Contingent Prophecy: How the Kingdom Would Have Been Established if Israel Had Accepted Her King

To answer this, we must treat the offer of the kingdom to Israel in the first century as a genuine offer. The prophets present a scenario in which Israel could have received her King and another scenario in which she rejects Him and faces judgment. Malachi provides a particularly clear window into these contingencies.

subsection*1. Malachi 3:1--4: the "sudden" coming to the temple

Malachi 3:1 says:

• "Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts."

Here we see:

• A messenger who prepares the way before the Lord. This aligns with John the Baptist.
• "The Lord, whom ye seek" is presented as one in whom Israel delights and who suddenly comes to His temple.
• He is called "the messenger of the covenant," the one who brings and administers the covenant promised to Israel.

The term "suddenly" suggests an unexpected, decisive arrival at the temple in Jerusalem. Had Israel received Him as King, this "sudden" coming would have been the inauguration point of His rule in the holy city.

Malachi continues:

• "But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old, and as in former years." (Mal 3:2--4)

If Israel had accepted Him:

• He would have come to His temple as King and Judge.
• He would have purified the priesthood ("the sons of Levi") and restored acceptable worship.
• The offerings of Judah and Jerusalem would again have been "pleasant unto the LORD."

That is, He would have inaugurated His reign in Jerusalem, beginning with judgment and purification of Israel's religious leadership, followed by the restoration of righteous worship and national fellowship with God.

subsection*2. Malachi 4:5--6: the alternative scenario of curse

In Malachi 4, we have another scenario:

• "For, behold, the day cometh, that shall burn as an oven; and all the proud, yea, and all that do wickedly, shall be stubble..." (Mal 4:1)

Toward the end we read:

• "Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD: And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." (Mal 4:5--6)

Here again:

1. Elijah (represented in history by John the Baptist's ministry) is sent to turn Israel's heart.
2. There is a clear "if/then" structure: beginitemize
3. If Elijah's ministry results in national turning, the Lord's coming will be in blessing.
4. If it does not, the Lord will "smite the earth with a curse."

endenumerate

Malachi presents two mutually exclusive paths:

• Path A (acceptance): The Lord is delighted in, suddenly comes to His temple, purifies Israel, and restores worship.
• Path B (rejection): The nation does not turn, and the Lord comes instead in judgment and curse.

These two cannot both occur. The prophets present a real contingency based on Israel's response.

subsection*3. What would the "immediate scenario" have looked like?

If "the whole Israel" had accepted Jesus as King at His first coming, the prophetic outline would look like this:

1. John the Baptist's ministry succeeds nationally The preparatory ministry ("my messenger") turns the hearts of Israel's leaders and people toward their Messiah. They receive his testimony about "the Lamb of God" and about the coming kingdom.
2. Israel publicly receives her King Instead of rejecting and crucifying Him, the nation---especially its leadership---delights in Him as the Lord and the messenger of the covenant.
3. The Lord "suddenly" comes to His temple Whether this "suddenly" denotes a single day, a brief period, or a relatively rapid historical transition, the sense is that there is an abrupt, decisive arrival of the King in His holy dwelling in Jerusalem, now recognized as His own.
4. Immediate judicial and priestly purification As Malachi says, He would be "like a refiner's fire." He would "purify the sons of Levi" and purge the priesthood and worship system, eliminating corruption and restoring purity.
5. Restoration of acceptable worship and national fellowship "Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the LORD, as in the days of old." The sacrificial system, now under the Messiah's reign and in anticipation of the new covenant's full realization, would be restored to its intended place of righteousness within the kingdom.
6. The kingdom order unfolds from Jerusalem With the King enthroned, temple worship purified, and the nation brought into covenant fidelity, the kingdom of God on earth would proceed to develop in accordance with the prophetic promises: Israel restored, the nations blessed through her, and the Messiah ruling from Zion.

This scenario is rooted "according to the prophets," not in theological speculation. The prophets present a genuine, contingent offer: acceptance would have led to the sudden enthronement of the Messiah in Jerusalem and the immediate beginning of His purifying, ruling work at the temple.

subsection*4. What actually happened

Historically, Israel did not embrace this scenario. The leadership largely rejected both John the Baptist and Jesus. Instead of delighting in Him, they despised and rejected Him. Consequently:

• He did not "suddenly come to his temple" in the sense of enthroning Himself as King at that time.
• The alternative path of judgment and curse comes into view, culminating in what later prophets and apostles identify as the time of Jacob's trouble and the future day of the Lord.

The prophetic texts, therefore, reveal a real conditional structure in God's dealings with Israel. The kingdom offer at the first coming was genuine; had Israel accepted her King, the immediate establishment of His rule from Jerusalem, beginning with temple purification and covenant restoration, would have followed.