person · P0052
Malachi מלאכי
Last of the prophets. His book closes the prophetic canon with the charge "Remember the Torah of Moshe My servant" — the handoff from prophecy to transmission — and the promise of Eliyahu's return. A named member of the Anshei Knesset HaGedolah in Rambam's listing; the Gemara debates whether "Malachi" is a proper name or a title for Mordechai or Ezra.
I. Who
- Hebrew
- מלאכי
- Era
- second-temple
- Received the mesorah from
- Baruch ben Neriah
- Colleagues
- Chaggai, Zechariah (the prophet)
II. When
- Traditional
- c. 3390–3448 AM
- Academic
- usually dated c. 475–450 BCE
- Lifespan (traditional)
- ≈58 years
- Precision
- approximate
III. Where
- Places
- Jerusalem
V. How do we know
| Claim | Evidence | Confidence | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| A member of the court of Ezra — the Men of the Great Assembly — in Rambam's enumeration; with the death of Chaggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, the ruach hakodesh departed from Israel.
Confidence is for the chain as stated by the Rambam and Gemara. |
rabbinic | ★★★★★ | |
| "The burden of the word of God to Israel by the hand of Malachi"; his book ends with "Remember the Torah of Moshe My servant, which I commanded him at Chorev."
Confidence is for what the biblical text states. |
biblical | ★★★★★ | |
| The Gemara records a dispute over his identity: Rav Nachman said Malachi is Mordechai; Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korchah said Malachi is Ezra; and the Sages said Malachi was his actual name.
Disputed within the sugya itself; the atlas keeps Malachi as a distinct entry per the Sages' view.
|
rabbinic | ★★☆☆☆ | |
| Traditional placement within the Great Assembly era, c. 3390–3448 AM; academic dating usually c. 475–450 BCE, between the Temple's completion and Ezra's reforms. The traditional/academic divergence of ~166 years in the Persian period applies; systems stated separately.
Schematic traditional dating. |
tradition reconstruction | ★★☆☆☆ |