I Am With You | Haggai 2:6-9
Bible Devotional
Church Scripture Verse for today:
Haggai 2:6-9 (ESV)
For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’”
How do you move forward in life when there is so much discouragement?
Let's begin with the first temple destruction as our backdrop.
586 B.C. (2 Kings 24:10-13), we see the destruction of the First Temple (Solomon’s Temple). Destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, the king of Babylon.
You need to remember that Nebuchadnezzar sought to make the kingdom of Judah a vassal state (a subordinate state that must support a more powerful country or empire). They provide military support, finance, protection, and security. And Jerusalem was one of the best real estate properties because of its location on a trade route.
So everyone wanted this property: Egypt, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians. And when the Babylonians became an empire, they conquered Judah. And tens of thousands of Israelites were taken to Babylon. But it was also during the captivity that many prophets would proclaim that one day, the Jews would come back to their homeland and live in a new Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 29:10 (ESV)
“For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.
So there was hope, and, historically, just as the prophet Jeremiah foretold, it happened as God said it would. The Babylonian Empire was overthrown by the Persians. You had Cyrus the Great, the Persian king, who ended the Babylonian dynasty. And on top of that, what the Persians did was to allow any Israelites to go back to their homeland. But you are allowed to go back under one condition.
Ezra 1:1-3 (NLT)
In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah. He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom: “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any of you who are his people may go to Jerusalem in Judah to rebuild this Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives in Jerusalem. And may your God be with you!
So, here is a gentile king who wants God’s house rebuilt in Jerusalem. This is an important note: one of the main reasons people will return to Jerusalem is to rebuild God’s Temple. So, exactly after 70 years, Cyrus the Persian King allowed the Jews to be freed. So, on average, about 40,000 to 50,000 people returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.
And this was called the second exodus. The first exodus was when the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. Through Moses, they were set free, made Jerusalem their capital, and built the temple there. The second exodus is somewhat similar in that the Jews were exiled to Babylon but were later freed to return to Israel. And one of the key figures that led the second exodus was a man named Zerubbabel.
Zerubbabel
- Descendant of King David
- Leader of the first group of Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem
- New Governor of Judah
- Oversee the rebuilding of the temple
Now, from Babylon to Israel is about 900-1,000 miles across hot deserts and cold nights, and the terrain is very difficult to travel. But the men, women, and children, and all these people, are very excited to go back and start rebuilding the temple.
Remember, the temple is their identity. It’s who they are as a people. Without the temple, their identity as Jews becomes meaningless. Because the temple is the place of worship, and all their animal sacrifices are made for the forgiveness of their sins (atonement). It is where God dwells, like in ancient times.
And, when you have that kind of excitement, the 900 to 1,000 miles is not far. Remember that most of them are walking. The travel becomes short because your heart is eager to encounter God again.
So here are the Israelites, who arrive in Jerusalem around 536 B.C., and they start laying the foundation for the temple, but all of a sudden, they stop rebuilding it. The question is why?
Time Line
536 B.C. - Foundations of the temple laid in Jerusalem
16 years - They stopped building the temple.
520 B.C. - The Prophet Haggai enters the picture
Now, in order to understand the book of Haggai, we also need to know the book of Ezra. Because the book of Ezra is like a commentary on the book of Haggai. So, when we read through Ezra, it explains a lot about Haggai.
Now, with that said, here is the question: “Why did they abruptly stop building the temple?” For 16 years, the temple rebuilding remained dormant, with no construction. What happened?
So, what we are going to do today is to do two layers of understanding. What is going on on the surface, and what is going on in the hearts of the people?
Haggai 1:3-4 (ESV)
Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house [He is talking about the temple] lies in ruins?
Haggai 1:3-4 (NLT)
Then the Lord sent this message through the prophet Haggai: “Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins?
What is going on? What are paneled houses?
The Hebrew word for panel is sāp̄an pronounced saw-fan' meaning covered with boards or panelling. [Remember, in ancient Israel, the outside of the homes was not made of wood. In fact, the inside and the outside were made of stones and mud. Only the wealthy homes had wood on the inside.]
