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AN EXPOSITION OF THE BOOK OF HAGGAI

This paper is an exposition of the book of Haggai. The book of Haggai is only two chapters long but it gives depth and insight into the temple of God and his plans for all nations. The overall message of the book of Haggai is that God’s dwelling place needs to be our highest priority and that through Zerubbabel God will bless Israel and all nations. The outline of the book is as follows:

I. First Sermon (1:1-15)

a. Introduction, Date, Characters (1:1)

b. The Questioning and Consequences of Neglecting the Temple (1:2-11)

c. The Response of the People (1:12-15)

II. Second Sermon

a. The Greater Glory of the Second Temple (2:1-9)

b. The Motivation in the Rebuilding (2:10-19)

c. Zerubbabel’s Future Blessing (2:20-23)

Using the grammatical historical literal method of interpretation, the book will be unpacked by explaining the main characters involved, date of the book and finally each section of the above outline. Key ideas of sections will be highlighted and explained but every verse will not be commented on for the sake of length. At the end of each section there will be application derived from that section. The heading of this section will clearly be titled Application.

Main Characters

The book of Haggai has 2 main characters. The names of the characters are Haggai, and Zerubbabel. Haggai is a prophet who functions as the messenger of God. The narrator mentions that Haggai is a prophet on five different occasions (1:1, 3, 12, 2:1,20). The name Haggai means my feast or festive.[1] The name does not seem to provide any insight into the content of the message. There is no further background information about Haggai and his name is mentioned two other times outside of the book of Haggai and that is in Ezra 5:1, 6:14. The prophet was a steward of the words God had put in his hand (בְּיַד־חַגַּי). Zerubbabel was the king of Judah and the grandson of King Jehoichan (Matt 1:12). Zerubbabel in Ezra 1:8, 5, 15 and 5:16 is called Sheshbazzar, although there is debate about whether or not this is accurate[2]. Sheshbazzar was probably his Chaldean name. Even though Zerubbabel is referred to as the son of Shealtiel, he was probably not Shealtiels son but rather his nephew. According to First Chronicles 3:18 Zerubbabel was the son of Pediah.[3] King Jehoichan had been taken captive in the 8^th year of his reign by the Babylonians (2 Ki 24:12). The importance of Zerubbabel in the book of Haggai is in 2:23 where God affirms that Zerubbabel will be blessed with a signet ring because God has chosen him. Other characters are the Joshua the high priest, the assembly and obviously God. Joshua and the assembly are flat characters who aren’t as integral to the story but are definitely important in terms of historical significance.

Date and Setting

The book of Haggai covers the 4 prophesies (1:1, 2:1, 10, 20) by the prophet. The Israelites has been in captivity for seventy years before returning to the Promised Land. The exiles had recently returned due to King Cyrus’s decree that everyone could go back to their homeland. The exiles had begun rebuilding the temple about two years after they returned but due to opposition, rebuilding had ceased and the people were now focused on rebuilding their own homes. The year Haggai prophesied to people in Jerusalem was during post-exilic Persian era in 520BC[4]. This was the second year of the reign of King Darius(vs. 1).

The Questioning and Consequences of Neglecting the Temple (1:2-11)

A popular saying during the time of Haggai was that the time of rebuilding the temple had not yet come and this is exactly what Haggai is speaking against[5]. Haggai rebukes the people and instructs them to consider their ways. Haggai calls for careful attention to be paid to their current state, literally to set their hearts upon the matter (שִׂימוּ לְבַבְכֶם). While the temple lay desolate the people were building luxurious homes for themselves with paneling (1:4). In verses 5 and 6 Haggai calls attention to the failing crops and dissatisfaction of the people. Failing crops are a consequence of the disobedience of God’s law (Lev 26:14-20).[6] Again in verse 9 Haggai reminds the people that they are in their porous situation because God id disappointed in their disobedience. Famine can sometimes be seen as God’s wrath in the Bible (2 Kings 8:1, Psalms 105:16). Haggai’s message is very direct and to the point. It is clear that God is very upset by the people’s behavior but fortunately God gives a very clear solution to the problem. In verse 8 and 11 Haggai instructs the people to go to the mountains, get wood and rebuild the temple.

Application:

This section teaches that when God’s dwelling place isn’t the highest priority, disaster is guaranteed to strike. The Israelites learned very fast that their life was wasting away because they were more concerned with their own welfare and not concerned with the things God was concerned about. Often times in the life of a believer it is easy to get caught up with our own dreams and ambitions or worldly desires but all of those things will lead to disaster if we do not seek God’s dwelling place first. Jesus sums up this first section of Haggai very succinctly. Matthew 6:33 says “Seek first my kingdom and then all these will be added to you.”

The Response of the People (1:12-15)

The response of Zerubbabel, Joshua and the remnant of the people is stunning (1:12)! They all obey God and fear him. Even though the temple was not intact God still reaffirms his presence with the people (1:13). Only 23 days after Haggai first spoke his message the rebuilding of the temple began (1:14-15).

