Monday, October 3, 2016

Shaking the Heavens, Earth, Sea and Dry Land Haggai 2:6


When Israel came out of Egypt the LORD covenanted that His Spirit was with them, and His promise was His Spirit would be with them as they rebuilt the temple. In chapter two and verse six of his prophesy, the LORD spoke to the Israelites again, and said He would “shake the heavens, the earth, the sea and the dry land” where we read:

For thus says the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while,
and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

The verse begins, “For thus says the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while,...” Haggai began, “For thus says” which means “speaks, utters, avows, promises and intends” “the LORD” or “Yehovah or Jehovah” who is “the existing One” and is “the proper name for the one true God” “of hosts” or “that which goes forth as an army or warfare”; “Yet once” or “one time or first” “it is a little while” which means “few, almost, just, hardly, shortly or of little worth”. It would be just a little passing of time before the LORD would carry out what He is about to proclaim.

The verse goes on to say, “...and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;” Haggai continued, “and I will shake” which means “quake or cause to spring or leap” “the heavens” or “sky, visible universe, atmosphere” “and the earth” or “land, country, territory, district, region, ground or surface of the earth” “and the sea” which refers to “an unused root meaning to roar or large body of water such as the Mediterranean Sea;“and the dry land” which means “dry ground such as a desert”. The LORD promised to “shake” everything that could be shaken, and this included both the heavens and everything that is upon the earth.

When we consider Haggai's words, we are stricken by the omnipotent power of the LORD. He promised to “shake” or “cause to spring and leap” not only the “heavens” but also “the earth, sea and dry land”. That's a whole lot of shaking going on, and the purpose of doing so is yet to be reveal. The idea is that God Almighty is powerful and may be trusted when He encourages the Israelites to “be strong” because “His Spirit is with them”. We too may trust in the LORD's presence through His Son Jesus Christ as we go through our difficulties, trials and troubles. With power that can “shake” both “heavens” and “earth” by our side, what will we face that we need to fear?

Next time the LORD shares how He will “shake” “the nations” and “fill” the temple “with glory”, 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.




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