What the people were doing was getting hold of this expensive lumber, such as cedar, cypress, and olive trees, meant to rebuild the interior of the temple, but they were using it to rebuild the interiors of their own houses.
You have to remember that when many of these people came out of Babylon, there were some pretty wealthy people. Some of the Jews in Babylon became wealthy, and when they returned to Jerusalem, they built their homes with expensive lumber.
They were misplacing their priorities and started putting God second.
Haggai 1:5-6 (ESV)
Now, therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes.
Haggai is basically saying, “Listen, because you put yourself first, you will never be fulfilled. You have planted a lot for harvest, but you have little to show for it. 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!”
Haggai is saying, “You have misplaced your priority. You bought this expensive wood meant for God’s house, but you used it first to build your own home. For 16 years, God’s house has not been rebuilt, but instead, you guys have been building your own homes. What is up with that?”
So what Haggai is actually saying is that there is a correlation: when you deny God the resources first, you will find your own resources lacking. In other words, “You were lacking materially because you were denying God His rightful things first.” Haggai told the people, "Place your priority on God first, and I will take care of all your needs."
Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
When we seek what God wants for His kingdom first, then He will take care of all our needs. So, at any time you feel that things are not working out the way you have planned or hoped for, seek the Lord and prioritize Him above all else. And here is another thing for you to consider: when things don’t work out the way you planned, it may be because God is trying to get our attention.
There were so many times when it didn’t work out as I hoped, and I would go to the Lord, “God, it's not working out! Why?” And He would reveal to me why things didn’t work out. When things are not working out as you hoped, consider making God your first priority and allow Him to speak into your heart. Because God is most likely trying to tell us something very important.
So here are the Israelites, the people have misplaced their priorities for 16 years. The temple of God lay in ruins while they went about their own business, building their homes and livelihoods, and they misplaced their priorities.
Now, there is another element to the people in Haggai’s time as to why they stopped building the temple for 16 years. And I feel this is where most of us fall into this category. The question again is: Why did they stop building?
Before we get into this, it is important to know something about Ezra. The key advantage for us is that the book of Ezra provides context for what was happening. Here is why they stopped building for 16 years.
Ezra 4:1-2 (ESV)
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers' houses and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria who brought us here.”
Now remember Zerubbabel, who is the leader of the second exodus and the new governor of Judah. In verse 1, it says, “adversaries” of Judah. Which means that these “adversaries” are actually enemies of the Jews. So these enemies are going to try to manipulate to get into a position of power, and they said, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God just as you do. We have sacrificed to him.”
This was just a manipulative way to get their favor and position. So Zerubbabel caught onto it and, in verse 3, responds.
Ezra 4:3 (ESV)
But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses in Israel said to them, “You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”
But these adversaries, or enemies, didn’t stop there; they were very persistent. Have you ever had that, where people just push you and push you, till you break, right? And that is what they are waiting for. They want to see you break and get destroyed. Remember, the enemy's goal is always to steal, kill, and destroy.
Ezra 4:4-5 (ESV)
Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build 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.
Here are the adversaries of Judah; they were relentless and kept “discouraging” the people of Judah for many years. Can you imagine someone just constantly discouraging you for 16 years? You're going to feel like you have no life. You just want to give up.
Or maybe some of you feel like your life is constantly in situations and circumstances that aren't working out for you, and you feel discouraged. And then you end up getting depressed, and anxiety in life starts to grow.
Oh! They didn’t just stop there. There was more. It wasn’t just about discouragement; they sent counselors to frustrate the people of Judah. The counselors today are attorneys. The adversaries sent lawyers for many years to stop them from building the temple. In essence, they hired lawyers to issue a legal injunction to prevent the Jews from building the temple of God. Now, when the enemy would spend their own money to stop you, that’s when you know things are getting really bad.
So here are the Jews with major discouragement, and on top of that, they brought attorneys into this situation. And when you thought things couldn’t even get any worse, it got worse. After Cyrus, another king of Persia, Artaxerxes, came to power, he didn’t know what Cyrus had written about the Jews' rebuilding of the temple. So these adversaries wrote a letter to Artaxerxes about the Israelites.
Ezra 4:11-16 (ESV)
(This is a copy of the letter that they sent.) “To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting. And now be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired. [The letter is saying, once they rebuild this temple, they will not pay any money to Persia] Now because we eat the salt of the palace and it is not fitting for us to witness the king's dishonor, therefore we send and inform the king, in order that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid waste. 16 We make known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River.”
You know, if you say something loud enough and long enough, and you hear it many times, you're going to start believing in what you hear. They were using words like “rebellious and Wicked City, and you will not get your possession.” You’re going to get emotional with that kind of writing. So here is Artaxerxes who reads this letter and goes, “O.k.! You guys need to stop rebuilding right now, or all of you will be destroyed!”
Ezra 4:23-24 (NLT)
When this letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai, and their colleagues, they hurried to Jerusalem. Then, with a show of strength, they forced the Jews to stop building. So the work on the Temple of God in Jerusalem had stopped, and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia.
Here is an army from Persia with a massive strength, and they forced the Jews to stop rebuilding the temple of God. Later, a new king of Persia comes to power: Darius. He then recommits to rebuilding the temple.
Ezra 6:6-8 (NLT)
So King Darius sent this message: “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province west of the Euphrates River, and Shethar-bozenai, and your colleagues and other officials west of the Euphrates River—stay away from there! Do not disturb the construction of the Temple of God. Let it be rebuilt on its original site, and do not hinder the governor of Judah and the elders of the Jews in their work. “Moreover, I hereby decree that you are to help these elders of the Jews as they rebuild this Temple of God. You must pay the full construction costs, without delay, from my taxes collected in the province west of the Euphrates River so that the work will not be interrupted.
Darius is like, “I’m going to pay for the construction of the temple. So go build the temple!” Wow! What a huge encouragement, King Darius. But the people were not rebuilding the temple? Why? Remember, the people were discouraged for 16 years by the adversaries, lawyers, and a letter from Artaxerxes. All these things were happening outside of their control.
The people were really discouraged. What if this happens again? Or, what if another letter from the king comes? So, many what-ifs and many doubts, and just the spirit of discouragement was upon the people.
So this was the perfect time for Haggai to step in. Knowing that the people were going through such difficult and hard times, it was in such a time as this and in God’s perfect timing that Haggai would say these words.
Haggai 2:4-5 (ESV)
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.
You know it’s one when King Darius says to go and rebuild, but it’s so much more powerful when God says, “I am with you” and “do not fear for I am with you.”
When God says, “Be strong,” he is not saying that you should become stronger. When God says, “Be strong,” He is saying, I am going to give you my divine strength. When you are discouraged, you need my divine strength to carry on, and rely on me, and fear God.
He is saying, “I want you to trust me, and depend on my divine strength, so that you can complete your calling in life.” So, when He is saying, “fear God,” He is not saying, be afraid of me; He is saying, can you revere God and respect Him so much that you allow God’s divine strength to take over your spirit.
In the prophet Zechariah’s visions, he encourages the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel, with these words.
Zechariah 4:6-9 (NLT)
Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Nothing, not even a mighty mountain, will stand in Zerubbabel’s way; it will become a level plain before him! And when Zerubbabel sets the final stone of the Temple in place, the people will shout: ‘May God bless it! May God bless it!’” Then another message came to me from the Lord: “Zerubbabel is the one who laid the foundation of this Temple, and he will complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.
Haggai 2:6-9 (ESV)
For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land. And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’”
How do you move forward in life when there is so much discouragement?
Let's begin with the first temple destruction as our backdrop.
586 B.C. (2 Kings 24:10-13), we see the destruction of the First Temple (Solomon’s Temple). Destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, the king of Babylon.
You need to remember that Nebuchadnezzar sought to make the kingdom of Judah a vassal state (a subordinate state that must support a more powerful country or empire). They provide military support, finance, protection, and security. And Jerusalem was one of the best real estate properties because of its location on a trade route.
So everyone wanted this property: Egypt, the Assyrians, and the Babylonians. And when the Babylonians became an empire, they conquered Judah. And tens of thousands of Israelites were taken to Babylon. But it was also during the captivity that many prophets would proclaim that one day, the Jews would come back to their homeland and live in a new Jerusalem.
