I will deal with him not according to mine ordinary rule, but according to my prerogative. If God will heal for his name’s sake (and so come in with his non obstante, as he doth, Psa 106:8), what people is there whom he may not heal? Well may these sinful sons of Jacob be unconsumed; well may they have for their seventy years’ captivity seven seventies of years, according to Daniel’s weeks, for the re-enjoying of their own country; and God’s mercies shall bear the same proportion to his punishments, which seven, a complete number, hath to a unity, Eze 20:8; Eze 20:14; Eze 20:22; Eze 20:44. Provided that they return to the Lord that smote them (as in the next verse), for else he will surely punish them seven times more, and seven times, and seven to that, Lev 26:21; Lev 26:23; Lev 26:27, &c.; three different times God raiseth his note of threatening, and he raised it by sevens, and those are discords in music. Such sayings will be heavy songs; and their execution heavy pangs to the impenitent.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain This introduceth the final and full confirmation of what…
This introduceth the final and full confirmation of what hath been foretold in the verses before, the God of judgment will come, &c.
I change not: as he loved righteousness, and hath purposed to defend and reward it, yea, hath promised it shall be well with the righteous, so he now loveth righteousness, and purposeth to deal well with them that love and practise it; these may rejoice, I change not. And so on the other hand, I do, as I ever did, hate wickedness, and will, as I have threatened, punish it; I change not, my mind toward the things or persons that are wicked is the same.
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Therefore ye sons of Jacob; either taken for all the natural branches of Jacob, or taken for such as are the sons of Jacob according to the faith, who did indeed fear God.
Are not consumed; since the same hatred of sin and resolution to punish is accompanied with the same longsuffering and patience, that you, sons of Jacob by nature, (but not by imitation,) who have provoked me, and deserve to be destroyed, might yet have time to repent and amend, since my long-suffering changeth not, you are not yet consumed in your sins. So for the good, though they are oppressed and suffer, yet not consumed, for God changeth not, he now doth love as he ever hath loved them, and preserveth them. In brief, God is the same in his wisdom to order the rewards of good and bad in fittest season, and therefore neither the one or other are consumed, but both preserved to the season appointeth of God, the just Judge, and then each shall be dealt with according to what they are.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain For I am the Lord,.... Or Jehovah; a name…
For I am the Lord,.... Or Jehovah; a name peculiar to the most High, and so a proof of the deity of Christ, who here speaks; and is expressive of his being; of his self-existence; of his purity and simplicity; of his immensity and infinity; and of his eternity and sovereignty:
I change not; being the same today, yesterday, and forever; he changed not in his divine nature and personality by becoming man; he took that into union with him he had not before, but remained the same he ever was; nor did he change in his threatenings of destruction to the Jews, which came upon them according to his word; nor in his promises of his Spirit, and presence, and protection to his people; nor will he ever change in his love and affections to them; nor in the efficacy of his blood, sacrifice, and righteousness; wherefore, as this is introduced to assure the truth and certainty of what is said before, concerning his being a swift witness against the wicked, so also for the comfort of the saints, as follows. The Targum is,
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"for I the Lord have not changed my covenant.''
Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed; such who were Israelites indeed, true believers in Christ; these were not consumed when the wicked Jews were, but were directed to leave the city before its destruction, and go to another place, as they did, whereby they were preserved; and so it was, that not one Christian perished in it; See Gill on Mat 24:13 and so it is owing to the unchangeable love, grace, and power of Christ, that none of his perish internally or eternally, but have everlasting life.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain I change not - I have an unchangeable hatred…
I change not - I have an unchangeable hatred to sin: and my long suffering also changeth not, therefore you are not consumed in your sins. Not consumed - God is the same in his wisdom to order the rewards of good and bad in the fittest season, therefore neither the one nor the other are consumed, but preserved to the season appointed of God.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 6. I am the Lord, I change not]…
Verse 6. I am the Lord, I change not] The new dispensation of grace and goodness, which is now about to be introduced, is not the effect of any change in my counsels; it is, on the contrary, the fulfilment of my everlasting purposes; as is also the throwing aside of the Mosaic ritual, which was only intended to introduce the great and glorious Gospel of my Son.
And because of this ancient covenant, ye Jews are not totally consumed; but ye are now, and shall be still, preserved as a distinct people-monuments both of my justice and mercy.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain Mal 3:6. I am the Lord — Hebrew, Jehovah;…
Mal 3:6. I am the Lord — Hebrew, Jehovah; I change not — In my nature or perfections there is no change, or shadow of turning, and therefore I have and always must have an unchangeable hatred to all sin: and my long- suffering also changes not, and therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed — Are not destroyed and sent into eternal misery in your sins. God’s wisdom also changes not, but remains the same to dispense rewards to the good, and punishments to the wicked, in the fittest season, and therefore neither the one nor the other are consumed, but preserved to the time appointed of God. Or, the sense may be, Because I am the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever, as my name Jehovah imports, and I am true to my former promises, (see Exo 6:3-6,) therefore you still continue a people, and are not consumed, as your iniquities deserve. And I will still preserve a remnant of you to fulfil to them the promises I made to your fathers: see Rom 11:29.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain I am the Lord, I change not - ,…
I am the Lord, I change not - , better, more concisely, “I, the Lord
I change not - . The proper name of God, “He who Is,” involves His unchangeableness. For change implies imperfection; it changes to that which is either more perfect or less perfect: to somewhat which that being, who changes, is not or has not. But God has everything in Himself perfectly. “Thou Alone, O Lord, Art what Thou Art, and Thou Art Who Art. For what is one thing in the whole and another in parts, and wherein is anything subject to change, is not altogether what Is. And what beginneth from not being, and can be conceived, as not being, and only subsisteth through another thing, returns to not-being; and what hath a ‘has been,’ which now is not, and a ‘to be,’ which as yet is not, that is not, properly and absolutely. But Thou Art what Thou Art. For whatever Thou Art in any time or “way,” that Thou Art wholly and always; and Thou Art, Who Art properly and simply, because Thou hast neither ‘to have been’ or ‘to be about to be;’ but only to be present; and canst not be conceived, ever not to have been.” “There is only one simple Good, and, therefore, One Alone Unchangeable, which is God.”
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“Our” life is a “becoming” rather than a simple “being;” it is a continual losing of what we had, and gaining what we had not, for “in as far as any one is not what he was, and is what he was not, so far forth he dieth and ariseth;” dieth to what he was, ariseth to be something otherwise.
“Increase evidences a beginning; decrease, death and destruction. And, therefore, Malachi says, ‘I am God, and I change not,’ ever retaining His own state of being; because what has no origin cannot be changed.”
So the Psalmist says Psa 102:27, “As a vesture, Thou shalt change them and they shall be changed, but Thou art the Same, and Thy years shall not fail;” and Balaam, controlled by God Num 23:19. “God is not a man, that He should lie, or the son of man, that He should repent;” and Jam 1:17, “with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”
Of this unchangeableness of God, His holy ones partake, as far as they fix themselves on God. “The soul of man hangs upon Him, by whom it was made. And because it was made, to desire God Alone, but everything which it desires below is less than He, rightly doth not that suffice it, which is not God. Hence, is it, that the soul is scattered hither and thither, and is repelled from everything, toward which it is borne, through satiety of them. But holy men guard themselves by cautious observation, lest they should be relaxed from their intentness by change, and because they desire to be the same, wisely bind themselves to the thought, whereby they love God. For in the contemplation of the Creator, they will receive this, that they should ever enjoy one stability of mind. No changeableness then dissipates them, because their thought ever perseveres, free from unlikeness to itself. This therefore they now imitate, striving with effort, which hereafter they shall with joy receive as a gift.” To which unchangeableness the prophet had bound himself by the power of love, when he said Psa 27:4, “One thing I required of the Lord, which I will require, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord.” To this unity Paul clave intently, when he said, Phi 3:13-14 : “One thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and stretching forth to those things which are before, I press forward toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.”
