“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet, before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. 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 land with a curse.” (v.6)
In this unique promise, God assured His people that He would send Elijah to Israel again before the great and dreadful day of the LORD. Whether you believe that this passage is speaking literally of Elijah the prophet (Malachi 4:5), or figuratively of John the Baptist (in the spirit and power of Elijah, Luke 1:17), it doesn’t change the message. Both men spoke and acted in the power of the Spirit of God, as His mouthpiece, to His people. The message of restoration is what’s important here along with the warning of what would happen if not accepted.
It is significant though that in these closing words of the Old Testament, God makes reference to both Moses and Elijah. They both met God at Mount Sinai (Exodus 3:1; 1 Kings 19:8-18). They also both met Jesus at the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-5), and they are probably the two witnesses of Revelation 11.
In anticipation of this (Elijah's return), Jewish homes set a place at the table for Elijah at Passover, just in case he might come on that night to announce the news that Messiah has come. The empty chair and the cup that is filled but never drank is a testimony to their anticipation of Elijah’s coming. The promise of, "returning the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the children to their fathers," speaks of more than the reconciliation of families. When God turns the hearts of the children to their fathers, it also has in mind turning to the God of their fathers, to the faith of the patriarchs.
God has always honored free will, dating all the way back to the garden of Eden. Here again a choice is given. Some would head the warning and turn back to the beliefs of their fathers while others did not and would experience a curse. This would be the last prophetic word heard for over 400 years, as “the silent years” would begin, creating a thrust for His word.
I'm so glad He broke the silence and in these last days has spoken to us by His Son.
The Truth: "I God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high." (Hebrews 1:1-3)
