Haggai

Haggai 1

Haggai is mentioned by name twice in Ezra (5:1,6:14). The timelines are intertwined.

• Ezra 3:8 In the second month of the second year after their arrival in Jerusalem, Zerubbabel and Joshua began to work on rebuilding the temple. This was during the reign of Cyrus.
• Ezra 4:6–23 During the reign of Xerxes, the people around the Jews accused the Jews of conspiracy to rebel. During the reign of Artaxerxes they sent a letter to him, and he issued an order for work to stop.
• Haggai 1:1 in the second year of Darius, on the first day of the sixth month, Haggai gave the word of the Lord
• Haggai 1:14-15 on the 24th day of the sixth month the people began work. 
• Ezra 5:1-2 At Haggai’s prophecy, work was restarted.
• Haggai 2:1 In the second year of Darius on the 21st day of the seventh month, Haggai spoke the word of the Lord
• Haggai 2:10 In the second year of Darius on the 24th day of the ninth month, Haggai spoke the word of the Lord
• Haggai 2:20 In the second year of Darius on the 24th day of the ninth month (the same day), Haggai received and spoke another word from the Lord
• Ezra 6:15 The temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar in the sixth year of the reign of Darius. Adar is the twelfth month of the Jewish calendar.

Haggai 1:1-2 The date of the first prophecy and its recipients, which align with the historical narrative of Ezra. Zerubbabel and Joshua are both mentioned as getting to work in response to Haggai’s prophecies. (Ezra 5:2)

Haggai 1:3-4 The Lord reprimands the people for living in comfortable and luxurious houses while His house lies in ruins. This is somewhat different than what David was told when he planned to start building a temple, and was told not to. David felt guilty for living in a palace while the Lord lived in a tent. (2 Samuel 7:1-2) The Lord spoke to David through Nathan the prophet that he was not to build it, but that His descendent would. (2 Samuel 7:4-16) In that prophecy, it is clear that the Lord had in mind Jesus building His church, that His throne would endure forever. (2 Samuel 7:13) 

Haggai 1:5-11 The result of prioritizing human activity is that it fails to deliver, because God was not being honored. But comparison with Isaiah’s words puts perspective on what God is really looking for. 

“Heaven is my throne,

    and the earth is my footstool.

Where is the house you will build for me?

    Where will my resting place be?

Has not my hand made all these things,

    and so they came into being?”

declares the Lord. (Isaiah 66:1-2)

This was quoted by Stephen just before he was stoned. (Acts 7:49-50) God takes pleasure in the Holy Spirit indwelling His people, and their response. 

There is a point here about sowing and reaping, and God using trials of life to get our attention. Perhaps this is related to God’s word about bringing the full tenth into the storehouse. (Malachi 3:10-11) It is not a matter of paying Him off. Rather, the point is that the source of true wealth is God, and that we need to show by our actions that we are looking to Him as the source of provision.

Haggai 1:12-15 The people responded in obedience and they began work.

Haggai 2

Haggai 2:1-5 Less than a month after the previous word of the Lord, Haggai brought another revelation. Construction of the second temple had just begun. He recalls the past  - the glory of Solomon’s temple, and the Law of Moses and associated promises He gave them during the Exodus. His Spirit, Ruach HaKodesh, remains with them.

Haggai 2:6-9 The Lord will shake the heavens and the earth, to remove the old and replace it with Jesus’ reign.  (Matthew 27:54, 28:2) This promise was repeated later in the New Testament so we know that it was not yet completely fulfilled, although Jesus’ death and resurrection established the foundation for His eternal kingdom. (Hebrews 12:26) But even before His death, the glory of Jesus’ physical presence graced this very temple that Shealtiel and Joshua were now building, albeit more than 500 years later. 

Haggai 2:10-19 Two months later, the prophet brought another word. First, there was an object lesson about transmitting holiness and uncleanness. The temple itself cannot make the people righteous, but their devotion to God can. It is for them, that by putting Him ahead of their own needs and wants, they will be blessed. And so, in a more general sense, laying bricks to build God’s kingdom yields blessing. Setting priorities in our lives of glorifying God and living as Jesus calls us will result in blessings on the more mundane aspects of life. They (and we) must be careful to align all of our actions with His priorities. The glory of Jesus is coming!

Haggai 2:20-23 Second, referring again to the prophesied shaking (2:6-7), when the nations and their armies are overthrown by God’s direct intervention, His faithful servants will be close to Him and act in His authority. The Lord’s authority is not focused on politics but ultimate spiritual realities. Being in God’s hand brings spiritual and moral truths to the governor’s life, to lead people by exhortation and example, with governmental power properly exercised. 

