1. Malachi 3:14 (ESV)
  2. Exposition

What does “keeping [the LORD’s] charge” mean?

Malachi 3:14 (ESV)

14 You have said, ‘It is vain to serve God. What is the profit of our keeping his charge or of walking as in mourning before the LORD of hosts?

The charge refers to a duty that is assigned or entrusted to someone. At times, the charge is specified, as in Numbers 3:28, where the Levites were charged with guarding the sanctuary (see also 2 Chronicles 13:11; Zechariah 3:7). When the charge is not specified, it refers to the general duty of God’s people to obey God’s covenant requirements. This is illustrated in Genesis 26:5 where we read that Abraham obeyed God’s voice and kept his charge, his commandments, his statutes, and his laws.