Haggai 1:2-6
1:2 a Lord of Heaven’s Armies: Haggai’s and Zechariah’s favorite expression for God emphasizes the invincible power behind God’s word. The Lord can call on infinite numbers of heavenly troops to carry out his will at a moment’s notice (2 Kgs 6:17 b; Matt 26:53 c). This thought was intended to encourage the Judeans, who felt helpless and insignificant.• The time has not yet come: Poor crop yields from drought and pestilence had so weakened Judah’s economy (Hag 1:6 d, 9-11 e) that the people thought they could not afford to rebuild the Temple. Haggai convinced them they could not afford to leave the Temple in ruins, for God would not bless and prosper them if they did not rebuild the Lord’s house (1:4 f, 7-8 g).
1:4 h Why are you? Rhetorical questions in prophetic literature call for agreement rather than a reply (see 2:3 i). The purpose of this question is to remove the listeners’ opportunity to offer excuses in response to the message.
• The luxurious (or covered, paneled) houses of the people contrasted with God’s Temple, which was in ruins (or desolate) and thus unusable.
1:5 j Look at what’s happening to you (literally Set your heart on these matters): For the Hebrews, the heart is the place where thinking, feeling, and willing all occur. So this command (also 1:7 k; 2:15 l, 18 m) calls upon the people to think carefully and draw the proper conclusions about the connection between what’s happening to them (drought and poverty, 1:6 n) and their failure to restore proper worship of the Lord (1:8-9 o).
1:6 p eat ... drink ... put on clothes: Each of these conveys continuous action (i.e., you keep filling your plates ... you keep drinking and drinking ... you put on layer after layer of clothes), heightening the sense of futility.
• pockets filled with holes (literally a pierced bag): The image depicts the loss of wages. Many families faced poverty despite their steady labors.
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