Zephaniah

 

Zephaniah 1

Zephaniah 1:1 A member of the royal family, a great-great-grandson of King Hezekiah. The genealogy makes him a second cousin of the king, since Amariah was their great-grandfather.  This prophecy seems to be fire and brimstone preaching. Not designed to be popular with the masses.

Zephaniah 1:2-13 The prophet enumerates the various ways people go astray, intermixed with the punishment that God will mete out.

• Zephaniah 1:2 In verses 2 and 18, the universality of destruction sounds very much like a description of the end times. Perhaps we should consider how our actions at any point in history could merit this kind of cataclysmic judgment.
• Zephaniah 1:3-5 Idolatry and worship of demons such as Baal and Moloch, and worship of the starry host, will be swept away, and along with destroying the physical means of such worship, the worshippers will also experience God’s hand. It will be a painful spanking.
• Zephaniah 1:6-7 Those who neglect the Lord and don’t bother to seek Him will be silent. The sacrifice the Lord has prepared refers, most likely, to Jesus’ crucifixion, in which He will set apart those who respond to His invitation.  
• Zephaniah 1:8 Rulers get distracted by their power, and forget who they are before God and their responsibility to Him for what they do in their position. Instead they focus on either exercising power or living it up.
• Zephaniah 1:9 Characteristics of those who neglect the worship of the Lord and turn to false Gods include violence and deceit. They will reap what they sow.
• Zephaniah 1:10-11  Those who focus solely on their careers will cry aloud with pain at the loss of their life-focus, be they fisherman, entrepreneurs, farmers, merchants, or bankers. If the Lord is not in their lives, when He comes they won’t be able to deal with Him and His ways.
• Zephaniah 1:12 Those who think and act as though God is dead, or is a remote, detached God who doesn’t intervene in human affairs of this life, will find out they were wrong the hard way.
• Zephaniah 1:13 The wealthy who trust in their earthly riches will lose them. 

Zephaniah 1:14-18 The great day of the Lord, the day of wrath, sounds apocalyptic, since the whole earth will be consumed. Jesus, the Mighty Warrior, shouts His call. Trouble and distress, darkness and gloom, will prevail. Blood and body innards will be poured out, and neither pricy offerings to God nor expensive medical treatments will save. It will be too late! The whole earth will be covered in this judgment, leaving no place to flee.

Zephaniah 2

Zephaniah 2:1-3 A prophecy for Judah. Three urges to seek, so that perhaps they will be sheltered on the day of wrath. 

• Seek the Lord, those who do what He commands;
• Seek righteousness, evidently for those who don’t do what He commands;
• Seek humility, which is one of three things the Lord requires, along with justice and mercy.  (Micah 6:8)

Zephaniah 2:4-7 The land of the Philistines will be destroyed. The Philistines’ origin can be traced back to being the descendants of Egypt, the son of Ham. (Genesis 10:6 & 14). The Israelites were supposed to have wiped them out in conquering the promised land, but fell short.  This prophecy is that that will be completed. The remnant of the Jews will possess the land. We see dynamics of this unfolding in our day as the Jews continue to try to control the land of Gaza. 

Zephaniah 2:8-11 The Moabites and the Ammonites will be judged. Ironically, these descendants of Lot (Genesis 19:36-38) will experience the judgment that Lot fled from when he left Sodom and Gomorrah. (Genesis 19:24-25) But this judgment is for pride, and for mocking and insulting God’s people. Their land will be a place of weeds and tar pits which will then be given to the Jewish remnant. Distant nations will bow down to Him, when they see Him destroy all the (false) gods of the earth.

Zephaniah 2:12 The Cushites, descendants of Ham (Genesis 10:6) living south of Egypt, will be slain by the Lord’s sword.

Zephaniah 2:13-15 Assyria will be destroyed, and its capital Nineveh will be a desert, as Nahum also warned. (Nahum 1:14) The phrase “I am the one and there is none like me” recurs, with variations, periodically in the mouths of the proud, and is generally cited just before God’s judgment is announced. For example, Babylon at the end of the ages. (Isaiah 47:8; Revelation 18:7) In this case it is Nineveh, which was destroyed by the historical Babylon. As Solomon wrote, “Prides goes before a fall.…” (Proverbs 16:18)

Zephaniah 3

Zephaniah 3:1-5 Alas! Jerusalem! The rulers of the city of peace are unrighteous, the religious leaders do not serve the Lord. Yet He is that He is righteous and just - that is His nature and character. What follows is how He will make things right.

