Haggai

The days of prophesy were waning; less and less do we find God speaking through prophets to His people. Also we see a change in the way time frames are referenced, from marking events by the name of the Israelite king to referencing the name of the leaders of their conquerors, (there were no more autonomous kings among the Jews); i.e. Haggai 1:1, (“In the 2^nd year of Darius” king of Persia), and continuing, in most cases through Luke 3:1, (“Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar,” emperor of Rome). This is all part of the final preparation for the coming of Christ, the shift from earthly rule to heavenly; from men as kings to the King of kings and Lord of lords; a shift from emphasis on physical kingdoms to the spiritual Kingdom. Jesus said, “My kingdom is not of this world”, John 18:36.

Haggai was a contemporary of Zechariah and Zerubabel. He was probably born in Jerusalem and was perhaps a young boy when taken to Babylon by Nebudchadnezzar. This idea is supported by the reference in 2:3 to those who had seen for former temple; and if true, he was most likely an old man at this writing. His short prophesy comes about 16 years after the initial return to Jerusalem, delivering God’s message to Zerubbabel and to those who had become indifferent to the work of rebuilding the temple and had turned their attention to their own personal interests. It concludes with God’s promise of blessings. The entire scope of time covered by Haggai’s work is about 4 months, (from the 6^th to the 9^th month of the 2^nd year of Darius II, the 4^th King of Persia).

Zerubbabel and the others evidently responded to God’s urging to the extent that in the concluding verse of Haggai God pronounces a blessing upon him.

Almost immediately upon returning to Jerusalem, the Jews had built an altar and worshiped God. In that first year they managed to excavate and lay the foundation. Then, when they began to face opposition from enemies who were jealous of them, they quickly became discouraged. It was convenient for them to find other things that needed their attention. They turned their efforts to their own personal lives and comfort; building their houses and finishing the interiors with cedar paneling. [By the way, cedar lumber had to be imported from a great distance. Cyrus had given them money to purchase materials for the reconstruction of the temple, and they paid loggers from Tyre and Sidon for cedar timber, (Ezra 3:7). It would appear that they had likely converted this cedar to their own personal use.] It became increasingly easy to neglect the work they needed to be doing on the house of God. Thus we find God’s question to them in 1:4.

The Jewish captives who had returned from Babylon had become so engaged in the affairs of daily life that they failed to remember the reason they were allowed to return to Jerusalem. Sure, they had initially made a start, laid the foundation. But they were quickly distracted by difficulties and by their own selfish interests. In taking their attention off of their objective they became discouraged and suffered as a result of it. There is a natural alacrity to enlarge some inconvenience, call it a ‘providential hindrance’. This is an erroneous term in that it accuses God of causing circumstances that would hinder or prevent someone from being obedient to Him. While it is certainly true that we do on occasion find ourselves in a situation that prevents us from some act of obedience, it is usually a result of choices we ourselves have made, and not an act of God. Frequently, however, the term finds its way into our language and we and use it as an excuse for not moving forward with our work. These Jews never said anything about quitting or giving up the building of the temple; they just put it off, placed other things ahead of it, and procrastinated. Haggai’s mission was to awaken their conscience, stimulate their enthusiasm and help them put things in proper perspective.

In verse 5 and again in 7 God instructs them, “Consider your ways”. This is not the first time that the house of the Lord has been neglected in favor of personal comfort and convenience; David, in 2 Samuel 7:2 said “…see now I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwelleth within curtains.” In verses 6, then in 9-11 we see the consequences of their behavior. Because they withheld energy, effort and resources from the work of building the temple, that by which they thought to prosper themselves was taken away. They had every reason to expect rich harvests from their crops, because the land had lain fallow for 70 years. Yet, their crops barely produced enough to keep them alive. In verse 9 the Lord says, “Ye looked for much and lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? Saith the Lord of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.”, A warning of similar nature appears in Isaiah 5:10. These returned exiles had no doubt longed for freedom and their own land, anticipating that they would be able to prosper by their efforts and enjoy the benefits of their labors; but, in fact, they were no better off. Man must never put his trust in the goods of this world, but in God, (Matthew 6:19; Luke 12:33).

