MAL 4:1 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

OET (OET-RV) “Yes, listen, the day that burns like a furnace is coming, when all the arrogant people and all the evildoers will become useless pieces of dry stalks in a field. The day that is coming will burn them up,” says army-commander Yahweh, “so they’ll be gone without leaving any roots or branches.

Key: khaki:verbs, red:negative, green:YHWH.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all of the arrogant and all of the doers of wickedness will be stubble. And the coming day will kindle them,” says Yahweh of Armies, “so that it will not leave to them root or branch.

UST Yahweh, the commander of the heavenly armies, says, “Pay attention! The time is coming when I am going to judge people. People will feel their guilt intensely, as if they were standing in front of a hot furnace. At that time, I will destroy all proud and wicked people as if they were straw burning in a fire. I will destroy them completely, just as a fire burns up plants from top to bottom.

BSB “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, [when] all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble; the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,” says the LORD of Hosts. “Not a root or branch will be left to them.”

OEB ‘The day is coming that will burn like a furnace, and all the proud and all evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming will burn them up,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘leaving neither root nor branch.

CSB “For look, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, when all the arrogant and everyone who commits wickedness will become stubble. The coming day will consume them,” says the LORD of Armies, “not leaving them root or branches.

NLT The LORD of Heaven’s Armies says, “The day of judgment is coming, burning like a furnace. On that day the arrogant and the wicked will be burned up like straw. They will be consumed—roots, branches, and all.

NIV “Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and the day that is coming will set them on fire,” says the LORD Almighty. “Not a root or a branch will be left to them.

CEV The day of judgment is certain to come. And it will be like a red-hot furnace with flames that burn up proud and sinful people, as though they were straw. Not a branch or a root will be left. I, the LORD All-Powerful, have spoken!

ESV “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble. The day that is coming shall set them ablaze, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

NASB “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.”

LSB “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace; and all the arrogant and every worker of wickedness will be chaff; and the day that is coming will set them aflame,” says Yahweh of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.”

WEBBE “For behold, the day comes, burning like a furnace, when all the proud and all who work wickedness will be stubble. The day that comes will burn them up,” says the LORD of Armies, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

WMBB “For behold, the day comes, burning like a furnace, when all the proud and all who work wickedness will be stubble. The day that comes will burn them up,” says the LORD of Hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

MSG The Sun of Righteousness Will Dawn (1-3) “Count on it: The day is coming, raging like a forest fire. All the arrogant people who do evil things will be burned up like stove wood, burned to a crisp, nothing left but scorched earth and ash—a black day. But for you, sunrise! The sun of righteousness will dawn on those who honor my name, healing radiating from its wings. You will be bursting with energy, like colts frisky and frolicking. And you’ll tromp on the wicked. They’ll be nothing but ashes under your feet on that Day.” God-of-the-Angel-Armies says so.

NET “For indeed the day is coming, burning like a furnace, and all the arrogant evildoers will be chaff. The coming day will burn them up,” says the Lord who rules over all. “It will not leave even a root or branch.

LSV “For behold, the day has come, burning as a furnace,
When all the proud and all those doing wickedness have been stubble,
And the day that came has burned them,” said YHWH of Hosts,
“That there is not left to them root or branch,

FBV Watch out! The day is coming—it burns like an oven—when the proud and the wicked will be burned like straw. When that day comes they will be completely burned up, root and branch, says the Lord Almighty.

T4T This is also what the Commander of the armies of angels says: “There will be a time that I will judge and punish people. When that happens, it will be like [SIM] a very hot furnace. At that time, all the proud and wicked people will be burned up like [MET] stubble burns. They will be burned up completely, like roots and branches and everything else on a tree burns completely in a very hot fire.

LEB No LEB MAL 4:1 verse available

NRSV See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble; the day that comes shall burn them up, says the LORD of hosts, so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.

NKJV “For behold, the day is coming, Burning like an oven, And all the proud, yes, all who do wickedly will be stubble. And the day which is coming shall burn them up,” Says the LORD of hosts, “That will leave them neither root nor branch.

NAB For the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble, And the day that is coming will set them on fire, leaving them neither root nor branch, says the d LORD d* of hosts.

