Haggai 2 In the four and twentieth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king, they began. 2 And in the seventh month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Aggeus the prophet, saying: 3 Speak to Zorobabel the son of Salathiel the governor of Juda, and to Jesus the son of Josedec the high priest, and to the rest of the people, saying: 4 Who is left among you, that saw this house in its first glory? and how do you see it now? is it not in comparison to that as nothing in your eyes? 5 Yet now take courage, O Zorobabel, saith the Lord, and take courage, O Jesus the son of Josedec the high priest, and take courage, all ye people of the land, saith the Lord of hosts: and perform (for I am with you, saith the Lord of hosts) 6 The word that I covenanted with you when you came out of the land of Egypt: and my spirit shall be in the midst of you: fear not. 7 For thus saith the Lord of hosts: Yet one little while, and I will move the heaven and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land. 8 And I will move all nations: AND THE DESIRED OF ALL NATIONS SHALL COME: and I will fill this house with glory: saith the Lord of hosts. 9 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts. 10 Great shall be the glory of this last house more than of the first, saith the Lord of hosts: and in this place I will give peace, saith the Lord of hosts. 11 In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius the king, the word of the Lord came to Aggeus the prophet, saying: 12 Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests the law, saying: 13 If a man carry sanctified flesh in the skirt of his garment, and touch with his skirt, bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat: shall it be sanctified? And the priests answered, and said: No. 14 And Aggeus said: If one that is unclean by occasion of a soul touch any of all these things, shall it be defiled? And the priests answered, and said: It shall be defiled. 15 And Aggeus answered, and said: So is this people, and so is this nation before my face, saith the Lord, and so is all the work of their hands: and all that they have offered there, shall be defiled. 16 And now consider in your hearts, from this day and upward, before there was a stone laid upon a stone in the temple of the Lord. 17 When you went to a heap of twenty bushels, and they became ten: and you went into the press, to press out fifty vessels, and they became twenty. 18 I struck you with a blasting wind, and all the works of your hand with the mildew and with hail, yet there was none among you that returned to me, saith the Lord. 19 Set your hearts from this day, and henceforward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month: from the day that the foundations of the temple of the Lord were laid, and lay it up in your hearts. 20 Is the seed as yet sprung up? or hath the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree as yet flourished? from this day I will bless you. 21 And the word of the Lord came a second time to Aggeus in the four and twentieth day of the month, saying: 22 Speak to Zorobabel the governor of Juda, saying: I will move both heaven and earth. 23 And I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and will destroy the strength of the kingdom of the Gentiles: and I will overthrow the chariot, and him that rideth therein: and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother. 24 In that day, saith the Lord of hosts, I will take thee, O Zorobabel the son of Salathiel, my servant, saith the Lord, and will make thee as a signet, for I have chosen thee, saith the Lord of hosts. | 2:1-10 LIT: Those who saw Solomon’s temple before the exile looked upon the new Temple and saw that it was wanting in appearance compared to Solomon’s Temple. Yet, God assures them, this temple will be more glorious than Solomon’s Temple because Christ Himself will visit it. ALL: As Solomon’s Temple was more beautiful in appearance than the postexilic temple yet the latter was more glorious than the first, so it is that Adam seemed to be perfect outwardly, as He was clothed in light, yet it is the Second Adam, Christ Jesus, who though outwardly did not seem glorious (Isaiah 53:2), was more glorious than the first Adam, since the Second Adam was sinless, while the first Adam sinned. Likewise, before the coming of Christ, the people of God might have seemed to be glorious by their outward appearance, yet as a whole they were unclean. Now that Christ has come, the Church may not always seem to be glorious in outward appearance, yet since Christ has visited the temple of their bodies, they are more glorious than the former people of God. MOR: This serves as instruction to remind us not to judge someone by their outward appearances but by their interior virtues. Though there are many who seem to be glorious in outward appearance, their hearts are dark and though there are many who seem to be ignoble in appearance, their hearts may be more beautiful than the angels in heaven. For instance, St. Francis of Assisi, prior to his conversion, was known for his extravagant appearance. Once he exchanged his clothes for the clothes of a beggar, he undoubtedly seemed unpleasant, as far as his appearance was concerned. If one had simply judged St. Francis by his outward appearance they would have judged the former man to have been a great man and the latter man to have been abhorrent. Yet, the latter St. Francis was much more glorious than the former because of the latter’s interior virtues and disposition. 2:11-15 LIT: The prophet Haggai received a word from God on the 24th day of the ninth month, at which time he informed the people that their sacrifices were defiled and unacceptable to God. ALL: The 24th day points to the Old and New Testaments (see above) and the ninth month points to the ninth hour when Christ was on the cross.4 The word of the LORD came on the 24th day of the ninth month in order to show that though the sacrifices of the people were defiled and unacceptable, the sacrifice of Christ will be pleasing to God and the words of the Old and New Testaments will bring the good news of Christ’s sacrifice.
2:16-20 LIT: God informs the people that He did not bless the work of their hands in order that they might return to Him in repentance but none sought forgiveness. In spite of this, God promises to bless the people. ALL: Whereas disobedient Israel refused to return to God with a repentant heart, the true Israel, Jesus, never strayed from God’s commands (2 Corinthians 5:21). 2:21-23 LIT: God declared that he will be victorious over all who are in authority on the earth. ALL: Christ is victorious over all demons, which are represented by “the throne of kingdoms” and “horses and their riders”.
2:24 LIT: God stripped Coniah’s lineage of honor in Jeremiah 22:24, the lineage of which Zerubbabel is a descendent. However, God restored honor to His lineage especially for the sake of Jesus, who was a descendent of Zerubbabel and made Zerubbabel a signet, which is a sign of power. ALL: God promises in these verses to make Jesus, typified by Zerubbabel, the ruler of all nations with authority of all creatures (Matthew 28:18). ANA: Now that Christ has been given authority over all things, we will have authority over all in the new heavens and the new earth since we are members of His Body. |