Malachi 3:1 – The Messenger Who Will Prepare the Way of the Lord

BIBLE TEXT

Malachi 3:1

SUMMARY

Malachi announces that God is sending “my messenger to prepare the way before me” (3:1).

ANALYSIS

All four New Testament Gospels interpret the “messenger to prepare the way before me” as referring to John the Baptist. Mark quotes Malachi 3:1 at the beginning of his Gospel as an announcement of John’s ministry (Mark 1:2), though he attributes this to Isaiah. In Matthew 11:10 and Luke 7:27, Jesus himself quotes Malachi 3:1 to describe John.