BBE For see, the day is coming, it is burning like an oven; all the men of pride and all who do evil will be dry stems of grass: and in the day which is coming they will be burned up, says the Lord of armies, till they have not a root or a branch.

Moff For the Day is coming, burning like an oven; worldly men and evildoers shall be straw then, and the Day to come (the Lord of hosts declares) shall set them all ablaze, leaving them neither root nor branch.

JPS (3-19) For, behold, the day cometh, it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall set them ablaze, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

ASV For, behold, the day cometh, it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith Jehovah of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

DRA For behold the day shall come kindled as a furnace: and all the proud, and all that do wickedly shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall set them on fire, saith the Lord of hosts, it shall not leave them root, nor branch.

YLT For, lo, the day hath come, burning as a furnace, And all the proud, and every wicked doer, have been stubble, And burnt them hath the day that came, Said Jehovah of Hosts, That there is not left to them root or branch,

Drby For behold, the day cometh, burning as a furnace; and all the proud and all that work wickedness shall be stubble; and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith Jehovah of hosts, so that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

RV For, behold, the day cometh, it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
(For, behold, the day cometh/comes, it burneth as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh/comes shall burn them up, saith/says the LORD of hosts/armies, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. )

SLT For behold, the day coming, burning as a furnace; and all the proud and all doing injustice were straw: and the day coming burnt them, said Jehovah of armies, that it shall not leave to them root and branch.

Wbstr For behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.

KJB-1769 For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh shall burn them up, saith the LORD of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.
(For, behold, the day cometh/comes, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble: and the day that cometh/comes shall burn them up, saith/says the LORD of hosts/armies, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch. )

KJB-1611 ¶ For beholde, the day commeth, that shall burne as an ouen, and all the proud, yea and all that doe wickedly shalbe stubble: and the day that commeth, shal burne them vp, saith the LORD of hostes, that it shall leaue them neither roote nor branch.
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from punctuation)

Bshps For marke, the day commeth burning like an ouen: and all the proude, and all that worke wickednesse shalbe stubble, and the day that is for to come shall burne them, saith the Lorde of hoastes, and shall leaue them neither roote, nor braunche.
(For marke, the day cometh/comes burning like an oven: and all the proud, and all that work wickedness shall be stubble, and the day that is for to come shall burn them, saith/says the Lord of hosts/armies, and shall leave them neither root, nor branch.)

Gnva For behold, the day commeth that shall burne as an ouen, and all the proude, yea, and all that doe wickedly, shall be stubble, and the day that commeth, shall burne them vp, sayeth the Lord of hostes, and shall leaue them neither roote nor branche.
(For behold, the day cometh/comes that shall burn as an oven, and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble, and the day that cometh/comes, shall burn them up, saith/says the Lord of hosts/armies, and shall leave them neither root nor branche. )

Cvdl For marck, the daye commeth that shall burne as an oue: and all the proude, yee and all soch as do wickednesse, shalbe straw: and the daye that is for to come, shall burne the vp (sayeth the LORDE of hoostes) so that it shal leaue them nether rote ner braunch.
(For marck, the day cometh/comes that shall burn as an oue: and all the proud, ye/you_all and all such as do wickedness, shall be straw: and the day that is for to come, shall burn the up (saith/says the LORD of hosts/armies) so that it shall leave them neither root nor branch.)

Wycl For lo! a dai schal come, brennynge as a chymenei; and alle proude men, and alle doynge vnpitee schulen be stobul; and the dai comynge schal enflaume hem, seith the Lord of oostis, which schal not leeue to hem rote and buriownyng.
(For lo! a day shall come, burning as a chimney; and all proud men, and all doing unpity/not_pity should be stobul; and the day coming shall enflaume hem, saith/says the Lord of hosts/armies, which shall not leave to hem root and buriowning.)

Luth No Luth MAL 4:1 verse available

ClVg Ecce enim dies veniet succensa quasi caminus: et erunt omnes superbi et omnes facientes impietatem stipula: et inflammabit eos dies veniens, dicit Dominus exercituum, quæ non derelinquet eis radicem et germen.
(Behold because days will_come heated as_if caminus: and they_will_be everyone proud and everyone they_will_does impiety/irreverence stipula: and inflammabit them days coming, he_says Master hosts/soldiers, which not/no derelinquet to_them root and germen. )

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 4:1–6: One day the LORD will come and judge all people

In the Hebrew text these verses are still part of chapter 3 and are numbered 3:19–24. Some English translations follow that Hebrew verse numbering, but in this book, the notes follow the more common English convention. It is recommended that you follow the numbering system of the versions used most in your area.