Jeremiah 29:10 (ESV)
“For thus says the Lord: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place.
So there was hope, and, historically, just as the prophet Jeremiah foretold, it happened as God said it would. The Babylonian Empire was overthrown by the Persians. You had Cyrus the Great, the Persian king, who ended the Babylonian dynasty. And on top of that, what the Persians did was to allow any Israelites to go back to their homeland. But you are allowed to go back under one condition.
Ezra 1:1-3 (NLT)
In the first year of King Cyrus of Persia, the Lord fulfilled the prophecy he had given through Jeremiah. He stirred the heart of Cyrus to put this proclamation in writing and to send it throughout his kingdom: “This is what King Cyrus of Persia says: “The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth. He has appointed me to build him a Temple at Jerusalem, which is in Judah. Any of you who are his people may go to Jerusalem in Judah to rebuild this Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel, who lives in Jerusalem. And may your God be with you!
So, here is a gentile king who wants God’s house rebuilt in Jerusalem. This is an important note: one of the main reasons people will return to Jerusalem is to rebuild God’s Temple. So, exactly after 70 years, Cyrus the Persian King allowed the Jews to be freed. So, on average, about 40,000 to 50,000 people returned to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple.
And this was called the second exodus. The first exodus was when the Israelites were slaves in Egypt. Through Moses, they were set free, made Jerusalem their capital, and built the temple there. The second exodus is somewhat similar in that the Jews were exiled to Babylon but were later freed to return to Israel. And one of the key figures that led the second exodus was a man named Zerubbabel.
Zerubbabel
- Descendant of King David
- Leader of the first group of Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem
- New Governor of Judah
- Oversee the rebuilding of the temple
Now, from Babylon to Israel is about 900-1,000 miles across hot deserts and cold nights, and the terrain is very difficult to travel. But the men, women, and children, and all these people, are very excited to go back and start rebuilding the temple.
Remember, the temple is their identity. It’s who they are as a people. Without the temple, their identity as Jews becomes meaningless. Because the temple is the place of worship, and all their animal sacrifices are made for the forgiveness of their sins (atonement). It is where God dwells, like in ancient times.
And, when you have that kind of excitement, the 900 to 1,000 miles is not far. Remember that most of them are walking. The travel becomes short because your heart is eager to encounter God again.
So here are the Israelites, who arrive in Jerusalem around 536 B.C., and they start laying the foundation for the temple, but all of a sudden, they stop rebuilding it. The question is why?
Time Line
536 B.C. - Foundations of the temple laid in Jerusalem
16 years - They stopped building the temple.
520 B.C. - The Prophet Haggai enters the picture
Now, in order to understand the book of Haggai, we also need to know the book of Ezra. Because the book of Ezra is like a commentary on the book of Haggai. So, when we read through Ezra, it explains a lot about Haggai.
Now, with that said, here is the question: “Why did they abruptly stop building the temple?” For 16 years, the temple rebuilding remained dormant, with no construction. What happened?
So, what we are going to do today is to do two layers of understanding. What is going on on the surface, and what is going on in the hearts of the people?
Haggai 1:3-4 (ESV)
Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house [He is talking about the temple] lies in ruins?
Haggai 1:3-4 (NLT)
Then the Lord sent this message through the prophet Haggai: “Why are you living in luxurious houses while my house lies in ruins?
What is going on? What are paneled houses?
The Hebrew word for panel is sāp̄an pronounced saw-fan' meaning covered with boards or panelling. [Remember, in ancient Israel, the outside of the homes was not made of wood. In fact, the inside and the outside were made of stones and mud. Only the wealthy homes had wood on the inside.]
What the people were doing was getting hold of this expensive lumber, such as cedar, cypress, and olive trees, meant to rebuild the interior of the temple, but they were using it to rebuild the interiors of their own houses.
You have to remember that when many of these people came out of Babylon, there were some pretty wealthy people. Some of the Jews in Babylon became wealthy, and when they returned to Jerusalem, they built their homes with expensive lumber.
They were misplacing their priorities and started putting God second.
Haggai 1:5-6 (ESV)
Now, therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways. You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes.
