The book of Malachi is seldom referenced in Christian devotion or worship, with a rareexception being its use as an offering appeal during public worship. But is there more toMalachi than an offering appeal? Furthermore, what is the purpose of the strong curse at theend of the text that leads many Jewish people to this day to avoid ending the reading of thebook with its last verse?In 'Blessing and Cursing in Malachi: A Reader-Oriented Approach,' the text of Malachi isexplored to uncover fresh insights, particularly concerning the themes of blessing and cursing.Three consecutive and complementary steps are taken to explore the book: a syntacticanalysis, revealing the organization and flow of the text; a semantic analysis, uncoveringthemes and their relationships; and a communication analysis, examining the interactionbetween the Text-Internal Author and the Text-Internal Reader.The analyses reveal that blessing and cursing, although used differently compared to otherparts of the Hebrew Bible, constitute an effective means of guiding the Text-Internal Readerto a proper relationship with the divine and their community.