However, notice that after Haggai delivered God’s message to them, they went right to work. They mounted a logging operation and set about their task. They were diligent, and God assured them that He was with them…once they had re-focused their priorities!

Do you think that perhaps we sometimes need to get the same message?

“For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ’s.”(Philippians 2:21). But how can this apply to us, we don’t have a Temple to rebuild, do we? 1 Corinthians 3:16-17 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are. James 4: 7, “Submit yourselves therefore to God.”

Jesus said, “But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” Matthew 6:33

Psalms 1:1-3, “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. 3 And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”

Chapter 1 is to arouse the people, to stir them up and get them to working on the temple. In chapter 2 we have a very interesting prophesy of the final preparations for the “fullness of time” referenced in Galatians 4:4. The exact date of the coming of the “fullness of time” may be determined by reading Mark 1:15: Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand;”. Haggai makes reference to the former glory of the temple built by Solomon, (verse 3), but the Lord is about to reveal a magnificent contrast. He reminds Zerubbabel and Joshua the High Priest and all the people through Haggai that He (God) has been with them, is with them and will be with them – the language “I am with you…” is found a number of times in scripture: God told Abraham, “…fear not…I am thy shield…” Genesis 15:1. In Genesis 26:24 to Isaac God said “…I am with thee…”, and to Jacob in 28:15. In Exodus 3:14 we have God’s statement to Moses declaring his eternal nature, “I am that I am…”; Jesus’ words in Matthew 28:20, “…and lo I am with you always…”. To have the assurance of the presence of the Lord is truly one of greatest blessings given to humanity. And in the certain knowledge that God is with us, then there is no place for fear.

God reminds them of His deliverance of their ancestors from Egypt (5), and then in 6 and 7 He begins to lift their view from the rubble at their feet to the true glory of God. As rich and magnificent, splendid and glorious as was the former temple, “the glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former…” God says in verse 9. Silver and Gold is not what make glory, all of those belong to God (8) because He made them. Psalms 24:1; 50:10 – “The earth is the LORD's, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. - For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.” We humans associate glory with gold and precious stones, and those things as part of God’s creation, are wonderful and beautiful and magnificent. By inspiration we are given some idea of the grandeur of Heaven in these descriptive terms: with walls of jasper, the city is pure gold like clear glass; precious stones, and pearl. Now we know that Heaven is not a physical place, but its beauty is derived from the glory of God, Revelation 21:23. These physical descriptions bring us as close as we can come with finite human knowledge to imagine just how wonderful Heaven is. God’s message through Haggai is that this new temple will be even more glorious than the first – not because of its decorations, but because of what God has planned to take place therein.

But let’s back up just a couple of verses, to statements in verses 6 and 7 of chapter 2; “Yet in a little while I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land…and I will shake all nations…”, this language is surely prophetic of things that are about to happen over the next 520 years leading up to the coming of Christ. Indeed, it is a “little while”, roughly 500 years, in comparison to the 7,000 years (or thereabout) that had elapsed since Geneses 3:15. Nebudchadnezzar II, king of Babylon (who had conquered Palestine) died in about 539 BC and was succeeded by Belshazzar. Belshazzar’s reign was cut short however by the hand writing on the wall, (Daniel 5:30), and Darius the Mede ascended to the throne. Now remember, the great Babylonian Empire which initially captured Jerusalem and all of Palestine under Nebudchadnezzar has already been taken over by the Medes and Persians in 550. Following the Belshzzar event, there seems to have been a co-regency between Darius and Cyrus. It was Darius who was tricked into signing the decree which sent Daniel to the lions den in the same year that Cyrus’ decree was written, (538 BC). The Medes fade from view and the Persians emerge dominant, as Cyrus is succeeded by Xerxes (Ahasuerus), who married Esther, ruling from 485 to 465; It was the Persian kings who gave favor to the Jews in allowing them return to Jerusalem and the rebuild the temple. Cyrus gave the initial decree; he was succeeded by his son Cambyses who continued the conquests of the empire. Cambyses had conquered Egypt in 525, but while he was moving on to Ethopia and other places the king of Egypt, (whose life he had spared), revolted against Persian rule, and Cambyses had to go back to Egypt to regain control. Just as he was getting Egypt under control again he received word that someone named Smerdes, who claimed to be his brother, had set himself up as ruler in Persia. So Cambyses started for home to reclaim the throne. On the way back he was killed by an act of his own, whether suicide or some sort of accident history does not say. His general and cousin, Darius Hystaspes, overthrew the impostor and became king of Persia. This was only the beginning of many rebellions however, Darius fought no less than 19 other battles and still there were rumblings of revolt in the empire. Darius invaded Europe in about 515, about the same time that the Greece began to consolidate its power, setting the stage for more ongoing conflict. By 470 BC the Greeks had managed to push back the Persians and remove them from Europe.