Haggai is basically saying, “Listen, because you put yourself first, you will never be fulfilled. You have planted a lot for harvest, but you have little to show for it. 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!”
Haggai is saying, “You have misplaced your priority. You bought this expensive wood meant for God’s house, but you used it first to build your own home. For 16 years, God’s house has not been rebuilt, but instead, you guys have been building your own homes. What is up with that?”
So what Haggai is actually saying is that there is a correlation: when you deny God the resources first, you will find your own resources lacking. In other words, “You were lacking materially because you were denying God His rightful things first.” Haggai told the people, "Place your priority on God first, and I will take care of all your needs."
Matthew 6:33 (ESV)
But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.
When we seek what God wants for His kingdom first, then He will take care of all our needs. So, at any time you feel that things are not working out the way you have planned or hoped for, seek the Lord and prioritize Him above all else. And here is another thing for you to consider: when things don’t work out the way you planned, it may be because God is trying to get our attention.
There were so many times when it didn’t work out as I hoped, and I would go to the Lord, “God, it's not working out! Why?” And He would reveal to me why things didn’t work out. When things are not working out as you hoped, consider making God your first priority and allow Him to speak into your heart. Because God is most likely trying to tell us something very important.
So here are the Israelites, the people have misplaced their priorities for 16 years. The temple of God lay in ruins while they went about their own business, building their homes and livelihoods, and they misplaced their priorities.
Now, there is another element to the people in Haggai’s time as to why they stopped building the temple for 16 years. And I feel this is where most of us fall into this category. The question again is: Why did they stop building?
Before we get into this, it is important to know something about Ezra. The key advantage for us is that the book of Ezra provides context for what was happening. Here is why they stopped building for 16 years.
Ezra 4:1-2 (ESV)
Now when the adversaries of Judah and Benjamin heard that the returned exiles were building a temple to the Lord, the God of Israel, they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of fathers' houses and said to them, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God as you do, and we have been sacrificing to him ever since the days of Esarhaddon king of Assyria who brought us here.”
Now remember Zerubbabel, who is the leader of the second exodus and the new governor of Judah. In verse 1, it says, “adversaries” of Judah. Which means that these “adversaries” are actually enemies of the Jews. So these enemies are going to try to manipulate to get into a position of power, and they said, “Let us build with you, for we worship your God just as you do. We have sacrificed to him.”
This was just a manipulative way to get their favor and position. So Zerubbabel caught onto it and, in verse 3, responds.
Ezra 4:3 (ESV)
But Zerubbabel, Jeshua, and the rest of the heads of fathers' houses in Israel said to them, “You have nothing to do with us in building a house to our God; but we alone will build to the Lord, the God of Israel, as King Cyrus the king of Persia has commanded us.”
But these adversaries, or enemies, didn’t stop there; they were very persistent. Have you ever had that, where people just push you and push you, till you break, right? And that is what they are waiting for. They want to see you break and get destroyed. Remember, the enemy's goal is always to steal, kill, and destroy.
Ezra 4:4-5 (ESV)
Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah and made them afraid to build 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.
Here are the adversaries of Judah; they were relentless and kept “discouraging” the people of Judah for many years. Can you imagine someone just constantly discouraging you for 16 years? You're going to feel like you have no life. You just want to give up.
Or maybe some of you feel like your life is constantly in situations and circumstances that aren't working out for you, and you feel discouraged. And then you end up getting depressed, and anxiety in life starts to grow.
Oh! They didn’t just stop there. There was more. It wasn’t just about discouragement; they sent counselors to frustrate the people of Judah. The counselors today are attorneys. The adversaries sent lawyers for many years to stop them from building the temple. In essence, they hired lawyers to issue a legal injunction to prevent the Jews from building the temple of God. Now, when the enemy would spend their own money to stop you, that’s when you know things are getting really bad.
So here are the Jews with major discouragement, and on top of that, they brought attorneys into this situation. And when you thought things couldn’t even get any worse, it got worse. After Cyrus, another king of Persia, Artaxerxes, came to power, he didn’t know what Cyrus had written about the Jews' rebuilding of the temple. So these adversaries wrote a letter to Artaxerxes about the Israelites.
Ezra 4:11-16 (ESV)
(This is a copy of the letter that they sent.) “To Artaxerxes the king: Your servants, the men of the province Beyond the River, send greeting. And now be it known to the king that the Jews who came up from you to us have gone to Jerusalem. They are rebuilding that rebellious and wicked city. They are finishing the walls and repairing the foundations. Now be it known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, custom, or toll, and the royal revenue will be impaired. [The letter is saying, once they rebuild this temple, they will not pay any money to Persia] Now because we eat the salt of the palace and it is not fitting for us to witness the king's dishonor, therefore we send and inform the king, in order that search may be made in the book of the records of your fathers. You will find in the book of the records and learn that this city is a rebellious city, hurtful to kings and provinces, and that sedition was stirred up in it from of old. That was why this city was laid waste. 16 We make known to the king that if this city is rebuilt and its walls finished, you will then have no possession in the province Beyond the River.”
You know, if you say something loud enough and long enough, and you hear it many times, you're going to start believing in what you hear. They were using words like “rebellious and Wicked City, and you will not get your possession.” You’re going to get emotional with that kind of writing. So here is Artaxerxes who reads this letter and goes, “O.k.! You guys need to stop rebuilding right now, or all of you will be destroyed!”
Ezra 4:23-24 (NLT)
When this letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai, and their colleagues, they hurried to Jerusalem. Then, with a show of strength, they forced the Jews to stop building. So the work on the Temple of God in Jerusalem had stopped, and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia.
Here is an army from Persia with a massive strength, and they forced the Jews to stop rebuilding the temple of God. Later, a new king of Persia comes to power: Darius. He then recommits to rebuilding the temple.
Ezra 6:6-8 (NLT)
So King Darius sent this message: “Now therefore, Tattenai, governor of the province west of the Euphrates River, and Shethar-bozenai, and your colleagues and other officials west of the Euphrates River—stay away from there! Do not disturb the construction of the Temple of God. Let it be rebuilt on its original site, and do not hinder the governor of Judah and the elders of the Jews in their work. “Moreover, I hereby decree that you are to help these elders of the Jews as they rebuild this Temple of God. You must pay the full construction costs, without delay, from my taxes collected in the province west of the Euphrates River so that the work will not be interrupted.
Darius is like, “I’m going to pay for the construction of the temple. So go build the temple!” Wow! What a huge encouragement, King Darius. But the people were not rebuilding the temple? Why? Remember, the people were discouraged for 16 years by the adversaries, lawyers, and a letter from Artaxerxes. All these things were happening outside of their control.
The people were really discouraged. What if this happens again? Or, what if another letter from the king comes? So, many what-ifs and many doubts, and just the spirit of discouragement was upon the people.
So this was the perfect time for Haggai to step in. Knowing that the people were going through such difficult and hard times, it was in such a time as this and in God’s perfect timing that Haggai would say these words.
Haggai 2:4-5 (ESV)
Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.
You know it’s one when King Darius says to go and rebuild, but it’s so much more powerful when God says, “I am with you” and “do not fear for I am with you.”
When God says, “Be strong,” he is not saying that you should become stronger. When God says, “Be strong,” He is saying, I am going to give you my divine strength. When you are discouraged, you need my divine strength to carry on, and rely on me, and fear God.
He is saying, “I want you to trust me, and depend on my divine strength, so that you can complete your calling in life.” So, when He is saying, “fear God,” He is not saying, be afraid of me; He is saying, can you revere God and respect Him so much that you allow God’s divine strength to take over your spirit.
In the prophet Zechariah’s visions, he encourages the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel, with these words.
Zechariah 4:6-9 (NLT)
Then he said to me, “This is what the Lord says to Zerubbabel: It is not by force nor by strength, but by my Spirit, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies. Nothing, not even a mighty mountain, will stand in Zerubbabel’s way; it will become a level plain before him! And when Zerubbabel sets the final stone of the Temple in place, the people will shout: ‘May God bless it! May God bless it!’” Then another message came to me from the Lord: “Zerubbabel is the one who laid the foundation of this Temple, and he will complete it. Then you will know that the Lord of Heaven’s Armies has sent me.
Posted in Weekly Devotional