Haggai 1:1–15

His prophecy carries a careful date... The first thing to say is that God always treats His own acts of government as valid. He had set Israel aside as a nation, and the times of the Gentiles had begun. So the date follows the ruling Gentile power, not the Jews.

The work on the temple had stopped for fifteen years, from the second year of Cyrus to the second year of Darius the Persian (Ezra 4:24; Haggai 1:1). Four years later they finished the house of God. How much harm such delays do! They come from the fear of man, and from the lack of confidence in the Lord that the fear of man always brings.

The history of these times, as the book of Ezra gives it, shows the enemies stopping the building of the house, but says nothing about the condition of the people. Haggai never mentions the enemies. He goes straight to the low moral state of the remnant. History deals with events; prophecy deals with the moral state behind what the people of God do.

Haggai means "festive". The name suggests that the prophet God raised up at that time would help the people see they were living in joyful days — if they had the faith and energy to respond to God's Word. That Word came to them, as we read, "by the hand of Haggai the prophet".

How gracious it is to see the special care God takes for a day of weakness. As far as I know, no prophet before him ever carried the name "the LORD's messenger". Haggai is the shortest of the prophets who came after the captivity, and the first of them in time; yet he is the one given this rare name of honour. Men would never have chosen him for it... This prophet handles the plainest things — their panelled houses, their sowing much, their bags with holes, nothing but the most ordinary appeals, as it might seem — and he was the LORD's messenger.

Zerubbabel and Joshua were the leading men of that day, in government and in religion. Zerubbabel was the son of Shealtiel (which means asking of God in prayer). Zerubbabel (sown in Babylon) came of royal blood, in direct descent from David... [Joshua] was the first high priest after the captivity, and Ezra and Nehemiah call him Jeshua... He and Zerubbabel are prophetic pictures of our Lord as the King-Priest.

God speaks first to the leaders of the people, Zerubbabel the governor and Joshua the high priest. But leaders alone did not carry this work, for He speaks to "the remnant of the people" as well. We must not think that leaders alone carry on the work of the Lord... let us be careful not to think that they are the only ones with work to do, and so leave it all to them.

If we judge by the history alone, we might conclude that what the enemies said stopped the building of the house. From the word of the LORD, through the prophet, we learn the true reason: it lies in what the people said... For twelve years they had stopped doing the one thing for which God had delivered them from Babylon. They try to excuse their failure by saying that "the time has not yet come" to build the LORD's house.

His message starts with the excuse the people offered for their apathy in the things of God... The Lord does not address them as "My people." He speaks of them in a way that shows His disapproval. Their excuse, that His time had not yet come, was empty. In reality they were cold towards the cause of the Lord, and sought their own things instead of it.

The Lord had worked in the heart of Cyrus, and had stirred up the spirit of His people, to carry out His purpose of rebuilding His house. Now they had forgotten the purpose of their return, and they claimed to see that this was not a suitable time for their work. And what led them to this conclusion? There were enemies, and the times were not peaceful. As if enemies to the Lord's work would ever cease! As if the time would ever come when the natural eye would see the right moment for work for the Lord! Ah, we all have to learn the lesson that the Word — the mind of the Lord — is our authority for service.

There were enemies in the land who made them afraid, and so stopped their building... The ban only came two reigns later. The Jews had already given up building through fear of their enemies... And they did not start building again because a king's decree reached them. They started again because they feared the LORD and did not fear the king's command, as people who see Him who is invisible. God was no more to be feared in the reign of Darius than in the reign of Cyrus or Artaxerxes. Their weakness came from having forgotten God.

Divine energy will never lose its purpose for God. Human energy will say, "The time has not yet come to build the Lord's house," and will keep itself busy with its vineyards, its fields and its houses. It wastes the time. It does not press on with tireless energy in the settled purpose of the soul, through all the difficulties and dangers that may threaten or oppose.

This is a common excuse — a lack of care for the glory of the Lord, on the plea that His time has not come. We find exactly the same pretence today, and it misuses the coming of the Lord Jesus. It says that the time has not come for glory to set things right by divine power, so we may give in easily to the moral confusion, the disorder, and the departure from the will of God found at this present moment.

