MARK 1.6-8: Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. (7) And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. (8) I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” (ESV)
The Old Testament ends with the prophecy by Malachi of the coming of Elijah, who will appear before the Day of the LORD and bring restoration to the nation of Israel. Many people thought that literally Elijah himself would return from heaven and carry out this task.
But we learn from the language and message of the angel Gabriel to Zechariah, John’s father, in Luke 1.13-17, that John would be the person who carried out the mission of Elijah, regarding the coming of the Messiah (Mal.3.1) and the Day of the LORD (Mal.4.5).
John’s mission and emphasis was for the people of Israel to be restored to God and ready for the coming of the Messiah, which are to take place before the Day of the LORD. This Day of the LORD is God’s day of judgment at the end of time on earth for unbelievers, and His day of salvation for believers. It also seems reasonable to conclude that the coming of the Messiah is also the coming of the Day of the LORD in a sense, because the Messiah, as Jesus taught about Himself, is the LORD, just as God the Father is the LORD.
And so in the manner and style of Elijah as depicted in 1 Kings 17 thru 2 Kings 2, John the Baptist began and carried out his ministry. John’s minimal clothing and food provisions in the wilderness are very much in keeping with and likened to Elijah’s manner of life, especially during the drought. It even looks as though John appeared without warning in the same way Elijah appeared without warning (1Kings 17).
In Matthew 11.7-15 Jesus confirmed that John the Baptist was the fulfillment of Elijah who was to come, affirming that the person of Malachi 3.1 and 4.5 is one and the same. Thus, Jesus combined the coming of the Messiah together with the Day of the LORD.
And so I believe that the prophecies of Malachi about the coming messenger (ch. 3.1) and the coming of Elijah (ch.4.5) are both Messianic and eschatological in mission and purpose, all wrapped up together.