Haggai means "festival" or "festive". Some have suggested that Haggai is a shortened form of "Haggaiah", meaning "festival of the LORD ". From Ezra 5:1-2 ; 6:14-16 and the book of Haggai, we see that he had a successful ministry. The Lord needed one who could take a message from Himself, convey it to the people, and get results. This the prophet achieved; he was the man of the hour (Hailey, 297).
Concerning Haggai's home and occupation, there is no information. We only know that he returned from Babylon with the remnant under Zerubbabel. Haggai, like Nahum (burden of Nineveh) was a man with a single purpose. . . to rebuild the Temple. His ministry was to get the post-exilic Temple rebuilt. Anything he said was built around this theme. Without rebuilding the temple the people should not expect the favour of the LORD to be upon them. The central place of devotion and worship was essential if the nation was to be held together and the LORD's blessings were to be bestowed on the people. The LORD raised him up and endowed him with His spirit, the spirit of prophecy, for the purpose of rousing the people to action. The temple must be rebuilt at any cost (Hailey, 298)!
The writing of Haggai seems more subdued and prosaic compared to his predecessors like Habakkuk who wrote with charm and poetically. But it was most effective as far as results were concerned. For within three and a half weeks after his first message to the people, they began work on the project. He realized the immediate and more important need of the people and he knew how to reach out to them. The LORD understood the kind of man needed for the task and Haggai was that man. Haggai's appeal to the people was not himself but the LORD. The people must rebuild the Temple because the LORD says they must. The LORD must be the reason for the rebuilding. As such phrases like "saith the LORD" and "the word of the LORD of hosts" occur 26 times in the four short addresses of 38 verses. This appeal stirs the hearts of the people into real action and the temple was built.
Haggai 1:1 tells us that he began prophesying in the second year of the reign of Darius. This would be 520 B.C.
Judah was taken into captivity by Nebuchadnezzar. Many of the people were brought to Babylon after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple of Solomon. The year was 586 B.C. Daniel and his three friends together with other Jewish young men were carried to Babylon after Nebuchadnezzar's first invasion in 605 B.C. Ezekiel the prophet was taken in 597 B.C. during the second captivity. He prophesied until 572 or 570 B.C. Through the ministry of these two exilic prophets the people in exile as well as in Jerusalem before the fall were given spiritual hope and guidance.
Following Nebuchadnezzar's death in 562 B.C., Babylon had a series of weak rulers (read Daniel 5 ). The empire went into decline. By 549 B.C. Cyrus the Persian king had defeated the Median king and united the two countries. In 539 B.C., while Nabonidus, king of Babylon was away and his son, Belshazzar, acted in his stead, Cyrus entered and took the city of Babylon. Cyrus placed Darius the Mede to rule in Babylon. [Note: This is not the Darius mentioned in Haggai's book. He was probably Darius Hystaspes who ruled in 520 B.C.]
The Persians' method of uniting the peoples they conquered was a reversal of what the Assyrians and Babylonians did. The former transplanted people of different nations with people of other nations thereby mixing them up through intermarriages, businesses, etc. hoping that they will lose their own identity. The Babylonians on the other hand would take the best from the conquered nations and feed them with Babylonian propaganda coupled with a new Babylonian name and "a good life" to assimilate them into the Babylonian society. Cyrus issued a decree that the various exiled peoples be all returned to their own homeland, rebuild their respective temples and restore their deities, and then call upon their own gods to act favourably toward him and his household.
The account of the decree is found in 2 Chron. 36 and Ezra 1 . This decree was issued some time in 538 B.C. The first group of Jewish exiles returned under Zerubbabel in 536 B.C. This was prophesied by Isaiah (ISA 44:24-28, ISA 45:1-7 ) some 150 years BEFORE the incident happened. The name of Cyrus was even mentioned by Isaiah (cf. Isa 44:28 ). [From this some have surmised that Cyrus was a monotheist. But such was not the case. He was a polytheist who sought the favour of all the gods.] Data on the three returns include:
a) Zerubbabel led the first in 536 B.C. -- a total of 50,000 Jews and their servants returned (42,360 + 7,337). See Ezra 2:62-67 .
b) Ezra led the second in 455 B.C. (Ezra 7:1-10 ).
c) Nehemiah led the third in 445 B.C. (Neh. 2:1-11 ).
Cyrus was succeeded by his son, Cambyses (529-522) B.C. He had none of the greatness of heart of his father. Cambyses invaded Egypt with carefully laid plans for its conquest but was called home because of a rebellion by his own brother. He had his own brother killed. On his way to Babylon, it is said that he took his own life because he could not face up to the ignominy of killing his own brother. After his death, the Persian Empire was thrown into a state of upheaval. There were a total of nine major revolts. Darius I and his father Hystaspes, an able general put down these revolts. To Darius the First had been ascribed the credit of organizing the empire into a homogeneous whole.
