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BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 28, Day 5: Malachi 4:1-6

Summary of Malachi 4:1-6

The day is coming when evildoers will be punished. Those who remember the Lord will be healed and will trample the wicked. Remember God’s decrees. He will send the prophet Elijah to save His people.

BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 28, Day 5: Malachi 4:1-6

12) The End Times

13) Luke 1:13-17 predicts the coming of John the Baptist. Luke identifies John the Baptist as the fulfillment of Malachi’s prophecy, not as the literal Elijah (John 1:21), but by coming in his “spirit and power” (Luke 1:17). Gabriel quotes Malachi’s specific promise to “turn the hearts,” and Jesus confirms John is indeed the “Elijah who has come” (Matthew 17:12)

14) I am able to focus on God more. Anticipating the “Day of the Lord” acts as a lens that clarifies what truly matters, shifting our focus from the temporary to the eternal. Living with the end in mind forces you to drop the heavy baggage of bitterness and pick up the light burden of love.

Conclusions BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 28, Day 5: Malachi 4:1-6

Great lesson on getting your priorities right and focusing on what really matters: God and who He is and others.

End Notes BSF Study Questions Exile & Return: A Time to Build Lesson 28, Day 5: Malachi 4:1-6

The people are reminded that the day of judgment is coming. God will right all wrongs and reward good. The wicked will burn (the stubble of grain is the part that will burn instantly). There will be no hope for the wicked.

The “sun of righteousness” is Jesus. God is called heavenly bodies many times in Scripture (Psalm 84:11Isaiah 60:19Revelation 22:16Numbers 24:17).

The wings of Jesus will bring healing. God’s people will be very happy and jump for joy and trample the wicked.

God will be silent for 400 years so the people needed to remember the Law and who He is and His promises.

God will send Elijah (John the Baptist partially fulfills this prophecy  (Matthew 11:14Mark 9:11-13Luke 1:17) because in the End Times, scholars believe the real Elijah will appear  Matthew 17:11-12 and Revelation 11:3-12 . This is why a place is set by the Jews for Elijah during Passover — in case he comes!

Elijah is most likely chosen because he ministered to the people in a time of crisis in Israel, when the nation was far from God.

God refers to both Moses and Elijah. They both met God at Mount Sinai (Exodus 3:1 and 1 Kings 19:8-18). They both met Jesus at the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-5). They are probably the two witnesses of Revelation 11.

The Old Testament ends with a curse, be we remember the Sun of righteousness! The end of the New Testament speaks of Jesus, too (Revelation 22:21).

It all comes back to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! We are to always remember that!

END NOTES SUMMARIZED

The Interpretation: The Sunrise and the Silence

The book (and the entire Old Testament era) concludes with a stark contrast between two futures.

  • The Burning Oven (v. 1): The day of the Lord is compared to a blazing furnace. For the arrogant and evildoers, this fire will consume them completely (“leaving them neither root nor branch”). It is a promise of total judgment where their family lines and influence will cease.

  • The Healing Sun (vv. 2–3): For those who revere God’s name, the judgment fire transforms into the “sun of righteousness” rising with healing in its rays (wings). Malachi uses the joyful image of calves released from a stall—leaping with energy and freedom—to describe the relief of the righteous trampling over the wicked.

  • The Final Elijah (vv. 4–6): The prophecy ends by pointing backward to the Law of Moses (the standard) and forward to the Prophet Elijah (the forerunner). God promises to send “Elijah” (fulfilled in John the Baptist) before the great day comes. His mission is specific: to turn the hearts of fathers to their children and children to their fathers. If this restoration fails, the land faces total destruction (“a curse”).

Conclusion

The Old Testament ends not with a resolution, but with a cliffhanger. It leaves Israel looking for a new Elijah to fix broken families and prepare hearts for the coming King. The final word—”curse” (in some translations)—underscores the desperate need for the New Testament’s grace.

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BSF Study Questions Matthew Lesson 28, Day 5: Matthew 27:57-66

SUMMARY OF MATTHEW 27:57-66

When evening approached, a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea who had become a disciple of Jesus asked Pilate for Jesus’s body. He wrapped Jesus’s body in clean linen cloth and put him in his tomb. He rolled a big stone in front of it. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary sat outside the tomb.

The Romans made the tomb secure so that the disciples could not come and take Jesus’s body and tell people he had been raised from the dead as Jesus preached he would do on the third day. So Pilate ordered a guard to secure Jesus’s tomb by putting a seal on the stone and posting a guard.

BSF Study Questions Matthew Lesson 28, Day 5: Matthew 27:57-66

13) Joseph prepared Jesus’s body in rich clothes and placed in a nice tomb. Joseph used his best for Jesus.

14a) The Romans made the tomb secure so that the disciples could not come and take Jesus’s body and tell people he had been raised from the dead as Jesus preached he would do on the third day.

b) It proves that Jesus did indeed rise from the dead without any help or dark magic. No one entered or exited the tomb after Joseph placed his body there. There is no doubt that Jesus rose on the 3rd day.

15) Finding a new job. Moving states in the midst of uncertainty. Living a God-centered life always.

Conclusions BSF Study Questions Matthew Lesson 28, Day 5: Matthew 27:57-66

I love how God thinks of everything. Jesus’s body has to be guarded so there is no doubt that he rose from the dead. Amazing!

End Notes BSF Study Questions Matthew Lesson 28, Day 5: Matthew 27:57-66

Normally, the Romans left the bodies of those who were crucified to rot. But since it was Passover, no one wanted the bodies left. Plus, the fact that a rich person asked for Jesus’s body helped.

Joseph had little time to prepare Jesus’s body before the Sabbath arrived where he could not touch a dead body.

Having a huge stone seal the tomb was the custom of the day for the rich. Several men had to work together to move it, which ensured nothing happened to the body. This tomb was made from solid rock and was near where Jesus died (John 19:41). These tombs had a small entrance. The bodies would be laid out so that they could mummify, rot, and decay to bones. Once they bodies were bones, they would be collected and placed in ossuaries or small boxes that then remained in the tomb with loved ones.

The priests and Pharisees approached Pilate on the Sabbath, breaking Jewish law again. They were not afraid of the disciples; they were afraid of Jesus’s power of resurrection. The chief priests were probably wondering if Jesus would rise again and wanted to make sure there were no doubts.

The Romans sent their best men to guard the tomb of Jesus.

The Roman seal is significant. First, if anyone broke the seal, they would be facing death since it would be a defyment of the Roman Empire. The seal was a rope that was secured by wax. If the stone moved, the seal would break.

The Roman guard was not just one man. This was at least four men. Then, two men could watch while the other two slept. However, in this case, there may have been more. All these soldiers cared about was ensuring the seal was not broken, for then their lives would be at risk if it were.

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