And ye sons of Jacob are not consumed - Man would often have become weary of man’s wickedness and waywardness. We are impatient at one another, readily despair of one another. God might justly have cast off them and us; but He changes not. He abides by the covenant which He made with their fathers; He consumed them not; but with His own unchangeable love awaited their repentance. Our hope is not in ourselves, but in God.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Change. Hebrew also, (Haydock) "hate or recommence." I do…
Change. Hebrew also, (Haydock) "hate or recommence." I do not strike the fallen. Did I spare Sennacherib? &c. Have I not protected the posterity of Jacob? How then can you say that I am indifferent about human affairs? (Calmet) --- Consumed. Septuagint, "you depart not from the sins of your fathers. You have rejected my," &c.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain the Lord--Jehovah: a name implying His immutable faithfulness in…
the Lord--Jehovah: a name implying His immutable faithfulness in fulfilling His promises: the covenant name of God to the Jews (Exo 6:3), called here "the sons of Jacob," in reference to God's covenant with that patriarch.
I change not--Ye are mistaken in inferring that, because I have not yet executed judgment on the wicked, I am changed from what I once was, namely, a God of judgment.
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therefore ye . . . are not consumed--Ye yourselves being "not consumed," as ye have long ago deserved, are a signal proof of My unchangeableness. Rom 11:29 : compare the whole chapter, in which God's mercy in store for Israel is made wholly to flow from God's unchanging faithfulness to His own covenant of love. So here, as is implied by the phrase "sons of Jacob" (Gen 28:13; Gen 35:12). They are spared because I am JEHOVAH, and they sons of Jacob; while I spare them, I will also punish them; and while I punish them, I will not wholly consume them. The unchangeableness of God is the sheet-anchor of the Church. The perseverance of the saints is guaranteed, not by their unchangeable love to God, but by His unchangeable love to them, and His eternal purpose and promise in Christ Jesus [MOORE]. He upbraids their ingratitude that they turn His very long-suffering (Lam 3:22) into a ground for skeptical denial of His coming as a Judge at all (Psa 50:1, Psa 50:3-4, Psa 50:21; Ecc 8:11-12; Isa 57:11; Rom 2:4-10).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain THE WRONGFUL WITHHOLDING OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS, Mal_3:6-12.
THE WRONGFUL WITHHOLDING OF TITHES AND OFFERINGS, Mal_3:6-12.
Mal_3:6 is somewhat obscure; therefore it is difficult to trace the exact relation of this section to the one preceding. Some prefer to make Mal_3:6 the conclusion of the preceding paragraph (see below) and to begin anew with Mal_3:7, but the verse is equally suitable as an introduction to what follows. Mal_3:6-12 as a whole are the continuation of the thought of Mal_2:17 to Mal_3:5, since they also are directed against the skeptics of Mal_2:17; and therefore we can speak of a break between Mal_3:5 and Mal_3:6 only in the sense that in Mal_3:6-12, the prophet deals with a new phase of the question under consideration; there is continuity of thought in the entire section Mal_2:17 to Mal_4:3.
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The skeptics have come to doubt that Jehovah is doing anything for them or the nation, and as a result they no longer observe the requirements of the law concerning tithes and offerings (Mal_2:6-8). They have cried out for his manifestations (Mal_2:17), but, says the prophet, he can return in power and mercy only if the people repent and turn to him (Mal_2:7). When they inquire how they are to return, he informs them, by the bringing of tithes and offerings which they owe to him. If they do this they will soon discover that Jehovah still lives and that he can bless them with abundant prosperity (Mal_2:9-12). In order to rightly understand the spirit of the prophet’s message, the connection of this passage with the one preceding (especially Mal_2:3-5) must not be overlooked. He condemns the neglect of tithes and offerings, not because he considers that in itself the greatest sin in the sight of God, but because he understands that this neglect is due “to a religious cause, unbelief in Jehovah, and that the return to belief in him could not therefore be shown in a more practical way than by the payment of tithes.”
Mal_3:6 declares that the charge brought in Mal_2:17, is unwarranted.
I am the Lord, I change not — R.V., “I, Jehovah, change not.” He is still the “God of judgment.” If there seems to be a change in the character of his manifestations, this must be accounted for by the change in the people’s attitude toward him (compare Num_23:19; Jas_1:17).
Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed — This can only mean that because he is an unchangeable God, still recognizing certain covenant obligations (see on Mal_2:5), the destruction which they fully deserve on account of their rebellion has been withheld thus far. It must be admitted that this thought is not quite suitable in the present context; a thought like “but ye, sons of Jacob, have changed” would be more in accord with the preceding statement. There is no objection against substituting but for therefore, as the Hebrew permits either translation; the difficulty is in the verb. Von Orelli, with a slight change in the vocalization, reads “you have not completed,” that is, your sins. This reading connects Mal_3:6 more closely with Mal_3:5, and the verse becomes the conclusion of Mal_3:1-5, “I will be a swift witness,… for I change not (I am still the God of judgment)”; on the other hand, “you have not stopped sinning.” The emendation improves the present text, but it does not give the thought one would naturally expect. There remains more or less obscurity and uncertainty.
In accord with his custom to state first a general proposition, and then enlarge upon it, the prophet, in Mal_3:7, points out more fully their inconsistency and fickleness hinted at in Mal_3:6.
From the days of your fathers — An indefinite expression pointing to the distant past; from time immemorial they have rebelled against Jehovah.
Mine ordinances — Or, statutes. This term comprehends here all expressions of the divine will, written or oral, set forth by priest or prophet; all alike they have disregarded. This disobedience on their part is responsible for the failure of Jehovah to manifest himself as in the days gone by.
Return unto me — In obedience and love (see on Hos_14:1; Amo_4:6; Joe_2:12).
I will return — In mercy and loving-kindness. As in other cases (Mal_1:2; Mal_1:6; Mal_2:17), the prophet forestalls any excuse or attempt of self-justification.
Wherein shall we return? — In what particular? The question is intended to make the impression that they have done all that may be expected of them.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 6. For I am the Lord, I change not]…
6. For I am the Lord, I change not] Rather: For I, the Lord, change not: therefore (lit. and) ye, sons of Jacob, are not consumed. The unchangeableness of Him, whose name, Jehovah, “I am,” is the exponent of His nature, is appealed to as the ground (“for”) of His dealings with Israel. He changes not in His promises and purposes of grace (Rom_11:29); therefore, in spite of their rebellions and provocations, the sons of Jacob are still preserved. It is the same argument that is expanded in Psa_89:28-37.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (6) For I am the Lord, I change not.—Better,…
(6) For I am the Lord, I change not.—Better, For I Jehovah change not. Because it is the Eternal’s unchangeable will that the sons of Jacob, His chosen people, should not perish as a nation, He will purify them by the eradication of the wicked among them, that the remnant (the superior part; see Note on Mal_2:15) may return to their allegiance. (Comp. Romans 11) Ewald renders the words: For I, the LORD, have not changed: hut ye sons of Jacob, have ye not altered? But the last verb does not mean “to alter;” and, moreover, the former translation is exactly in accordance with the wording of the prayer in Ezr_9:14-15.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain For I am the Lord, I change not; or,…
For I am the Lord, I change not; or, Jehovah, I change not. This is to show that God performs his promises, and effectually disposes of the allegation in Mal_2:17, that he put no difference between the evil and the good. The great principles of right and wrong never alter; they are as everlasting as he who gave them. God here speaks of himself by his covenant name, which expresses his eternal independent being, "the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning". (Jam_1:17) Therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Because God"s eternal purpose stands good, and his "gifts and calling are without repentance", (Rom_11:29) therefore the Israelites are indeed chastised and corrected, but not wholly consumed; they have a place and a nation, and the great promises made to their foregathers will all be fulfilled in due time. (Jer_30:11 Mic_7:20) He calls them "sons of Jacob," to remind them of the covenant made with their great ancestor, which was the portion of all true Israelites. (comp. Jer_33:20, Jer_33:21) Orelli would read, "Ye have not made an end," i.e. of your sins; so virtually the Septuagint, which joins this clause to the following verse. But the present text is most probably correct.