Ahasuerus was succeeded by Artaxerxes I who aided Nehemiah in the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem in 444. He reigned until 425, then followed in rapid succession Xerxes II (424 B.C.), Darius II (423-405 B.C.), Artaxerxes II (405-358 B.C.), Artaxerxes III (358-338 B.C.), Arses (338-335) and finally Darius III, the last of the Persian kings who was defeated by Alexander the Great in 331 BC at the famous battle of Arbela, near Nineveh. And so the great Persian Empire fell and Greece ruled the world, for the time being. Meanwhile, beginning in about 509 Rome was developing into what would later become the Roman Empire, which, after many other battles and wars would eventually rise to world prominence. All of this fulfilling Daniel’s prophesy, interpreting Nebuchadnezzar’s dream, Daniel 2:44 “ And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”

Thus we see the great significance of Haggai 2:6-7. {study Hebrews 12:25ff}

Verses 12 – 16 of chapter 2 are of particular interest because here God helps the priests and the people to understand what has been happening to them. Upon their initial return the people had put up a makeshift altar upon which to make offerings to God. Their mission however was to rebuild the temple. They had violated the authority which they had been given, therefore their worship had not been acceptable. Notice the language in verse 14, “…this people…this nation…”; not my people or my nation. They had kept a part of God’s law, but had neglected other parts, and as a result were guilty of all, (James 2:10). Their misplaced priorities had separated them from God, (Isaiah 59:2). But in verse 19 God promises that He will bless them – why, because they had begun to do that which He commanded. It reminds me of the beautiful promise in 1 Corinthians 11:6, demonstrating to us that when we turn our lives to His service He will bless us.

Barnes writes: “All the Old and New Testament, the Law, the prophets and the Psalms, the Apostles and our Lord Himself, bear witness to the Providence of God who makes His natural laws serve to the moral discipline of His creature, man. …Almighty God knowing absolutely…the actions of His creatures …framed the laws of His physical creation, so that plenty or famine, health…or…sickness, should coincide with the good or evil conduct of man, with his prayers or his neglect of prayer. The reward or chastisement alike come to man, as a result of God’s will…” It is an interesting perspective on Barnes’ attempt to understand the Providence of God.

The book of Haggai concludes with what can only be a specific prophesy of the coming of Jesus, who will be descended from Zerubbabel, (Matthew 1:12). This is a word of encouragement for Zerubbabel, the people have been assured that they will prosper as they do God’s will; but as their leader, Zerubbabel is concerned about the longer view. God assures him that he need not fear the political turmoil that is taking place in the world around Palestine, because He has a higher purpose in mind. Job suggests that God’s purpose in shaking the earth is to shake the wicked out of it, (Job 38:13). The language in verse 22 is balanced by the Psalmist, 20:7, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God”,(ESV). Lesson: we should not procrastinate when it comes to doing the work of the Lord, nor should we be guilty of putting our own personal interests ahead of spiritual things.

Note the endearing language in verse 23, “…O Zerubbabel, my servant…”. This is a special term of relationship used by God in reference to Abraham, Moses, Jacob, Caleb, Job, David, Isaiah, and Jesus. The signet reference is meaningful in that it represents the authenticity of Zerubbabel’s role in the lineage of Christ. We see the authority represented by the signet from earliest times, continuing to indicate the “seal” of the Holy Spirit, (2 Corinthians 1:22).

Zerubbabel joins that privileged group chosen by God for the Holy bloodline. God established him as a signet to validate the promise of the coming Christ. Jesus chose His apostles, (John 6:70;15:16). God has chosen all of those who will obey Him, (Ephesians 1:4; 2 Thessalonians 2:13 and 1 Peter 2:9 “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light:”).