Malachi in the Book of Mormon
It’s interesting to me that the Savior gave the Nephites the words of what we know as the last two chapters of Malachi. As an introduction to this we read, “And it came to pass that he commanded them that they should write the words which the Father had given unto Malachi, which he should tell unto them. And it came to pass that after they were written he expounded them” (3 Nephi 24:1). I think it makes sense on some level that the Lord didn’t feel the need to give them the first two chapters. Malachi 1 chastises the Israelites for offering blemished animals on the altars as a part of their Law of Moses worship, and since the Law of Moses was being done away, there was no need for the Nephites to have that record. Malachi 2 was directed at priests of the people of Israel, a message that likewise wouldn’t be very applicable to the Nephites in their post-Law of Moses society. So what was it about Malachi 3 and 4 that were so important for them to have?
The messages of these final two chapters of Malachi focus largely on the events of the last days and work for the dead. There is some instruction on the paying of tithing which is applicable to Saints of all generations—and that was surely a precursor for the Nephites as they eventually gave everything (not just 10%) as part of having all of their substance in common—but most of the text appears to be related to the last days. We read of how the Lord will “suddenly come to his temple” and that he will be “like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap” at the Second Coming. He spoke of how the sons of Levi will “offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness,” an event yet in the future when the Church turns in to the Lord a record of all of its temple work for the dead (Malachi 3:1-3, D&C 128:24). We also read this about the last days, “The day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts.” Malachi also prophesied that “Elijah the prophet” would return before the Second Coming, an event that took place in our day in 1836 in the Kirtland temple. And the book finished with these famous words about the work of the salvation of the dead: “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6). So the major theme of these scriptures appear to relate to the work of the salvation of the dead that we understand is taking place in our dispensation. Why would the Lord then give the words to the Nephites in 34 AD? One reason of course could be that He wanted them to come forth and be a part of the Book of Mormon for us to have. We are taught the importance of these verses by the mere fact of their repetition in two books of scripture. I have to wonder, though, if they weren’t given to the Nephites because they would need to participate in work for their dead as well. We know from Paul’s mention of baptisms for the dead that the early Christians performed these ordinances for their dead, and so perhaps the Nephites in this Zion society likewise participated in these ordinances. We can’t know for sure, but if that’s the case then it would make sense that the Lord would share these passages with the Nephites about turning their hearts to their fathers. At any rate, we do have them and the importance of these passages for us today is hard to overstate.
The messages of these final two chapters of Malachi focus largely on the events of the last days and work for the dead. There is some instruction on the paying of tithing which is applicable to Saints of all generations—and that was surely a precursor for the Nephites as they eventually gave everything (not just 10%) as part of having all of their substance in common—but most of the text appears to be related to the last days. We read of how the Lord will “suddenly come to his temple” and that he will be “like a refiner’s fire, and like fuller’s soap” at the Second Coming. He spoke of how the sons of Levi will “offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness,” an event yet in the future when the Church turns in to the Lord a record of all of its temple work for the dead (Malachi 3:1-3, D&C 128:24). We also read this about the last days, “The day cometh that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the Lord of Hosts.” Malachi also prophesied that “Elijah the prophet” would return before the Second Coming, an event that took place in our day in 1836 in the Kirtland temple. And the book finished with these famous words about the work of the salvation of the dead: “And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse” (Malachi 4:5-6). So the major theme of these scriptures appear to relate to the work of the salvation of the dead that we understand is taking place in our dispensation. Why would the Lord then give the words to the Nephites in 34 AD? One reason of course could be that He wanted them to come forth and be a part of the Book of Mormon for us to have. We are taught the importance of these verses by the mere fact of their repetition in two books of scripture. I have to wonder, though, if they weren’t given to the Nephites because they would need to participate in work for their dead as well. We know from Paul’s mention of baptisms for the dead that the early Christians performed these ordinances for their dead, and so perhaps the Nephites in this Zion society likewise participated in these ordinances. We can’t know for sure, but if that’s the case then it would make sense that the Lord would share these passages with the Nephites about turning their hearts to their fathers. At any rate, we do have them and the importance of these passages for us today is hard to overstate.
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