The twofold aspect of the unchangeableness of God.
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Three truths are taught here.
I THAT GOD IS UNCHANGEABLE.
1. His nature is a pledge of it. Being absolutely perfect, any change of nature must be for the worse. The "light" (1Jn_1:5) would be dimmed; any "variation" would cause "a shadow that is cast by turning". (Jam_1:17, Revised Version) He is "Alpha and Omega," and not an intervening letter can be displaced; not a "jot or tittle" can pass away.
2. His Name declares it. Whether we interpret the Divine Name, "I am that I am," or "I will be that I will be," unchangeableness is implied. He "is, and was, and is to come, the Almighty." He has emotions, but these are not the capricious feelings of a changeable creature; e.g. contrast the wrath of God and that of King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2 and Da 3. He revokes promises or reverses threats; but he "cannot lie" (Tit_1:2; cf. Num_23:19). The strongest assurance of this truth is found in the revelation of the Divine Name in Jesus Christ, who through successive ages is proving himself to be "the same yesterday, today, and forever.
II THAT THIS UNCHANGEABLENESS OF GOD IS THE GROUND OF HOPE FOR THE GUILTY. For God hath an "eternal purpose, which he hath purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord." And he says, "My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure." That eternal purpose included his dealings with the elect race of the old covenant. In spite of their many sins, he wrought out his gracious purposes respecting them. (cf. Lev_26:42-45 Deu_7:7, Deu_7:8) And still God remembers the land and the people. (Zec_14:10, 11 Rom_11:25-29) The same unchangeableness brings hope to all of us who have been invited and have been led to trust in our Saviour-God, "who hath saved us," etc. (2Ti_1:9) Those unalterable purposes include our purification (cf. vers. 3, 4). For that end Christ gave himself for us, (Eph_5:26 Tit_2:14) and towards that end God is ever working. Well may we marvel at the everlasting mercy and the unchanging faithfulness of God. (Lam_3:22, Lam_3:23) The immutability of God is the sheet anchor of our souls when the storm of guilt and fear threatens our destruction. It was a high eulogy on a Roman commander in a time of national peril that he had not despaired of the republic. It is to the glory of God that he does not despair of us sinners, in spite of our inherited and inveterate sinfulness (ver. 7), but "waits, that he may be gracious," etc., (Isa_30:18) and seeks to overcome our evil by his unchangeable good.
III THAT THIS HOPE FOR THE GUILTY IS A PLEDGE OF THE DESTRUCTION OF THE IMPENITENT. This is seen by the connection of vers. 5 and 6. The unchangeableness of God requires that "the transgressors shall be destroyed together". (Psa_37:38-40) "There needs no scire facias-a writ calling one to show cause, to revive God"s judgment; for it is never antiquated or out of date; but against those that go on in their trespasses, the curse of his Law still remains in full force, power, and virtue" (M. Henry); cf. Ecc_8:11. But judgment deferred is not forgotten. (2Pe_3:8, 2Pe_3:9) If judgment is to be escaped, men must change, for God cannot. (see the argument in Eze_18:1-30; and cf. Joh_3:7)
Learn:
1. The blessedness of being in unalterable unity with the unchangeable God. For this a reconciliation and a regeneration are provided by God himself. (2Co_5:17-21 Jam_1:18) And then "if God be for us, who can be against us?" Changes in our circumstances need little affect us. Eden was no Paradise to Adam without God; the fiery furnace was no terror to Shadrach with God.
2. "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." For the unchangeable holiness of God is a consuming fire, which must destroy us in our sins if it does not separate us from them.
Man"s hope lies in God"s unchangeableness.
"I am the Lord, I change not." Man had changed toward God, not in mere relations, but in spirit and purpose. God had been therefore compelled to alter his relations towards men; and his ways of dealing with them; but this must never be assumed to involve any change on the part of God"s feeling towards them. These whom he loves he loves with an everlasting love. In the motive of his dealings he is "the same yesterday, today, and forever." Reference here is directly to the purpose to save Israel. No matter what the appearances of things might be, that purpose had never been changed, and never would be. "Because it is the Eternal"s unchangeable will that the sons of Jacob, his chosen ones, should not perish as a nation, he will purify them by the eradication of the wicked among them, that the remnant may return to their allegiance.
I MAN"S HOPE IN THE CHANGEABLENESS OF GOD"S ADAPTATIONS. Changeableness is not altogether the appropriate term, but it is required for the sake of contrast. If God"s ways with us were ordered by fast and unvariable rules, we should lose all sense of personal feeling, personal relations, and personal adaptations. Adjustment to individuals upon exact knowledge of individuals, and adjustment to circumstances upon exact knowledge of circumstances, are the very glory of God. It is because of this Divine characteristic that we would rather fall into the hands of God than into the hands of men. If set rules had been worked without qualification or exception, then many a time Israel must have been abandoned or destroyed. Men make so much of being under the "reign of law;" but that is precisely what we had better not be. It is a truly awful regime. There is no considerateness, no pity, no adaptation, in it. Far better that we are in the personal rule of a Divine and infinitely loving Lawgiver.
II MAN"S HOPE IN THE UNCHANGEABLENESS OF GOD"S PRINCIPLES. The Divine adaptations are always within the limitations of the Divine principles. We can never be sure that our fellow man does not change through weakness, and risk principles in making change. We may have perfect confidence that God never does. "Hath he said, and shall he not do it? Hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" True to his word; but only speaking words that express eternal principles. The point of the text is, that God"s unchangeableness guarantees Israel"s security, and God"s changeableness guarantees Israel"s disciplining and refining. R.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore,…
Mal_3:6
For I am the Lord, I change not; therefore, ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.
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The Divine unchangeableness
Here, in the land of our exile, we must live by faith, not by sight. Fear of Him who is the unchangeable Majesty is more suitable for us whilst we are here, than to rejoice and be glad. We now speak of that glorious and incomparable attribute, the Divine unchangeableness. Changeableness is the note of all things here below: but He takes here to Himself a more excellent name, and who can doubt that which He hath spoken? When we seriously reflect on the unchangeableness of God, we find that He is such a One, notwithstanding of all His infinite works and varieties of dispensations that come from Him, as yet remains unchangeable. All things remain in a circuit of being and not being; and even such things, when they have a being, remain changeable. But, to speak of Gods unchangeableness, it is held forth that He is void of all variableness and corruption, and that He, in the blessed purpose of His goodwill, is void of any shadow of changeableness; He is unchangeable in His essence, in respect of this, that He is void of, and cannot be subject to, corruption. That He is void of all alteration, and infinitely perfect, proves sufficiently His being both sufficient, and all-sufficient. Wherein can man be profitable to God? His perfection cannot be found out. He is infinite in His omnipotency; in His understanding and knowledge; and He is unchangeable in His love. Consider the advantages a Christian may have, in this consideration, that God is unchangeable.
1. It is an excellent way to keep the grace of love growing in the Christian.
2. It is an immutable and irresistible way to keep life in the exercise of faith. O, for the faith to believe that God cannot nor will change His immutable purpose.
3. The attaining to much Divine patience and submission, under all sad dispensations.
4. We come to the distinct persuasion, that the gifts and calling of God are without repentance.
5. The mortification of all things here below.
6. Much joy and satisfaction, for the heirs of God have strong consolation. (A. Gray.)
The immutability of God
The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father. There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity. No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind than thoughts of God. But while the subject humbles the mind it also expands it. And the subject is eminently consolatory. In contemplating Christ, there is a balm for every wound; in musing on the Father, a quietus for every grief, and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for every sore. One subject we treat now--the immutability of the glorious Jehovah.