So when they said, "The time has not come for the LORD's house to be built," the word of the LORD comes through the prophet and says, "Is it a time for you yourselves to live in your panelled houses, while this house lies in ruins?" In this there was a serious forgetfulness of the glory of the LORD. It was all the more painful because they had begun better.

Judging only by the history, we might conclude that the enemies' words stopped the building of the house. The word of the LORD through the prophet teaches us something else: the true reason lies in what the people said. So the message opens with the words, "This people say, The time has not come for the LORD's house to be built." For twelve years they had stopped doing the one thing God had brought them out of Babylon to do.

David planned to build a house for the ark of God, a house of cedars, costly and lasting. But the word of a prophet forbade him; the time had not come... In the day of Haggai we find the opposite. A prophet rebukes Israel for not building the house of the Lord. David was wrong in saying the time had come for such a work; the returned captives are now wrong in saying the time has not come. And the Spirit of the Lord knew the times, and what Israel ought to do, whether to build or not to build.

And what led them to this conclusion? There were enemies, and the times were not peaceful. As if enemies to the Lord's work would ever stop! As if the time would ever come when the natural eye would see the right moment to work for the Lord! Ah, we all have to learn the lesson. The Word — the mind of the Lord — is our warrant for service. When He speaks, we have only to go forward, whatever the circumstances and however many the enemies.

God was no more to be feared in the reign of Darius than in the reign of Cyrus or Artaxerxes. The source of their weakness was that they had forgotten God. This shows the great grace of God in awakening them by the mouth of Haggai.

The building of the house, as I noted, had stopped for about fourteen years. It is a happy thing to find that the work started again — not by force of a decree from the great Persian king who ruled the Jews at that time, but by the voice of God's prophets, Haggai and Zechariah. The Lord did move the heart of the king; but not until His prophet had moved the heart of Israel... The Lord turned the heart of the king, their master, to favour them, when they had taken again the place of faith and obedience.

The people took a fatalistic attitude, saying, "the time has not come… for the Lord's house to be built"; and started to build up their own affairs. Some sixty years ago we heard Christians saying, despite the Lord's words in Acts 1:8, that the time had not come to take the gospel to distant nations. They settled down to build up their own spiritual affairs, as they saw them. It was not wrong for these Jews to build themselves houses. It was wrong to settle down to that and leave the house of God in ruins.

Covering the roof of a room with wood, shaped into patterns. Some panels were fir, as in 2 Chronicles 3:5; others were cedar, and painted.

After the first burst of enthusiasm, when the people were as one man, they lose confidence in God's power and the work stops. Fifteen years go by. Only the foundations of the temple have been laid. All building has come to a halt. During these long years the people have to be doing something. And when the Lord no longer has His place in the heart, what fills a person's time if not his own interests?

They had begun well, as we read in Ezra 3, when they set the altar on its bases. But now they had given up that effort. Their interest in the one thing had faded, and selfish aims took their place. They were living in luxurious houses, while His house lay neglected and in ruins. So their empty excuse was shown to be insincere.

I have examined the prophecies that throw so much light on the history of that time, and I have compared their dates. From this it seems clear to me that the true hindrance was a lack of faith in the remnant… They did not start building again because the king's decree reached them. They started again because they feared the Lord and did not fear the king's command, as seeing Him who is invisible. God was no more to be feared in the reign of Darius than in the reign of Cyrus or Artaxerxes. Their weakness came from having forgotten God.

How could they claim this was a good moment to put their own interests first and neglect the Lord's claims? The secret was simple: building and decorating their own houses raised no opposition. Doing good to themselves would sooner win the approval of their enemies. Only testimony for the Lord — in word, work, and life — stirs up the hostility of the world. So they had chosen the path of selfish ease and self-interest, minding their own things, and not the things of the Lord.

They were diligent for themselves. And what was the result? "You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill; you clothe yourselves, but no one is warm." Bitter disappointment, as always, must be the portion of God's people who live for themselves instead of trusting Him who takes special care of the faithful. Our business is to care for His things. His gracious work is to care for us in our own things, and indeed in all things.

In Haggai's day the people were living in paneled houses, while the house of God lay in ruins. Self was uppermost, but God was watching over His people. His hand was on them, so we read, "He who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes." How did the holes get there? I believe the Lord cut them.

