Haggai

Haggai

When the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem in 587 b.c., Judah was reduced to the status of a province administered from Mizpah, a few miles north of Jerusalem. Judah likely was made part of the province of Samaria until the exiles began to return under Persian authority. Archaeology confirms the severe depopulation of Judah during the exile. Except for the Negev and the northern border, virtually all the fortified cities had been destroyed. The Edomites had begun taking over southern Judah. The exiles must have been exuberant when they saw the Babylonian empire begin to crumble after Nebuchadnezzar's death in 562 b.c. Their exuberance reached its peak when the Persian ruler Cyrus conquered Babylon in October, 539 b.c. and soon after announced that they were free to return to Judah. He even promised to help them rebuild their temple as part of a general policy of restoring foreign cult centers.

The first group of about fifty thousand exiles to return were led by Sheshbazzar, who was appointed governor of the new province of Judah. Sanballot, governor of Samaria, was not pleased at Judah's new status and took every opportunity to oppose them. The other surrounding provinces such as Ammon-Gilead (ruled by Tobiah) and Arabia-Idumea (ruled by Geshem) supported Sanballot in this opposition. The returning Jews also clashed with Jews who had been left in Palestine who thought they were God's remnant and resented the newcomers taking over. Many of them who claimed to worship the Lord but worshiped other gods as well (see 2 Kgs. 17:24-34) may have joined the opposition. Opposition continued and increased through the reigns of Cyrus (539-530 b.c.), Cambyses (530-522 b.c.), and Darius (522-486 b.c.; Ezra 4:4-5).

The temple foundation was laid fairly quickly under Zerubbabel's leadership, who eventually replaced Sheshbazzar as governor. This initial success was met not only with celebration but also with sadness when this temple was compared with Solomon's (Ezra 1-3; Hag. 2:3; Zech. 4:10). This is the first hint that perhaps this restoration would not satisfy entirely the prophetic announcements of Israel's glorious restoration. This discouragement together with the continuing opposition and concerns over personal affairs caused work on the temple to cease until the preaching of Haggai and Zechariah roused the people once more to work in faith (Ezra 4:24-5:2).

Message and Purpose. Indictment: The leaders and people of Judah had allowed external opposition, discouragement, and self-interest to keep them from completing the task of rebuilding the Lord's temple (1:2-4; 2:3). So they and their offerings to the Lord were defiled and displeasing to Him (2:14).

Instruction: The Lord's command through Haggai was to "build the house" for the pleasure and glory of God (1:8). Toward that end the Lord exhorted them not to fear but to "be strong ... and work" (2:4-5). Finally, by a parable Haggai instructed them of the need to dedicate themselves and their work to the Lord (2:11-16).

Judgment: The Lord called upon them to recognize His chastisement in the deprivation they had been experiencing (1:5-6,9-11; 2:16-17).

Hope: The Lord informed the people that the completion of the temple would bring Him pleasure and glory (1:8). He further assured them of success through His presence (1:13-14; 2:4-5). He also promised them that He would reward their renewed work and dedication to Him by glorifying the temple and granting them peace (2:6-9) and blessing (2:18-19). Finally, He promised to restore the Davidic throne on the earth through a descendant of Zerubbabel (2:20-23).

Structure. Haggai's four sermons (1:1-15; 2:1-9; 2:10-19; 2:20-23) are marked by introductory date formulae. But repetition between messages one and three and between two and four shows that the book has a twofold structure. Both messages one and three refer to "this people" (1:2; 2:14) and include two commands to "give careful thought" (1:5,7; 2:15,18). Messages two and four both have the divine promise, "I will shake the heavens and the earth" (2:6,21) and have a threefold repetition of "declares the Lord" (2:4,23). Furthermore, the first and third messages are introduced by complete date formulae, which give year, month, and day, with the order in the third message reversed, as in a mirror. The date formulae that introduces the second and fourth messages have only the month and day, again with the second mirrored in the fourth. Finally, at the end of the first and third messages, the date is repeated (1:15; 2:18).

The first two messages both deal with building the temple. The last two messages do not mention the temple explicitly but move beyond it to issues of defilement and restoration.

1. Rebuilding the Temple (1:1-2:9)
2. Cleansing the People and Restoring the Kingdom (2:10-23)

Instruction to Build (1:1-15)

The quotation in 1:2 shows how the people had been rationalizing their lack of concern for the Lord's affairs. The Lord's oracle and the response to it is given.

The Lord asked a rhetorical question that revealed their selfishness and the emptiness of their rationalization. Although God's house lay desolate, their own houses were finished. In the context of the Mosaic covenant and Israel's restoration according to divine prophecy, they should have been able to discern God's displeasure with them by the trying circumstances they were experiencing. After pointing this out to them, the Lord commanded them to build His house for His pleasure and glory.

Accepting Haggai's authority as God's spokesman and encouraged by the Lord, Judah's leaders led the "remnant" to begin work in the fear of God. The first message ends as it began—with a date, showing that twenty-three days after Haggai's message the rebuilding was underway again (the order in the Hebrew text of 1:15—day, month, year—is the mirror image of 1:1, showing the two dates to be part of the same section and stressing the comparison between the days). If God's earlier prophets had received such positive response, the temple would never have been destroyed!

