Haggai 2:1-9

The Future Glory of the Temple

^1:15b In the second year of King Darius, ^2:1 in the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the prophet Haggai, saying: ² Speak now to Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the remnant of the people, and say, ³ Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory? How does it look to you now? Is it not in your sight as nothing? ⁴ Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the LORD; take courage, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; take courage, all you people of the land, says the LORD; work, for I am with you, says the LORD of hosts, ⁵ according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. My spirit abides among you; do not fear. ⁶ For thus says the LORD of hosts: Once again, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land; ⁷ and I will shake all the nations, so that the treasure of all nations shall come, and I will fill this house with splendor, says the LORD of hosts. ⁸ The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of hosts. ⁹ The latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place I will give prosperity, says the LORD of hosts. (Haggai 2:1-9, NRSV)

Today’s reading begins with a precise calendar date, “In the second year of King Darius, in the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month” (Hag. 1:15b-2:1a), which overlaps the chapter and verse division. By our calendar, the date would be October 17, 520 B.C. (Compare the series of precise dates: Aug. 29, 520, Hag. 1:1; Sept. 21, 520, 1:15a; Oct. 17, 520, 1:15b-2:1; Dec. 18:520, 2:10; and Dec. 18, 520, 2:20.) W. Eugene March notes that Haggai “exists . . . in the form of a narrative or drama” (The New Interpreter’s Bible, VII, 711, Introduction to Haggai), with five episodes, each dated with the above dates. “It seems clear,” he adds, “that the book is intended to preserve and interpret words spoken by a prophet at critical points in the history of the community.”

The date October 17, 520 B.C., “the twenty-first day of the seventh month, would place this oracle during the festival of Booths (Lev. 23:33-36, 39-42), which would make the reference to the Exodus (2:5) all the more appropriate” (Gregory Mobley, NOAB, 3^rd ed., on Hag. 1:15b-2:1). In response to earlier encouragement by the prophet, some work has been accomplished (1:14, dated Sept. 21, 520, some 3 ½ wks. earlier), but older people who remembered Solomon’s temple “did not have much good to say about the new structure they saw emerging (2:3)” (March, on Hag. 2:3). So Haggai addresses Zerubbabel and Joshua,

⁴ Yet now take courage, O Zerubbabel, says the LORD; take courage, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest; take courage, all you people of the land, says the LORD; work, for I am with you, says the LORD of hosts, ⁵ according to the promise that I made you when you came out of Egypt. My spirit abides among you; do not fear. (Hag. 2:4-5, NRSV)

The Joshua addressed here is the high priest in Zerubbabel’s time, but the word to them, “in the style of war oracles (take courage; I am with you; do not fear; cf. Deut. 31:7; Josh. 1:9)” (Mobley on vv. 4-6), reminds us of the LORD’s word to the earlier Joshua, as “the prophet rhetorically casts the building drive as nothing short of heroic” (Mobley).

The LORD assures them of his presence with them. “I am with you, says the LORD of hosts” (v. 4). My spirit abides among you; do not fear.” (v. 5). W. Eugene March notes “a second reason for the people to take courage and work” (March, p. 723, on vv. 6-9):

Not only is God’s spirit in their midst, but also the Lord of hosts is about to act once again. The language of v. 6a connotes that the anticipated event is imminent. This is not the eschatological “day of the LORD,” even though it has sometimes been so interpreted. Rather, this is an imminent intervention by God for a very specific purpose: that the treasure of the nations will come, providing splendor to the restored Temple (v. 7).

Through Haggai, the LORD claims all the treasure. “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, says the LORD of hosts” (v. 8). He promises that “the latter splendor of this house shall be greater than the former” (v. 9a), and he promises “posterity” (NRSV, for shālôm, “peace”). “God’s intention,” says March,

is to establish “peace” or “prosperity.” The point is that when God gives this shālôm, the hard times described in the opening scene (1:6, 9-11) will be brought to an end. Hostilities will cease. The community will be restored. Wholeness will return. Shalom, which includes both peace and prosperity, will result. (March, p. 724, on Hag. 2:8-9).