Whatever excuses we make about the time not being right, the real reason we neglect the principles of God's house is that we are taken up with our own things. Even in the Apostle's day we read of believers that "they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 2:21). One has said, "It is an inevitable alternative that we must be occupied either with the Lord's things, or with our own."

Then comes the exhortation to consider their ways (literally: set your heart upon your ways). Had it been profitable for them? No. Ever since they stopped building His house, bitter disappointment had been their lot. All their self-seeking brought them no gain, but steady loss.

After this solemn appeal to the conscience comes the exhortation, "Consider your ways." God asks the remnant, as He asks us, to consider one thing. What comes of being taken up with our own things and our own soul's blessing, while we neglect the deeper interests of the LORD and the things that concern His glory?

The result then, as now, shows in the words, "You have sown much, and harvested little" — great activity but little return. Moreover, this neglect of the house of God leads to spiritual starvation, for, says the prophet, "You eat, but you never have enough." Again, it brings no spiritual satisfaction: "you drink, but you never have your fill." It leaves the spiritual affections cold: "You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm." And it carries no reward: "he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes."

No doubt they blamed the recession, the political instability of the time, the abnormal weather conditions. It never occurred to them that God was trying to get through to them.

As our own blessed Lord taught, "Whoever would save his life will lose it," so it was with the remnant. They set their hearts on rest, ease, and prosperity in this world. They wanted to find their "life" in their comforts, and so they lost it, for they had left God out of the account. They made themselves, and not God, their object. They put their own things first and grew indifferent to His honour, claims, and interests. So they forfeited the very blessings they worked for.

In this way God dealt with them, to exercise their souls, to wean them from their selfish aims, and to recall them to the purpose for which He had brought them back to their own land. He wanted them to lose sight of themselves and find their blessing in fellowship with the mind and heart of God.

Considering our ways in the presence of God should in fact be our constant, everyday work. There all delusions disappear. There, in the pure light of His holy presence, the secrets of the inmost heart come to light. And there alone we discern our true condition and our failures, and receive grace to judge ourselves by the infallible standard of God's glory. So, confessing our sins, we enter once again upon the enjoyment of forgiveness and restoration.

The frequent occurrence of the word "Consider" in this short prophecy is worth noting. Twice in the first section the prophet had to say to the people, "Consider your ways." In this later section the word comes three times. Now the prophet says in effect, "Consider God's ways." He is glad to recognise any measure of energy and faithfulness in His service, even when uncleanness and failure are mixed with it. And He delights to answer it with blessing.

The result then, as now, comes out in the words, "You have sown much, and harvested little" — great activity but little return. This neglect of the house of God also leads to spiritual starvation, for the prophet says, "You eat, but you never have enough." It brings no spiritual satisfaction: "You drink, but you never have your fill." It leaves the spiritual affections cold: "You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm." And it carries no reward: "He who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes."

There was diligence for themselves; but what was the result? Bitter disappointment, as always, must come to the people of God who live for themselves instead of trusting the One who especially looks after the faithful. Our business is to care for His things; His gracious work is to care for us in our own things and indeed in all things.

I believe it is often proved with us, as you find it stated of Israel in Haggai's day. They were living in panelled houses, and the house of God was lying waste. Self was uppermost, but God was watching over His people. His hand was on them, and so we read, "He who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes." How did the holes get there? I believe the Lord cut them.

As our own blessed Lord taught, "Whoever would save his life will lose it," so it was with the remnant. They set their hearts on rest, ease, and prosperity in this world. They wanted to find their "life" in their comforts, and they lost it, for they had left God out of the account. They made themselves, and not God, their object. They put their own things first and grew indifferent to His honour, claims, and interests. So they forfeited the very blessings they were working for... Let us never forget that there is such a thing as a present judgment of God. He notices the conduct of His people. As a Father, in His government and care, He deals with them according to their state of heart. He dealt with them this way to exercise their souls, to wean them from their selfish aims, and to call them back to the purpose for which He had brought them home.

They earned good money, but it trickled away as in a bag full of holes. No doubt they blamed the recession, the political instability of the time, the abnormal weather conditions. It never occurred to them that God was trying to get through to them.

Again, the Lord calls His people to consider their ways. This is blessed work for His saints at all times. We always tend to deceive ourselves into believing that all is well, above all in times of decline. It can be so even when we may be under the chastening hand of God for our unfaithfulness... Considering our ways in the presence of God should in fact be our constant and habitual work. There all delusions disappear; there, in the pure light of His holy presence, the secrets of the inmost heart are revealed.