4:1

Notice that 4:1 uses the same image of refining that was used in 3:1–3.

The LORD is still speaking in 4:1, but the Hebrew text does not make this explicit until 4:1d. In some languages it may be helpful to change this order and begin the verse with this speech clause. For example:

The Lord Almighty says, “The day is coming…” (GNT)

4:1a

“For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace,

¶ “Listen^(plur). The day is coming soon, a day that will be like a burning fire in an oven.
¶ “Beware^(plur). The day when I will judge people is certainly coming. The punishment I pronounce on that day will be like a huge fire in a furnace.

For: The Hebrew word ki which the BSB translates as For introduces a clause which further explains the time when the event in 3:18 would happen. The clause uses figures of speech to explain how people would know the difference between righteous people and wicked ones. Try to find a natural way to express this connection in your translation. In some languages the connection may be implied and may not require a connector in the text.

behold: The Hebrew word hinneh which the BSB translates as behold was also used in 2:3a and 3:1a. In the same way as it was used in those verses, it is used here to draw attention to what follows. In this context it also announces something which was certain to happen soon because it was the LORD who would cause it to happen.

the day is coming: This refers to the day/time when the LORD will come to judge everyone. In other parts of the Bible, this time is called “the day of the LORD.” In this context it may refer to a time period longer than a 24-hour day.

In this verse day is also used as a figure of speech. It refers to what will happen on that day, that is, the way the LORD will judge/punish people.

burning like a furnace: This verse uses a simile to compare the day when the LORD will judge people to a furnace or large oven where people/things could be burned up. On that day the LORD will punish people severely and destroy them like the fire in a furnace burns things and destroys them.

In some languages it may not be natural to compare a day with a furnace. It may be necessary to make the meaning explicit. For example:

The day when I judge people will certainly come. The judgements of that day will be like fire in an oven…

4:1b

when all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble;

It will destroy all the people who are proud, and all the people who do evil. They will be like dry grass/straw that immediately burns in a fire.
I will destroy all the people who are proud and all the people who do evil.

all the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble: There is a metaphor here. In 4:1a the day of judgement was compared to a furnace which would burn people/things up. In this part of the verse those who are proud and do evil are compared to stubble.

the arrogant: This is the same word which was used in 3:15a. You should translate it in a similar way here.

evildoer: The Hebrew word used here is very similar in meaning to the one which the BSB translates as “wicked” in 3:18a. It refers to people who do what is evil, that is, what the LORD considers to be wrong. If possible you should use the same term here as you did in 3:18.

stubble: The Hebrew word which the BSB translates as stubble refers to the straw which remains after the wheat grains have been removed during the harvest. It burns easily because it is very dry.

General Comment on 4:1b

In some languages it may not be clear how the arrogant and evil people are like stubble. The idea is probably that they will be destroyed very easily and quickly on the day of judgement. It may sometimes be necessary to make the meaning explicit in your translation. For example:

All the people who are arrogant and who do evil will be destroyed as quickly as stubble burns up.

4:1c

the day is coming when I will set them ablaze,”

On that day they will be burnt/destroyed completely,”

the day is coming when I will set them ablaze: This sentence continues to use the word day as a figure of speech. It represents the judgements which will happen on that day. In some languages this meaning must be made explicit. For example:

On that day of judgement that is coming I will destroy them completely.

set them ablaze: The Hebrew expression which the BSB translates as set them ablaze is different from the word which the BSB translated as “burning” in 4:1a. The expression here can be used literally to describe burning something completely, until it is only ashes. Here it is probably used as a figure of speech. It means that the people would be completely destroyed when the LORD judged them.

4:1d

says the LORD of Hosts.

