Haggai 2
Notes
Transcript
Our first message we dated to taking place on August 29th 520BC
This chapter and the second message begins on October 17, 520BC so just short of 2 months later. It’s also the seventh day of the feast of Sukkot or Festival of Booths, it’s a harvest celebration. It’s one of the festivals where work would be stopped and people would be gathered in Jerusalem. This festival celebrates two things. First God’s provision for the people while they were in the wilderness wandering. It’s for this reason they celebrate by staying in a “tent” where they can see the sky during the festival to remind them of the time when they had no homes in the wilderness but God provided for them. The second is in the harvest that God is providing for them.
Now imagine just two months ago that message from Haggai comes and talks about how their crops fail because they aren’t putting God’s house first. Then they commit to God and have a great harvest but are faced with an incredibly daunting task. Rebuilding the temple. What do these people need to hear from the Lord? Some encouragement and they’ll get it.
In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes?
Remember we talked before about how Jerusalem was utterly destroyed back in ~586 So that would have been 66 years ago. There are people here that saw what it looked like back then. He appeals to their desire to se that again. Knowing that’s going to prompt all the conversations at the table later on. Oh, dad, grampa, grandma tell us what is was like. It gets you excited again because you’re working to restore it. It would be sad if they weren’t there and telling that story but hearing about it when you’re rebuilding from destruction is an encouragement.
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.
He is appealing to that memory of the coming out of Egypt as a fulfilled promise to bolster trust for the promises coming.
For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, 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, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’ ”
It’s going to be better in the future that was in the past, and it was amazing in the past.
That concludes the second message, in verse 10 we start the third message with a date again.
On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet,
This comes out to be Dec 18, 520BC This day is not particularly special like the last message falling on a festival It’s interesting that it’s a day before Hanukkah but the events that create the Hanukkah tradition won’t happen for another few hundred years. Okay so what is this message about?
“Thus says the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests about the law: ‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?’ ” The priests answered and said, “No.” Then Haggai said, “If someone who is unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?” The priests answered and said, “It does become unclean.”
What’s the first part here? It should be obvious to us what’s he’s trying to communicate even if we don’t know anything about Jewish law just by the example situations and answers.
Holiness and being clean only go one direction right? Holiness does not infect the things around it and make them holy, uncleanness does.
Okay we get that principle what does that mean for these people and us?
Then Haggai answered and said, “So is it with this people, and with this nation before me, declares the Lord, and so with every work of their hands. And what they offer there is unclean.
Hold on a dag gon freakin minute. We just gave up everything, our own selfish pursuits to get the new foyer put onto the house to come out here and work on the Lord’s house for four months now and you’re telling us something negative like everything we do is defiled? That ain’t right man. I at least imagine that’s how I’d feel if I was there and hearing this.
The following verses don’t seem particularly uplifting but I think they’re directing to the people to remember what state they were in. Did they start doing what was good and then make themselves righteous because of it? Certainly not. Did they become obedient and then by their obedience make Jerusalem a Holy city again? Certainly not. What is the response to punishment after understanding and acknowledging the punishment was just and right? Repentance, not haughtiness that’s you’ve gotten it right.
Let’s see it.
Now then, consider from this day onward. Before stone was placed upon stone in the temple of the Lord, how did you fare? When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were but twenty. I struck you and all the products of your toil with blight and with mildew and with hail, yet you did not turn to me, declares the Lord. Consider from this day onward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Since the day that the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid, consider: Is the seed yet in the barn? Indeed, the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have yielded nothing. But from this day on I will bless you.”
From this day on, who is your provider? is it the work of your hands or is it God who blesses you?
The final and fourth message that happens on the same day starts in verse 20.
The word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, “Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.”
Zerubbabel alone gets mention here and not Joshua - this is a political message and it went to the political leader.