Auto-generated, so imperfect — click any line to jump the video to that moment.
0:01
Many people assume God's blessing is
0:03
unlocked by ritual, by proximity to
0:06
sacred things or by participation in
0:08
religious activity. But in Haggi 2, God
0:12
dismantles that illusion. In the first
0:14
chapter, he confronted a people who had
0:16
begun rebuilding the temple, but had not
0:18
yet rebuilt their faith. They had
0:20
returned to the land, but they had not
0:22
returned to holiness. His message
0:24
reveals a truth Israel had forgotten,
0:27
and many believers still forget today.
0:30
Holiness does not spread by indirect
0:32
contact, but defilement does.
0:36
As we traverse this passage, we'll also
0:39
see how God reverses an old curse in the
0:41
returning of the signant ring to the
0:42
house of David. I'm Jacob Mlan, and this
0:45
is the wisdom crucible, where wisdom
0:48
distills transformation through the word
0:50
of God.
0:52
This is part two of my study in the book
0:54
of Hagi the prophet, reverse of the
0:56
curse. The signant ring returns.
1:00
Before we dive in, consider your
1:02
thoughts on the following. Does being
1:04
near holy things make you holy? Does
1:07
participation in church events impart
1:10
righteousness?
1:12
Does touching what belongs to God make
1:15
your life acceptable to God?
1:19
Through Hagi, God forces the priests and
1:22
the people to answer those questions
1:24
with brutal clarity. and the response is
1:27
not quite what some might expect. In
1:30
this episode, we're going to walk
1:31
through the final three movements of
1:33
Haggi. The purity syllogism, verses
1:35
10-4,
1:37
the promise of blessing, verses 15-19,
1:40
and finally Zerubbabel, the signate of
1:43
God, verses 20- 23.
1:47
Along the way, we'll clarify the purity
1:49
laws, covenant consequences, and the
1:51
messianic promise included in this brief
1:54
prophetic book.
1:57
Let's begin by reading Haggi chapter
1:59
2:es 10-19.
2:03
And I'm going to highlight it on your
2:05
screen so that you can see more easily
2:09
where we are. On the 24th day of the 9th
2:12
month in the second year of Darius, the
2:14
word of the Lord came by Haggi the
2:16
prophet. Thus says the Lord of hosts,
2:18
"Ask the priests about the law. If
2:21
someone carries holy meat in the fold of
2:23
his garment, and touches with his fold
2:25
bread or stew or wine or oil, or any
2:28
kind of food, does it become holy?" The
2:31
priests answered and said, "No." Then
2:34
Hagi said, "If someone who is unclean by
2:36
contact with a dead body touches any of
2:39
these, does it become unclean?" The
2:41
priests answered and said, "It does not
2:44
or it does become unclean." Then Hagi
2:47
answered and said,"So is it with this
2:49
people and with this nation before me,
2:51
declares the Lord. And so with every
2:53
work of their hands, and what they offer
2:56
there is unclean. Now then, consider
2:59
from this day onward, before stone was
3:01
placed upon stone in the temple of the
3:02
Lord, how did you fare? When one came to
3:05
a heap of 20 measures, there were but
3:07
10. When one came to a wine vat to draw
3:10
50 measures, there were but 20. I struck
3:13
you and all the products of your toil
3:15
with blight and with mildew and with
3:17
hail, yet you did not turn to me,
3:19
declares the Lord. Consider from this
3:21
day onward, from the 24th day of the 9th
3:24
month, since the day that the foundation
3:26
of the Lord's temple was laid, consider,
3:30
is the seed yet in the barn? Indeed, the
3:33
vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and
3:35
the olive tree have yielded nothing. But
3:38
from this day on, I will bless you.
3:46
Now that we have the whole section fresh
3:48
in mind, we'll walk back through those
3:50
lines verse by verse, beginning with
3:52
verse 10.
3:58
Short and simple. On the 24th day of the
4:02
9th month, in the second year of Darius,
4:04
the word of the Lord came by Hagi the
4:06
prophet.
