Haggai 1:4

1:4 “Is it right for you to live in richly paneled houses ¹  while my temple is in ruins? ² 

Haggai 1:9

1:9 ‘You expected a large harvest, but instead ³  there was little, and when you brought it home it disappeared right away. ⁴  Why?’ asks the Lord who rules over all. ‘Because my temple remains in ruins, thanks to each of you favoring his own house! ⁵ 

Haggai 1:8

1:8 Go up to the hill country and bring back timber to build ⁶  the temple. ⁷  Then I will be pleased and honored,’ ⁸  says the Lord.

Haggai 1:2

The Indifference of the People

1:2 The Lord who rules over all ⁹  says this: “These people have said, ‘The time for rebuilding the Lord’s temple has not yet come.’” ¹⁰ 

Haggai 2:7

2:7 I will also shake up all the nations, and they ¹¹  will offer their treasures; ¹²  then I will fill this temple with glory,’ says the Lord who rules over all.

Haggai 2:9

2:9 ‘The future splendor of this temple will be greater than that of former times,’ ¹³  the Lord who rules over all declares, ‘and in this place I will give peace.’” ¹⁴ 

Haggai 1:14

1:14 So the Lord energized and encouraged ¹⁵  Zerubbabel ¹⁶  son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, the high priest Joshua son of Jehozadak, ¹⁷  and the whole remnant of the people. ¹⁸  They came and worked on the temple of their God, the Lord who rules over all.

Haggai 2:3

2:3 ‘Who among you survivors saw the former splendor of this temple? ¹⁹  How does it look to you now? Isn’t it nothing by comparison?

[1:4]  ¹ sn Richly paneled houses. Paneling is otherwise known in the OT only in connection with the temple (1 Kgs 6:9) and the royal palace (2 Kgs 7:3, 7). It implies decoration and luxury (cf. NCV “fancy houses”; TEV “well-built houses”; NLT “luxurious houses”). The impropriety of the people living in such lavish accommodations while the temple lay unfinished is striking.

[1:4]  ² tn Heb “Is it time for you, [yes] you, to live in paneled houses, while this house is in ruins”; NASB “lies desolate”; NIV “remains a ruin.”

[1:9]  ³ tn Heb “look!” (הִנֵּה, hinneh). The term, an interjection, draws attention to the point being made.

[1:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “I blew it away” (so NRSV, TEV, NLT). The imagery here suggests that human achievements are so fragile and temporal that a mere breath from God can destroy them (see Ezek 22:20, 21; and Isa 40:7 with נָשַׁב, nashav).

[1:9]  ⁵ tn Heb “and each of you runs to his own house”; NIV “is busy with”; TEV “is busy working on”; NCV “work hard for.”

[1:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “and build the house” (so NIV, NRSV), with “house” referring specifically to the temple here.

[1:8]  ⁶ sn The temple was built primarily of stone, so the timber here refers to interior paneling (see v. 4) and perhaps to scaffolding (see Ezra 5:8; 6:4).

[1:8]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew verb אֶכָּבְדָ (’ekkavda) appears to be a defectively written cohortative (“that I may be glorified”). The cohortatives (note that the preceding אֶרְצֶה, ’ertseh, “I will be pleased,” may also be taken as cohortative) indicate purpose/result (cf. NIV, NRSV “so that”; CEV “so”) following the imperatives of v. 8a (“go up,” “bring back,” “build”).

[1:2]  ⁷ 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]  ⁸ 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.

[2:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “all the nations.”

[2:7]  ¹⁰ tn Though the subject here is singular (חֶמְדַּה, khemdah; “desire”), the preceding plural predicate mandates a collective subject, “desired (things)” or, better, an emendation to a plural form, חֲמֻדֹת (khamudot, “desirable [things],” hence “treasures”). Cf. ASV “the precious things”; NASB “the wealth”; NRSV “the treasure.” In the OT context this has no direct reference to the coming of the Messiah.

[2:9]  ¹¹ tn Heb “greater will be the latter splendor of this house than the former”; NAB “greater will be the future glory.”

[2:9]  ¹² tn In the Hebrew text there is an implicit play on words in the clause “in this place [i.e., Jerusalem] I will give peace”: in יְרוּשָׁלַיִם (yÿrushalayim) there will be שָׁלוֹם (shalom).

[1:14]  ¹³ 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]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the spirit of Zerubbabel” (so NAB, NIV, NRSV).

[1:14]  ¹⁵ 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]  ¹⁶ 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.

[2:3]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “this house in its earlier splendor”; NAB, NIV, NRSV “in its former glory.”