Haggai 2:1–9 (November 18th, 2025)
- Brian Lee
- Nov 18
- 4 min read
The Coming Glory of the Temple
2:1 In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes? 4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the Lord. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the Lord. Work, for I am with you, declares the Lord of hosts, 5 according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not. 6 For thus says the Lord of hosts: Yet once more, 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 nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. 9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’”
Summary
One month into the rebuilding project, the people were already discouraged. It is the twenty-first day of the seventh month, just after the Feast of Booths, a time when Israel normally remembered God’s presence in the wilderness. It was meant to be a joyous occasion, but instead, discouragement was spreading. Some of the elders who remembered the glory of Solomon’s temple look at this new foundation and feel only disappointment:
“Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes?” (v. 3).
This depressing attitude begins to weaken the hands of the whole community.
It is into that discouragement that God speaks.
Three times He commands them to “be strong” (vv. 4–5), and once again He anchors them in His covenant promise:
"7 And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the Lord of hosts. 8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts. 9 The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the Lord of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the Lord of hosts.’" (vv. 7-9)
The “latter glory” of this house will be greater than the former (v. 9). The promise ultimately points beyond a physical building to the coming of Christ, the true Temple, and to the peace only He can bring.
Who is God?
God strengthens His people not through outward impressiveness but through His faithful presence.
God does not rebuke their longing for glory. Instead, He redirects it. He reminds them that His Spirit is still with them, just as He was at the Exodus. God owns all resources, commands all nations, and governs all history. His work does not depend on human brilliance, architectural magnificence, or nostalgic comparison with yesterday’s achievements.
What is our Guilt?
We often measure God’s work by visible standards, forgetting that unbelief hides beneath our comparisons.
Judah’s discouragement was not just emotional but theological. They compared the present with the past and deemed the work unworthy. We do the same. We measure ministry by numbers, resources, nostalgia, or even by reputation. We forget that God delights to do His greatest work in small, unimpressive places. Our guilt is that we allow comparison to rob us of faith, obedience, and perseverance.
How does Grace shine?
God promises a glory that far exceeds anything we could build. This is fulfilled in Christ.
When God promises that the “latter glory” will surpass the former, He is not promising a more dazzling building. Historically, no post-exilic temple ever matched Solomon’s splendor. Instead, God was promising a Person, not a structure.
Jesus Christ, “the Word made flesh,” is the true Temple (John 2:19–21). In Him, God’s presence rests among His people. And through His death and resurrection, He builds a living temple—the church—where the Spirit dwells. In Christ, the peace (shalom) promised in Haggai 2:9 becomes ours. Reconciliation with God, security in His care, and confidence in His future are all ours today in Christ!
Prayer
Heavenly Father,
We confess that our hearts grow discouraged so easily because we use worldly standards. We confess that we quickly compare and easily lose sight of Your presence. Teach us to trust not in outward signs but in Your faithful promise.
Strengthen our hands to serve You with courage. Help us to lift our eyes to Christ, the true Temple, where Your glory now dwells.
In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray. Amen.
