In this article, the missional significance of the delay of the Day of the Lord in the postexilic book of Malachi will be studied, employing a missional hermeneutic. First, the canon-historical meaning of the relevant eschatological texts in Malachi 3 will be established. Attention will be paid to the historical and literary context of Malachi in which his precursor, Joel, is pivotal. Second, the New Testament appropriation of Malachi 3 in Matthew’s Gospel is assessed. To conclude, a proposal how Malachi’s motif of the delay of the Day of the Lord can best be missionally re-employed in the present time, will be presented. Hence, apart from a brief note on missional hermeneutics, the missional origin of the text of Malachi, the missional motivation for the delay and the role of the Day of the Lord in modern missiology will be studied.

In this article the eschatology of Malachi is investigated within its own historical context. The socio-political and spiritual situation of the early postexilic Persian era in Yehud is briefly outlined. The attention is then focused on the prophetic voices which articulated eschatological visions at that point in time. This article’s contention is that Malachi’s eschatology had developed from that of Haggai, being influenced in the process by the eschatological insights of Zechariah and 3 Isaiah. The conclusion is that in Malachi Haggai’s proclamation of eschatological hope is confirmed, albeit adjusted by the introduction of divine judgement into his eschatological discourse in response to the community’s disappointment at the perceived delay in the fulfilment of the promised future.

In this article historical research into Haggai’s eschatological sayings (Hg 2:6–9, 20–23) is combined with a homiletic approach to these two sayings, employing a canon-historical methodology. First, Haggai’s silence about the past of the, in 539 bcreturned, exiles is investigated. His evaluation of this period will be compared with the one by Ezra-Nehemiah. His emphasis on the present time as decision time with a view to the eschatological future, will be examined. Attention will be given to the role the rebuilt temple played in his prophecies, and the kind of contribution he made to prophetic eschatology. Secondly, the homiletic approach to Haggai’s eschatological sayings requires a canonical reflection on their relationship with the New Testament eschatology with a view to strengthen the community of faith’s eschatological prospects in the present time.In hierdie artikel word ’n historiese ondersoek na Haggai se eskatologiese uitsprake (Hag 2:6–9, 20–23) met ’n homiletiese benadering tot albei uitsprake gekombineer met behulp van ’n kanon-historiese metodologie. Eerstens word Haggai se stilswye oor die verlede van die teruggekeerde ballinge van voor 522 v.C. ondersoek en met die beoordeling van dieselfde tydperk deur Esra-Nehemia vergelyk. Sy nadruk op die huidige tyd as beslissingstyd met die oog op die eskatologiese toekoms word bestudeer. Aandag word ook aan die rol geskenk wat die tempel in sy profesieë gespeel het en watter bydrae hy tot die profetiese eskatologie gemaak het. Tweedens vereis die homiletiese benadering van die eskatologiese uitsprake in Haggai om vanuit ’n kanonieke oogpunt op die verhouding met die Nuwe-Testamentiese eskatologie te reflekteer, met die doel om die geloofsgemeenskap se eskatologiese verwagtings in die huidige tyd te versterk.

In this article we investigate the missional potential of the two-volume book of Ezra-Nehemiah. We contend that the written word of God is a transforming power in society through the mediation of the church. This implies that spiritual renewal precedes social reconstruction. We examine this book historically, canonically and exegetically to lay a foundation for a missiological reflection on the results of this excursion in the field of biblical studies. We close with the formulation of some missional conclusions that serve as guidelines for the development of a relevant theology of mission.In hierdie artikel ondersoek ons die missionêre moontlikhede van die tweedelige boek Esra-Nehemia. Ons stel dat die geskrewe woord van God ’n hervormende krag in die samelewing is deur die bemiddeling van die kerk. Dit impliseer dat geestelike vernuwing sosiale rekonstruksie voorafgaan. Ons doen historiese, kanoniese en eksegetiese ondersoek na die boek om ’n grondslag te lê vir ’n missiologiese beskouing van die resultate van hierdie ekskursie in die Bybelwetenskapveld. Ons sluit af met die formulering van missionêre gevolgtrekkings om te dien as wegwysers vir die ontwikkeling van ’n toepaslike sendingsteologie.

This study investigates the function of Malachi 3:22 in the context of prophetic eschatology as reflected in Malachi’s message about the delay of the expected Day of the Lord, which focuses on the charge to ‘remember the law of my servant Moses (…) I gave him at Horeb for all Israel’. This article examines the question how this charge serves the purpose of awaiting in the interim time the advent of the Day of the Lord. Firstly, a textual analysis is given of Malachi 3:22 in the context of the body of the book. Secondly, an eschatological application of the text is attempted with the help of selected texts from Deuteronomy 12:5, 11 (on worship) and 24:1–4 (on the treatment of women), addressing the problems in Malachi 1:6–2:9 and 2:10–16. Thirdly, the missional inferences of Malachi 3:22 for the present time are condensed in a postscript.