God's Presence, Glory, and Peace (2:1-9)

The second message was given during the Feast of Tabernacles (see Lev. 23:33-43), three weeks after the work began. The following day was the anniversary of Solomon's dedicating the newly built temple in 959 b.c. (2 Chr. 7:8-10). The message unfolds in two parts, divided by the announcement of God's word in verse 6. The Lord asked another rhetorical question that recognized the people's discouragement over the apparent disparity between the glory of Solomon's temple and the simplicity of the one under construction (v. 3; see Ezra 3:10-13). Then the Lord exhorted them to work, remembering His faithfulness in the past and His presence with them in the present (vv. 4-5). God's command to "be strong" and not fear probably reminded Judah's leaders of earlier times when God had enabled His servants to complete the tasks He had given them (Deut. 31:6-7,23; Josh. 1:6-9,18; 1 Chr. 22:13; 28:10,20; 2 Chr. 15:7; 32:7; Isa. 35:4; 41:10-14; 51:7-16; Zeph. 3:16; see Dan. 10:19; Zech. 8:9,13; Eph. 6:10).

Having motivated them to work by pointing to past events and present realities, the Lord also encouraged the remnant in verses 6-9 with promises of the future. The terms used are typical of theophanies, where the Lord is described as appearing on the earth, usually in judgment against His enemies (see Judg. 5:4-5; 2 Sam. 22:7-16; Pss. 68:7-8; 77:15-20; Isa. 13:13; Jer. 10:10; Ezek. 38:20; Joel 2:10; 3:16; Nah. 1:5; Hag. 2:21-22; see Heb. 12:26-27). These verses describe the day of the Lord when the wicked will be removed and the nations shall be made subject to Him and will bring tribute to His temple (see Ezra 6:8-12; 7:15-20; Isa. 60:4-14). Thus its glory will exceed that of Solomon's temple, especially because the Lord Himself will be there. It is hard not to see a preliminary fulfillment of these verses in the appearance of Jesus at Herod's temple (see Matt. 2:11; 21:12-15; 27:51; Luke 2:32; John 1:14; 2:19-21; Heb. 1:3).

Cleansing and Blessing (2:10-19)

In this message the Lord announces His determination to change Judah's deprivation to blessing because they have dedicated themselves to Him. The date is three months after the temple work began, just after the fall planting, which explains why there is no seed left in the barn. After the introduction comes a dialogue with the priests that functions like a parable. The essence of the parable is that although holiness cannot be trans-mitted by touch, defilement can be. Then the parable is applied in verses 14-19. Israel, originally set apart for the Lord, had become defiled by sin and unbelief so that all they did was unacceptable to God, including offerings and temple building. Only God's grace in response to their humble dedication could cleanse them again. This He had done (see Ps. 51). Thus they are assured that God would turn their curse of deprivation into blessing, and they would have a plentiful harvest.

Gentile Overthrow and Davidic Restoration (2:20-23)

Here the Lord promises that He will destroy the kingdoms of this world and will establish a new kingdom ruled by a Davidic descendant, the Messiah (see Ezek. 39:19-23; Dan. 2:44). The messianic servant is named David in Ezekiel 34:23-24 and 37:24 because He is the Davidic seed, the fulfillment of the Davidic covenant. The Messiah will also be a descendant of Zerubbabel (see Matt. 1:12-13). The "signet ring" is appropriate as a messianic metaphor because it was jealously guarded as a symbol of one's authority and was used to sign official documents (see Esth. 8:8). As God had cast off king Jehoiachin, so He had placed his grandson Zerubbabel on His finger (Jer. 22:24).

Theological and Ethical Significance. Several reasons can be given for the significance of the temple's being rebuilt. First, it was a sign of the people's priorities. Second, it showed that God was with the remnant and that His promises of restoration had begun to be fulfilled. Third, it declared God's glory and thus brought Him pleasure. Fourth, it served to vindicate the Lord since the temple's destruction had disgraced the Lord's name (Ezek. 11:23; 37:26-27). Fifth, it served as a pledge of the new covenant and the messianic age (Ezek. 37:26; Isa. 2:2-4; 44:28; 52:1-7; Mic. 4:1-4; Mal. 3:1). The restoration of the temple was a sign that God had revoked neither His covenant with Levi nor His covenant with David (see Jer. 33:17-22; Num. 25:11-13; Mal. 2:4). He will provide cleansing and restoration through a glorious temple and a messianic ruler. As one scholar explains, "They are not just building a material edifice; they are participating in the building and establishment of the kingdom of Yahweh in which the promised Messiah is to reign in glory forever."

Questions for Reflection

1. What work has God called us to do?
2. How can fear, discouragement, and selfishness interfere with the Lord's work?
3. What should motivate us to persevere with the work God has given us?

Sources for Further Study

Alden, R. L. "Haggai." Expositor's Bible Commentary. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1986.

Baldwin, J. Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi. Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1972.

Merrill, E. H. Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi: An Exegetical Commentary. Chicago: Moody, 1994.

Verhoef, P. A. The Books of Haggai and Malachi. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987.

Wolf, H. Haggai and Malachi. Chicago: Moody, 1976.