Israel Would Flourish When They ObeyedHaggai 2:10-23

Main Idea: God’s people begin to flourish again as they obey His word.

1. The Sin of the People Had Turned Them Away from God and His Blessing (2:10-14).
2. The People Were to Consider Where They Had Come From and Be Encouraged by What God Had Called Them To (2:15-19).
3. God Will Shower His People with Blessing as His Chosen Ones (2:20-23).

The Sin of the People Had Turned Them Away from God and His Blessing (Haggai 2:10-14)

Using the technique of conversation, God speaks through the prophet Haggai to the priests to define the extent of the nation’s sin. He helps them to understand that holiness does not transfer, but unholiness does. Speaking to the priests about the law, God asks them about consecrated meat. He knows the answer to the question, but He asks it so that the impact would be felt by the religious leaders. Moving beyond the consecrated meat, God then compares their activity to a corpse. He wants them to feel the weight of their sin. As He uses the illustration of the corpse, the priests affirm that anyone who has touched a corpse is defiled and anything they touch is defiled. So the question must be asked: What does this have to do with the nation of Israel?

God is leading them down this path to help them understand the depth of their sin. This comparison to a corpse illustrates two central truths. First, their sin has caused them to become spiritually dead and defiled. Second, because they are dead and defiled, no amount of activity on their part would profit them until they had repented of their sin.

First, God illustrates for them a central truth that is found throughout Scripture: our sin has separated us from God and has caused us to be spiritually dead. In the book of Revelation we see another example of a church that thought of itself as alive but was dead. God once again uses the illustration of defilement to describe their condition:

Write to the angel of the church in Sardis:

The One who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars says: I know your works; you have a reputation for being alive, but you are dead. Be alert and strengthen what remains, which is about to die, for I have not found your works complete before My God. Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; keep it, and repent. But if you are not alert, I will come like a thief, and you have no idea at what hour I will come against you. But you have a few people in Sardis who have not defiled their clothes, and they will walk with Me in white, because they are worthy. In the same way, the victor will be dressed in white clothes, and I will never erase his name from the book of life but will acknowledge his name before My Father and before His angels.

Anyone who has an ear should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. (Rev 3:1-6)

This church at Sardis was also defiled. They were defiled and they were dead. As a result, their good works had earned them nothing and they were hopeless unless they repented. Because of the depth of their sin, they were in danger of experiencing God’s wrath at any moment, and they were oblivious to the danger because of their belief in their own vitality. There are great similarities between the Israelites in the book of Haggai, the church at Sardis, and many churches today.

Being dead was not their only problem. Also, no amount of effort on their part would improve their condition apart from repentance. Verse 14 reminds us that not only were they defiled, but “every work of their hands” was also defiled. This would have been a crushing blow because of their confidence in themselves as children of God. Paul in his letter to Timothy describes a similar situation in the New Testament:

But know this: Difficult times will come in the last days. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, without love for what is good, traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to the form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid these people! (2 Tim 3:1-5)

Notice the description. It sounds like a group of depraved individuals. However, look again. At the end of the passage, it would appear that Paul was talking about people who claimed faith. The people guilty of all these disgusting sins were also guilty of “holding to the form of godliness but denying its power.” In other words, these were people within the church—people who would have thought themselves to also be a part of God’s family. They were claiming faith, but were in fact full of sin. In Jesus’ strong condemnation of the Pharisees He offers a similar rebuke:

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of dead men’s bones and every impurity. (Matt 23:27)

All of their good works, as well as the appearance of godliness, would be for naught if it was not accompanied by repentance.

The People Were to Consider Where They Had Come From and Be Encouraged by What God Had Called Them To (Haggai 2:15-19)

In order to walk in God’s path, it is necessary to remember where we come from. Those who are deeply aware of their sin will also be deeply affected by grace. This was Jesus’ message when the sinful woman anointed Him with oil in front of His disciples. In response to their objections, Jesus pointed out, “Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that’s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little” (Luke 7:36). Verses 15-19 of Haggai 2 are God’s means of calling the nation of Israel to repentance. It is a call to remember where they had come from so that they could celebrate what God, in His grace, would do.

Yes, they had been greatly disobedient; yes, they had long run from God, but that has now changed. They had confessed. They were repentant. They were ready to honor God with their actions, but most of all with their hearts. They had hope that God would bless them with His presence, and that ultimately He would build a greater temple—a temple that we would come to know as Jesus. In light of all of this, they were promised that God would bless them. He would restore to them the things they had lost, and then some. Because they had chosen to repent and obey, they would receive God’s berakah, His blessing. Once again, as has been mentioned throughout the book, this is evidence of God’s grace.

God Will Shower His People with Blessing as His Chosen Ones (Haggai 2:20-23)

Finally, Haggai offers one last message to Israel, and particularly to Zerubbabel, Israel’s king. They had sinned and they had repented, and in response, God promises three things: power will be restored to them, peace will reign, and they will have His presence.

First, He once again reminds them of His authority to do whatever He is about to promise. He uses the illustration that we saw in 2:6-9. He will exert His sovereignty through this process of shaking. This authoritative promise, then, is initiated with a promise to restore them to political power. This was important to the king because the kingdom had limited resources, political capital, and military strength. They were weak and vulnerable. Instead, God would overturn the kings and kingdoms of their enemies. He would transfer that power to the Israelites. Instead of a weak, resource-challenged kingdom, Zerubbabel would preside over a strong, resource-rich, and influential kingdom.

Second, God, through Haggai, promises the return of peace. Notice the language of the destruction of the weapons of warfare that were wielded against them. Verse 22 specifically points out that He will cause the chariots, the horses, and their riders to fall. This depiction of falling illustrates the death of the warriors and the machines of war that would come against the Israelite people. This is not a reference to their newfound political power, however. The warriors are not defeated by the Israelites, they are defeated by one another (“each by his brother’s sword”). This is a reminder of the peace that God will provide to them, and it also points forward to the ultimate peace that God promises to provide in the Messiah. In John’s gospel Jesus declared the peace that He brings: “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Your heart must not be troubled or fearful” (John 14:27).

Finally, God concludes the book with a powerful—and redemptive—promise that stands in stark contrast to the depravity that dominates the beginning of the book. He declares that He will take Zerubbabel (and by extension, all of Israel) and make him His “chosen” one. Even more descriptive, though, He promises to make them His “signet ring.” This is a powerful reminder that God deeply loved Zerubbabel and Israel, and that God was also entrusting him with His authority, which is symbolized by the ring. This offer of authority is a step beyond forgiveness; it is a declaration of the restoration of the close relationship between God and His chosen people. God not only forgives, He not only redeems, He not only blesses, but He also restores.

What was initially a kingdom in shambles, slowly dying in its own disobedience, is now a robust and blessed kingdom, led well by a repentant and God-focused leader. The miserable has been made majestic, which is the power of God’s redemptive activity.

Reflect and Discuss

1. Is there unconfessed, unrepentant sin in your life? What is keeping you from repenting of that right now?
2. How dead is the one who is enslaved to sin? Is it possible to be only partly dead?
3. Have you been guilty of deceiving yourself to believe you are fine, when in truth you are living in unrepentant sin?
4. Have you reflected on your sin? Do you find God’s grace to be clearer as you meditate on where you have come from?
5. What examples of God’s blessing have you seen on display in your own life after repentance?
6. How have you experienced God’s promise of peace?
7. How encouraging is it to know that those who have repented and trusted in Christ are God’s “chosen ones”? How can you reflect often today on God’s compassionate love for you?