A Book of Remembrance

Malachi 3:16 (NKJV)

Then those who feared the Lord spoke to one another, And the Lord listened and heard them; So a book of remembrance was written before Him For those who fear the Lord And who meditate on His name.

I have always viewed this verse as the people who were faithful to God having fellowship with each other then writing a book about all the things God has done for them as a keepsake. That is a good thing, like keeping a journal of your spiritual journey with the Lord. In fact, the Old testament is really just that, a history of God's dealings with the Israelites. But looking at this verse more closely, I realize that it is God writing the book in this case. Of course with the inspiration of scripture, God wrote the bible too. But I see this as a special book. The verse says that it was written "before Him" which I take to mean in his presence. And the occasion was that God had listened and heard the people speaking to each other about spiritual matters. He was pleased and this book represents God's awareness of everything we do. This book however will be used to judge our works, not for the purpose of deciding our fate, but rather for the purpose of reward.

Revelation 22:12 (NKJV)

"And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.