Whose House Are You Building? (Haggai)
Background
We recently looked at Ezra's book and saw how the remnant of Israel was allowed to return to Jerusalem under Cyrus's reign. They were led by men like Zerubbabel and Jeshua (who Haggai calls Joshua) to build the temple by decree of the king. But this would be dreadful work. Clearing out huge stones and rubble without any heavy equipment would take a lot of effort, which would be dangerous. Once the temple foundation was laid, they ran into all kinds of problems.
For one thing, the people who had seen the temple in Solomon's day were distraught because this temple would be half the size of Solomon's, and it doesn't seem to have any artistic flair like Solomon's temple. Another major roadblock to the building of the temple was the people of the surrounding nations who would mock them and discourage their building. Listen to what Ezra says,
Ezra 4:4--5 (ESV) --- 4 Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build 5 and bribed counselors against them to frustrate their purpose, all the days of Cyrus king of Persia, even until the reign of Darius king of Persia.
So the temple lay dormant for nearly twenty years before God acts through the prophets Haggai and Zechariah to stir the people up.
God's Message Through Haggai
In the book of Haggai, we have only two chapters. In these two chapters, Haggai explains why refusing to build God's temple is a big deal to God. Failing to complete the building reveals a lack of appreciation for what God has done. It also indicates a lack of trust for what God is trying to do for them. In this tiny book, God speaks great words of encouragement to help his people overcome their roadblocks and complete the work he has called them to do. The message can be divided into three sections. Let's start by reading Chapter 1.
God's First Rebuke (1-14)
In the first section of the book, God rebukes the people for saying, "The time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord.'" As it turns out, these people have become wealthy enough over the last 15 years to build their own luxurious houses while God's house lies unbuilt. In the face of great difficulty, they have chosen to focus on themselves and stop trying to build anything for the Lord. They are defeated and completely discouraged when it comes to serving the Lord, but they can focus on themselves and their houses. As a result of this, God is disciplining them to wake them up from their complacency. He tells them in verse 7, "Look at what's happening to you! You have planted much but harvest little. You eat but are not satisfied. You drink but are still thirsty. You put on clothes but cannot keep warm. Your wages disappear as though you were putting them in pockets filled with holes!" He continues saying, "You hoped for rich harvests, but they were poor. And when you brought your harvest home, I blew it away. Why? Because my house lies in ruins."
God has a major problem with his people coming up with excuses to neglect the work that he has given them to do. This neglect of God's work becomes self-serving. They felt like it was more important to build onto their own house instead of doing the work God has given them to do. So God responded by disciplining the people. He has saved them from captivity to do this work, and instead of showing how much they loved God, they showed that they loved their comfort. Taking care of themselves has taken priority over taking care of God's house. This makes us think that not much has changed since before the exile. They are still the same self-centered and rebellious people they have always been.
God's People Respond (1:12-15)
But starting in verse 12, we see Zerubbabel and Jeshua step up with all of the remnants of God's people and respond to God's rebuke by building the house of the Lord. They heard the rebuke of God, feared the Lord, and answered as they should. God then encourages the people by saying, "I am with you!" This gets the hearts of the people stirred up and enthusiastic about the work, and they begin to build. So they start building on September 21 of 520 B.C.
God's First Promise (2:1-9)
After less than a month of building, God sends another message through Haggai in Chapter 2:1-9. Listen to what he says, starting in verses 3-9.
Apparently, the people are once again upset about the way the temple looks. There is a struggle inside them because what they are building is nothing compared to what they have seen in the former temple or Babylon. What they are making does not seem grand enough to house the God of Israel. Their eyes are still focused on what is seen. But what they don't understand is that God has more in store for this building project in future generations. There is a more excellent building coming, and what they are making will open the door for that greater building to come. God reveals that he is planning to shake the nations so that the treasures come into his house.
But notice the phrase again in verse 7, "I will fill this place with glory." When the temple is completed, God is planning to not only add to it beauty and splendor, but he promises to personally fill this temple with his glory as he did for Moses and Solomon. According to verse 9, it will be a greater glory than Solomon's temple. So the people need to "be strong" and "get to work" (4) because "God's Spirit remains among you, just as I promised when you came out of Egypt" (5).
God's Second Rebuke and Promise (2:10-23)
The final section moves forward to December 18. In 2:10-17, he gives a much more resounding rebuke that is hidden in a parable. This time he tells Haggai to ask the priests if touching something with a holy sacrifice makes that thing holy. The priest answers, "No," per the law of Moses. Then, he asks the priests another question, "If someone becomes ceremonially unclean by touching a dead person and then touches any of these foods, will the food be defiled?" The priest answers, "Yes," per the law of Moses. This is a parable of sorts saying that when we use a white glove to pick up mud, the mud does not get "glovey," and when we touch the mud on anything that was once clean, it does become dirty. What does this mean, and why does he say that? Verse 14 says, "That is how it is with this people and this nation, says the Lord. Everything they do and everything they offer is defiled by their sin." This is an astonishing rebuke. If that is the case, why is God having them rebuild the temple?
