In attempting to finish the shrinking list of books that I still have not yet read, I have finally arrived at the book of Haggai. And, what an opening! Haggai 1 absolutely floored me with its strong rebuke over misplaced financial priorities.
An overview of the book helps us to understand his message. It’s 520 BCE. God’s people had returned from Babylon, started rebuilding the temple, but stopped. Construction sat idle for 16 years. God’s response to this state of affairs was given through the earliest post-exilic prophet:
‘In the second year of Darius the king, in the sixth month, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest: “Thus says the Lord of hosts: These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the Lord .” Then the word of the Lord came by the hand of Haggai the prophet, “Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins? Now, therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways.‘ Haggai 1:1-5 ESV
Haggai 1:5 Consider Your Ways
God sees that the people are making excuses. It’s not time to rebuild the temple. They focus instead on building comfortable, even luxurious homes for themselves. He rebukes them for it. Why should your house be rebuilt in luxury while mine remains desolate?
Verse 5 ends with the demand that they “consider their ways.” The Hebrew is interesting: simu levavekhem al darkkhekhem שימו לבבכם על-דרכיכם. The literal translation is to “place your hearts on your ways”. This phrase feels personal to me, because I have heard it thousands of times in Hebrew class. Until today, I never even realized that it was idiomatic language.
“Simu Lev!” is the endlessly repetitive cry of teachers everywhere to “Pay attention!” These are the two words that make up the core of the phrase God uses. Pay attention to what you’re doing. Consider your ways. Put your heart on it.
This phrase and others very similar to it (sam al lev שם על לב–to put something on your heart, e.g. Jeremiah 12:11, Malachi 2:2) appear frequently in the Hebrew scriptures. They bring something to our attention, and are often tied to consequences should the warning go unheeded.
Haggai 1:6-7 Consider Your Ways
‘You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes. “Thus says the Lord of hosts: Consider your ways.’ Haggai 1:6-7 ESV
God points out that the paradigms which seem fundamental to His wisdom have been broken. They no longer work. Sowing does not lead to reaping. Eating and drinking do not satisfy. Clothing does not give warmth. Toil does not lead to profit. How can this be?
‘Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the Lord . You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the Lord of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house. Therefore the heavens above you have withheld the dew, and the earth has withheld its produce. And I have called for a drought on the land and the hills, on the grain, the new wine, the oil, on what the ground brings forth, on man and beast, and on all their labors.”’ Haggai 1:8-11 ESV
He makes it crystal clear in this case that missing prosperity is a result of misplaced priorities. They rebuilt their own homes. They sought their own luxuries and comforts. But, they did not first rebuild the temple. And, so what they sought was denied them.
Water became scarce in drought. The earth did not return grain, grapes, or olives. Even their livestock suffered. Labor did not yield the results they expected. God shows them exactly how they turned away from Him.
This passage feels like a consequence. A curse, even. But, I think it contains a necessary reminder of fundamental truth: His people will never be able to meet their own needs apart from Him.
Seek First the Kingdom of God
While reading this chapter, I was struck by the similarity between what God said to his people through Haggai, and what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:
‘Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.’ Matthew 6:31-33 ESV
Jesus spent a lot more verses than this setting the stage for his pronouncement. I encourage you to read the entire passage. Over and over and over, He taught us to shift our mindset, to seek first the kingdom of God. Get our priorities in order. Everything else will follow.
It’s a comfort to know that I am not the only person who is liable to focus on my family’s physical and financial needs. His people have been doing this for thousands of years. But, I needed the reminder today, just as the last time I found myself reflecting on money and god.
Haggai 1 has left me with questions to think about. Is my money going to the right places first, or last? Have I neglected the needs of others and the church for the sake of making my family comfortable? How does this shape the way I view American materialism and consumerism?
Fortunately, the first chapter of this book ends on a positive note. The king and high priest, and all of the remnant which returned from Babylon accepted what Haggai told them. They feared the Lord and repented. They obeyed.
‘Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, 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 feared the Lord . Then Haggai, the messenger of the Lord , spoke to the people with the Lord ’s message, “I am with you, declares the Lord .” And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.’ Haggai 1:12-15 ESV
God’s response throughout human history has been the same, whenever people consider their ways and repent: “I am with you.”
Talk about good news.
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