More on Malachi Trivia Quiz

Answer: Edom

God is condemning the Edomites. The Lord Almighty says: "They may build, but I will demolish. They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord." The Edomites were descendants of Esau, and they battled the Israelites for many years.

In the end, they were completely destroyed, as Malachi notes. The ruins of Petra in Jordan are linked with the Edomites. Edom was located in the area southeast of the Dead Sea. Cush was located near the horn of Africa, while Moab was just east of the Dead Sea, in present-day Jordan.

Answer: Offering defiled food at the altar

God accuses the Israelites of offering blind animals, lame animals and diseased animals for sacrifice. All of these are violations of rules regarding sacrifice laid out in Leviticus 17. "Try offering them to your governor! Would he be pleased with you? Would he accept you?" states God about his displeasure (Malachi 1:8).

The Lord does condemn the people for failing to pay tithes, but in Chapter 2.

Answer: Levi

Levi was the tribe that became the priestly caste. It can be seen in modern day Jewish names such as Levy, Levie and Levine. God speaks highly of Levi, noting: "he revered me and stood in awe of my name. True instruction was in his mouth and nothing false was found on his lips.

He walked with me in peace and uprightness, and turned many from sin" (Malachi 2:5-6). Benjamin and Reuben are also sons of Jacob. Abraham, who did have a covenant with God, was the great-grandfather of Levi.

Answer: Adultery

Malachi uses the metaphor of adultery to describe how the Israelites have fallen away from God. "Judah has been unfaithful.... Judah has desecrated the sanctuary the Lord loves by marrying women who worship a foreign god" (Malachi 2:11). There also seems to be an accusation of actual adultery: "The Lord is the witness between you and the wife of your youth. You have been unfaithful to her, though she is your partner, the wife of your marriage covenant" (Malachi 2:14).

Answer: silver

"He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver" (Malachi 3:3). There are references to refining silver and gold in 1 Chronicles, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and Zechariah as well. The Hebrew word for gold is zahav and the word for silver is kesef.

Answer: Murderers

Yes, murderers did not make the cut among evildoers, according to Malachi. "So I will come to put you on trial. I will be quick to testify against sorcerers, adulterers and perjurers, against those who defraud laborers of their wages, who oppress the widows and the fatherless, and deprive the foreigners among you of justice, but do not fear me," says the Lord Almighty (Malachi 3:5).

Answer: Scroll

"A scroll of remembrance was written in his presence concerning those who feared the Lord and honored his name" (Malachi 3:16). Scrolls are a popular image in the Old Testament, showing up in Exodus, Number, Deuteronomy, Joshua, Ezra, Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel and Zechariah as well as Malachi.

Answer: Elijah

Malachi says that Elijah will return some day. This is keeping with long standing Jewish traditions regarding the return of Elijah. Even today, there is a chair reserved for the prophet at Passover Seders. Elijah was a prophet during the 9th century BC.

He is mentioned in First and Second Kings, for challenging the worship of Baal. Elijah is taken away into Heaven by a horse-driven chariot in 2 Kings 2. The prophet is also mentioned in the Quran, Talmud and Baha'i scripture.

Answer: Destruction

"Or else I will come and strike the land with total destruction." (Malachi 4:6). "Curse" is used in the King James, Revised Standard Version and a variety of other translations. Malachi is one of the shortest books of the Bible, with only four chapters and 53 total verses. Most biblical scholars feel it was written in the fifth century BC, sometime between 445 BC and 420 BC.
Parents and children are in 4:6, Lord is in 4:5, and Israel is in 4:5.

Answer: Messenger

The word mal'akhi signifies "my messenger" or "my angel". Because the book does not actually name the prophet, there is speculation that it was actually written by Ezra. According to the Targum, "by the hand of my angel, whose name is called Ezra the scribe." Others say the book could have been written by Zerubbabel and Nehemiah.

In any case, the writer was a contemporary of Nehemiah, but came after Haggai and Zechariah.