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Haggai Begins Temple Building
1 In the (A)second year of Darius the king, on the first day of the sixth month, the word of the Lord came by the prophet (B)Haggai to (C)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, (D)governor of Judah, and to (E)Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, saying, 2 “Thus says the Lord of [a]hosts, ‘This people says, “The time has not come, even the time for the house of the Lord to be rebuilt.”’” 3 Then the word of the Lord came by Haggai the prophet, saying, 4 “Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house (F)lies desolate?” 5 Now therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, “[b]Consider your ways! 6 You have (G)sown much, but [c]harvest little; you eat, but there is not enough to be satisfied; you drink, but there is [d]not enough to become drunk; you put on clothing, but no one is warm enough; and he who earns, earns wages to put into a purse with holes.”
7 Thus says the Lord of hosts, “[e]Consider your ways! 8 Go up to the [f]mountains, bring wood and (H)rebuild the [g]temple, that I may be (I)pleased with it and be (J)glorified,” says the Lord. 9 “(K)You look for much, but behold, it comes to little; when you bring it home, I (L)blow it away. Why?” declares the Lord of hosts, “Because of My house which (M)lies desolate, while each of you runs to his own house. 10 Therefore, because of you the (N)sky has withheld [h]its dew and the earth has withheld its produce. 11 I called for a (O)drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine, on the oil, on what the ground produces, on (P)men, on cattle, and on (Q)all the labor of [i]your hands.”
12 Then (R)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and (S)Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, (T)obeyed the voice of the Lord their God and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the Lord their God had sent him. And the people [j](U)showed reverence for the Lord. 13 Then Haggai, the (V)messenger of the Lord, spoke [k]by the commission of the Lord to the people saying, “‘(W)I am with you,’ declares the Lord.” 14 So the Lord stirred up the spirit of (X)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, (Y)governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the (Z)remnant of the people; and they came and (AA)worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God, 15 on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year of Darius the king.
The Builders Encouraged
2 On the twenty-first of the seventh month, the word of the Lord came by (AB)Haggai the prophet saying, 2 “Speak now to (AC)Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, (AD)governor of Judah, and to (AE)Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to the (AF)remnant of the people saying, 3 ‘Who is (AG)left among you who saw this [l]temple in its (AH)former glory? And how do you see it now? Does it not [m]seem to you like nothing [n]in comparison? 4 But now [o](AI)take courage, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work; for (AJ)I am with you,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 5 ‘As for the [p](AK)promise which I [q]made you when you came out of Egypt, [r]My (AL)Spirit is abiding in your midst; (AM)do not fear!’ 6 For thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘(AN)Once more [s]in a (AO)little while, I am going to (AP)shake the heavens and the earth, the sea also and the dry land. 7 I will shake (AQ)all the nations; and [t]they will come with the (AR)wealth of all nations, and I will (AS)fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord of hosts. 8 ‘The (AT)silver is Mine and the gold is Mine,’ declares the Lord of hosts. 9 ‘The latter (AU)glory of this house will be greater than the (AV)former,’ says the Lord of hosts, ‘and in this place I will give (AW)peace,’ declares the Lord of hosts.”
10 On the (AX)twenty-fourth of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to Haggai the prophet, saying, 11 “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘(AY)Ask now the priests for a [u]ruling: 12 If a man carries (AZ)holy meat in the [v]fold of his garment, and touches bread with [w]this fold, or cooked food, wine, oil, or any other food, will it become holy?’” And the priests answered, “No.” 13 Then Haggai said, “(BA)If one who is unclean from a [x]corpse touches any of these, will the latter become unclean?” And the priests answered, “It will become unclean.” 14 Then Haggai said, “‘(BB)So is this people. And so is this nation before Me,’ declares the Lord, ‘and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean. 15 But now, do [y](BC)consider from this day [z]onward: before one (BD)stone was placed on another in the temple of the Lord, 16 [aa]from that time when one came to a grain heap of twenty measures, there would be only ten; and when one came to the wine vat to draw fifty [ab]measures, there would be only twenty. 17 I smote you and every work of your hands with (BE)blasting wind, mildew and hail; [ac]yet you did not come back to Me,’ declares the Lord. 18 ‘Do [ad](BF)consider from this day [ae]onward, from the (BG)twenty-fourth day of the ninth month; from the day when the temple of the Lord was (BH)founded, [af]consider: 19 Is the seed still in the barn? Even including the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate and the olive tree, it has not borne fruit. Yet from this day on I will (BI)bless you.’”
