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So Malachi rather cryptically ends with
“See, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before that great and dreadful day of the Lord
comes. He will turn the hearts of the parents to their children, and the hearts of the
children to their parents; or else I will come and strike the land with total
destruction.”
~ Malachi 4:5-6
Now the most common interpretation I’ve come across is that "Elijah" is fulfilled in John the Baptist. John is the prophet that comes before the Lord and this "messenger"/"fore-runner" idea is echoed throughout Malachi.
However.
This passage from the gospel of John:
They asked him, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?”
He said, “I am not.”
“Are you the Prophet?”
He answered, “No.”
~ John 1:21
John denies being Elijah. Of course he could be denying being the ACTUAL Elijah, which is who the Jews were expecting. But then after the Transfiguration, this exchange occurs:
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus instructed them, “Don’t tell anyone what you have seen, until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”
The disciples asked him, “Why then do the teachers of the law say that Elijah must come first?”
Jesus replied, “To be sure, Elijah comes and will restore all things. But I tell you, Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him, but have done to him everything they wished. In the same way the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands.” Then the disciples understood that he was talking to them about John the Baptist.
~ Matthew 17:9-13
So why would John the Baptist deny being "Elijah"? Even if he was not THE Elijah, surely he would understand what they meant and a simple "No, but…" would’ve been enough.
What to make of his response?
