The Temple of Jerusalem rebuilt on God's orders
A SCEPTICAL BIBLE
READING OF THE BOOK OF HAGGAI
Chapter One
One of the shorter Minor Prophet presentations in the Old Testament,
and a rare departure from outright bloodshed and threats of violence in the
Minor prophesies section of the Bible.
God comes to Haggai to show him a vision of a New
Jerusalem to be raised over the ruins of the old one. The people are in God’s
bad books for being more interested in building houses for themselves than
building a church-temple in God’s
honour. God calls on the Chosen people, under the current leadership of
Zerubabbel and Joshua (not the same Joshua who brought down Jericho) to raise a
new temple where King Solomon’s once stood.
The people plunge into the rebuilding work with great
energy and enthusiasm, but get so absorbed in the practical secular duty of the
construction work, that they neglect God, forgetting to pray to him or fear
him.
As a rather
ungentle hint of his ongoing presence over them God makes their crops fail, and
their little remaining food taste horrible in their mouths.
Chapter Two
Haggai, playing a
direct role in events himself, reminds the people of the Laws set down by Moses
(particularly the Ten Commandments), He challenges the listeners to tell him
whether food found beside a human or animal corpse should be taken up and eaten
or not. (Verse 13) The people answer correctly that such food is to be left
well enough alone, and they pass the (rather easy) test.
Zerubabbel is told through Haggai that he is of David’s
royal bloodline and particularly important in God’s eyes.
The temple work is
magnificent, but many despair that it is not as glorious as the temple of Solomon before it. God assures
them that this situation will change. God plans to raise his own even
more glorious temple there at some later time.
For once, in
contrast to the other eleven Minor
Prophets, we have a more positive vision, of a city project drawing people
together, which is marred and inflicted with unnecessary sufferings because of
God’s jealousy imposing hardship on them during their work.
Arthur Chappell
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