There was diligence for themselves; but what was the result? Bitter disappointment must always come to the people of God who live for themselves instead of trusting Him who especially looks after the faithful. Our business is to care for His things; His gracious work is to care for us in our things, and indeed in all things... In grace there is another call to consider their ways. The first was to reprove them; the second is to encourage and exhort them.

God appeals five times to the Jews to consider their ways. The word literally means "to concentrate one's heart upon something," because man makes his decisions in the heart. These passages are in chapter 1:5, 7; 2:15, 18, 19.

The result then, as now, comes out in the words, "You have sown much, and harvested little" — great activity but little return. Moreover, this neglect of the house of God leads to spiritual starvation, for, says the prophet, "You eat, but you never have enough." Again, it brings no spiritual satisfaction: "You drink, but you never have your fill." It leaves the spiritual affections cold: "You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm." And it carries no reward: "He who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes."

Again, the Lord calls His people to consider their ways. This is a blessed occupation for His saints at all times. The tendency always exists — especially in times of decline — to deceive ourselves into believing that all is well. That can happen even when we are under the chastening hand of God for our unfaithfulness. Heeding this call would spare us many an evil, many a breakdown, many a startling outbreak of sin among God's people. We should consider our ways in God's presence constantly. There all delusions disappear, and the secrets of the deepest heart come to light. Only there, seeing our true condition and failures, can we receive grace to judge ourselves by the infallible standard of God's glory.

They set their hearts on rest, ease, and prosperity in this world. They wanted to find their "life" in their comforts, and they lost it, because they had left God out of the account... How common this mistake is even among Christians... You may see a child of God who is always absent from the gatherings of the saints, because of his family or business claims, as he will tell you. He has hardly any heart for the Lord's objects. He is dried up in his own soul, has little peace in his family, and not much prosperity in his affairs. And why? Not because he neglects his own concerns; as we have seen, those come first in his mind. No — it is because he is caring for his own things while indifferent to the desolation of the house of God.

They had set their hearts on their own houses, and the Lord, as it were, says to them, "My heart is on My house. Go up therefore to the mountain, and bring the wood, and build the house."... We learn from this that the true way to glorify God is to be in fellowship with His own mind. It is not found in activities we may choose, however good they are in themselves. It is not found in works of kindness and charity, however much they ease the needs and sorrows of others. It is found in working for the object God has before Him at any given time.

For the second time the LORD urges the remnant to consider their ways. The first time it was in the way of reproof; now it is to encourage them to resume the work of the house of God. We know that then, as now, it was a day of small things. As we shall see, the house they built was "as nothing" compared with the former glory of the house. Yet to this feeble remnant the LORD says: go up, bring wood, build the house. He promises that He will take pleasure in it and that He will be glorified.

They had set their hearts on their own houses, and the Lord, as it were, says to them, "My heart is on My house. So go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house." This was the object of their restoration. The Lord would still have them share the privilege of fellowship with His own purposes. He even stoops to say that He will take pleasure in it and that He will be glorified. By building the house, they would draw out the satisfaction of His heart and lift up His name. We learn from this that the true way to glorify God is to be in fellowship with His own mind. It is not the activities we may choose, however good they are in themselves. It is not works of kindness and philanthropy, however much they relieve the wants and sorrows of others. It is labouring for the object God has before Him at any given time.

It is good to think that a few faithful hearts, with everything against them, would still build a house for God. Solomon had plenty of material in his day. But God probably found more pleasure in the devotion of these few faithful hearts than in the days of Solomon's temple.

God expects His people to make the church visible to all, by bringing materials suitable for her construction. The Holy Spirit uses the evangelist, pastors and teachers to build the church. But we would badly deceive ourselves if we thought that evangelising alone adds souls to the building. It is one of the main instruments. Yet this work needs all the gifts working together. More than that, every witness of Christ is responsible to bring noble and living material to the house of God.

The Lord declares that He will take pleasure in it and that He will be glorified. How kindly He longs for His people to be wholehearted and fully devoted to Himself. It is in worship, pictured by the building of the house, that we glorify Him. It is worshippers the Father seeks, worshippers in spirit and in truth (John 4).

