Malachi 1:11, "For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name, and a pure offering: for my name shall be great among the heathen, saith the LORD of hosts."

In approximately 433 B.C. the word of the Lord came to Malachi the prophet. Israel had once again become complacent in the land of promise. Their priests no longer observed the works of the Law in holiness and they were robbing God of their tithes and offerings. The Law had become a tedious ritual.

Judah had once again turned away from the Lord their God and looked to strange gods. The whole nation needed a healer.

Malachi 3:1, "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts."

The book of Malachi is the last prophesy recorded in the Old Testament. For 400 years, "Thus saith the Lord," would not be heard in the streets of Israel.

This prophesy reveals a sleeping nation waiting for a Messiah, the messenger of God.

Isaiah 42:16, "And I will bring the blind by a way that they knew not; I will lead them in paths that they have not known: I will make darkness light before them, and crooked things straight. These things will I do unto them, and not forsake them."