After their return to Jerusalem in 536 B.C., the Jews erected or restored the altar of sacrifices to the LORD and laid the foundation to the Temple. At this point they stopped work on the temple until the second year of Darius I, when Haggai and Zechariah were called to the work of rousing them to finish the work which they started some 16 years earlier. The condition of the Jews seems quite wretched and miserable. Things in Judea had not been as they had anticipated for their cities and houses were in ruins. The land which had been neglected for 50 years after the Babylonian destruction was very evident throughout the land. Food was scarce and the land had not produced the "milk and honey" as they had expected. Their neighbours were unfriendly to say the least. There were times they had been antagonistic toward them. As a whole the picture was very grim and extremely bleak indeed. It was to such a spiritual and economical climate that Haggai and Zechariah wrote their prophecies.
The book of Haggai is a very important book for these four reasons (taken from Holman Bible Dictionary, "Haggai," s.v. E. Earl Joiner, 594).
1. This book laid the foundations of later Judaism on which Christianity was built.
2. The stress on linking worship with work, a characteristic feature of Jesus' teaching and of the NT in general.
3. Reviving the hope of the dejected people.
4. Provides important historical data on the post-exilic period where information is scanty.
The book consists of 4 short addresses and a description of the results of Haggai's message. The recipients of Haggai's message included Zerubbabel, the leader of the group and Joshua, the high priest.
First address -- Haggai argued convincingly to the people that it was indeed the time for them to rebuild God's Temple (Hag 1:2-15 ). The failures in their lives were because of their spiritual neglect. The way to correct their dilemma and spiritual apathy was to rebuild God's house i.e. put God first in your lives and the rest will take care of itself. Proverbs 3:5-10 , "Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil. It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones. Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine." And Jesus Christ has this to say to the rich, "No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon (Matthew 6:24 )." Jesus Christ has this to say to the poor, "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof (Matthew 6:33-34 )."
This is a very fit lesson to teach the young yuppy Singaporeans of today. Haggai assured the people the LORD was with them. The LORD stirred up the hearts of the leaders and people that they might work together (Hag 1:13-15 ).
Second address -- Haggai directed his message to both the leaders and the people. They were to recall the glory of their former Temple and in this way it might stir the new generation of Jews, who were born in Babylon, to new enthusiasm. The LORD will shake the heavens and other nations and filled this house will glory even the glory that will be greater than the former temple (Hag 2:1-9 ).
Third address -- Haggai returned to the theme of his first address where he linked work with worship and God's blessing. The people's carelessness in the building of God's Temple had forfeited them of God's blessings. This must be rectified first before they could think of their own personal needs.(Hag 2:10-19 ).
Fourth address -- This final address was delivered on the same day as the fourth address. This fifth address is filled of hope. Zerubbabel was told that the kingdoms of the world will be over thrown. Zerubbabel was be made a signet for God has chosen him. He became part of the descendants of David through which the Messiah would finally come (Matt. 1:13 ).
1. Link between "secular" and "spiritual"-- No discouragement, be it physical or spiritual, will ever be accepted by God as an excuse not to do His holy will. Disobedience will always be called disobedience regardless of the euphemism attached to that excuse.
2. The time to work is NOW -- Haggai's call was to serve the LORD now. Do not wait for tomorrow or things to look brighter before you serve the Saviour. The time is now or never!! Procrastinate no longer in our drunken stupor for the lust of the eyes and the lust of the flesh. The pride of life will consume us leading to a wasted life of profligacy and debauchery. Jesus said this of Himself when He was on earth doing the father's will, "I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work (John 9:4 )."
3. Basis of our ministry is thus saith the LORD -- Success in God's work must not be measured by man's standard. We have to preach what God wants us to preach and leave the results to Him. In the case of Haggai it was quite "fruitful". Fruitful in that it brought about the desired result and the Temple of God was completed. But it was not so in the ministry of Jeremiah and Isaiah who cried to the people to repent and turned from their sins. They did not measure their success by RESULTS. Neither should God's servants today. Faithfulness unto is the biblical measure of success. "Winning" in the eyes of man by foul means such as cheating and lying and deception is failure in the eyes of God. "Losing" which includes loss of life, freedom, family and friends but remaining faithful to the very end of our lives is "winning: in the eyes of God. God calls it victory!
The Outline of the Book -- The outline is adapted from Hailey's book (p. 301-2) and E Earl Joiner's article in Holman Bible Dictionary, p. 595.