400 Years of Silence

The Old Testament ends with the book of Malachi. The last verse of Malachi 4:5-6....

"See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before that great and dreadful day of the LORD comes. He will turn the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers; or else I will come and strike the land with a curse." (NIV)

"Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes. And he shall turn and reconcile the hearts of the [estranged] fathers to the [ungodly] children, and the hearts of the [rebellious] children to [the piety of] their fathers [a reconciliation produced by repentance of the ungodly], lest I come and smite the land with a curse and a ban of utter destruction." (Amplified)

Malachi reveals how the people of God offered blemished sacrifices, dishonored God, violated the covenant with Levi, broke committments with God. Zechariah offers more insight in Zechariah 7:11-13 about the people of God who didn't pay attention, wouldn't listen, turned their backs and harden their hearts.

Finally God stop listening for 400 long years. All around were Gentile, Roman and Greek religions with multiple gods. The one true God was silent. There is complete silence between the Old and New Testament.

In the fullness of time, God spoke again .....