4:08
Day 24, month 9, still in the second
4:11
year of Darius. This tells us that it
4:13
has been precisely 3 months since the
4:15
work on the temple resumed. And it is at
4:18
this point that God deems them ready to
4:20
address a critical neglect of holiness.
4:24
for the remnant of Israel then and for
4:27
us now.
4:29
I'm going to spend a few minutes
4:30
thoroughly discussing the next few
4:32
verses because their internal logic
4:34
anchors this passage and prepares us for
4:36
the punch line in verse 14. That said,
4:40
let's read verses 11- 12 again.
4:50
There we go.
4:52
Thus says the Lord of hosts, "Ask the
4:54
priests about the law. If someone
4:56
carries holy meat in the fold of his
4:58
garment and touches with his fold bread
5:00
or stew or wine or oil, or any kind of
5:03
food, does it become holy?" The priests
5:06
answered and said, "No."
5:09
God directs Hagi to draw the priests
5:11
attention to a truth that they already
5:13
knew, but were not applying to its
5:15
necessary extent. Touching a holy or
5:19
ceremonially clean object to an unclean
5:22
object indirectly or by secondary
5:25
contact does not transfer holiness to
5:28
the unclean.
5:30
Holiness does not transfer by proximity
5:33
or indirect contact. It requires direct
5:36
consecration.
5:38
In other words, you don't cause a stack
5:40
of dirty plates to become clean by
5:43
putting them on top of a stack of clean
5:45
plates.
5:47
This reflects a principle of the law
5:49
given through Moses, a truth that Israel
5:52
was expected to uphold as God prepared
5:54
them for the new covenant of Christ.
5:58
Now, for a modern Gentile or non-Jewish
6:01
reader, checking the Old Testament texts
6:04
on purity laws, this may seem at first
6:07
glance to contradict Leviticus 6:27.
6:11
Let me unveil this supposed
6:13
contradiction.
6:14
Pay no heed uh for the moment to the
6:17
reverse interlinear down here at the
6:19
bottom. I'm just going to read this
6:21
verse. Leviticus 6:27 says, "Whatever
6:24
touches its flesh shall be holy, and
6:27
when any of its blood is splashed on a
6:29
garment, you shall wash that on which it
6:31
was splashed in a holy place."
6:35
This is in regards to the holy meat of
6:37
the sin offering. So, same as the
6:41
example being used in Haggi,
6:45
Leviticus and Haggi use the same Hebrew
6:47
verb form, yedash, which you can see
6:50
right here.
6:52
This transliteration tells you how you
6:54
would say this Hebrew word, yikash.
6:59
They also use the same root noun,
7:02
kadesh. Let me find that one. Here we
7:06
go.
7:07
It wants to open a factbook. So here now
7:10
you can see it's highlighting holy at
7:12
the end of this verse and it's kadesh.
7:16
I know that the way I'm saying it
7:17
doesn't look quite as much like the way
7:20
it's spelled to anyone who is uh doesn't
7:23
read these transliterations often but I
7:26
think that's roughly how how it's said.
7:29
But anyway,
7:31
let me show you just so you can see and
7:33
know for sure. Same thing in he
7:37
there's the reverse interlinear view at
7:40
the bottom. Now if I click on
7:44
ask the priest about the law the holy
7:46
meat you see kadesh that's the same
7:51
form that we just saw in Leviticus
7:55
and then does it become holy.
8:00
So now you know for sure it's the same
8:02
words.
8:04
Let's close the interlinear. Now
8:07
back to Leviticus 6.
8:11
So these same words are being applied to
8:15
two different circumstances involving
8:17
ritual holiness.
8:20
As you can see, the difference is not in
8:21
the grammar. Rather, it's in the
8:24
scenario. Allow me to explain. Both
8:27
passages use the verb form yikdash which
8:30
refers to restrictive use holiness to
8:33
describe the state of the object that
8:36
has been touched by the blood. This term
8:39
means that something becomes holy such
8:41
that it can only be used for official
8:44
temple purposes, not that it possesses
8:47
inherent moral purity, which is more
8:51
precisely what Christians usually mean
8:53
when referring to something as being
8:55
holy.
