MALACHI, THE BOOK OF

also called The Prophecy Of Malachias, the last of 12 Old Testament books that bear the names of the Minor Prophets, grouped together as the Twelve in the Jewish canon. The author is unknown; Malachi is merely a transliteration of a Hebrew word meaning my messenger. The book consists of six distinct sections, each in the form of a question-and-answer discussion. With the aid of this unusual discussion technique, the prophet defends the justice of God to a community that had begun to doubt that justice because its eschatological (end of the world) expectations were still unfulfilled. The author calls for fidelity to Yahweh's Covenant. He emphasizes the necessity of proper worship, condemns divorce, and announces that the day of judgment is imminent. Faithfulness to these cultic and moral responsibilities will be rewarded; unfaithfulness will bring a curse. The book belongs to the first half of the 5th century BC, for it clearly presupposes the reconstructed Temple (dedicated in 516 BC) but does not reflect the reconstitution of the religious community that took place under Nehemiah and Ezra about 450 BC.