20 Then the word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the (BJ)twenty-fourth day of the month, saying, 21 “Speak to (BK)Zerubbabel governor of Judah, saying, ‘I am going to (BL)shake the heavens and the earth. 22 I will (BM)overthrow the thrones of kingdoms and destroy the (BN)power of the kingdoms of the [ag]nations; and I will (BO)overthrow the chariots and their riders, and the (BP)horses and their riders will go down, (BQ)everyone by the sword of another.’ 23 ‘On that day,’ declares the Lord of hosts, ‘I will take you, Zerubbabel, son of Shealtiel, My servant,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will make you like a [ah](BR)signet ring, for (BS)I have chosen you,’” declares the Lord of hosts.
The Two Witnesses
11 Then there was given me a [a](A)measuring rod like a staff; [b]and (B)someone said, “Get up and measure the [c]temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. 2 [d]Leave out the (C)court which is outside the [e]temple and do not measure it, for (D)it has been given to the nations; and they will (E)tread under foot (F)the holy city for (G)forty-two months. 3 And I will grant authority to my two (H)witnesses, and they will prophesy for (I)twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in (J)sackcloth.” 4 These are the (K)two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone wants to harm them, (L)fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, (M)he must be killed in this way. 6 These have the power to (N)shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during (O)the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to (P)turn them into blood, and (Q)to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
7 When they have finished their testimony, (R)the beast that comes up out of the (S)abyss will (T)make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. 8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the (U)great city which [f]mystically is called (V)Sodom and (W)Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. 9 Those from (X)the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead [g]bodies for three and a half days, and [h](Y)will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. 10 And (Z)those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will (AA)send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented (AB)those who dwell on the earth.
11 But after the three and a half days, (AC)the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. 12 And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “(AD)Come up here.” Then they (AE)went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And in that hour there was a great (AF)earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; [i]seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and (AG)gave glory to the (AH)God of heaven.
14 The second (AI)woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.
The Seventh Trumpet—Christ’s Reign Foreseen
15 Then the (AJ)seventh angel sounded; and there were (AK)loud voices in heaven, saying,
“(AL)The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of (AM)His [j]Christ; and (AN)He will reign forever and ever.” 16 And the twenty-four elders, who (AO)sit on their thrones before God, (AP)fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying,
“We give You thanks, (AQ)O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to (AR)reign. 18 And (AS)the nations were enraged, and (AT)Your wrath came, and (AU)the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to [k]reward Your (AV)bond-servants the prophets and the [l]saints and those who fear Your name, (AW)the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
19 And (AX)the [m]temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and (AY)the ark of His covenant appeared in His [n]temple, and there were flashes of (AZ)lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a (BA)great [o]hailstorm.
God’s Omnipresence and Omniscience.
For the choir director. A Psalm of David.
139 O Lord, You have (A)searched me and known me.
2 You (B)know [a]when I sit down and [b]when I rise up;
You (C)understand my thought from afar.
3 You [c](D)scrutinize my [d]path and my lying down,
And are intimately acquainted with all my ways.
4 [e]Even before there is a word on my tongue,
Behold, O Lord, You (E)know it all.
5 You have (F)enclosed me behind and before,
And (G)laid Your hand upon me.
6 Such (H)knowledge is (I)too wonderful for me;
It is too high, I cannot attain to it.
7 (J)Where can I go from Your Spirit?
Or where can I flee from Your presence?
8 (K)If I ascend to heaven, You are there;
If I make my bed in [f]Sheol, behold, (L)You are there.
9 If I take the wings of the dawn,
If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea,
10 Even there Your hand will (M)lead me,
And Your right hand will lay hold of me.
11 If I say, “Surely the (N)darkness will [g]overwhelm me,
And the light around me will be night,”
12 Even the (O)darkness is not dark [h]to You,
And the night is as bright as the day.
(P)Darkness and light are alike to You.
13 For You (Q)formed my [i]inward parts;
You (R)wove me in my mother’s womb.
14 I will give thanks to You, for [j]I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
(S)Wonderful are Your works,
And my soul knows it very well.
15 My [k](T)frame was not hidden from You,
When I was made in secret,
And skillfully wrought in the (U)depths of the earth;
16 Your (V)eyes have seen my unformed substance;
And in (W)Your book were all written
The (X)days that were ordained for me,
When as yet there was not one of them.
17 How precious also are Your (Y)thoughts to me, O God!
How vast is the sum of them!
18 If I should count them, they would (Z)outnumber the sand.
When (AA)I awake, I am still with You.
19 O that You would (AB)slay the wicked, O God;
(AC)Depart from me, therefore, (AD)men of bloodshed.
20 For they (AE)speak [l]against You wickedly,
And Your enemies [m](AF)take Your name in vain.
21 Do I not (AG)hate those who hate You, O Lord?
And do I not (AH)loathe those who rise up against You?
22 I hate them with the utmost hatred;
They have become my enemies.
New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved.