Haggai Ch.1 Devotional
by Pastor Lawrence
Containing only two chapters and 1130 words, Haggai is the second shortest book in the Old Testament after Obadiah, both of which are included in the section of the Bible known as the Minor Prophets not because they are of lesser importance but because they are shorter in length. Haggai, the man, is also the first of three postexilic prophets (those ministering to the Jews returning from the Babylonian exile) along with his contemporary Zechariah and Malachi who prophesied a hundred years later. One unique aspect concerning Haggai’s prophecies is the dating of his oracles—each one is given a very specific date that scholars can translate into our Christian calendars today, and all of his prophecies occur in the year 520 BC some eighteen years after the Persian king, Cyrus the Great, conquered Babylon and issued his decree allowing the captive Jews to return to Judea and rebuild the temple in 538 BC, as is recorded in Ezra chapter one.
Unexpectedly, most Jews actually did not return to Judea but chose to stay in Babylon and in other foreign cities where they had set down roots over the last seventy years—only about fifty thousand Jews actually returned to the Promised Land. During that eighteen year period after the decree, King Cyrus died, which put the Jews in a precarious position under new leadership that did not formally recognize the decree. Additionally, Samaritans living nearby opposed the work of rebuilding the temple, as is seen in Ezra chapter four. Consequently, as a result of opposition, land disputes and failing crops, the Jews abandoned the work on the temple at that time and focused solely on rebuilding their own homes and planting new crops.
In Ezra chapter five, Haggai and his fellow prophet Zechariah are mentioned for encouraging the people of God to rebuild the house of God during the reign of King Darius. The first chapter of Haggai’s prophecy, thus, is a rebuke of God’s people for their delay in rebuilding the temple and an account of how the Jews responded with obedience unto the Lord. The second chapter also contains three additional prophecies all in that same year within a span of four months. A brief outline of the book is listed below:
- First Oracle: The Command to Rebuild the Temple (1.1–15)
- Second Oracle: The Coming Glory of the Temple (2.1–2.9)
III. Third Oracle: The Blessing of the Lord on an Unclean People (2:10-19)
- Fourth Oracle: The Election of Zerubbabel as God’s Signet Ring (2:20-23)
The first oracle takes place in the second year of Darius, in the sixth month, on the first day which equates to August 29th, 520 BC. In that oracle, Haggai rebukes the Jews, calling them “these people,” rather than “my people,” for spending much time rebuilding their own homes while ignoring the repair of the temple of God. He quotes them as saying, “the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord,” and then, he uses their words against them, asking, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in paneled houses, while the house of God lies in ruins?” Asking them to consider their ways, he wants them to see that they have missed out on many of the blessings of God while dwelling in the Promised Land because they have broken covenant with the Lord by not seeking him first. Then he exhorts them to build up the house of the Lord that He might take pleasure in it and be glorified in their midst, promising that if they do so, the blessings of God will be poured out upon them.
When God’s people hear this message, they are cut to the heart and respond with reverential fear and obedience to God’s command as the Spirit of the Lord stirs them up to begin the actual work of rebuilding the house of God, which we are told started on twenty-fourth day of the month, twenty three days later, or September 21st, 520 BC, according to our calendar.
Remembering that we as God’s people today are not required to live in the Promised Land or to rebuild a physical temple in the Near East, we must not equate our situation with theirs. However, there are some principles that carry over into the New Covenant. Jesus tells his disciples in Matthew 6:33 to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things (food, clothing, shelter) will be added to you.” Striking a similar note as the prophet Haggai, the apostle Paul exhorts the believers in 1 Corinthians chapter fourteen to “strive to excel in building up the church,” rather than building themselves up. Likewise, in Ephesians 3:21, Paul’s desire is to see God’s glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout the generations, and he reminds the believers that the apostles and prophets were given to the church to build up God’s people for works of service. Therefore, he urges the believers in Thessalonians to “encourage one another and build one another up,” for together we are the new temple of the Holy Spirit. Thus, today, one does not necessarily need a hammer to build up God’s temple, but he or she still needs the Holy Spirit. For that same Spirit that stirred up the Jews in Haggai’s day, is the same Spirit that stirs us up to love and good works for the sake of Christ and His Church.