Malachi 3:16

Upon hearing the Lord’s rebuke through His prophet, some of Malachi’s hearers who genuinely feared the Lord got together. Evidently they discussed Malachi’s message and agreed among themselves that they needed to repent. They even wrote down their commitment on a scroll.

"Almost surely this was a scroll that contained their names as signatories to some sort of statement of their commitment to Yahweh in faith that they were disassociating themselves from the prevailing sins, that his promises were reliable, and that his covenant was to be kept. In other words, it was a covenant renewal document." [Note: Stuart, p. 1382.]

Yahweh paid attention to their heart attitude and heard what they said.

"How can an individual remain faithful to God in a faithless world? Malachi gave three tips for developing a lifestyle of faithfulness.

• Vow to be faithful to God, even if those around you are not. Consider writing your own ’scroll of remembrance.’

• Surround yourself with a group of likeminded individuals for encouragement. This group ’talked with each other’ (Malachi 3:16) as they encouraged each other to remain faithful (see Hebrews 10:25).

• Remember that God’s day of reckoning will come someday. Keep a long-range perspective (1 Corinthians 3:12-15)." [Note: Charles H. Dyer, in The Old Testament Explorer, p. 841.]