I. An unchanging God.
1. He changes not in His essence. We cannot tell you the substance of what we call God. Whatever it is, we call it His essence, and that essence never changes. The substance of mortal things is ever changing. All creatures change. But God is perpetually the same. He iS Spirit-pure, essential, ethereal spirit--and therefore He is immutable. His essence did not undergo any change when it was united with the manhood.
2. He changes not in His attributes. Apply to His power, wisdom, justice, truth, goodness, love. Take any one thing that you can say of God now, and it may be said not only in the dark past, but in the bright future it shall always remain the same.
3. He changes not in His plans. Has it ever been said that God began to build but was not able to finish? God altereth not His plans. Why should He? He is the All-Wise, and cannot have planned wrongly.
4. He changes not in His promises. I want immutable things; and I find that I have immutable promises when I turn to the Bible.
5. He changes not in His threatenings.
6. He changes not in the objects of His love--not only in His love, but in the objects of it.
II. The proof that God is unchangeable. The very existence and being of a God seem to me to imply immutability. An argument may be found in the fact of Gods perfection. Another in Gods infinity. From the past we may gather proof. Hath He spoken, and hath He not done it?
III. The persons to whom this unchangeable god is a benefit. Sons of Jacob.
1. The sons of Gods election.
2. Persons who enjoy peculiar rights and titles.
3. Men of peculiar manifestations.
4. Men of peculiar trials.
5. Men of peculiar character.
IV. The benefit which the sons of Jacob receive from an unchanging God. Not consumed. How can man be consumed? In two ways. We might have been consumed in hell. We might have been left to our own devices, and then where would you have been now? Remember, then, that God is the same, whatever may be removed. There is one place where change cannot put his finger; there is one Name on which mutability can never be written; there is one heart that can never alter. That heart is Gods--that name is Love. (C. H. Spurgeon.)
Gods immutable mercy the refuge of His people
The Holy Spirit, by the prophet, is here recalling the Jewish nation to a recollection of their transgressions, and particularly with regard to Gods own ordinances. In the words before us there is vast consolation.
1. What Jehovah is in Himself. I change not. It is the Lord Jesus who is spoken of. He for whom John Baptist prepared the way. Our glorious Lord stands recorded in this chapter as Jehovah, self-existent, one with the Father and the Spirit. The immutability of Christ is a sweet truth. It is frequently mentioned or referred to in Scripture.
2. His covenant, like Himself, is eternal. Gods mind is eternal. He who is so immutable in Himself, and in His own purposes, will do all His pleasure, and His counsel shall stand. He sweetly speaks for the comfort and peace of sinners, brought to the feet of Jesus. There is no possibility of failure; His infinite wisdom has provided for every emergency; His infinite foreknowledge foresees all the obstacles that ever did or ever will arise to counteract His own plans; His infinite power is sure to carry His plans into effect. God is as true in His threatenings as in His promises. This is illustrated in the case of the Jewish nation. Whilst, however, these witnesses stand before us, to teach us that God is faithful, let us remember that the God who is thus faithful in His promises and in His threatenings has been pleased also in His Word to give poor souls this blessed testimony--that the seed of Jacob shall never seek His face in vain. (F. Silver.)
Of the immutability of God
I. The nature of this divine attribute.
1. In respect of His essence, God is absolutely unchangeable, because His being is necessary, and His essence self-existent.
2. In respect of His perfections God is absolutely unchangeable. Concerning those perfections which flow necessarily from His essence, and depend not on His will, this is self-evident; because whatever necessarily flows from any cause or principle must likewise of necessity be as invariable as the cause or principle from which it necessarily proceeds. Of this kind are the power, the knowledge, the wisdom, and the other natural attributes of God. Concerning those perfections, the exercise whereof depends upon His will; such as justice, veracity, goodness, mercy, and all other moral perfections, the absolute immutability of these is not, indeed, so obvious and self-evident; because it depends on the unchangeableness, not only of His essence, but of His will also. But in a Being who always knows what is right to be done, and can never possibly be deceived, the general will or intention must be unchangeable.
3. In the particular decrees and purposes of His will--in His laws, promises, and threatenings. Having all power and all knowledge, He can never resolve upon anything which shall be either not possible or not reasonable to be accomplished. All finite beings are frequently forced to change their designs, because they find it impossible to finish what they began, or unreasonable to pursue their first intention. But in God these things have no place. He is unchangeable in His decrees and purposes, because, having all things in His power, and comprehending all things in His foreknowledge, He can by no force be overruled, by no surprise or unexpected accident be prevented. In His laws God is unchangeable, because they are always founded on the same immutable reason, the eternal differences of good and evil, the original nature of things, and universal equity; and they always tend to the same regular end, the order and happiness of the whole creation. In His covenants or promises God is unchangeable. Because they are founded upon such grounds as cannot be altered; even upon the original, fixed, and permanent designs and intentions of all-wise providence. In His threatenings God is unchangeable, that is to say, in such threatenings as are not merely personal. Because, as His love to virtue and goodness is unalterable, so His hatred to vice is irreconcilable. And also because these threatenings are often prophetic parts of the general scheme of providence. Against this unchangeableness of God it may be urged, that Scripture frequently represents Him as repenting and changing His purpose. Reply, that while the declarations of the designs and purposes of God, which are prophetic of the great events of providence, are in themselves absolutely fixed and unalterable; those promises and threatenings which are merely personal, either to any particular man or to any number of men, are always conditional, because the wisdom of God thought fit to make these depend on the behaviour of men; and the unchangeableness characterises the conditions.
II. Uses of this discourse.
1. The unchangeableness of God is to good men at all times the greatest possible security that they shall not finally fail to be happy.
2. The threatenings of Him whose nature and perfections are unchangeable ought to be a perpetual terror to impenitent sinners.
3. The consideration of the mercy of Him who is unchangeable in His perfections ought to be a constant encouragement to such as are truly penitent, and sincerely desirous to amend.
4. As unchangeableness is an excellency and perfection in God, so in man, on the contrary, to change his opinion and manner of acting, when there is just cause to do so, is one of his greatest commendations. Right and truth are to be followed unchangeably, but when frail and fallible man finds he has erred from what is true and right he must immediately return to it. (S. Clarke, D. D.)
The immutability of God
Each property and perfection of Gods character and being produces its own peculiar effect upon the renewed mind; and, although no one by searching can find out the Almighty to perfection, yet the higher we soar in our contemplations of Him the more we shall be excited to Wonder, love, and adore. The more we think upon God the more shall we be constrained to exclaim, How incomprehensible art Thou! True religion and pure and spiritual enjoyment do not proceed from the knowledge of some of Gods attributes only, nor from a merely speculative knowledge of all. All, when experimentally and practically considered, are engaged in producing piety and devotion in the human soul.
1. The immutability of God is not only revealed in the Bible, but is discoverable by reason. Mutability implies cause. Where can we imagine there exists a cause that can change the being or attributes of the Deity? He can Himself never possess a desire to change. All possible, as well as all past, present, and future, sources of pleasure are always open to Him. And He is independent for pleasure on all these. Does a power of producing change in God exist in His Creatures? God, who is infinite, must be placed beyond the reach of any external and finite cause. All are dependent on Him, but He is dependent on none.
2. Gods purposes are immutable. God foresees from the eternity past all the transactions of the eternity to come. No sudden event, therefore, can take Him unawares, and so subvert His designs. The plans of men may be frustrated by a slight unforeseen accident, but there are no accidents with Him who worketh all things after the counsel of His own will. Note the sense in which the term repentance is in Scripture applied to God. Divine repentance conveys no notion of regret or dissatisfaction with His past procedure, but it is expressive of Gods determination to act in a different manner than before towards those who by their change of conduct have rendered necessary a different mode of procedure in the just administration of Gods moral government. The immutability of Gods purposes may be inferred from the nature of the end, to promote and, consummate which they are all but means--even the manifestation of Jehovahs all-sufficiency. Let the immutability of Jehovahs purpose in Christ Jesus encourage the Christian labourer to ceaseless exertions in the work of the Lord.