 

Zephaniah 3:6-8 He made an example of other nations by utterly destroying some of them, as described in chapter 2. But the remaining ones had no fear, even Jerusalem continued to act corruptly. Therefore the whole world will be judged (at a place called Armageddon). (Revelation 16:16-21)

Zephaniah 3:9-20 After this judgment, Israel’s remnant will be restored. This is 5counterpoint to the punishment of the wicked earlier. (1:2-13)

• Zephaniah 3:9 They will call on the names of the Lord: YHWH ABBA, Yeshua HaMashiach, and Ruach HaKodesh.
• Zephaniah 3:10-11 His people, around the world, will be purified from pride, on a hill called Calvary, meaning the place of the skull. (Luke 23:33)
• Zephaniah 3:12 They will be meek and humble. (Matthew 5:3,5)
• Zephaniah 3:13 They will speak truth. (John 14:6)
• Zephaniah 3:14 They will worship with Pentecostal enthusiasm. (Psalm 100:1; Acts 2:9-11)
• Zephaniah 3:15 He has taken away their punishment.  (Isaiah 53:5-6)
• Zephaniah 3:16-17 He is a Yeshua, the Mighty Warrior who saves. (Revelation 19:11-16) He will overlook their sins because of His love. (John 17:23-26)
• Zephaniah 3:18 He will remove those who mourn the loss of religious burdens. (Matthew 23:4; Revelation 21:8)
• Zephaniah 3:19-20 He will gather His people from around the world, bring them home, and give them honor among and above all the other people of the earth. (Revelation 21:2-3)

Habakkuk

Habakkuk 1

Habakkuk 1:1-4 Habakkuk’s first question to God is because he sees God’s law and His ways paralyzed by violence, making justice impossible. Justice is perverted in a society characterized by rampant violence. It is, in effect, anarchy that is enforced by the perversion of the  instruments of society that are supposed to prevent it.

Why does God wait so long to act? He hinted at the answer, when He told Abraham that the iniquity of the Amorite was not yet full. (Genesis 15:16) To give ample opportunity for the wicked to repent before they face judgment. As Nineveh did when Jonah preached. 

Habakkuk 1:5-11 The Lord’s answer is that the answer to Judah’s sin is to let them experience where it leads. Babylon worships its own strength, and they will devastate Judah with unbelievable violence. An earthly picture of hell. Which will be both a punishment and a warning in this life of the consequences of sin.

What is the difference between God using an evil nation to punish another evil nation, and Satan luring evil nations against each other in his plan to destroy mankind? The end goal is the difference: God disciplines to correct, not destroy.

Habakkuk 1:12-17 Habakkuk questions God about His answer to the first question. Questioning is not doubting or unbelief in this passage, but a struggle to understand what God is saying and doing. Habakkuk does not doubt God’s nature and character, but he does not understand the transcendent ‘why’ of what God does. Specifically, he doesn’t understand why God uses a nation more evil than Israel as His instrument to punish them. God is eternal, God is holy, God is pure - the evil nation of Babylon is the antithesis of everything that He is.

Habakkuk 2

Habakkuk 2:1 Habakkuk waits patiently and faithfully waiting for God’s response to his complaint.

Habakkuk 2:2-20 God’s response is that He will judge Babylon even more harshly than Judah. 

Habakkuk 2:2-3 Judah already had God’s written revelation. This will be a compact summary of the law and its consequences written for Judah’s enemies. Not only the immediate judgment of Babylon after its invasion of Israel in 586 BC (which happened in 539 BC), but also a picture of the end times wrath of God. (Revelation 16-19).

Habakkuk 2:4-5 Pride goeth before a fall. (Proverbs 16:18) The just shall live by faith is quoted several times in the New Testament. (Romans 1:17; 2 Corinthians 6:7; Galatians 2:20, 3:10; Hebrews 10:38) Pride is a risk for any worldly success, but it is evil to boast in evil, which describes Babylon - boasting about conquests and looted wealth. 

Five woes are identified. (Revelation 18:10) Woe here is an interjection of saying “Alas!” to the reaping of what they have sowed.

Habakkuk 2:6-8 First woe. Gaining wealth by extortion. The woe is that they will be plundered by the vary people they once plundered. Alas - they will become their victims’ prey.

Habakkuk 2:9-11 Second woe. Building houses on unjust gains. Alas - those who ruin other peoples’ households to build their own will forfeit their life.