8:58
To clarify, when something becomes
9:00
restricted for sanctuary use, not to be
9:02
used for common purposes anymore, it
9:05
does not indicate inherent purity, a
9:07
quality of something implying that it's
9:09
pleasing to God because it is perfect in
9:12
and of itself. This kind of holiness
9:15
never allows secondary transmission to
9:18
another object.
9:20
Think of it this way. A holy object,
9:23
something God himself has set apart,
9:25
touches object A. Because object A came
9:28
into direct contact with something God
9:31
ordained as holy, object A becomes holy
9:35
in a very specific sense. It is now
9:37
restricted for sanctuary use, not common
9:40
use. For example, if you touched a fork
9:44
to a temple lampstand, you couldn't take
9:47
the fork into a regular house and use it
9:49
to eat a regular meal.
9:52
However, if object A, the fork, then
9:55
touches object B,
9:58
your clothes, object B does not become
10:02
holy. Why? Because object A's holiness
10:06
is by association, not by God's direct
10:09
consecration. It's two slightly
10:12
different meanings of holiness. Okay?
10:16
Thus, ritual holiness can move one step
10:20
but never two. If holiness was
10:23
indefinitely transmissible, then
10:25
everything in the world would have
10:26
already become holy because everything
10:29
has touched something that has touched
10:30
something else and so on such that
10:33
holiness would have spread to everything
10:35
in the world by now.
10:37
And that wouldn't logically follow the
10:39
argument in scripture. And it is
10:42
defeated by the definition of holiness
10:45
which means to be set apart for the
10:47
Lord.
10:49
Because if we call everything in our
10:51
fallen world holy then nothing is holy
10:54
or we have no idea what holiness is
10:57
because the world is full of unholy
11:00
things.
11:02
Only what God directly consecrates can
11:04
make something else holy. Nothing
11:07
downstream can spread it further.
11:11
To conclude, summarily, ritual
11:14
restriction spreads.
11:17
Sanctifying holiness does not.
11:20
Thus, the priests answered rightly.
11:23
Holiness does not transfer indefinitely,
11:25
but uncleanness does. How I've explained
11:29
this is similar to how it's explained, I
11:32
think, by other teachers like Jacob
11:34
Mgrim, Gordon J. Winnham, and J.clar,
11:37
Scar who are themselves teachers well
11:40
known for their work on the Levitical
11:42
system of ritual holiness
11:46
and don't worry we are going to relate
11:47
this to nontle
11:50
uh experiences
11:53
for the gentile readers.
11:57
So next question from Haggi chapter 2
12:00
verse 13.
12:06
Then Hagi said, "If someone who is
12:08
unclean by contact with a dead body
12:10
touches any of these, does it become
12:13
unclean?"
12:14
The priests answered and said, "It does
12:16
become unclean."
12:19
This is straight out of Numbers 19:11,
12:22
which says, "Whoever touches the dead
12:24
body of any person shall be unclean."
12:27
The law may be about temple purity
12:29
practices, but it reflects a timeless
12:32
moral principle. Uncleanness spreads
12:35
Corruption propagates. Sin contaminates.
12:40
If you continually court temptation,
12:42
don't be surprised when your life bears
12:45
the marks of defilement.
12:47
Conversely, simply being close to holy
12:50
things or being indirectly in contact
12:54
with holiness will not correct that for
12:57
you.
12:58
In verse 14, God applies the following
13:02
judgment to the nation.
13:05
Let me highlight this for you.
13:09
Oops. Let's try that one more time.
13:12
There we go. Then Hagi answered and
13:15
said, "So is it with this people and
13:17
with this nation before me, declares the
13:19
Lord, and so with every work of their
13:21
hands, and what they offer there is
13:24
unclean."
13:26
The people are unclean, and their
13:28
uncleanness contaminates their
13:30
offerings, their works for the Lord.