3. Gods Word is unchangeable. His moral law, threatenings, and promises are alike unalterable. The Divine moral law, which is a transcript of the character of God, holy, just, and good, is based upon eternal and unchangeable principles of rectitude, co-existent with God Himself, and must continue to exist as long as God exists. It is a great mistake to suppose that the moral law has been abrogated by the Gospel. The work of Him who hath magnified the law and made it honourable is the sole ground of our restoration to the favour of God and our title to heaven. The Gospel does not abolish the believers obligation to obey the law. To demolish the law would be to drag away the pillar which supports the universal fabric of Gods moral government. Gods threatenings too are unalterable. History, sacred and profane, teems with fearful proofs of Gods immutable hatred of sin, and determination not to let it go unpunished. And the promises of God are immutable. They cannot fail of fulfilment. But the fulfilment of the promises is conditional; and the condition is as unalterable as the promise. There is an immutable promise suitable for every circumstance of life. How well calculated is the contemplation of the Divine immutability to promote confidence in God. Our whole happiness depends upon the immutability of God. God is unchangeable, and is therefore a firm and stable refuge to the believer. (J. James.)
The unchangeableness of God
I. He is unchangeable in His being. Change is impossible. Created and dependent beings have the law of development and decay in them; imperfect beings may become more or less perfect, but God, being separate from all these contingencies of existence, cannot change.
2. He is unchangeable in His attributes. All the excellences that He possesses He has possessed, and will possess, for ever. His creatures may understand them more or less perfectly, but there is no change in them. There can be no increase or diminution of His power, wisdom, holiness, love, etc.
3. He is unchangeable in His purposes. All His designs are from eternity. His knowledge and power being perfect, and His will having no variableness in it, there is no reason to suppose that any of His purposes have altered, or that any of them can fail. Nothing can be a surprise to Him, nothing can thwart Him, and nothing can suggest an improvement in His plans. When He is said to repent or turn aside from His purpose, it is to show us that He is not an impassive spectator in human affairs, and that men may expect to be truly blessed as they co-operate with Him in working out His holy will in the earth. History testifies to Gods unchangeableness. His purpose to bless all men in Christ, like a thread of gold, runs through the ages.
4. He is unchangeable in the principles of His government. He reigns over the whole universe with calm and equitable sway. Intellectual beings, myriads of ages before this race peopled the earth, found His reign the same as we do now. He has ever been just and merciful, and ever will be. There can be no fickleness, no uncertainty, with Him. Those who maintain their original righteousness, or having sinned, accept of His mercy, are blessed, while those who obstinately rebel perish.
5. His unchangeableness does not involve fatalism, impassiveness, or necessity. His designs are the outcome of His wisdom and love; He feels deeply the condition of His creatures, making them conscious of His favour according to their obedience to His laws, and all His actions are free.
II. The Divine inference drawn from this declaration. Therefore, etc. At first sight this inference is a strange one. He was threatening judgment; and the legitimate inference that might have been drawn from His unchangeableness was that they should be consumed. But instead of this He draws the opposite, reminding them that it was because of His eternal purpose to keep the seed of Jacob alive upon the earth, as a witness for Him for the worlds sake, and not because of their faithfulness, that they had been spared. They had often merited destruction, but in His unchanging mercy He had remembered His covenant with their fathers, and His purpose to bless the whole race through them, and so they were not consumed. This is true of the Church now. Its sure resting-place is the immutability of God. It will abide, however evils may abound, scepticism darken, or superstition deprave. Consider, then--
1. That the continued existence of the Church does not arise from its faithfulness, but from Gods unchanging mercy and purpose.
2. That as the continued existence of the Church arises from Gods immutability, there should be in the minds of the members deep humility, fervent adoration, and ardent gratitude.
3. That as the permanence of the Church rests upon the immutability of God, there should be, in the members, full confidence in its stability and ultimate triumph.
4. That this should lead any who have wandered from the Church to return to its privileges again.
5. That it should make the enemies of the Church consider the futility of their attacks upon it, and repent of their folly. (W. Osborne Lilley.)
Christ unchangeable
Christ is like the rock in mid-ocean, that never changes, and braves every storm; feeling is like the restless, shifting water that rolls round it. Christ is like the grand old church tower standing foursquare to every wind, grey with centuries, a shelter and a home to all who will come; feeling is like the bells in the tower, which only ring on rare occasions, and easily change their tune; most demonstrative on Sunday, and often still all the week when duty much needs their merry music. Christ is like the sun, whose light, and heat are constant; feeling is like the fleecy cloud, now beautiful as an angels wing, now a cold grey sky. Christ is the tree of life, with root deep and the soil firmly gripped, lifting into the sky leaf and blossom and branch; feeling is a mere blossom, a child of the gay summer time, unfit for storm or winter service. Christ is the guide who never leaves the traveller; feeling is the torch sometimes burning brightly, but very liable to be blown out. He who trusts mere feeling will trust a light most likely to have gone out when most he needs guidance and comfort, while it will often burn brightly when it is least needed.
The saints final perseverance secured by the immutability of God:--This glorious doctrine stands--
1. On the perfections of Jehovah.
2. Upon the covenant work of the Lord Jesus.
3. Upon the faithfulness of the faithful and eternal Spirit.
Of the perfections of God, His immutability is here placed before us. This is declared to be the security of the sons of Jacob.
I. the sons of Jacob, who are they? Some consider the passage as having regard to the literal Jacob, the literal restoration and conversion of the Jews. These sons of Jacob are Gods own sons. These are they who, clad in the garment of their elder brother, do inherit all blessings. These are they that wrestle, like their father Jacob; they wrestle in prayer with God. And they cannot live without Him. More than that, these are the Israel, and they prevail. But these sons of Jacob have all the elements of destruction in them. They have the indwelling corruption of their nature. It goes with them where they go--stays with them where they stay. It defiles all that they touch, and all that they think and all that they do. Besides the fountain of evil, there is the actual evil--what a man does. Both in sin as a principle and in sin as an act there is in a son of Jacob the very element of his own destruction.
II. Though this is so, they are not consumed. Though they are often placed in a hot fire; sometimes so hot that faith seems almost to be gone. They are tried; their graces tried, their faith is tried, hope tried, love tried, every fruit of the Spirit tried, and yet they are not consumed.
III. Wherefore are they not consumed? I am the Lord; I change not. The description can only be true of God Himself. He is unchangeable in His being, in His perfections, in His faithfulness, in His justice, in His holiness, in His love. (J. Harington Evans, M. A.)
The unchangeableness of God manifested in the preservation of Israel
I. A fact stated. The sons of Jacob are not consumed. This is a remarkable fact concerning the literal descendants of the patriarch. It is true still.
II. The reason assigned. I am the Lord; I change not. Had it depended upon the nations of the earth they would long ago have been consumed. God had entered into covenant with them, and given them great and precious promises. And though they have broken the covenant, the Lord on His part changes not. There is abundant encouragement in this subject for every child of God. Abide in Him, and no enemy shall be able to separate you from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus your Lord. (M. S. Alexander.)
The unchangeableness of God
It is of very serious consequence to man that he should make himself acquainted with the character of God. In order to improve ourselves in this knowledge, it is useful to fix our attention at times on particular qualities of the Divine character. By carefully observing the different parts we shall become better acquainted with the whole.