Habakkuk 2:12-14 Third woe: Building cities with bloodshed and injustice. Alas - it is all for nothing. The city of God will fill the earth with God’s glory as the waters cover the sea, as David concluded his prayers. (Psalm 72:19) The path for this to come about was specifically given by Jesus. (Matthew 28:18-20) Those who built cities with injustice and bloodshed will cry “Alas!” because they will not be included in it. (Revelation 21:8)

Habakkuk 2:15-17 Fourth woe: Getting others’ drunk (possibly also drugged?) to party and exploit others sexually. Jesus, of course, went further, in saying that looking at a woman lustfully is committing adultery in one’s heart. (Matthew 5:28) Alas - the cup from the Lord’s hand will not be that of a new covenant with Him (Luke 22:20), but will be repayment in kind. Disgrace and destruction you will reap, because you sowed them.

Habakkuk 2:18-19 Fifth woe: Worship of false gods - idolatry. Violating the second commandment. (Exodus 20:4-6) It should seem obvious that something we made cannot give us anything more, but the idolators think that there is some supernatural power behind the idol. The statue itself cannot give life, nor can it speak. Only Jesus can give life to the dead. (John 11:43) Alas - the carved idol cannot give life or guidance for life. That can only come from God.

Habakkuk 2:20 Silence is an appropriate response to God’s holiness. When Isaiah saw the Lord sitting on His throne, he said, “Woe is me! I am undone!” (Isaiah 6:1-6) Others were unable to speak. (Luke 1:22) Ultimately, we will be silent before Jesus.  (Revelation 8:1)

Habakkuk 3

Habakkuk 3:1-2 Habakkuk petitions God to repeat the awesome deeds which are retold in stories (the Books of Moses, the histories). Although God is angry with Israel, Habakkuk asks for miraculous mercy.

Habakkuk 3:3-7  Habakkuk recounts God’s actions in the past. He was glorious on Mount Sinai, sent plagues on Egypt, earthquakes, and sent distress on Cush and Midian. In creation, God’s first created item was light itself, which He originated to translate  His power and glory into action and work. (Genesis 1:3-5, et.seq.)

Habakkuk 3:8-11 God’s power over nature was displayed in waterways (Genesis 1:6-10; 7:11-24), and the heavens.

Habakkuk 3:12-15 God harvested the nations that opposed Israel, delivering His people and killing both the leader and the warriors of their enemies. 

Habakkuk 3:16-19 Verses 17-18 are often quoted to illustrate Habakkuk’s decision to worship God in adverse circumstances. This is the essence of growth in faith (Hebrews 11): choosing to believe in and serve God without the incentives of rewards or answered prayer. We have to do this daily - trust His nature and character.

Though the fig tree does not bud

    and there are no grapes on the vines,

though the olive crop fails

    and the fields produce no food,

though there are no sheep in the pen

    and no cattle in the stalls,

yet I will rejoice in the Lord,

    I will be joyful in God my Savior.

There are (at least) three dimensions to healthy faith. First, we must understand who God is and what He is like and what He tells us to do. This is getting our theology correct, based on Scripture, and requires us to engage our minds. Second, we must exercise our will, by choosing to accept and obey what our study of Him, and our experience with Him, has shown us. Faith is not sight. (2 Corinthians 5:7) This is a decision, that can result from reason and/or experience, but doesn’t depend on these things once the decision is made. Third, we must allow emotions to flow from our decision. This is generally a result of experiencing God’s touch in our lives or of seeing His responding to our faith or seeing Him working in other peoples’ lives. Faith is a choice, but it is not just a choice. Faith should be part of a relationship that responds to events in that relationship. 

Nahum

Nahum 1

Nahum 1:1 After Nineveh repented at the preaching of Jonah, things went downhill. Dating is uncertain but this would have been a few generations later, likely 100 to 150 years.

Nahum 1:2-6 God’s wrath on the Assyrian empire is described. What will His judgment look like at an individual level on judgment day? History is recounted (1:4)

• The Red Sea was dried up for the Exodus; Israel passed through, the Egyptian army was drowned. (Exodus 14:21)
• The Jordan River was stopped so Israel could pass through, and Jericho was destroyed. (Joshua 3:15-16) 
• Og was defeated and Israel acquired the territory of Bashan. (Numbers 21:33-35; Joshua 13:30)

Mountains quake at God’s presence. (Micah 1:4) His wrath is like fire. (Psalm 89:46) 

Nahum 1:7-11 By contrast, God is a loving Father to those who trust and obey Him. His goodness means He will act on behalf of His own. This means that He will put an end to Nineveh. (Jonah 3:4) This happened in 612 BC at the hands of Babylon and others. One has come forth from Nineveh who plots evil against the Lord and His people.

