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The Coming Day of Judgment

[a]The Lord of Heaven’s Armies says, “The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed—roots, branches, and all.

“But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings.[b] And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture. On the day when I act, you will tread upon the wicked as if they were dust under your feet,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

“Remember to obey the Law of Moses, my servant—all the decrees and regulations that I gave him on Mount Sinai[c] for all Israel.

“Look, I am sending you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful day of the Lord arrives. His preaching will turn the hearts of fathers to their children, and the hearts of children to their fathers. Otherwise I will come and strike the land with a curse.”

Footnotes

  1. 4:1 Verses 4:1-6 are numbered 3:19-24 in Hebrew text.
  2. 4:2 Or the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings.
  3. 4:4 Hebrew Horeb, another name for Sinai.

The Great Day of God

“For behold, (A)the day is coming,
Burning like an oven,
And all (B)the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be (C)stubble.
And the day which is coming shall burn them up,”
Says the Lord of hosts,
“That will (D)leave them neither root nor branch.
But to you who (E)fear My name
The (F)Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
(G)You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,
Says the Lord of hosts.

“Remember the (H)Law of Moses, My servant,
Which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel,
With (I)the statutes and judgments.
Behold, I will send you (J)Elijah the prophet
(K)Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.
And (L)he will turn
The hearts of the fathers to the children,
And the hearts of the children to their fathers,
Lest I come and (M)strike the earth with (N)a curse.”

The Sun of Righteousness Will Dawn

1-3 “Count on it: The day is coming, raging like a forest fire. All the arrogant people who do evil things will be burned up like stove wood, burned to a crisp, nothing left but scorched earth and ash—a black day. But for you, sunrise! The sun of righteousness will dawn on those who honor my name, healing radiating from its wings. You will be bursting with energy, like colts frisky and frolicking. And you’ll tromp on the wicked. They’ll be nothing but ashes under your feet on that Day.” God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.

“Remember and keep the revelation I gave through my servant Moses, the revelation I commanded at Horeb for all Israel, all the rules and procedures for right living.

5-6 “But also look ahead: I’m sending Elijah the prophet to clear the way for the Big Day of God—the decisive Judgment Day! He will convince parents to look after their children and children to look up to their parents. If they refuse, I’ll come and put the land under a curse.”