This verse gives a simple and practical answer to the question “How shall we return?” in verse 7. Whether the people expected an answer or not, they are given one that includes both a challenge (verse 10a) and a promise (verses 10b-12).
Bring the full tithes: The mention of full tithes indicates that most or all of the people had been contributing less than they should have. Perhaps some had stopped giving tithes altogether. Translators may say “Bring the full amount of your tithes” (Good News Translation), “Bring all your tithes” (Beck), or “Bring the entire ten percent” (Contemporary English Version).
Into the storehouse: Within the Temple area there were certain spaces used for storage. See especially Neh 10.38-39; 13.4-5, 12. It is not clear exactly where they were, though Neh 13.4-10 seems to assume that they were part of the Temple building itself (compare 1 Kgs 7.51; 2 Chr 31.11). In order to show that the storehouse was a sacred rather than a secular place, Good News Translation has the more general expression “the Temple” (compare Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente). This is justified in light of the phrase my house in the following clause since that phrase definitely refers to the Temple. Translators may use the more detailed term storehouse or the broader “Temple” according to the resources of vocabulary and sentence structure in their language.
That there may be food in my house: The word here translated food often means “prey,” but clearly it has a more general sense in the present context (compare Pro 31.15). The purpose of the food was no doubt the maintenance of the priests and Levites who conducted the Temple worship. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, 2. Edition makes this clear by saying, “so that my priests will not suffer hunger,” but other translators may not need to expand as much as this. My house refers to the Temple, as in Hag 1.9; Zech 1.16; 3.7. Most versions treat the relationship between the previous clause and this one as cause-effect or reason-result; but it is also possible to regard this second clause as another command, expressed as a third person imperative. This interpretation yields “let there be food in my house” (New English Bible/Revised English Bible; similarly New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). It seems clearer, however, to express the relationship as that … or “so that…” (Good News Translation, New American Standard Bible, Jerusalem Bible/New Jerusalem Bible).
And thereby put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts: The adverb thereby indicates the link between this clause and those before it. Bringing the full tithe to the Temple in a time of shortage and hardship involved a test of faith for the people. But the LORD sets the challenge in a context of promise: If they bring in the full tithe, then the people may expect his blessing. But they have to act on their faith by bringing in the tithe first. Good News Translation has no equivalent to thereby and thus loses the connection between “Bring the full amount…” and “Put me to the test….” Contemporary English Version restructures the clauses in a helpful way: “I challenge you to put me to the test. Bring the entire ten percent into the storehouse, so there will be food in my house.”
The notion of putting God to the test usually has negative overtones, as in the classic example in Psa 95.9 (quoted in Heb 3.9) and indeed in Mal 3.15. Here, by contrast, the LORD invites the people to test him in a positive way and see whether he will bless them. For translators this may mean that a different word will be needed to render test from the word used in such places as Psa 95.9. This more positive aspect is retained in the words “prove me” (King James Version, Revised Version), which is expressed in more formal English as “Put me to the proof” (New English Bible/Revised English Bible).
At this point the quotation formula says the LORD of hosts seems to be marking the climax of the paragraph in the LORD’s extraordinary offer to be tested. A quotation formula may or may not be an appropriate way to mark a climax in a particular language. It is simply omitted in Good News Translation and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, 1. Edition. A good attempt to represent its effect in a different form is made in Bible en français courant: “You can put me to the proof in this matter, me, the LORD of the universe.” Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente restructures the verse, ending it with “I, the LORD of the universe, promise you this.” Translators should try to mark this climax in some way appropriate to the discourse patterns of their language.
If I will not open the windows of heaven for you: This is a literal rendering of the Hebrew clause structure, which begins with “if not.” This kind of link with the previous clause is reasonably clear in English, but it may be highly confusing in other languages. It may lead readers to misinterpret the word not and conclude that the LORD is refusing to bless the people. In fact, this construction in Hebrew is an emphatic affirmation that the LORD will bless, and it will often be helpful to restructure so as to remove the negative. Good News Translation has “you will see that I will open…” (similarly Bible en français courant), and New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh has “I will surely open…” (similarly Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente).
The windows of heaven is a figurative phrase based on the ancient world-view of a dome over the earth holding back the waters in the heavens (compare Gen 1.6-8). It was when the windows of heaven were opened that the flood began (Gen 7.11); and when they were closed again, it stopped (Gen 8.2). The opening of the windows of heaven here, however, is not the start of judgment but of blessing; that is, it is a reversal of what happened at the time of the flood. When the windows are open, there will be adequate rainfall instead of the drought that had apparently been experienced (compare Deut 28.12). In some languages such as English, the metaphor windows of heaven is acceptable and fairly understandable, but in other languages it may not be. Other possibilities are “floodgates of heaven” (New American Bible, Jerusalem Bible/New Jerusalem Bible, New International Version) or the more technical “sluices of heaven” (Moffatt; similarly Bible de Jérusalem, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Bible en français courant). Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente has “gates of heaven.” If no figurative noun phrase can be found, it may be necessary to express the meaning of the whole clause in some other imaginative way, such as “I will flood you with blessings” or “I will shower you with blessings.” If all else fails, translators could say “I will give abundant rain” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, 1. Edition).
And pour down for you an overflowing blessing: The verb pour is a metaphor that treats blessing as if it were a liquid. In a context where rain is probably meant, this is very appropriate. Revised Standard Version maintains the metaphor of a liquid with overflowing (as also do New Revised Standard Version, Bible en français courant, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch). The Hebrew phrase behind this has been understood in different senses, but its general meaning is clear. If translators can maintain the liquid metaphor as Revised Standard Version has, this is probably the best thing to do. Other possibilities are “pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it” (New International Version; similarly King James Version, Revised Version, New King James Version , New Living Translation), “pour out blessing for you in abundance” (Jerusalem Bible; similarly New Jerusalem Bible, Bible de Jérusalem, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), “pour down blessing upon you without measure” (New American Bible), and “pour a blessing on you as long as there is need” (New English Bible/Revised English Bible). Blessing is a very general term, and if possible, it should be translated with a broad meaning. As the next verse shows in more detail, it is primarily related to agricultural success, and this could be stated if necessary; for example, “I will cause your lands to overflow with crops [or, fruit].” The Good News Translation rendering “all kinds of good things” is not incorrect, but it is both rather long and rather vague.
Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Malachi. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .