Haggai 1:13

1:13 Then Haggai, the Lord’s messenger, spoke the Lord’s word to the people: ¹  “I am with you!” says the Lord.

Haggai 1:12

The Response of the People

1:12 Then Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak, ²  along with the whole remnant of the people, ³  obeyed ⁴  the Lord their God. They responded favorably to the message of the prophet Haggai, who spoke just as the Lord their God had instructed him, ⁵  and the people began to respect the Lord. ⁶ 

Haggai 1:2

The Indifference of the People

1:2 The Lord who rules over all ⁷  says this: “These people have said, ‘The time for rebuilding the Lord’s temple has not yet come.’” ⁸ 

Haggai 2:2

2:2 “Ask the following questions to ⁹  Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak, ¹⁰  and the remnant of the people:

Haggai 1:14

1:14 So the Lord energized and encouraged ¹¹  Zerubbabel ¹²  son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak, ¹³  and the whole remnant of the people. ¹⁴  They came and worked on the temple of their God, the Lord who rules over all.

Haggai 2:4

2:4 Even so, take heart, Zerubbabel,’ says the Lord. ‘Take heart, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and ¹⁵  all you citizens of the land,’ ¹⁶  says the Lord, ‘and begin to work. For I am with you,’ says the Lord who rules over all.

Haggai 2:14

2:14 Then Haggai responded, “‘The people of this nation are unclean in my sight,’ ¹⁷  says the Lord. ‘And so is all their effort; everything they offer is also unclean. ¹⁸ 

[1:13]  ¹ tn Heb “Haggai, the messenger of the Lord, said by the message of the Lord to the people.” The Hebrew is highly repetitive; in keeping with contemporary English style this has been simplified in the translation.

[1:12]  ² tn Many English versions have “Joshua [the] son of Jehozadak, the high priest,” but this is subject to misunderstanding. See the note on the name “Jehozadak” at the end of v. 1.

[1:12]  ³ tn Heb “all the remnant of the people.” The Hebrew phrase שְׁאֵרִית הָעָם (shÿ’erit ha’am) in this postexilic context is used as a technical term to refer to the returned remnant (see Ezra 9:14; Isa 10:20-22; 11:11, 16; Jer 23:3; 31:7; and many other passages). Cf. TEV “all the people who had returned from the exile in Babylonia.”

[1:12]  ⁴ tn Heb “heard the voice of”; NAB “listened to the voice of.”

[1:12]  ⁵ tn Heb “and according to the words of Haggai the prophet just as the Lord their God sent him.” Some English versions (e.g., NAB, NIV, NCV) take the last clause as causal: “because the Lord their God had sent him.”

[1:12]  ⁶ tn Heb “and the people feared from before the Lord”; NASB “showed reverence for the Lord.”

[1:2]  ³ sn The epithet Lord who rules over all occurs frequently as a divine title throughout Haggai (see 1:5, 7, 9, 14; 2:4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 23). This name (יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת, yÿhvah tsÿva’ot), traditionally translated “Lord of hosts” (so KJV, NAB, NASB; cf. NIV, NLT “Lord Almighty”; NCV, CEV “Lord All-Powerful”), emphasizes the majestic sovereignty of the Lord, an especially important concept in the postexilic world of great human empires and rulers. For a thorough study of the divine title, see T. N. D. Mettinger, In Search of God, 123-57.

[1:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “the time has not come, the time for the house of the Lord to be built” (similar KJV). A number of English versions refer to “rebuilding” (so NAB, NCV, NRSV, TEV, NLT) since the reconstruction of Solomon’s temple is actually in view.

[2:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “say to”; NAB “Tell this to.”

[2:2]  ⁵ tn Many English versions have “Joshua (the) son of Jehozadak the high priest,” but this is subject to misunderstanding. See the note on the name “Jehozadak” at the end of v. 1.

[1:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “stirred up” (as in many English versions). Only one verb appears in the Hebrew text, but the translation “energized and encouraged” brings out its sense in this context. Cf. TEV “inspired”; NLT “sparked the enthusiasm of”; CEV “made everyone eager to work.”

[1:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “the spirit of Zerubbabel” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[1:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “the spirit of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest” (as in many English versions), but this is subject to misunderstanding. See the note on the name “Jehozadak” at the end of v. 1.

[1:14]  ⁸ tn Heb “and the spirit of all the remnant of the people.” The Hebrew phrase שְׁאֵרִית הָעָם (shÿ’erit ha’am) in this postexilic context is used as a technical term to refer to the returned remnant; see the note on the phrase “the whole remnant of the people” in v. 12.

[2:4]  ⁶ tn Heb “and take heart.” Although emphatic, the repetition of the verb is redundant in contemporary English style and has been left untranslated.

[2:4]  ⁷ tn Heb “the people of the land” (עַם הָאָרֶץ, ’am ha’arets); this is a technical term referring to free citizens as opposed to slaves.

[2:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “so this people, and so this nation before me.” In this context “people” and “nation” refer to the same set of individuals; the repetition is emphatic. Cf. CEV “this entire nation.”

[2:14]  ⁸ sn The point here is that the Jews cannot be made holy by unholy fellowship with their pagan neighbors; instead, they and their worship will become corrupted by such associations.