Background of Malachi

The exiles returning from Babylon beginning in 539 B.C.E. worked to restore their land and rebuild the Temple. That dedication and energy was followed decades later by a period of laxity and decadence, particularly among the priesthood, the “descendants of Levi.” Inferior animals were offered for sacrifice, many were intermarrying with those of other religions, divorce was common, and tithes were not being given. Malachi arrived in Judah during the first half of the fifth century B.C.E., although some think his period of prophecy coincided with the work of Ezra and Nehemiah in the mid 400s, when Ezra restored the law and Nehemiah oversaw the rebuilding of the Jerusalem wall. In any case, the concerns of Malachi are similar to those of Ezra and Nehemiah.