Matthew 17:11

Elias truly, etc.] RV 'Elijah indeed cometh, and shall restore all things.' The future 'shall restore' is best explained as a quotation of the exact words of the scribes, and not as a prophecy that Elijah will come in person to prepare the way for Christ's Second Advent, though some understood it to mean this. Restore all things] see Malachi 4:6; Acts 3:21. The Baptist, to whom Jesus alluded, did not in fact 'restore all things,' nor bring about the perfect moral purification anticipated by the prophet Malachi, but that was the fault of his hearers. The possibility of the Baptist's failure was distinctly contemplated by Malachi, for he adds, 'lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.' Malachi spoke of, and Christ understood by his words, a moral restoration of the nation. The scribes looked for the restoration of the pot of manna, stricter ceremonies, and similar frivolities.