13:34
This is the conclusion of the two
13:36
premises from the prior two verses.
13:39
Verses 12- 14 form a syllogism which is
13:42
a particular type of logical argument
13:45
formed by two minor premises or
13:47
propositions leading to one major
13:50
premise or conclusion.
13:53
Here's the syllogism that God is
13:55
presenting. Holiness is not
13:58
transmissible by indirect contact.
14:00
Uncleanness is transmissible by indirect
14:04
contact. Therefore, the people's
14:06
uncleanness spreads to their works and
14:10
offerings
14:11
despite the fact that those are supposed
14:13
to be holy.
14:15
As was discussed thoroughly in part one
14:18
of this study through the book of Hagi,
14:20
the people's priorities were out of
14:22
order. They were unclean because they
14:24
were not setting themselves apart for
14:26
the Lord their God. A heart not set
14:30
aside for God is not made holy simply by
14:33
proximity to an altar. It's made holy
14:35
when sacrificed on the altar when laid
14:38
down in surrender to God. Every step you
14:42
take towards God is meaningless if in
14:45
the end you walk away having left
14:46
nothing behind. If your heart never
14:49
reaches the cross and is never given up
14:51
to Christ.
14:53
God makes that quite clear in Isaiah
14:56
1:es 11-17.
15:02
Listen.
15:04
What to me is the multitude of your
15:06
sacrifices, says the Lord. I have had
15:09
enough of burnt offerings of rams and
15:11
the fat of well-fed beasts. I do not
15:14
delight in the blood of bulls or of
15:16
lambs or of goats. When you came to
15:19
appear before me, who has required of
15:21
you this trampling of my courts? Bring
15:24
no more vain offerings? Incense is an
15:27
abomination to me. New moon and Sabbath
15:30
and the calling of convocations I cannot
15:33
endure iniquity and solemn assembly.
15:36
Your new moons and your appointed feasts
15:38
my soul hates. They have become a burden
15:41
to me. I'm weary of bearing them. When
15:44
you spread out your hands, I will hide
15:46
my eyes from you. Even though you make
15:48
many prayers, I will not listen. Your
15:50
hands are full of blood.
15:53
Wash yourselves. Make yourselves clean.
15:55
Remove the evil of your deeds from
15:57
before my eyes. Cease to do evil. Learn
16:01
to do good. Seek justice. Correct
16:03
oppression. Bring justice to the
16:05
fatherless. Plead the widow's cause.
16:10
In verses 11-4
16:12
of Isaiah 1, God lists a number of
16:16
ritual practices that he himself had
16:18
ordained, burnt offerings, assemblies,
16:21
feasts. Yet now he says that he has had
16:23
enough. He does not delight in their
16:26
offerings and their solemn assemblies.
16:29
He cannot bear to suffer the feasts that
16:31
he appointed to them because of
16:33
iniquity,
16:34
evil done in vain, and their hands full
16:38
of blood.
16:40
These are strong works of accusation.
16:43
Yet God does not leave them without
16:45
hope. He offers them a way to improve
16:48
their condition, to rectify their
16:50
defilement. Immediately following, first
16:53
he says, "Wash yourselves. Make
16:55
yourselves clean."
16:57
Next, he says, "Remove the evil of your
16:59
deeds from before my eyes." God sees all
17:03
things. So, the only way for him not to
17:06
see evil in your deeds is for there to
17:09
be none. Cease to do evil. Finally, God
17:14
says, "Learn to be good."
17:17
It's not good enough to be an innocent
17:19
bystander.
17:21
Although it might seem neutral, not
17:24
doing good is itself evil because God
17:28
has commanded that we actively seek to
17:30
do good.
17:32
Seek justice. Correct oppression. Bring
17:35
justice to the fatherless. Plead the
17:37
widow's cause.
17:40
Leave your heart, your iniquity, and
17:43
your mortality on the altar of the
17:45
cross. And be reborn for eternity, so
17:49
that your work before God will no longer
17:52
be in vain, but holy.