Application:

God is a God of second chances and it is nice to know that when he is obeyed, he responds with love and mercy. God saw that the people were obeying him and he spoke a word of encouragement. The interesting thing is that God has always loved the Israelites but they probably did not experience that love until they obeyed. Disobediance can make one to the love of God. Especially if it involves paneling their own houses while God’s sanctuary lays desolate. This is a direct parallel with the lives of believers today. Often times a believer knows intellectually that they are loved but they do not experience that love and some of that has to do with disobedience.

The Greater Glory of the Second Temple (2:1-9)

Approximately one month after the rebuilding of the temple began came another message from the prophet Haggai. After the foundations of the temple were in place there was great weeping on the part of some of the elders who had seen the previous temple Ezra 3:12-13). Haggai’s second message address this issue. Haggai reassures Zerubbabel, Joshua and the people in the land that God is with them (2:5)! Even though this temple was supposed to be more glorious then the first temple God commanded the people to trust him. The time of this message came during the feast of Tabernacles (Lev 23:34-36). This feast was a time of remembrance for the people of what God had done through the Exodus. Earthquakes in Scripture can sometimes represent political shake up (Psalm 60:2) and that is potentially what is happening in Haggai 2:6-9. The wide range of locations in verse 6 is a literary tool called merism. A merism is used in Scriptures to represent universality[7]. The idea is that God owns all the nations and eventually they will all come to the temple for worship.

Application:

A good title for this is “The Best is Yet to Come.” The temptation for all humans is to look at the past and think of the “good ole days.” The Israelites were consumed with the former glory of the temple but God exhorted them to have faith about the current temple and what is ahead. In the life of a believer, anytime one is actively engaged in doing God’s work the temptation is to look back at the “good ole days” but God says that the best days are ahead. Whether it is easy to believe or not, God has called believers to have faith that the work he is doing in their lives today is better then what he did before.

The Motivation in the Rebuilding (2:10-19)

The third message is appealing to the Law and helping the people to deal with moral issues. Haggai begins with a series of questions about the law and then he transfers these questions into the current situation. Jeremiah 11:15 supports that meat is not consecrated just because it is a certain kind of meat. Haggai uses this question as an illustration to show that proper actions without proper motivations are not holy in and of themselves (2:11). The second question Haggai asks is whether defilement could be passed through touch (2:12). According to Numbers 19 defilement could be transferred simply by touch. These two questions work rhetorically to begin an argument which flows through the rest of the passage and is concluded with God’s commitment to bless the people who work with holy hearts and holy hands (2:19).

Application:

It is clear from the previous section that God is still concerned with his work being done in a way that honors him. God is not interested in the people simply doing the right things but he is also interested in the heart behind those things. This message is very relevant in our day and age because many people are thinking that they are following Christ simply by doing the right things. It is sad to see someone who is not motivated by the love of God and instead is still trying to earn God’s love through works. Isaiah 29:13 summarizes this section well: These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is made up only of rules taught by men (NIV).

Zerubbabel’s Future Blessing (2:20-23)

In this section we once again encounter universality language. That is God declares that he controls the world and that he is sovereign over all things. The shaking of the heavens and earth in 2:21 is indicative of political upheaval. The Davidic dynasty is once again reaffirmed in 2:22 when God confirms that Zerubbabel is chosen and that he will be God’s signet ring. The signet ring is the representation of oneself. The signet ring was also a sign of honor authority and power (Song 8:6)[8]. It would be like a modern day signature but even more then a signature, perhaps a self portrait with a signature insuring approval. We learn from the New Testament that Jesus comes from the line of Zerubbabel and that he is God’s very own Son (Matt. 1:12). Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of this prophecy; he is God’s signet ring and it is through him that all nations are blessed (Col 1).

Application:

God is faithful to Israel and he is constantly urging his people to get with the program. The importance of this temple being built is way beyond what any of the people can ask or imagine, yet they are busy about there own homes. Fortunately God reveals that he is going to be faithful to the line of David through Zerubbabel. It is easy to forget that God is sovereign over the world. God makes many promises to believers in Scripture and it is easy to forget those promises sometimes, nevertheless, God is faithful.

Conclusion

The book of Haggai is a story of an ancient group but it is also a story of our own lives. Every human is faced with times of forgetfulness, doubt and materialism. Haggai reminds us that God’s dwelling place should be our highest priority and that he has a plan for the world to be blessed through his son Jesus by his servant Zerubbabel. In 516 B.C the temple did get built and later it was restored by Herod[9]. This was the same temple Jesus walked into and said “But I say to you that something greater than the temple is here”.^[10]

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bullock, C. Hassell. An Introduction to the Old Testament Prophetic Books. [Updated ed. Chicago, Ill.: Moody Publishers, 2007.

Coley, Curtis E. "The Historical Context of Haggai." Thesis (Th.M.), Dallas Theological Seminary, 1970., 1970.

MacArthur, John. The Macarthur Bible Commentary : Unleashing God's Truth, One Verse at a Time. Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005.

Moore, T. V. The Prophets of the Restoration : Or, Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi. A New Translation, with Notes. New York: Robert Carter, 1856.

Smith, Gary V. The Prophets as Preachers : An Introduction to the Hebrew Prophets. Nashville, Tenn.: Broadman & Holman, 1994.

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