The Book of Malachi was written by a prophet named Malachi, who is directly identified as the author in the text itself (Malachi 1:1). The name "Malachi" means "my messenger" in Hebrew, which points to his role as a prophet delivering God's message to the people of Israel. While some scholars and Jewish tradition suggest that Malachi might be a title or pseudonym and possibly that Ezra the scribe wrote the book under this name, the straightforward reading and majority of textual and historical evidence support the view that Malachi was an actual prophet distinct from Ezra. Malachi prophesied to the people of Judah after the rebuilding of the temple around the mid-5th century BCE, addressing issues of worship and covenant faithfulness amid spiritual decline.
