Malachi 3:1-5: a reflection

1“Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me! The Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to his temple. Behold, the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, is coming!” says the LORD of Armies. 2“But who can endure the day of his coming? And who will stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner’s fire, and like launderers’ soap; 3and he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi, and refine them as gold and silver; and they shall offer to the LORD offerings in righteousness. 4Then the offering of Judah and Jerusalem will be pleasant to the LORD as in the days of old and as in ancient years. 5I will come near to you to judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against the perjurers, and against those who oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and who deprive the foreigner of justice, and don’t fear me,” says the LORD of Armies.

Malachi foretells that when the Lord comes to his people, he will come as a refiner's fire and launderers' soap, to purify them, a refining that is not comfortable but is meant to make them pure. He is like a refiner's fire, Malachi says, and like launderers' soap; and he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and purify them, and refine them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the LORD offerings in righteousness. The image is of purifying: fire that refines metal, soap that washes clean. The Lord comes not to leave his people as they are, but to purify them, refining away what is impure as fire refines gold, so that they become pure and their offerings acceptable. The refining is not comfortable, but its aim is purity. This shows that God comes as a refiner's fire to purify his people. God comes as a refiner's fire to purify his people. God's refining, though hard, aims to make us pure. The fire refines away what is impure, that we may be pure. God purifies us not to destroy us, but to make us pure like gold.

Notice the images Malachi uses and their aim. The Lord, when he comes, is like a refiner's fire and like launderers' soap: a fire that refines precious metal, burning away the impurities, and soap that scrubs away what is unclean. He sits as a refiner of silver, purifying his people, refining them as gold and silver. The point of these images is purification: the Lord comes not to leave his people in their impurity, but to purify them, to refine away what is impure, so that they become pure, and their offerings and lives are made acceptable to God. And such refining is not comfortable; fire is hot, and the refiner's work is thorough. But its aim is not to destroy, but to purify. This helps us understand God's refining work in us. God does not leave his people as they are; he works to purify us, to refine away what is impure in us, our sins, our faults, the dross that mars us, that we may become pure, like gold refined in the fire. And this refining is often not comfortable: it can involve heat, testing, the burning away of what we would rather keep. But its aim is our purity, not our harm; God refines us to make us pure, as a refiner refines gold, not to destroy us but to bring out what is precious. We do well to receive God's refining work, even when it is uncomfortable, trusting that its aim is to purify us and make us pure. Receive God's refining work, even when it is hard; its aim is your purity. God refines away what is impure to make you pure like gold. The fire is uncomfortable, but it purifies rather than destroys. Trust that God's refining, though hard, is meant to make you pure.

That is worth taking to heart, for God comes as a refiner's fire to purify his people, and his refining, though hard, aims at our purity, as Malachi foretold. We can resent God's refining as merely painful; but Malachi shows the Lord coming as a refiner's fire, purifying his people as gold, to make them pure. The aim is purity. When God's refining work is uncomfortable, do not resent it as harm; receive it as his purifying, refining away what is impure to make you pure like gold. Receive God's refining work, even when it is uncomfortable, trusting that its aim is to purify you and make you pure like gold rather than to destroy you, as Malachi foretold that when the Lord came to his people he would come as a refiner's fire and launderers' soap to purify them, sitting as a refiner and purifier of silver, refining them as gold and silver that they might offer to the LORD offerings in righteousness; for the image is of purifying, fire that refines metal and soap that washes clean, and the Lord comes not to leave his people as they are but to purify them, refining away what is impure as fire refines gold so that they become pure and their offerings acceptable, a refining not comfortable but aimed at purity, which helps us understand God's refining work in us, since God does not leave his people as they are but works to purify us, refining away what is impure, our sins, faults, and the dross that mars us, that we may become pure like gold refined in the fire, a refining often not comfortable but aimed not at our harm but our purity, so that we do well to receive God's refining work even when uncomfortable, trusting that its aim is to make us pure.

Lord, Malachi foretells that when you come to your people, you will come as a refiner's fire and launderers' soap, to purify them, a refining that is not comfortable but is meant to make them pure. He is like a refiner's fire, Malachi says, and like launderers' soap; and he will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and refine them as gold and silver, that they may offer to the LORD offerings in righteousness. The image is of purifying: fire that refines metal, soap that washes clean. You come not to leave your people as they are, but to purify them, refining away what is impure as fire refines gold, so that they become pure. The refining is not comfortable, but its aim is purity. Show me the images Malachi uses and their aim. You, when you come, are like a refiner's fire and like launderers' soap: a fire that refines precious metal, burning away the impurities, and soap that scrubs away what is unclean. You sit as a refiner of silver, purifying your people. The point of these images is purification: you come not to leave your people in their impurity, but to purify them, so that they become pure, and their lives are made acceptable to you. And such refining is not comfortable; fire is hot, and the refiner's work is thorough. But its aim is not to destroy, but to purify. This helps me understand your refining work in me. You do not leave me as I am; you work to purify me, to refine away what is impure in me, my sins, my faults, the dross that mars me, that I may become pure, like gold refined in the fire. And this refining is often not comfortable. But its aim is my purity, not my harm. Take that to my heart. When your refining work is uncomfortable, keep me from resenting it as harm; help me receive it, Lord, as your purifying, refining away what is impure to make me pure like gold, trusting that your refining, though hard, is meant not to destroy me but to bring out what is precious.