Yahweh Sabaot declares,
Yahweh Sabaot says to you^(plur),

says the LORD of Hosts: The speech clause, says the LORD of Hosts (or “says the LORD”) occurs many times throughout the text. It emphasizes again and again that this is a direct message from the LORD. See the note on 1:2b, 1:6e, 3:5j and 3:7e. See note 1 in “Literary structure and recurring features in Malachi” in the Introduction.

Notice that in the BSB this clause occurs after the speech. This is good English style. You should place it wherever is natural in your language.

the LORD of Hosts: This special title for the LORD occurs twenty-four times in Malachi. See the note on 3:1f. See also the discussion of this term in the Key biblical terms in the book of Malachi section in the Introduction.

4:1e

“Not a root or branch will be left to them.”

“like a plant/tree/bush that burns so completely that not a single root or branch remains.”
“no single branch/twig, no root, will remain.”
“so that nothing at all remains of them.”

Not a root or branch will be left to them: This expression again emphasizes complete destruction. It symbolizes this destruction by using a figure of speech. The evil-doers would be like a plant which the LORD would completely destroy, even with all of its roots and branches.

If a literal translation is not clear in your language, there are at least two other possibilities:

Use a simile. For example:
They will be consumed like a tree—roots and all. (NLT)
Translate the meaning directly without the figure of speech. For example:
and there will be nothing left of them. (GNT)

Use an option which is clear and natural in your language.

General Comment on 4:1a–e

In this verse the LORD uses a word picture to express what the day of judgement will be like. The picture has at least three parts:

That day (or the punishments on that day) will be like a great fire in a furnace.
Evil people will be destroyed like stubble is destroyed in a fire.
They will be like a plant/tree that is completely burned up with all its roots and branches.

In some languages it may be difficult to use all of these word pictures in this verse. If that is true in your language, you may need to omit some of the details of the word picture. For example, GNT does not mention the “furnace” or “branches and roots.”

The day is coming when all proud and evil people will burn like straw. On that day they will burn up, and there will be nothing left of them.

Express the meaning in a vivid, clear and natural way in your language.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

הִנֵּ֤ה

(hinnēh)

Yahweh is speaking as if he wanted his listeners to behold or look at something. He is using this term to focus his listeners’ attention on what he is about to say. Your language may have a comparable expression that you can use in your translation.

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

בֹּעֵ֖ר כַּ⁠תַּנּ֑וּר וְ⁠הָי֨וּ כָל־זֵדִ֜ים וְ⁠כָל־עֹשֵׂ֤ה רִשְׁעָה֙ קַ֔שׁ

(boˊēr ka⁠ttannūr və⁠hāyū kāl-zēdim və⁠kāl-ˊosēh rishˊāh qash)

Yahweh is speaking of the day of judgment as if it were an oven that would be burning people. If it would be clearer in your language, you could express this image as a comparison. Alternate translation: [when I will destroy all of the arrogant people and all of the doers of wickedness as if they were stubble being burned in an oven]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj

כָל־זֵדִ֜ים

(kāl-zēdim)

Yahweh is using the adjective arrogant as a noun to mean a certain kind of person. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you can translate this adjective with an equivalent phrase. Alternate translation: [all arrogant people]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / abstractnouns

וְ⁠כָל־עֹשֵׂ֤ה רִשְׁעָה֙

(və⁠kāl-ˊosēh rishˊāh)

If your language does not use an abstract noun for the idea of wickedness, you could express the same idea in another way. Alternate translation: [all of the people who do wicked things]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

וְ⁠הָי֨וּ כָל־זֵדִ֜ים וְ⁠כָל־עֹשֵׂ֤ה רִשְׁעָה֙ קַ֔שׁ

(və⁠hāyū kāl-zēdim və⁠kāl-ˊosēh rishˊāh qash)

Yahweh is speaking of wicked people as if they were stubble that his judgment would kindle and burn up. If it would be clearer in your language, you could express this image as a comparison. Alternate translation: [when all of the arrogant and all of the doers of wickedness will be completely destroyed, as if they were stubble that was burned up]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / merism

לָ⁠הֶ֖ם שֹׁ֥רֶשׁ וְ⁠עָנָֽף

(lā⁠hem shoresh və⁠ˊānāf)

Yahweh is speaking of two extremes in order to include them and everything in between. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or plain language. Alternate translation: [any part of them remaining]

Parallel MAL 4:1