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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Verse 1
1:1-15 The first message calls the people of Jerusalem to focus on restoring proper worship of God.
1:1 This introductory statement (superscription) identifies the author, the audience, the date, and the occasion prompting the prophecy. • the second year: King Darius I (Hystaspes) ruled Persia 521–486 BC, early in the Persian Empire (539–331 BC). The messages of Haggai are among the most precisely dated prophecies in the Old Testament. • Prophet (Hebrew nabi’) designates Haggai as a representative of God who speaks with the authority of God, who sent him. • Zerubbabel led one group of Hebrews back to Palestine after the Babylonian exile and was the Persian-appointed governor of Judah at the time of Haggai’s ministry (see Ezra 2:1-2; 3:2; Neh 7:7). • Jeshua was the high priest at that time. Under his supervision, the altar was rebuilt and the second Temple was dedicated (Ezra 3:2; 5:2; 6:15).
Verse 2
1:2 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; Matt 26:53). 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, 9-11) 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, 7-8).
Verse 4
1:4 Why are you? Rhetorical questions in prophetic literature call for agreement rather than a reply (see 2:3). 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.
Verse 5
1:5 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; 2:15, 18) 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) and their failure to restore proper worship of the Lord (1:8-9).
Verse 6
1:6 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.
Verse 8
1:8 Now go up into the hills: The stands of trees around Jerusalem were insufficient to meet the demands of the Temple project. Such supplies would have been imported from Lebanon and Syria to the north. • The challenge to rebuild my house underscores the importance of worship in the life of the community and the need for a proper sanctuary so worship of the Lord might take place according to the law. The land would experience blessing and prosperity when the Lord’s Temple—his dwelling place—was rebuilt (2:4).
Verse 9
1:9 I blew it away: The Lord destroyed the harvest because the people’s priorities were wrong—they thought only of themselves rather than of God. • says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies: The “God-as-speaker formula,” which often closes a prophecy (1:13; 2:8, 17, 23), verified Haggai’s message as the sure word of God.
Verse 11
1:11 I have called for a drought: The people failed to recognize their plight as a divine judgment on their misplaced priorities, so Haggai interpreted the situation in light of the curses attached to the covenant (Deut 28:15-68, especially vv 22-24, 38-40). • Drought (Hebrew khoreb) is a wordplay on “ruins” (Hag 1:4, 9; Hebrew khareb)—Judah’s experiences corresponded with the condition in which they had left the Lord’s Temple.
Verse 12
1:12 The whole remnant means the people who returned from Babylon. All of them were united in the rebuilding project. • the people feared the Lord: They responded with reverence and worship, and they reordered their priorities by placing spiritual values above their material prosperity.
Verse 13
1:13 Haggai’s unusual title as the Lord’s messenger (the same Hebrew phrase is often translated angel of the Lord) ascribes distinctive authority to Haggai as the Lord’s agent. • I am with you: This affirmed God’s covenant with the people of Judea, his personal presence, and his support in the building project (2:4-5; see Gen 26:3; Exod 3:12; Isa 41:10; 43:5; Jer 30:11).