3:5
The salvation will come with refining. Remember that John the Baptist said that Jesus would baptise with fire as well as the Holy Spirit, and talks explicitly of a serious refining (Matt 3:12). We need to appreciate that the gospel is about God dealing with the enormous problem of our sin. Part of this is Jesus paying the price for our guilt, taking the judgement that should have been ours. But the other part is the cleansing of our lives, the Holy Spirit sanctifying us. So there is a purging of all unrighteousness, and the specific examples listed here are: sorcerers, adulterers, liars, those who oppress workers and other needy groups, those who do not welcome travellers, and those who do not fear the Lord. All these “sins” are ultimately a consequence of not fearing the Lord, and fearing the Lord is a very good antidote to sin!
3:6
The Lord declares His commitment to Judah. Why is Judah not consumed completely? Because of the Lord’s unchanging nature. He had made a covenant with Israel and this would be kept. Sending His Son was the key element in the keeping of that covenant. We can also apply this to Israel today. It is amazing that Israel has not been “consumed”, especially when one considers all of her history. The reason is the Lord’s covenant with her.
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