Nahum 1:12-13 Judah has suffered discipline but now will be freed. Discipline differs from punishment in the outcome. Discipline trains us to behave properly. Punishment inflicts pain to remove a threat, either through imprisonment or death. 

Nahum 1:14 Nineveh will have no descendants. (Job 18:19) Their obituary reads that they have no one to grieve for them. 

Nahum 1:15 The feet of one who brings the good news of the gospel are celebrated. (Isaiah 52:7; Romans 10:15) It was good news that Judah’s oppressor would be destroyed. How much better is the good news that we can now have fellowship with God with our sins forgiven! 

Judah is commanded to celebrate their festivals. Passover celebrates deliverance from sin. Rosh Hashanah announces the coming of the Lord into our lives. Yom Kippur celebrates His victory over sin in our lives. Succoth celebrates the continuous fellowship with God that this victory makes possible. Wickedness will be completely destroyed. 

Nahum 2

Nahum 2:1 It seems ambiguous whether this narrative describing Nineveh being conquered is prophetic or a real-time warning. 

Nahum 2:2 The promise to restore Jacob’s splendor does not seem to have been fulfilled yet, except to the point that Assyria was overrun by Babylon and Media and the Persians. They did not exactly allow Israel to flourish. Perhaps this refers to the coming of Jesus.

Nahum 2:3-4 A description of the attackers, the soldiers and their weapons and chariots.

Nahum 2:5-10 What happens to Nineveh is described. Her soldiers try to respond but the gates are open (presumably by the attackers). The waters of Nineveh (from the rivers it is next to) drain away. All of the wealth that was accumulated from centuries of conquest is now plundered. Everyone fears and trembles.

Nahum 2:11-13 A rhetorical question - what became of the lions and their den? When Assyria was preying on other nations they had ample resources, but now the Lord is against them. The sword will devour the lion cubs and there will no longer be any prey anywhere for them.

This is the way of the world - might makes right. The way of the world is really Satan’s ploy to destroy mankind. Nineveh and the Assyrians conquered, ruled, and were hated. Her destroyers simply repaid in kind. Is this what humanity is about? Satan’s strategy is very simple. Get human nations to fight and destroy each other and get rid of mankind. Those who serve him are simply his dupes.

Nahum 3

Nahum 3:1-7 A description of the blood and gore that will occur, and explained by comparing Nineveh to a prostitute.  Luring foreign nations by seduction, then enslaving them through sorcery and witchcraft. When the enslaved nations are able, they will rise to destroy this evil mistress, and no one will be there to support or comfort her. How did Nineveh enslave other hnations through false religion? There are probably two main channels. One is that the idolatry of Nineveh was so powerful in the rituals that it almost hypnotized them, programmed them to fear and serve the designated gods of Assyria. A second channel is the spiritual reality behind false religions. They are not just the invention of man, but the result of fallen spiritual beings who have some spiritual power, and use it to control their victims. See The Unseen Realm, by Michael Heiser. 

Another way to view Nineveh is a picture of the world and its ways. Modern society (and probably even ancient society) seduces us with sexuality and promises of power beyond our own. And then we become enslaved to it. Instead of living our life in fellowship with God, we spend our time and energy seeking the things the world offers, and that seeking becomes our master. Once we realize this, we should celebrate when God frees us from its slavery.

Nahum 3:8-10 The destruction of Thebes is mentioned by comparison. Despite allies and enormous strength, Thebes was sacked by the Assyrians in 663 BC. (Not to be confused with Alexander the Great’s destruction of it in 335 BC, well after the time of Nahum.) When we see the mighty fall, we should beware lest we desire to be mighty like them, or gloat at their destruction.  By way of illustration, David notably lamented the death of Saul and Jonathan, even though Saul was his enemy. (2 Samuel 1:19-27)  The New Testament warns about pride and self-confidence. (1 Corinthians 10:12) Although Nineveh repented at the warning of Jonah, later generations did not heed this.

Nahum 3:11-18 A description in considerable detail of all the ways in which Nineveh and the Assyrians will be punished. Locusts are used as a metaphor several times. Soldiers, merchants, guards, government officials - all will fail to protect them. Shepherds and nobles alike will sleep, possibly referring to the sleep of death. 

Nahum 3:19 Everyone who was enslaved by Assyria will celebrate her destruction. We will feel the same joy when the Lord delivers us from the world and its ways. (Revelation 19:1-8)