(Malachi 3:1) “Behold, I am going to send My messenger, and he will clear the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple; and the messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight, behold, He is coming,” says the Lord of hosts..."
The LORD's "messenger" is John the Baptist who would announce the arrival of Jesus. There are several prophecies about John. As well, when he is mentioned in the gospels, God did an awesome job cross-referencing His own words for our benefit...
(Mark 1-4) The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 2 As it is written in Isaiah the prophet:
“Behold, I send My messenger ahead of You,
Who will prepare Your way;
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.’”
Who will prepare Your way;
3 The voice of one crying in the wilderness,
‘Make ready the way of the Lord,
Make His paths straight.’”
4 John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins... And he was preaching, and saying, “After me One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to stoop down and untie the thong of His sandals. 8 I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus, the messenger of the covenant - came to earth! Their Messiah! Speaking about the kingdom of heaven (the Millennium), as well as the new covenant - His work on the cross - which would make it possible for believers to go to heaven for all eternity. The cool thing for all Israelites who become believers now - they will not have to endure the Tribulation - yet they will still get to enjoy the Millennium (in a glorified body). Either way, Jesus fulfills their Abrahamic and Davidic covenants! The only way anyone can enjoy any of those blessings, is if we are in perfect obedience, which means, all our sins are forgiven through Jesus...
(Matthew 26:26-29) While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” 27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28 for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins. 29 But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father’s kingdom.”
If only the Israelites had accepted Jesus as their Messiah and King, they would have entered the Millennium and had all their covenants fulfilled. Instead, they rejected Him and crucified Him. Of course, God knew this was going to happen. Jesus knew that He was there to complete the work on the cross which would bring salvation to the entire world. This fulfilled the last bit of the Abrahamic covenant - that through their seed, all nations would be blessed. Now, because the Israelites are still waiting for God to fulfill His covenants to them - their Messiah must come again. There are seven years left to the Jewish Age, which were "put on hold" when they crucified their Messiah. Once the Tribulation begins, there will be the seven years where they will see their signs of Jesus' Second Coming, and these "signs" will not be fun...
(Malachi 3:2) “But who can endure the day of His coming? And who can stand when He appears? For He is like a refiner’s fire and like fullers’ soap..."
(Malachi 4:1-2) “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them ablaze,” says the Lord of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch. 2 But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall..."
Who can endure? Those who fear the LORD!
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