the book of malachi, is the last of the books of the old testament. the book is made up of four chapters and a total of fifty-five verses. the word malachi means "my messenger". it is unknown if this is a name or if it describes the work of the writer. there are very few historical details in the book of malachi. the best clue as to its dating may be the persian term for governor (pehâ) is used in chapter 1 verse 8. this could mean that it was written after the time when the jews were in persia. in the same verse, the temple has been rebuilt, the book must also be later than 515 bc. the author of ecclesiasticus early in the 2nd century bc used some of the themes in the book of malachi, so most scholars assign it to a position after haggai and zechariah, close to the time of ezra and when nehemiah came to jerusalem in 445 bc. since the book talks about things that are common in religion, it could have been given at most any time. this leaves some doubt about the date.