Overview of the Book of Haggai

Overview of the Book of Haggai

So the overview of the week for this Sunday is the book of Haggai. Haggai, whose name means festive, wrote in the 6th century BC after the Babylonian captivity, several years after the return of the Jews to the land of Judah.

Haggai’s Prophecy of Temple Rebuilding

So the focus of his prophecy is rebuilding the temple. In chapter 1, he writes this, thus speaks the Lord of hosts saying, This people says the time has not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built.

Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet saying, is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses and this temple to lie in ruins? So Haggai is delivering God's message, commanding the Jews to rebuild the temple.

He claimed that if the temple was not built, there would be poverty, famine, and drought affecting the Jewish nation. Now this is one of the shortest books in the Bible, just two chapters. It's the second shortest book in the Old Testament next to Obadiah.

Haggai’s Date, Historical Setting, and Canonical Place

And the thing that's unique about this, there's no question about the date of this prophecy. The date is clearly specified. So we know that Haggai wrote in 520 BC and it's believed that he had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon with Zerubbabel 18 years earlier.

Haggai is mentioned in the Old Testament book of Ezra and he is also quoted in the New Testament book of Hebrews. So his writing, his prophecies, is like a back-and-forth, a message of rebuke followed by a message of encouragement, a message of encouragement followed by a message of rebuke.

The Coming Messiah and the Desire of All Nations

But the most significant of all his statements comes in chapter 2, verse 7, where most commentators believe that he is speaking about the coming Messiah and he calls the Christ the desire of all nations.

So I'll close with verses 6 and 7 of chapter 2. Haggai writes, for thus says the Lord of hosts, Once more, it is a little while, I will shake heaven and earth, the sea and dry land, and I will shake all nations, and they shall come to the desire of all nations.

And I will fill this temple with glory, says the Lord of hosts.