Because the children of
Israel put off rebuilding the temple of the LORD saying, “The
time is not come, that the LORD's house should be built”,
Haggai wrote this prophecy. In chapter one and verse three, Haggai
again shares the source of his prophecy as being “the word of
the LORD” where we read:
Then came the word of
the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,
The
verse begins, “Then came the word of the LORD...”
Haggai began with the phrase, “Then came the word”
which is all one Hebrew word, “dabar”
and
means “speech, saying and utterance” “of
the LORD”
which refers to “Yehovah or Jehovah” who is “the existing One”
and is “the proper name of the one true God”. These words were
not simply Haggai's to share with Israel, but were words from Jehovah
God Himself.
The
verse goes on to say, “...by
Haggai the prophet, saying,”
Haggai continued, “by Haggai”
whose name means “festive” and was “tenth in order of the minor
prophets and the first prophet to prophecy after the captivity”
“the prophet” or “spokesman,
speaker and inspired man” “saying”
which means “speaking, uttering and avowing”. Though Jehovah was
the actual source of the words in this book, Haggai was used to
deliver them.
As
we think about these words of Haggai, at least two things come to
mind. One: The true source of these words was Jehovah God, and two:
that the LORD used Haggai to deliver them. Many times the LORD will
use people to deliver His message. He doesn't have to do this, but He
chooses to do so. Those of us who know the gospel which is provided
by God the Father through Jesus Christ His Son, know the current
“message” of the LORD, and Jehovah will use us to share with
others as well. May we be obedient to the LORD's charge as Haggai,
and may we look forward to the message “the LORD”
shared through Haggai.
Next
time Haggai asks the Israelites “is
it time to dwell in”
their “cieled houses”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
No comments:
Post a Comment