As with the remnant of old, so with ourselves. The low spiritual condition we so often have to mourn comes from doing our own pleasure and seeking our own glory. Self-will and self-importance lie at the root of our failure. Still, is it not the deepest joy and encouragement to know this? In a day of weakness, and despite all our failure, we can still judge our ways. We can still do what pleases God and what brings Him glory.

There was diligence for themselves; but what was the result? Bitter disappointment must always come to the people of God who live for themselves instead of trusting Him who especially looks after the faithful. Our business is to care for His things; His gracious work is to care for us in our things, and indeed in all things.

They had returned to the promised land. God had been faithful and gracious to them, but they were settling down in comfort while God's house still lay waste. No wonder things went wrong! God's word to them, and perhaps also to us, is "Consider your ways." They earned good money, but it trickled away as if into a bag full of holes. No doubt they blamed the recession, the political instability of the time, the abnormal weather conditions. It never occurred to them that God was trying to get through to them.

In the next three verses (9-11) the Lord reminds the people that He is chastening them because of their indifference to His house. God was drying up the source of every earthly blessing. He "blew" upon their crops and withheld the dew. He called for a drought on the land, the mountains, the grain, and everything the earth produced. The drought fell on men, on cattle, and on all the work of their hands. And why did He send this universal blight upon all their work and all their expectations? Let us write the answer on our hearts: "Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house." Is there no voice in these words for believers today? God is still God, and He has His objects now as He had then. If His objects are not ours, is it any wonder that we suffer from spiritual drought and barrenness?

We may excuse ourselves by saying the time is not right. But the real reason for indifference to the principles of God's house is that we are occupied with our own things. Even in the Apostle's day we read of believers that "they all seek their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 2:21). One has said, "It is an unavoidable alternative — we must be occupied either with the Lord's things or with our own."

Notice, too, that our own houses often come into competition with the Lord's house... So we need to think much about this truth: all our "building" is completely in vain unless we do it as the Lord's work.

Many among us feel ashamed, and with good reason, at the exaggerated importance we attach to our own things. Meanwhile the interests of the house of God — the church of the living God — occupy so little of our attention. The Lord often shows us where we fall short. He lets us see that even with all our concern for self we still miss what we aimed at... The Lord deals with His people on a principle of retributive justice. These words express it: "whatever one sows, that will he also reap" (Galatians 6:7). This way of dealing takes nothing from the believer's perfect acceptance in his person through grace. It does not touch his standing in grace either.

Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the remnant of Israel came back from captivity in weakness. They at once busied themselves with God's house. They set up the altar as their protection, and then they laid the foundation of the house. But opposition discouraged them, they stopped building, and sorrow and trouble came upon them... But as soon as they began to build the Lord's house, God commissioned the prophet to say, "From this day on I will bless you."

A royal throne in His name as a witness to the nations was no longer the question. It was thrown down. For the time being, the throne of Jehovah was not in Zion, nor anywhere else on earth. Of course His purpose is not given up. But He still governed morally, and that is the thing now made plain... It was Jehovah who blighted their selfish efforts. He was dealing with the unbelief, and the neglect that followed it, in the remnant who had returned.

Dew was the familiar sign of God's favor. It was largely what made the land fertile; without it the land would be parched and barren. Isaac uses this picture when he blesses Jacob (Gen. 27:28). Moses repeats it in his closing blessing on the tribes (Deut. 33:28). Elijah shows God's judgment on the land by declaring that no dew would fall (1 Kings 17:1).

God was drying up the source of every earthly blessing. He "blew" on their crops and withheld the dew. He called for a drought on the land and on the mountains, on the grain, on everything the earth brought forth, on men, on cattle, and on all the labour of the hands. And why did He send this blight on all their work and all their hopes? Let us write the answer permanently on our hearts: "Because of My house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house."

Because of their neglect — neglect of Himself and the honor of His Name, centered in the house — He could not give the blessing He is so willing to give His people.

They set their hearts on rest, ease, and prosperity in this world. They wanted to find their "life" in their comforts, and so they lost it, because they had left God out of the account. They made themselves, and not God, their object. They put their own things first and grew indifferent to His honour, His claims, and His interests. So they forfeited the very blessings they worked for.