Revelation 3:1-6

3 "And to the angel of the church in Sardis write: These are the words of him who has the seven spirits of God and the seven stars:

"I know your works; you have a name of being alive, but you are dead. 2 Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God. 3 Remember then what you received and heard; obey it, and repent. If you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you. 4 Yet you have still a few persons in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes; they will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy. 5 If you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life; I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels. 6 Let anyone who has an ear listen to what the Spirit is saying to the churches (Revelation 3:1-6, NRSV)

John's letters to churches continue, to Sardis (Rev. 3:1-6, for Saturday) and to Philadelphia (vv. 7-13, for Monday). The city of Sardis was "notorious for it's luxury and licentiousness" (B.M. Metzger, NOAB, 2^nd ed., on Rev. 3:1-6), and John's rebuke of the church--speaking for the Lord--is severe: "I know your works; you have a name of being alive, but you are dead" (Rev. 3:1). Even what remains “is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of my God” (v. 2). This church is called to “remember then what you received and heard,” that is, the “gospel” (Metzger), and to “obey it, and repent” (v. 3a); otherwise “I [the Lord] will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you” (cf. 16:15; Mt. 24:42-44; 1 Thess. 5:2). “Those who have maintained spiritual purity will enjoy Christ’s companionship here and will be acknowledged before God in heaven” (Metzger, on vv. 4-5). The Lord promises, “I will confess your name before my Father and before his angels” (v. 5b).

Matthew 24:1-14

24 As Jesus came out of the temple and was going away, his disciples came to point out to him the buildings of the temple. 2 Then he asked them, "You see all these, do you not? Truly I tell you, not one stone will be left here upon another; all will be thrown down."

Signs of the End of the Age (Mk 13.3-8; Lk 21.7-11)

3 When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" 4 Jesus answered them, "Beware that no one leads you astray. 5 For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Messiah!' and they will lead many astray. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars; see that you are not alarmed; for this must take place, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom, and there will be famines and earthquakes in various places: 8 all this is but the beginning of the birth pangs.

Persecutions Foretold (Mk 13.9-13; Lk 21.12-19)

9 "Then they will hand you over to be tortured and will put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of my name. 10 Then many will fall away, and they will betray one another and hate one another. 11 And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. 12 And because of the increase of lawlessness, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end will be saved. 14 And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:1-14, NRSV)

The following comments include repetition with supplementation and adaptation from an E-mail message sent December 12, 2003, for the weekend.

Has there ever been such a time as ours when there are "wars and rumors of wars" all around? Mass murder--genocide--mass graves, the killing fields of Cambodia, Uganda, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Saddam's Iraq, these and more remind us of Hitler's "final solution." Is it only that we are more aware because our news media are more efficient now, or have people always been so brutally inhuman? The world is also full of stories of courage and compassion, some battling the evil plagues with resignation and a stiff upper lip (Dr. Rieux, the Plague), others more confidently in this assurance: "And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age" (Mt. 28:20).

Chapter 24 of Matthew begins with Jesus' prediction of the destruction of the temple (v. 2), and a question in response from the disciples: "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?" (v. 3). That strikes one as a neat, three-part question, a setup for a three-point sermon--a prediction of the future in three parts?

But Mark's version of the question is simpler, "Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign that all these things are about to be accomplished?" (Mk. 13:4, cf. Lk. 21:7). And Jesus begins immediately to talk about "the end [of the age]" which "is not yet" or "is still to come" (Mt. 24:6; Mk. 13:7). Jesus' instruction here seems "to merge teachings about an immediate destruction of Jerusalem with details associated in Scripture with the end of human history," teachings that "were set down by the Evangelist in the light of events between AD 30 and 70" (E.E. Tilden & B.M. Metzger, NOAB. 2^nd ed., on Mt. 24:1-3). One needs to be cautious, to say the least, in inferring a prophetic time-line from this speech. "But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (v. 36). We are even warned not to believe those who would set dates (vv. 23-26). But there are some predictions, of false Messiahs, for example (Mt. 24:5), “wars and rumors of wars” (v. 6-7a), and “famines and earthquakes” (v. 7b). Christians will face torture, martyrdom and hatred (v. 9); believers will fall away (become apostate) (v. 10); and false prophets will arise (v. 11). It will be important to “endure to the end” (v. 13) and not let one’s “love grow cold” (v. 12). The “good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world.” (v. 14).

Ronald D. Worden, Ph.D.

rdworden@hgst.edu

rworden@houston.rr.com