I. And first, let us consider this quality itself; that is, the unchangeableness of God. In this world every thing is changeable. It has pleased the Almighty that even the most beautiful parts of the visible creation should be full of change. Days and seasons follow and chase away each other. The leaf dies; the grass withers; the flower fades; the mountain falling cometh to nought, and the rock is removed out of his place. Man himself, who marks and mourns those changes, is as changeable as the rest. The objects in which he takes delight, change: his honours fade; his pleasures wither; his riches make to themselves wings and flee away; his kinsfolk fail, and his familiar friends forget him. His body changes: the strength of his youth is dried up; his beauty consumes away. His mind changes: The desires of yesterday are not the desires of to-day; the purposes of youth are abandoned in age. But while man varies, God is the same. For what says the Psalmist? My days are like a shadow that declineth; and I am withered like grass; but Thou, O Lord, shalt endure for ever; and Thy remembrance unto all generations. I am the Lord, and for that reason I change not. I am the Creator, and not the creature; God, and not man; therefore I change not. Beside Me there is none other; all else is vanity of vanities; the world passeth away, and the lust thereof; but I am supreme, self-existent, and eternal, and My counsel, that shall stand. If, then, God is unchangeable, we must remember that all His Divine perfections are unchangeable: His power, His wisdom, His holiness, His goodness, change not. There is something so awful--so unlike ourselves--in the idea of a Being placed far above all chance and change and infirmity, that we should be terrified by the thought if we were not told that the mercy of this great Being was as constant and enduring as His wisdom, His righteousness, and His power. But there is something else to be observed if we would take a full view of this subject. The Christian dispensation teaches us to study and know, not merely the character of God, but the character of God in Christ. And it is in Him that the unchanging mercy of God shines forth with the greatest lustre.
II. Having now considered the unchangeableness of God in itself, let us consider what effects ought to be produced on our minds by the contemplation of it. And I begin with remarking that this doctrine of Gods unchangeableness gives unspeakable value to the holy Scriptures. It is the whole end and aim of the Scriptures to reveal God to man. Now, if God were as changeable as man we could have no secure reliance on this revelation. In that case the book of Scripture might be true at one time and not at another. This is what actually happens among men. There are few if any persons whose habits, or manners, or principles do not vary more or less at different periods of life; nor is there any government which does not more or less alter its laws from time to time. And, in such cases, new descriptions of character, and new books of laws, become necessary. But God is always the same; and therefore the Scriptures are always sure. The New Testament has now been written nearly eighteen hundred years; and some parts of the Old Testament three thousand. Yet the Bible is as faithful an account of the Most High at this moment as at first; and it will remain so, if the world should last even millions of years longer. Let us, therefore, with this sacred book in our hands, consider more particularly what effect should be produced on our minds by reflecting on the great truth delivered in the text, I am the Lord, I change not.
1. First, on the sinful and impenitent. By the sinful and impenitent, I mean not only those who live in gross sin or impiety, but those also whose hearts are chiefly set on the things of this life, and not on the things of the life to come. And in what words shall I describe the folly and danger of such persons! I say, their folly, for, if God be unchanging, and every thing else fickle and fleeting and delusive, how exquisite must be the folly of seeking our chief good anywhere but in Him! How exquisite must be the folly of casting ourselves, not on the favour of Him who can give steady and lasting happiness, but on the wretched friendship of things that perish in the using! These miserable trifles,--which will certainly fail us in a few years,--which may possibly fail us this very day,--these are our gods; and for the sake of these we desert Him who, if we did but choose to trust Him, would be the strength of our hearts, and our portion for ever. If we saw a man building his house on a quicksand we should be amazed at his stupidity; but how infinitely greater the infatuation of an immortal creature who builds iris happiness on the passing, perishing objects of time and sense! That folly rises to the most perfect madness when we consider that, if we have not God for our unchangeable friend, we must have Him for our unchangeable enemy. Once more I present you with the offer of mercy and reconciliation. And remember that, if God is unchanging, you must change, for there is no hope of a reconciliation with Him who is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity, and who will by no means clear the guilty.
2. In hopes that this solemn warning may not have been entirely lost I proceed, secondly, to apply our subject to those who are seriously alarmed about their everlasting safety; but who, when they consider the greatness of the sins they have committed, are apt to fear that for them there is no forgiveness. But I would ask you this question: were you at this moment, with your bodily eyes, to see your blessed Saviour extended on His Cross, offering Himself a sacrifice for the sins of His enemies, could you doubt that His most precious blood was able to wash away even your sins, however heavy and numerous? If you could not doubt this, then recollect that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever.
3. In the third place, let me very shortly address those who are really making devotional and practical religion the principal object of their lives, and who humbly trust that, through the Divine blessing, they ale gradually increasing in all godliness and Christian virtue. Such persons will find their advantage in frequent meditation on the unchangeableness of God. If they are in affliction or in distress of mind, this will be their hope and stay; they will reflect that, though outward things alter, He in whom they have laid up their chief hopes remains the same. (Christian Observer.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Expositor's Bible 1887 · Public Domain This section ought perhaps to follow on to the…
6. REPENTANCE BY TITHES
Mal_3:6-12
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This section ought perhaps to follow on to the preceding. Those whom it blames for not paying the Temple tithes may be the skeptics addressed in the previous section, who have stopped their dues to Jehovah out of sheer disappointment that He does nothing. And Mal_3:6, which goes well with either section, may be the joint between the two. However this be, the new section enforces the need of the peoples repentance and return to God, if He is to return to them. And when they ask, how are they to return, "Malachi" plainly answers, By the payment of the tithes they have not paid. In withholding these they robbed God, and to this, their crime, are due the locusts and bad seasons which have afflicted them. In our temptation to see in this a purely legal spirit, let us remember that the neglect to pay the tithes was due to a religious cause, unbelief in Jehovah, and that the return to belief in Him could not therefore be shown in a more practical way than by the payment of tithes. This is not prophecy subject to the Law, but prophecy employing the means and vehicles of grace with which the Law at that time provided the people.
"For I Jehovah have not changed, but ye sons of Jacob have not done with(?). In the days of your fathers ye turned from My statutes and did not keep them. Return to Me, and I will return to you, saith Jehovah of Hosts. But you say, How then shall we return? Can a man rob God? yet ye are robbing Me. But ye say, In what have we robbed Thee? In the tithe and the tribute. With the curse are ye cursed, and yet Me ye are robbing, the whole people of you. Bring in the whole tithe to the storehouse, that there may be provisions in My House, and pray, prove Me in this, saith Jehovah of Hosts-whether I will not open to you the windows of heaven, and pour blessing upon you till there is no more need. And I will check for you the devourer, and he shall not destroy for you the fruit of the ground, nor the vine in the field miscarry, saith Jehovah of Hosts And all nations shall call you happy, for ye shall be a land of delight, saith Jehovah of Hosts."
William Robertson Nicoll, ed., The Expositor's Bible (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1887–1910) — public domain. 65 of 66 books (1 Corinthians is not separately keyed, as that volume carries no machine-parseable verse references); section-level commentary keyed to the opening verse. Introductory and overview sections not keyed to a specific passage are excluded.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain Mal_3:6. I Jehovah] am unchangeable in gifts and calling,…
CRITICAL NOTES.
Mal_3:6. I Jehovah] am unchangeable in gifts and calling, therefore sons of Jacob] (contrasted with Jehovah) will not be destroyed. “The Divine immutability secured the preservation of the Jewish people from destruction, not withstanding their flagrant wickedness, till he had accomplished all his purposes of mercy” [Henderson].
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Mal_3:7.] Reproof for non-payment of tithes, which was the cause of national calamities. Wherein] In what respect return? indicates a self-righteous spirit
Mal_3:8.] They did what none should dare to do. Rob] Defraud God. Tithes had been withheld, though they were severely punished.
Mal_3:9.] Ch. Mal_2:2
Mal_3:10-12.] Nature of curse.
Mal_3:10. All] Not a portion, and thus defraud God. Storehouse] Treasuries (Neh_13:12). Prove] if I am not holy and righteous, an attitude which they had questioned. Then shall promised blessings flow like pouring rain. Pour] Lit. empty out (2Ki_7:2). Enough] Lit. till there is no more need; i.e. superabundance [Keil]. Where sufficiency can have no more place; more than sufficient; superabundantly [Henderson].
Mal_3:11]. The thought individualized. Devourer] Locusts and other noxious creatures. Rebuke] Practically; i.e. to frustrate the intention. Nothing shall then miscarry.
Mal_3:12. Blessed] In consequence of God’s blessing. Delight.] An object of pleasure to every one (Zec_8:13; Deu_33:29).
HOMILETICS
THE UNCHANGING GOD.—Mal_3:6
God judges the wicked and purifies the righteous to carry out his immutable purpose of love. He changes not, therefore the sons of Israel do not perish.
I. God is unchangeable, therefore his character should not be maligned. “I Jehovah, I change not.” Sin may triumph, judgments appear long, but we must never infer from this that God has changed. God is the same in essence and act as ever. He is not less wise and mighty, just and true, than at the beginning. Whatever be the character of his dispensation, he is the eternal and immutable One, “with whom is no variableness (vicissitudes, eclipses, and decreases, like planets), nor shadow (adumbrations, like stars in different sites and positions) of turning” (Jas_1:17).
II. God is unchangeable, therefore his covenant abides. Man’s word is recalled, altered, or forgotten. Man’s conduct is fickle, self-willed, and sinful. But “God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?” God’s covenant with Israel is “equipped and sure” (2Sa_23:5). The ingratitude and unfaithfulness of man can never annul it. Nothing can be reversed. “The gifts and calling of God are without repentance” (i.e. immutable and unalterable) (Rom_2:29).
III. God is unchangeable, therefore his people are not consumed. “Ye sons of Jacob are not consumed.” We are fretful and impatient with one another, despair of amendment and love; but God waits patiently, never casts off entirely, and abides by his word of promise. We provoke him to anger, but he remembers his covenant. “It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not.”
DIVINE BLESSINGS SUSPENDED.—Mal_3:7-12
In these words God explains why his blessings have been withheld, reproves the people for keeping back tithes and offerings, and promises abundant blessings on condition of repentance.
I. Why are Divine blessings withheld? The reason is not found in God, but in the people. God is not unwilling to bless, nor slack concerning his promise, but they do not fulfil the conditions.
1. They have rebelled against God. “Ye are gone away from mine ordinances, and have not kept them” (Mal_3:7). Their sins were of long continuance, imitated by posterity, and defended with pertinacity.
2. They have robbed God. They defrauded God in a twofold sense. The priests did not discharge their sacrificial duties rightly, and the Levites could not officiate for God, because driven away in destitution. How, therefore, can God bless them in their apostasy? The reward of obedience cannot be given to the disobedient.
II. On what conditions will Divine blessings be given? They are called upon to prove God, to test him, by complying with his wish (Mal_3:10).
1. Return to God. “Return unto me, and I will return unto you” (Mal_3:7). If they return in penitence, he will return in blessings. Distance from God will hinder the fulfilment of every promise.
2. Pay God his dues. “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse” (Mal_3:10). No wonder men do not morally conform to the Divine will when they neglect the smaller duty of sacrifice. All, not a part of the tithes must be given. Nothing must be kept back, for God has a right to the firstfruits and the best of everything. Then, if these conditions are complied with, the curse will be removed, blessings like fruitful showers will fall upon them.
1. The temple will be blessed. The treasury will be filled. There will be meat, not superfluity, for those who minister in my house.
2. The land will be blessed. The devouring locusts will be rebuked, the fruits of earth shall not be destroyed, and the grapes of the vintage shall not miscarry. “Ye shall be a delightsome land.”
3. The people will be blessed. “All nations shall call you blessed” (Mal_3:12). If we honour God with our substance and free-will offerings, we shall not lose in this world. The windows of heaven will open, and no real good will be withheld. So happy will be our condition, so fertile our farms and lands, that all men will call us blessed. “Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase; so shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.”
ROBBING GOD.—Mal_3:8
When exhorted to return, they reply in a spirit of pride and self-righteousness. Return to God! In what? Have we, the chosen race, the holy people, departed from God? Yes, replies the prophet, in those very things in which you profess to be exact. You do not duly pay tithes and offerings, though rebuked by the famine for neglect. You defraud God, therefore, of his dues. This is a common sin in Christian worship and daily life.
I. Men rob God of worship. Man is made to worship. God alone is the proper object of worship. To him we owe reverence, homage, and praise. But to withhold these or transfer them to the creature is to rob God.
II. Men rob God of time. Our times are in his hands. But time is not valued nor turned to good account. The Sabbath, expressly claimed for God, is neglected. Youth, “the morning of life, and maturity of age are given to pleasure.” “Redeem the time.” “Time wasted is existence, used is life” [Young].
III. Men rob God of talents. All gifts are bestowed by God, should be improved and consecrated to him. But to devote them to sinful conversation and unlawful pursuits is to rob God. “What hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?”
HOMILETIC HINTS AND OUTLINES
Mal_3:7.
1. The charge of defection. Gone away and not kept the ordinances of God.
(1) Defection of long standing. “From the days of your fathers.” Posterity walking in the steps of their fathers, and thus entailing a curse upon generation after generation.
(2) Defection of stubborn spirit. “Wherein shall we return?” In wilful ignorance and prejudice, in frivolous excuses and self-righteousness, they challenge the charge and demand particulars.
2. The invitation to return. “Return unto me,” &c.
(1) This invitation displays the great mercy of God. After such long and grievous apostasy he offers to be reconciled.
(2) This invitation aggravates the impenitent conduct of men. No excuse can be made. “I will return unto you.”
Mal_3:8. Rob God! How base; what presumption, and what folly! “In what? God specifies two things only, obvious, patent, which, as being material things, they could not deny. In tithes and offerings” [Pusey]. A striking instance found in Neh_13:10.
Mal_3:10. Prove me.
1. Prove God concerning his promise of mercy to the penitent sinner and the troubled Christian.
2. Prove God concerning the blessings promised to his house.
3. Prove God concerning his predictions of good to his Church. In these and in other ways God shows marvellous love and condescension, and pledges himself in a way in which he can verify his word. “Azariah the chief priest of the house of Zadok answered him, and said, Since the peeple began to bring the offerings into the house of the Lord, we have had enough to eat, and have left plenty: for the Lord hath blessed his people; and that which is left is this great store (2Ch_31:10).
Mal_3:10-12. How much depends upon giving ourselves an offering wholly unto the Lord! The offerings now required are our hearts, and all that comes from them. But if the Lord was so strict in tithes, how much more with our hearts! Dost thou wish the full blessing of God? then be exact in whatever is thy duty. What is our duty? Whatever God requires of us, in great or little, in his service or in every-day life. How can he who is not strict in duty hope or pray for the full blessing of God? [Lange].
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 3
Mal_3:6. Change not. In commercial crises manhood is at a greater discount than funds are. Suppose a man had said to me last spring, “If there comes a pinch in your affairs, draw upon me for ten thousand dollars.” The man said so last spring, but I should not dare to draw on him this fall. I should say, “Times have changed; he would not abide by it.” But God’s promises are “from everlasting to everlasting,” and he always stands up to them. There never was a run on heaven that was not promptly met [Beecher].
Mal_3:8. Rob. Special favours call for special gratitude and service, as those who rent the largest farms generally pay the most for them [Wilson]. In tithes. Well may we think our substance due where we owe ourselves [Bp. Hall].
Mal_3:9-12. Prove. The condescending goodness of God gives not only to the godly, but sometimes to the ungodly, opportunity and challenge to prove his truth and power; and it is the duty of a minister of God, as it was of the prophet, not only to point both classes to it, but even to offer them this proving of God, confident as Elijah against Ahab, as Isaiah against Ahaz, that God will not forsake his servants, but will by the event put to shame all unbelief [Lange].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
Alexander MacLaren 1905 · Public Domain
Malachi
THE LAST WORD OF PROPHECY
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THE UNCHANGING LORD
Mal 3:6.
The scriptural revelations of the divine Name are always the basis of intensely practical admonition. The Bible does not think it worth while to proclaim the Name of God without building on the proclamation promises or commandments. There is no ‘mere theology’ in Scripture; and it does not speak of ‘attributes,’ nor give dry abstractions of infinitude, eternity, omniscience, unchangeableness, but lays stress on the personality of God, which is so apt to escape us in these abstract conceptions, and thus teaches us to think of this personal God our Father, as infinite, eternal, knowing all things, and never changing. There is all the difference in our attitude towards the very same truth if we think of the unchangeableness of God, or if we think that our Father God is unchangeable. In our text the thought of Him as unchanging comes into view as the foundation of the continuance of the unfaithful sons of Jacob in their privileges and in their very lives. ‘I am the Lord,’ Jehovah, the Self-existent, the Eternal whose being is not under the limitations of succession and time. ‘Because I am Jehovah, I change not’; and because Jehovah changes not, therefore our finite and mortal selves abide, and our infinite and sinful selves are still the objects of His steadfast love.
Let us consider, first, the unchangeable God, and second, the unchanging God as the foundation of our changeful lives.
I. The unchangeable God.
In the great covenant-name Jehovah there is revealed an existence which reverses all that we know of finite and progressive being, or finite and mortal being, or finite and variable nature. With us there are mutations arising from physical nature. The material must needs be subject to laws of growth and decadence. Our spiritual nature is subject to changes arising from the advancement in knowledge. Our moral nature is subject to fluctuations; circumstances play upon us, and ‘nothing continueth in one stay.’ Change is the condition of life. It means growth and happiness; it belongs to the perfection of creatures. But the unchangeableness of God is the negation of all imperfection, it is the negation of all dependence on circumstances, it is the negation of all possibility of decay or exhaustion, it is the negation of all caprice. It is the assurance that His is an underived, self-dependent being, and that with Him is the fountain of light; it is the assurance that, raised above the limits of time and the succession of events, He is in the eternal present, where all things that were and are, and are to come, stand naked and open. It is the assurance that the calm might of His eternal will acts, not in spasms of successive volitions preceded by a period of indecision and equilibrium between contending motives, but is one continuous uniform energy, never beginning, never bending, never ending; that the purpose of His will is ‘the eternal purpose which He hath purposed in Himself.’ It is the assurance that the clear vision of His infinite knowledge, from the heat of which nothing is hid, has no stages of advancement, and no events lying nebulous in a dim horizon by reason of distance, or growing in clearness as they draw nearer, but which pierces the mists of futurity and the veils of the past and the infinities of the present, and ‘from the beginning to the end knoweth all things.’ It is the assurance that the mighty stream of love from the heart of God is not contingent on the variations of our character and the fluctuations of our poor hearts, but rises from His deep well, and flows on for ever, ‘the river of God’ which ‘is full of water.’ It is the assurance that round all the majesty and the mercy which He has revealed for our adoration and our trust there is the consecration of permanence, that we might have a rock on which to build and never be confounded. Is there anywhere in the past an act of His power, a word of His lip, a revelation of His heart which has been a strength or a joy or a light to any man? It is valid for me, and is intended for my use. ‘He fainteth not, nor is weary.’ The bush burns and is not consumed. ‘I will not alter the thing that has gone out of my lips.’ ‘By two immutable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we have strong consolation.’
II. The unchanging God as the foundation of our changeful lives.
In the most literal sense our text is true. Because He lives we live also. He is the same for ever, therefore we are not consumed. The foundation of our being lies beyond and beneath all the mutable things from which we are tempted to believe that we draw our lives, and is in God. The true lesson to be drawn from the mutable phenomena of earth is-heaven. The many links in the chain must have a staple. Reason requires that behind all the fleeting shall be the permanent. There must be a basis which does not partake of change. The lesson from all the mutable creation is the immutable God.
Since God changes not, the life of our spirits is not at the mercy of changing events. We look back on a lifetime of changing scenes through which we have passed, and forward to a similar succession, and this mutability is sad to many of us, and in some aspects sad to all, so powerless we are to fix and arrest any of our blessings. Which we shall keep we know not; we only know that, as certainly as buds and blossoms of spring drop, and the fervid summer darkens to November fogs and December frosts, so certainly we shall have to part with much in our passage through life. But if we let God speak to us, the necessary changes that come to us will not be harmful but blessed, for the lesson that the mutability of the mutual is meant to impress upon us is, the permanency of the divine, and our dependence, not on them, but on Him. We may look upon all the world of time and chance and think that He who Himself is unchanging changeth all. The eye of the tempest is a point of rest. The point in the heavens towards which, according to some astronomers, the whole of the solar system is drifting, is a fixed point. If we depend on Him, then change is not all sad; it cannot take God away, but it may bring us nearer to Him. We cannot be desolate as long as we have Him. We know not what shall be on the morrow. Be it so; it will be God’s to-morrow. When the leaves drop we can see the rock on which the trees grow; and when changes strip the world for us of some of its waving beauty and leafy shade, we may discern more clearly the firm foundation on which our hopes rest. All else changes. Be it so; that will not kill us, nor leave us utterly forlorn as long as we hear the voice which says, ‘I am the Lord; I change not; therefore ye are not consumed.’
God’s purposes and promises change not, therefore our faith may rest on Him, notwithstanding our own sins and fluctuations. It is this aspect of the divine immutability which is the thought of our text. God does not turn from His love, nor cancel His promises, nor alter His purposes of mercy because of our sins. If God could have changed, the godless forgetfulness of, and departure from, Him of ‘the Sons of Jacob’ would have driven Him to abandon His purposes; but they still live-living evidences of His long-suffering. And in that preservation of them God would have them see the basis of hope for the future. So this is the confidence with which we should cheer ourselves when we look upon the past, and when we anticipate the future. The sins that have been in our past have deserved that we should have been swept away, but we are here still. Why are we? Why do we yet live? Because we have to do with an unchanging love, with a faithfulness that never departs from its word, with a purpose of blessing that will not be turned aside. So let us look back with this thought and be thankful; let us look forward with it and be of good cheer. Trust yourself, weak and sinful as you are, to that unchanging love. The future will have in it faults and failures, sins and shortcomings, but rise from yourself to God. Look beyond the light and shade of your own characters, or of earthly events to the central light, where there is no glimmering twilight, no night, ‘no variableness nor shadow of turning.’ Let us live in God, and be strong in hope. Forward, not backward, let us look and strive; so our souls, fixed and steadied by faith in Him, will become in a manner partakers of His unchangeableness; and we too in our degree will be able to say, ‘The Lord is at my side; I shall not be moved.’
Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues to speak to the people of Israel.
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have not come to an end
"have not perished"
From the days of your fathers you have turned aside from my ordinances and have not kept them
Disobeying God's ordinances is spoken of as if it were turning away from them. AT: "You have disobeyed my ordinances ever since the days of your ancestors" (See: Metaphor)
Return to me, and I will return to you
Here loving each other and being faithful to each other is spoken of as if it were returning to each other. AT: "Love me and honor me, and I will always help you" (See: Metaphor)
How will we return?
The people ask this question in order to claim that they have never stopped obeying God. This can be expressed as a statement. AT: "We have never gone away from you, so we cannot return to you." or "We have never gone away from you, so it makes no sense to speak of us as returning to you." (See: Rhetorical Question)
translationWords
Jacob
ancestor
ordinance
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 3:6-12 Malachi’s fifth message echoes the first (1:2-5) by…
3:6-12 Malachi’s fifth message echoes the first (1:2-5) by emphasizing God’s faithfulness to his promises. He calls Israel to a similar faithfulness in worship, especially in giving their tithes and offerings. If Malachi is a courtroom drama, the fifth message is the judge’s verdict. The real message is repentance—God wants honest and sincere worship from his people, of which tithing is a symbol.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.