Malachi 4:3

And ye shall tread down the wicked,.... As grapes in the winepress, as Christ did before them, Isaiah 63:2 and they by virtue of him; who makes them more than conquerors through himself, over all

And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in

And ye: see . Shall tread down the wicked: now the ungodly, proud, and atheistical despisers of God, providence, and future judgments. do tread down those that fear God and are godly, but it shall not be so always; that word, ,11, and that, , and that, , shall be fulfilled in the overthrow of the bad, and in the triumphs of the good. But, more particularly, this treading seems to be intended of those who, after the sacking and burning of Jerusalem, should return either to view the ruins. or to dwell there, and so should, in going lip and down. tread upon the wicked, either buried in the ruins or consumed to ashes. For they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet: by this it appears that these preserved ones did not barbarously tread upon the entire bodies of the wicked, but upon the ashes of those bodies, by the fire consumed and turned into ashes, and mixed with the ashes of their houses and goods. In the day that I shall do this; burn Jerusalem and the temple, with the citizens and priests whose carcasses were slain by the sword, or their persons, surprised with the flames, shall be burnt up. And so both this and much of the first verse may be literally understood, and was so fulfilled by Titus and his soldiers, A.D. 73.

Malachi 4:3 And ye shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet in the day that I shall do [this], saith the LORD of hosts.Ver. 3. And ye shall tread down the wicked] Christ, the champion of his Church, hath already won the field, and will shortly set his people’ s feet upon the necks of all their enemies. The broken horns of Satan himself shall be the trumpets of their triumph and the cornets of their joy, Romans 16:20. See what honour all the saints have in this respect, Psalms 149:7-9; see what comfort, John 16:33; see what conquests, Romans 8:37. How much more at the last day, when the thrones shall be set, &c., Matthew 19:28. Rabbi David Kimchi understands this text to be temporal victories only. And no wonder, as being a Jew, and minding earthly things, he ascends no higher. Such grasshoppers, if at any time they leap above the earth, they soon fall down to it again; and as they are of the earth, so they speak of the earth, and the earth hears them. Petrus a Figniero writing upon those words in the former chapter, Malachi 3:12 "For ye shall be a delightsome land," Nota modum loquendi, saith he: mark that expression, He saith not your land shall be a delightsome land, but "ye shall be," &c. Forte enim tacite Iudaeos percellit terrain eos vocando. It may be the Lord hereby, closely meets with them for their earthly mindedness; as those that by promise of earthly blessings were soonest prevailed with to serve God, when as these should have been but as steps or stirrups to mount their hearts up to a desire of the things above. Victory in their sense is doubtless a special mercy; and is so promised to the obedient, Deuteronomy 28:13 "The Lord shall make thee the head, and not the tail; and thou shalt be above only, and not beneath," &c. Hence the Israelites, delivered from the Egyptians at the Red Sea, sang, "The Lord is a man of war," Exodus 15:3; the Chaldee there hath it, The Lord and victor of wars. The Grecians delivered from the Persians (vanquished and driven out by Themistocles), called their Jupiter thereupon, Eλευθεριος, the deliverer. It was the thankful acknowledgment of generals, captains, and soldiers at Edge Hill fight, that the Lord was seen in the mount, never less of man in such a business, never more of God. But what shall it profit a man to conquer countries, and yet be vanquished of vices? to tread upon his enemies, and yet be taken captive by the devil at his pleasure? 2 Timothy 2:26, to command the whole world, as those Persian kings, and yet were commanded by their concubines, so by their base lusts, by yielding whereunto they give place unto the very devil, and receive them into their very bosoms, Ephesians 4:27, who there hence leads them away naked and barefoot, as the Assyrians did the Egyptians, Isaiah 20:2.

(3) Tread down.—Comp. Isaiah 26:5-6. That I shall do this.—Better, which I am about to make. (Comp. Malachi 3:17.)

Verse 3. Ye shall tread down] This may be the commission given to the Romans: Tread down the wicked people, tread down the wicked place; set it on fire, and let the ashes be trodden down under your feet.

3. ashes] to which the “stubble” has been reduced, Malachi 4:1. that I shall do this] Rather, when I do, or work. See note on Malachi 3:17.

And ye shall tread down the wicked, for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet. It shall be a great reversal.

Malachi 4:1-3 are closely connected with Malachi 3:18. These verses describe the judgment to be executed upon the wicked (1), and the blessing to be poured upon the good (2, 3).