The Lord deals with His people on a principle of justice that repays like for like, as these words convey: "Whatever one sows, that will he also reap" (Gal. 6:7). This way of dealing does not touch, in the least, the believer's perfect acceptance through grace, or his standing in grace. These, thank God, are settled points, and nothing can unsettle them.

"Then the people did fear before the Lord" — note the words, "fear before the Lord." And as a gracious result the Lord said, "I am with you," and again, "My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not." He produced a better condition. True, there was drought, but they were not destroyed. God had regard to His gifts and calling. In wrath He remembered mercy.

God is still God, and He has His objects now as He had then. If then His objects are not ours, is it any wonder that we suffer from spiritual famine and barrenness? that when we have sown much, in preaching the Word, we bring in little? that we feed constantly on what teachers give us, and still do not have enough? that we are neither "warm" nor satisfied, and that a drought seems to run right through the assembly of His saints?

What made this all the more striking is that God was no longer maintaining His throne in Israel. Even so, He did not relax His moral government... It was Jehovah who blighted their selfish efforts. He was dealing with the unbelief of the returned remnant, and with the neglect that came from it. It was not because He did not love them, but because He did. "For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and chastises every son whom He receives."

God was drying up the source of every earthly blessing. He "blew" on their crops and held back the dew. He called for a drought on the land and the mountains, on the grain, on everything the earth brought forth, on men, on cattle, and on all the work of their hands. And why did He send this blight over all their work and all their expectations? Write this answer permanently on our hearts: "Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house."

Some point to Haggai 1:11 as a stronger objection. They argue that a drought could only affect growing fruit, and so that tirosh must mean grapes, not wine. But the rest of the verse refutes this wooden literalism. If the drought could affect men, cattle and the work of their hands, why not wine and oil?

As our Lord taught, "whoever would save his life will lose it," so it was with the remnant. They set their hearts on rest, ease, and prosperity in this world. They wanted to find their "life" in their comforts, and so they lost it, because they had left God out of the account. They made themselves, and not God, their object. They put their own things first and grew indifferent to His honour, His claims, and His interests. So they forfeited the very blessings they worked for.

The low spiritual state we so often have to mourn comes from doing our own pleasure and seeking our own glory. Self-will and self-importance lie at the root of our failure. And yet, is it not the deepest joy and encouragement to know this? In a day of weakness, and in spite of all our failure, we can still judge our ways. We can still do what God can take pleasure in, and through which He can be glorified.

God called for a drought on the land, and on all the labour of their hands. Then "the people feared the Lord" — note those words, "feared the Lord." And as a gracious result the Lord said, "I am with you," and again, "My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not." He produced a better condition. True, there was drought, but not destruction. God had regard to His gifts and calling. In wrath He remembered mercy.

If His objects are not ours, is it any wonder that we are suffering from spiritual famine and barrenness? that when we have sown much in preaching the Word, we bring in little? that we feed constantly on what teachers give us, and still have not enough? that we are neither "warm" nor satisfied, and that a drought seems to lie over the whole assembly of His saints?

They considered their ways. They took it to heart. They knew the Lord had spoken, and that He was right, the rebuke well earned. Happy are all those who always act this way, who humble themselves and obey the Lord. The twelfth verse records a refreshing scene. They all united, Zerubbabel, Joshua, and all the remnant of the people. There was not one dissenting voice. They all obeyed the Lord and the words of the prophet.

Where the whole people of God fail, God continues in His sovereign grace with a remnant. This is true for Israel (e.g. Isa. 10:21; Rom. 9-11) and it is true for the church. A remnant is not just what is left over. It stands for what the whole people should have been, and it is a link with what God gave at the start.

Notice a principle the Scriptures affirm everywhere: the voice of the Lord goes together with the words of the prophet. (v. 12.) When God sends a messenger, He is pleased to identify Himself with His servant. So our blessed Lord said to His disciples, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever receives the one I send receives me, and whoever receives me receives the one who sent me." (John 13:20) Our passage says the same: "and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him." This is a solemn thing for the people of God, because the opposite is true as well. If someone the Lord has truly sent is refused, then the Lord Himself is refused in the person of His servant… This does not mean we should accept everyone who claims to be sent by God. The test is this: does he speak the words of God?