The people were working on the house of the Lord, obeying the Lord's commands, but everything they were doing in their lives was full of sin. They are worshipping God with their lips and their hands, but their heart is far from him. The rebuke shows that God is not satisfied with external obedience. They are still self-serving and full of sin instead of having a heart full of love for God.
So, in verses 18-19, God commands them to think. He wants them to take note of how they have not received any harvest for their labor. The drought and the famine have not let up. They have not been blessed as the prophets foretold because of the people's sin. But God is about to change that. Even though his people have not loved him with their heart, and even though they are still defiled in their sin, he will show them that he can bless abundantly those who love him. He says in verse 19 that he is going to bless them.
In verse 20, we read that on the same day, December 18, God sends Haggai to Zerubbabel to prophesy directly at him. God is "about to shake the heavens and the earth to overthrow royal thrones and destroy the power of foreign kingdoms." Then he says, "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." This is such a fascinating way to end the prophesy because Zerubbabel probably did not live to see another king reign over the Persian empire. So why would he want to tell Zerubbabel this? This image, "a signet ring on my right hand," is significant because, in Jeremiah 22:24, God told Jehoiachin, "As I live... I will abandon you Jehoiachin, the son of Jehoiakim, king of Judah. Even if you were the signet ring on my right hand, I will pull you off." Here in Haggai, God says he would make Zerubbabel "like a signet ring on my finger (NLT)." When we do some digging in Chronicles, we find out that Zerubbabel is the grandson of Jehoiachin, who descends from David.
What Would This Mean For The Jews?
So what does all of this mean to the Jews who had this prophecy in the years that followed? This means that God's covenant to David in 2 Samuel 7 is being passed down to Zerubbabel. It had seemed to be nullified with the sin of Jehoiachin, but God is graciously bringing it back! This book ends with all of the Messianic hopes of the prophets still intact. Even though the people have failed again as returned exiles, God still loves them and is always planning something more extraordinary than anything they have ever experienced in the past. The message of God to Zerubbabel is intended to ignite the minds and hearts of the Jews, recalling not only what Jeremiah had said but also what David had told Solomon as he was about to build the first temple.
1 Chronicles 28:9--10 (ESV) --- 9 “And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the Lord searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever. 10 Be careful now, for the Lord has chosen you to build a house for the sanctuary; be strong and do it.”
Zerubbabel performs the same task as Solomon, and God is treating him like David treated his son by telling him in 2:4 to be strong and build the temple.
As time went on, Herod would make this temple even greater than Solomon's temple. But the glory of the Lord never filled this second temple as it did for Moses' Tabernacle and Solomon's in the temple. In 70 A.D., this temple will be destroyed, smashing all of the hopes that this prophesy gave the people. Unless what Jesus said is true. When Jesus came on the scene, he calls himself the temple and says that the glory of the Lord has filled him. He is called Immanuel, God with us, because he was God in human form, walking, talking, and doing things that only God could do. Paul described him like this.
Colossians 1:15--17 (ESV) --- 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities---all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
What Is The Message For Us?
Why did the people get busy building their own houses and ignore the work God had saved them to accomplish? It was not easy work, other people did not like it, and they could not see the reward. Why do we get distracted from the Lord's work? We fall for the same temptations as they did.
The Work Is Hard
Is it hard to help build up the ruins of people's messy lives? People make a tangled mess of their lives. Getting involved with them is going to be messy and take up a considerable amount of our time. It is especially hard to evangelize to those who are lost because we know that some people will hurt us and discourage us from doing the work we were saved to do. That's what they did to Jesus, and he said they would do the same to us. After we dedicate years of our lives and all of our strength to this work, it may appear that very little has been accomplished.
Distractions Are Everywhere
With the internet, television, and cell phones alone, we have plenty to distract us from working for the Lord. We can easily focus our lives on the luxuries that make us numb to the guilt we feel for not doing the work of God. We can build and rebuild our houses. We can show until we drop. We can have hobbies that cost thousands and take up hours every week. These things can completely cover our lives to where we are so busy that we do not have time to do the Lord's work. Do we feel the social pressure to keep quiet? This paralyzed the returned exiles from doing their job and pushed them to find something more comfortable to do. But we know that if we continue down this road of self-service if we waste our lives away working on our stuff instead of working for the Lord, we are showing a lack of appreciation and a lack of love for the Lord.
We Must Put God First
The message of this book is a message for us. We must be willing to rebuild this city's ruins by rebuilding all of the ruined people we are around daily. We must also be the white glove and not mud. In this way, the glory of God will fill us, and we will shine as a light for all the world to see him. But how can we make this change in our lives? How can we avoid distractions and do the hard work that God has given us to do? This is the work Jesus did while he was on the earth, and his word leads us down his path. Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of God's Messianic promises. He is the leader we need. He is the image of God, and he sends the Spirit to be with us and help us as we strive to serve him. God's words to the people in Haggai are also his words to us, "I am with you," "Be strong," and "Get to work." God is always urging us on and helping us along the way. Despite the difficulty and the appearances, we are called to let God bring about the beautiful result and do the work in front of us.