Tag: haggai

“Consider your ways!”

Haggai 1:5-7.  Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways! “You have sown much, and bring in little; You eat, but do not have enough; You drink, but you are not filled with drink; You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm; And he who earns wages, Earns wages to put into a bag with holes.” Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Consider your ways!

Reflect seriously upon this affair, whether it is consistent with the reason of things, or whether you have even promoted your own happiness by it as you thought to do. For as you have neglected him, so hath he withdrawn his blessing from you; the consequence of which has been, that nothing has prospered with you. (Benson)

Many good works have been intended, but not done, because men supposed the proper time was not come. Thus believers let slip opportunities of usefulness, and sinners delay the concerns of their souls, till too late.  (Henry)

Consider your ways; their sinful ways, and repent of them, and forsake them, particularly their ingratitude before observed; and their civil ways, their common ways of life; their labour, work, and business, they were continually employed in; and observe the event of them; what success they had, what these issued in; whether there were not some visible tokens of the divine displeasure on them, which rendered all their attempts to support and enrich themselves and families vain, and of no effect (Gill)

Haggai described a double curse. Instead of much, little was reaped; and the little that was brought home melted away without doing any good (earns wages to put into a bag with holes). “I do not know of any passage in the Bible that better describes the feverish yet ineffective activity of our own age.” (Boice)

If our priorities are wrong, nothing will satisfy us. Each accomplishment soon reveals that there must be something more, something that can really satisfy. Nothing fills the God-shaped void in our lives except putting Him first. (Guzik)

Neglecting God’s Word and giving little to no thought to things of God will certainly leave a void where the heart and soul and mind are constantly looking for that which will satisfy.  The problem is there is no thought given to the condition of their commitment to things of God. It is so easy in our time, where things of God are but a passing thought if at all.  Do you want joy, peace, and rest in your minds? Do you want to find purpose and satisfaction for your souls?  Make proper note of this: Things of this world and the ways of this world will never bring about a filling of the void in your hearts, minds, and souls. Every day that begins and ends without a thought of bringing honor and glory to Jesus Christ in all thoughts, words, and actions is a day that the things of this world you have chosen to follow after are more important.

13.a. “God put such a thing as this into the heart of men who hunger and thirst”

Haggai 1:13  Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, gave this message of the Lord to the people: “I am with you,” declares the Lord. So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people. They came and began to work on the house of the Lord Almighty, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month.

2 Chronicles 36:22     Now in the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing:

Ezra 1:5     Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the LORD that is in Jerusalem.

Ezra 7:27    Blessed be the LORD, the God of our fathers, who put such a thing as this into the heart of the king,

We do well to know and believe that God can and does stir the hearts of man.  He will stir them to accomplish His plans and purposes.  This stirring comes to a heart that is willing.  We see many times where God sent prophets to stir the hearts of His children and they stiffened their necks and hearts against it.  Their reward was more hardening and deafness to the things of God.  When there is no appetite for the things of God, spiritual food will not be consumed.  When there is no hunger and thirst for spiritual food the bread of life and living water will not be sought.  Though there is not an appetite for spiritual food there obviously is appetite for something.  We will choose to fill the voids in our life with something satisfying.  We will search after and chase after and seek after something in this world that will satisfy the appetite of our soul.  We will jump from one thing to another and find our searching, apart from things of God, will not satisfy our souls hunger.  Oh that God would stir the hearts of us to hunger and seek after Him.  Oh that God would open our eyes to things of this world that we have allowed to corrupt our hunger and thirst for Him.

12.z. Haggai

Haggai 1:1  In the second year of King Darius, on the first day of the sixth month, the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest: This is what the Lord Almighty says: “These people say, ‘The time has not yet come to rebuild the Lord’s house.’” Then the word of the Lord came through the prophet Haggai: “Is it a time for you yourselves to be living in your paneled houses, while this house remains a ruin?” Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. You have planted much, but harvested little. You eat, but never have enough. You drink, but never have your fill. You put on clothes, but are not warm. You earn wages, only to put them in a purse with holes in it.” This is what the Lord Almighty says: “Give careful thought to your ways. Go up into the mountains and bring down timber and build my house, so that I may take pleasure in it and be honored,” says the Lord. “You expected much, but see, it turned out to be little. What you brought home, I blew away. Why?” declares the Lord Almighty. “Because of my house, which remains a ruin, while each of you is busy with your own house. Therefore, because of you the heavens have withheld their dew and the earth its crops. I called for a drought on the fields and the mountains, on the grain, the new wine, the olive oil and everything else the ground produces, on people and livestock, and on all the labor of your hands.” Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, Joshua son of Jozadak, the high priest, and the whole remnant of the people obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the message of the prophet Haggai, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord.

In the difficult years of the return from exile God spoke to His people through the prophet Haggai. Haggai is also mentioned twice in the Book of Ezra, the priest who oversaw the work of rebuilding the temple. We learn that the prophecy began in September, 520 B.C.This makes Haggai the first among the post-exilic Minor Prophets. Of the 12 Minor Prophets, the first 9 spoke before Judah was carried away captive, exiled to Babylon. The last 3 Minor Prophets (Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi) each spoke to those who returned from the 70-year exile. “Gone was the glory of the former kingdom and temple. Gone was the great population. All that was left was the rubble of Jerusalem, the remnant of the people, and the task of restoration.”  In 538 B.C. Cyrus King of Persia allowed the exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem after 70 years in captivity. Two years later (536 B.C.) construction on the temple began, led by Zerubbabel. The work stopped after two years (534 B.C.). After 14 years of neglect, work on the temple resumed in 520 B.C. and was finished four years later in 516 B.C. (Enduring Word)

3.m. Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love

Ezra 5:1  Now the prophets, Haggai and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied to the Jews who were in Judah and Jerusalem, in the name of the God of Israel who was over them. Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel and Jeshua the son of Jozadak arose and began to rebuild the house of God that is in Jerusalem, and the prophets of God were with them, supporting them.

At the same time Tattenai the governor of the province Beyond the River and Shethar-bozenai and their associates came to them and spoke to them thus: “Who gave you a decree to build this house and to finish this structure?” They also asked them this: “What are the names of the men who are building this building?” But the eye of their God was on the elders of the Jews, and they did not stop them until the report should reach Darius and then an answer be returned by letter concerning it.

2 Chronicles 16:9   For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.

Psalms 32:8    I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you.

Psalms 33:18    Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love,

1 Peter 3:12   For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their prayer. But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.”

Psalms 34:15  The eyes of the LORD are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry.

There are always going to be those in opposition to the work, plans, and purposes of God.  They cry foul, make accusations, and try hard to stop this work.  God’s word is full of examples of men in opposition.  They only succeed when it is in God’s plan and for His purpose.  Sometimes it is for our testing so that we know what is in our heart.  Other times it is in God’s wrath to the fallen and deliberate hardened heart of those who choose to be neglectful and complacent in their walk with Him.

When we are faced with opposition let our eyes, ears, heart, mind, and soul be focused and trusting in God.  Praise and trust in His promises of steadfast love, power, strength, refuge, peace, and rest.  Philippians 4:12-13  I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.  I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

We are never alone.  God’s eyes are always on us.