The obedience spoken of here was not mere outward compliance with the warnings they had received. It was the kind that comes from the word of God acting on the conscience. That is why the verse adds, "And the people feared the LORD." This is the sure sign of a real work in the hearts of this feeble remnant. Whether in sinners or saints, if the truth never reaches the conscience, nothing is gained, whatever visible effects the preaching may seem to have… On the other hand, fear of the Lord always rises in a soul whose conscience is exercised before God. That soul then grasps God's holy presence and owns His claims, and at the same time it does not forget its own failure and sin.

They did not begin to build again because the king's decree reached them. They began because they feared the LORD and did not fear the king's command, because they saw Him who is invisible (Hag. 1:12-13). God was no more to be feared under Darius than under Cyrus or Artaxerxes. The source of their weakness was that they had forgotten God. This shows the great grace of God in waking them up through Haggai.

Power comes not before obedience but after it. Some think we must wait for power in order to obey. It is not so; on obedience the Lord gives power… A right state of soul removes all difficulties and makes it possible for the Lord to take us up and use us as vessels of His will. So as soon as the people obeyed the voice of the LORD their God and feared the LORD, all was ready. The Lord stepped in at once and said, "I am with you." And He stirred up their spirit to do His purpose in building the temple.

What follows teaches us this. If the Lord disciplines, or if He speaks words of warning and correction, He does it only to remove every barrier to His people's blessing. He had watched the effect of the prophet's words. The moment the signs of repentance and self-judgment appeared, He sent them a message of comfort — "I am with you, declares the LORD."

When God sends a messenger, He is pleased to identify Himself with His servant... This is a solemn thing for the people of God, because the opposite is true too: if someone who is really sent by the Lord is refused, it is the Lord who is refused in the person of His servant... The Spirit of God, it seems, expands the description of the prophet — the LORD's messenger, with the LORD's message. This identifies him with his Lord. It gives the people certainty that his message is true.

It is very gracious, I think, to see how God provides with special care for a day of weakness. As far as I know, no earlier prophet ever carried the title "the LORD's messenger." Of the prophets after the captivity, Haggai's book is the shortest and the earliest. Yet he is the one given this unusual name of honour. Men would never have chosen him for it. Critics would call him the flattest in style, the plainest of all the prophets. He was the LORD's messenger for all that. He deals with the commonest things — their panelled houses, their sowing much, their bags with holes. They seem the most ordinary appeals. Yet he was the LORD's messenger.

"I am with you" is the saving principle for faith in the weakest possible day. And let me repeat it: what better did they have in the brightest day? Indeed, what else is so good as having the Lord with them? To have the most blessed servants would be a small thing if they did not have the Master Himself. This was the great safeguard and the unfailing source of supply and counsel when Israel came out of Egypt. How gracious to have His presence assured again after Babylon, when everything seemed gone and broken! The words were few, but they carried every help and blessing. They sank deep into devout hearts.

As we have seen, fear of their enemies kept the people from building the LORD's house. Now He gives the antidote... Nothing drives away fear like the assurance of the Lord's presence. But if it is comfort, it is also encouragement. It reminds the people that if the Lord called them forward into danger, He Himself was among them. He would go before them, as He had done in the wilderness, to show them the way.

And the place where power comes is most instructive. It is not before but after obedience... This would clear away the mistake often held, and sometimes spoken, that we must wait for power before we obey. It is not so; on obedience the Lord gives power. For example, the Lord said to the man with the withered arm, "Stretch out your hand." The man might have replied, "I have no power." Instead, in a spirit of obedience, he hurried to obey. He received strength, and was made whole.

They did not start building again because the king's decree reached them. They started because they feared the LORD and did not fear the king's command, seeing Him who is invisible. God was no more to be feared under Darius than under Cyrus or Artaxerxes. The source of their weakness was that they had forgotten God. This makes clear the great grace of God in waking them by the mouth of Haggai.

And the place in which power comes is most instructive. It is not before but after obedience, and is connected with the assurance of the Lord's presence among His people. Grasping this would clear away a mistaken idea, often held and sometimes spoken: that we must wait for power before we obey. It is not so. On obedience the Lord gives power. First there must be the obedience of faith, and then the Lord gives power to walk in the divine paths. For example, the Lord said to the man with the withered hand, "Stretch out your hand." He could have replied, "I have no power." But in the spirit of obedience he hurried to do what he was told, and he received strength and was made whole.

