HAGGAI 2
Bible Study Notes Rev. Betsy Perkins
Don’t Give Up! Trust the Promise!
- Have you ever given up on a project almost before it got off the ground? In hindsight, did you regret not seeing it through?
Be Strong! (2:1-9):
- How long after reconstruction begins does Haggai receive a second message from God?
- The day Haggai receives this message is during the Festival of Tabernacles, which celebrates God’s goodness to His people when they lived in tents after being saved from slavery in Egypt. What promise from that time does God want Zerubbabel and Joshua to be reminded of?
- The foundation of the temple had been restored years earlier, shortly after they returned from Babylonia. Read Ezra 3:10-13 to learn about the service to rededicate the foundation. Why do some of God’s people feel so discouraged about the rebuilding of the temple?
- As they think back to the glory of the former temple, what have they forgotten about what makes the temple glorious? What does God promise to do for the rebuilt temple?
- How has the tone of God’s message shifted from Haggai’s first prophesy in chapter 1? How is it similar to God’s message to Joshua in Joshua 1:5-6?
- Do you ever compare your current efforts to your past accomplishments? Do you ever compare yourself to others? How has comparison stopped you from doing things?
- Why do we sometimes feel discouraged in our work of building God’s church today? Have you heard anyone compare our church to other churches, or to our church in the past?
- How does God respond to the people’s discouragement?
- What is the gift God promises to give those who seek God in that place?
- If you heard God saying to you, “Be strong and work, for I am with you.” What might you be inspired and energized to do?
How to Catch the Blessing (2:10-19):
- How long after the second message does Haggai receive the third message from God? How long is it after the rebuilding started? On our calendar, this date is December 18, 520 B.C.
- We know how easy it is to catch a cold, flu or even covid when you hang out with someone who is sick. Once you get sick, can you catch healing by hanging out with healthy people? Is it easier to help someone stand up or to knock them down?
- Which is more contagious – evil or good? Is it easier to spread holiness or defilement?
- Can the hard and holy work of rebuilding the temple make God’s people holy? What is the only thing that can make the people holy again?
- How have you seen bad attitudes and hurtful practices spread? Have you ever seen sin spread within a Christian community?
- Have you ever taken a sense of pride in the work you do for the church, believing that it is making you holier in God’s sight? Or looked around to see if anyone is noticing your effort?
- In the story of the bleeding woman, in Luke 8:42-48, who does she catch healing from?
- How might you explain to a non-believer that doing church work or churchy things doesn’t make you holy or right with God? What is the only way you can be made right with God?
“We think that it’s our obedience to God that puts us in right standing with Him, and that it’s our faith that generates blessing in our lives. This makes for exhausting, impossible works righteousness, and inevitably results in disappointment. We realize we can’t behave our way into perfection in God’s eyes because we let ourselves down perpetually. And when we’re not healed, or something else in our lives goes wrong, we’re chastised by ourselves or others for not having enough faith, which lead to shame and disillusionment. The truth is, we’re not saved by obedience and blessed by faith; we are saved by faith, and blessed by obedience.” ~ Dave Cornes
- This third word from God comes after the planting season but before the harvest. What is the message to God’s people in verse 19?
“Haggai reminds God’s people that it’s only been three months since they started building the temple. The seed is still in the ground and the harvest is still a way off. But the fruit is coming! He urges them to keep working and waiting patiently, because God is with them and for them. Do you have seed in the ground? Are you waiting and trusting God that your obedience will lead to a harvest of blessing?” ~ Dave Cornes
Two Promises (2:20-23):
- When does Haggai receive this final message from God? How long after the last message?
- Who is this message for?
- What is God planning to do?
- The Israelites were a comparatively weak minority. How do you imagine Zerubbabel was going to feel when these things happened? What might he be tempted to do in regard to the work of building the temple when these things happened?
- In what way could God’s plans have also served as an encouragement for Zerubbabel?
- Have you ever felt threatened by strong pressures or voices around you? What specific fears have discouraged you from putting yourself fully into God’s work in your community?
“There’s a reason why God says in His Word, hundreds of times, ‘do not fear’. Fear is real, and debilitating. The enemy will use fear any chance he gets to stop us from doing what God has called us to do for His Kingdom. Our fears around building the church are possibly subtle and insidious. They’re not obvious, nameable fears like fear of sharks or heights or being trapped in an elevator with an accordionist. Rather, they play on our sense of identity and our insecurities. God’s people knew all about this kind of fear as they faced the rebuilding of the temple in a hostile socio-political environment.” ~ Dave Cornes
- In verse 23, what three things does God say He has done or will do for Zerubbabel?
- What is a signet ring? What is the significance of a signet ring?
- Read God’s promise in Jeremiah 33:14-17. Zerubbabel is a descendant of David, but he remains only a governor and never actually becomes king. What may God have been promising or pointing toward? Who ultimately fulfills this promise? Read Matthew 1:1,12.
- Read 2 Corinthians 1:21-22. What is the seal God has placed on you?
- Read Ezra 6:13-18. When did they complete the reconstruction of the temple?
- What has God chosen you to do in the building of His church? In prayer, surrender your fears to God and ask Him for faith, wisdom and courage to take the next step toward building His church. Thank God that even right now Jesus in on the throne, in charge of the world and nothing will stop His Kingdom from coming!
In light of this passage and our discussion, what one truth about God and about yourself stand out as something to “take to heart” this week?
Are there steps you will take, by God’s grace, to more fully apply it to your life?
Resources: NIV Zondervan Study Bible, 2015
J. Gordon McConville, Exploring the Old Testament: A Guide to the Prophets, Volume 4, 2002
Dr. Larry Crabb, 66 Love Letters, 2009
Dave Cornes, Haggai: Building God’s Church (RightNowMedia)
Tim Mackie, The Bible Project, How to Read Haggai (RightNowMedia)
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