Notice also the source of the power for work. It was not in the people, but in the Lord. It was He who stirred up the spirit of His people and urged them forward in His service. He had done the same at the start, when He "raised" their spirit to go up from Babylon to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. It takes us a long time to learn that there is no power except in the Lord. In the Lord's work human energy, will, or persistence count for nothing. They are real barriers in the way of divine strength. As was said to this same remnant, "Not by might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, says the LORD of hosts" (Zech. 4:6).

This rebuke brings the people back to the fear of God. Fear is awakened, the conscience reached, the hard ground of nature ploughed up. Then the same voice of God through Haggai begins its ministry of comfort and encouragement: "I am with you, declares the LORD." But the Spirit visited the heart of the people as well as the lips of the prophet, and so the ministry reached its goal.

As to the spirit being a separate formation of God in every man, and not a mere influence, we read of "the spirit of Zerubbabel," and "the spirit of Joshua," and the "spirit of the remnant," in Haggai 1:14; of the "spirit" of Elijah (2 Kings 2:15) … as well as of the "spirit" of Cyrus (Ezra 1:1).

The remarkable fact here is that they built without waiting to hear that the king approved it. They did the work because it was the LORD's message, not because it carried the king's signature. His approval came later. They had gone on boldly in faith, acting on the word of the LORD and waiting for nothing else. Nor did the Lord fail to work for them. If there is opposition, the Lord knows how to turn the many adversaries so that the work goes forward.

The text also gives the date when they restarted their work. It was the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king. That is twenty-three days after Haggai began to prophesy. Three short weeks were enough for the recovery of the people from their backsliding. When God acts in power His work is soon done. The record of the date plainly shows His delight in the obedience of His people. How closely He watches over His saints! How carefully He notices the first movements of response to His word!

Moreover, if the LORD is with us we shall find, as the remnant of old found, that He will stir up our spirits to "work in the house of the LORD."

Scripture records the date when they started their work again … twenty-three days after Haggai began to prophesy (compare verse 15 with verse 1). Three short weeks were enough for the people to recover from their backsliding. When God acts in power His work is soon done, and He makes His people rejoice in His restoring grace and pardoning mercy. The record of the date shows how He delights in the obedience of His people. How longingly He watches over His saints, and how closely He notices the first movements of response to His word!

We should also notice the source of the power for their labour. It was not in the people, but in the Lord. It was He who stirred up the spirit of His people and pressed them to go forward in His service. He had done the same at the first, when He "raised" their spirit to go up from Babylon to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple. It takes us a long time to learn that there is no power except in the Lord. In the Lord's work, human energy, will, or persistence not only count for nothing. They are real barriers in the way of divine strength.

And the place where power comes is most instructive. It comes not before obedience but after it. It is also tied to the assurance of the Lord's presence among His people. Grasping this would clear away a mistake many hold, and sometimes say out loud: that we must wait for power before we can obey. It is not so. On obedience the Lord gives power. First comes the obedience of faith. Then He gives power to walk in the divine paths.

Having obeyed the LORD, they can count on the presence of the LORD: "I am with you, declares the LORD." How much blessing is wrapped up in this short message!

They did not begin to build again because the king's decree reached them. They built because they feared the Lord and did not fear the king's command, as seeing Him who is invisible. God was no more to be feared under Darius than under Cyrus or Artaxerxes. The source of their weakness was that they had forgotten God.

The striking fact here is that they built without waiting to hear that the king approved. They did the work because it was the LORD's message, not because it carried the king's signature. The king's approval came later. They had already gone ahead in confident faith, acting on the word of the LORD and waiting for nothing else. And the Lord did not fail to work for them. Israel had lost, for the time, their public place in the world, but the Lord still tested, guided and blessed the faithful. His righteous government goes on just the same in these times when Gentile powers rule.

Comparing Haggai 1:13-15 with this passage, we see that it was exactly three months from the day the people started work on the Lord's house to the day the foundation was laid. It is striking that the Lord did not begin to bless them until that foundation was laid. He waited through those three months to test His people's hearts and the reality of their restoration. He worked in them a sense of their past condition, and so prepared them to receive the blessing He was about to give. It is always so in His ways with His people. His heart towards them never changes, but the showing of His heart must depend on their condition.