17:56
Back to Hagi
17:59
verses 15-1 17.
18:10
Now then consider from this day onward
18:12
before stone was placed upon stone in
18:14
the temple of the Lord. How did you
18:16
fare? When one came to a heap of 20
18:19
measures, there were but 10. When one
18:21
came to the wine vat to draw 50
18:23
measures, there were but 20. I struck
18:26
you and all the products of your toil
18:28
with blight and with mildew and with
18:30
hail. Yet you did not turn to me,
18:33
declares the Lord.
18:37
The opening statement seems rather
18:39
reminiscent of chapter 1:es 5 and 7.
18:42
Consider your ways.
18:46
God posed a rather pointed question.
18:49
Before you resumed obedience to me, how
18:52
did you fare?
18:54
How fruitful were your efforts?
18:57
He then answers the question, when you
18:58
came for 20 measures, there were only
19:00
10. When you came for 50, there was only
19:02
20. When you worked by and for yourself,
19:06
you made dimes on the dollar.
19:10
even beyond hindering their
19:11
productivity.
19:12
He sent blight, mildew, and hail on what
19:15
they did manage to produce.
19:18
Yet, he never let it destroy them
19:20
because he knew the moment they would
19:22
return to him.
19:24
In verse 17, God reveals the purpose of
19:27
a hardship discipline. He hindered their
19:29
efforts to draw their attention to him,
19:32
which shouldn't have been necessary
19:34
because he's the Almighty offering
19:36
salvation for eternity.
19:40
But people are hard-headed,
19:43
you and me included.
19:45
Imagine waving your arms and yelling to
19:47
get someone's attention before they walk
19:49
into oncoming traffic.
19:52
But they've decided to put on headphones
19:54
and duck their eyes to their smartphone.
19:57
In trying to save their life, you throw
19:59
whatever is in your hands at them. You
20:01
might even tackle them to the ground to
20:03
keep them from walking into the oncoming
20:05
traffic. It may result in scrapes and
20:07
bruises, but at least they weren't
20:09
tackled by a car. That's what God was
20:12
doing for the people of Israel.
20:15
I wonder how often God has had to apply
20:17
such tactics to the US.
20:20
I wonder how often God has had to apply
20:22
such tactics to me.
20:26
There's a car down the street with
20:28
tinted windows riding low to the ground
20:30
with spikes on the tires
20:33
just waiting for you to step out into
20:34
the road.
20:36
Don't become roadkill.
20:38
Keep your ears open and your eyes up and
20:41
walk with God. As I demonstrated through
20:44
discussing Deuteronomy 28 in part one of
20:48
my study through Haggi, the hardship
20:50
that Israel as a people was facing was
20:53
covenant discipline,
20:55
not random circumstance.
20:58
To clarify a misunderstanding of how the
21:00
covenant worked, let me explain why this
21:03
applies to the people corporately or as
21:05
a community, but not for each individual
21:08
member of the community. God's Old
21:11
Testament covenant with Israel was with
21:13
the community of Israel and the
21:16
instructions were given to the people as
21:17
a whole with communal discipline laid
21:20
out for them. Prophecies of what would
21:23
happen when they disobeyed.
21:26
An error that some people make when
21:28
reading about communal blessings and
21:30
discipline is what's known as the
21:31
ecological fallacy,
21:34
which is to take a truth regarding a
21:36
population and apply it to individual
21:38
subgroups or people within that
21:41
population.
21:42
This fallacy can appear in a biblical
21:44
interpretation when someone takes a
21:47
national rebuke meant for Israel, a
21:50
judgment applied to a specific group, a
21:53
promise made to the church, or a
21:55
collective covenant consequence, and
21:58
assumes it automatically applies to a
22:01
specific person, a subgroup, or a modern
22:05
believer.
22:07
Group truth does not equal individual
22:10
truth because there are always outliers.
22:13
Those that are going against the trend,
22:16
those who are running into darkness as
22:18
others follow the light, or those
22:20
running to Jesus while others run to
22:22
idols.
22:24
Read the Bible like it's about a real
22:26
God and real people in real history.
22:30
acknowledge that there was likely never
22:32
a single moment in time where every
22:35
single Israelite was simultaneously
22:37
following all of God's commands or
22:40
actively breaking the command.
22:45
Yet there were times when the omnisient
22:48
or all- knowing God commended Israel for
22:51
its obedience, such as Joshua chapter
22:54
22:2, which says, "You have kept all
22:57
that Moses, the servant of the Lord,
22:59
commanded you and have obeyed my voice
23:02
in all that I have commanded you."
23:07
Do you really think that God meant that
23:10
every single person was being perfectly
23:12
faithful all of the time?
23:16
No.
23:18
Was God confused, mistaken, or
23:22
deceitful?
23:23
No. He was speaking of a group the way
23:27
that we do in real life. In statistics,
23:30
when we talk about the average condition
23:31
of a variable, in this case, obedience,
23:35
it's generally considered fair to
23:37
describe a population by its common
23:39
traits, without the expectation of
23:42
taking all day to qualify that
23:44
assessment by describing every
23:46
individual deviation from the norm.
23:50
Every person who is more or less
23:52
obedient than the average. In Haggi's
23:55
time, the people were coming out of a
23:56
season of discipline due to their
23:58
corporate disobedience.
24:00
That doesn't mean that there weren't a
24:02
few individuals that he blessed for a
24:05
greater degree of obedience.
24:07
But if we're honest, we don't really
24:09
have any reason to call God unfair for
24:11
punishing whole populations anyway
24:14
because we're all sinners, doomed by our
24:17
poor choices apart from the redemptive
24:19
love of Christ.
24:22
There may have been a few people
24:24
genuinely trying to honor God, but the
24:26
people as a whole had not been
24:28
practicing obedience. So the covenant
24:31
discipline was required to redirect
24:33
their attention to God. It is easy to
24:36
blame the governors and the priests, the
24:38
senators and the presidents for the
24:41
failings of society.
24:44
That said, recall that earlier in this
24:47
scripture, God didn't just address the
24:49
governor and the priests. He also
24:51
addressed the entire public, the rest of
24:54
the people, including the common folk.
24:58
Remember that when you're sitting at
25:00
home pointing fingers at government and
25:02
church officials while not working to be
25:05
part of the solution
25:10
onto verses 18 through 19.
25:20
Consider from this day onward, from the
25:22
24th day of the 9th month, since the day
25:24
that the foundation of the Lord's temple
25:26
was laid, consider, is the seed yet in
25:29
the barn? Indeed, the vine, the fig
25:32
tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive
25:34
tree have yielded nothing. But from this
25:37
day on, I will bless you.
25:41
From before the foundation of the temple
25:43
was laid through the decade of
25:45
inattention to the house of God until
25:48
now the people's work had been in vain.
25:52
Deuteronomy 28:2 All these blessings
25:55
shall come upon you and overtake you if
25:58
you obey the voice of the Lord your God.
26:02
It had been 3 months since the work on
26:04
the temple was resumed and the barns
26:06
were still barren.
26:08
However, God promises that the fruit of
26:10
their obedience will be plentiful.
26:14
Haggi 2:19, "From this day on, I will
26:18
bless you."
26:20
That's the last sentence of that verse.
26:23
Blessing begins with obedience, not
26:25
completion.
26:27
Restoration begins with repentance, not
26:30
results. They were still working, still
26:33
building, still surrounded by ruins. at
26:36
only three months into the work. But God
26:39
but God declares the curse is lifted.
26:42
The blessing begins now.
26:46
By reading this passage in its greater
26:48
context, you can clearly see that this
26:50
promise is a corporate covenantal
26:52
blessing, not a source of prosperity
26:54
theology promising individual wealth to
26:57
anyone. God is not a genie whom you can
27:00
force to grant your wishes by following
27:02
a ritual protocol. He wrote the rules
27:05
and he leaves no room for loopholes.
27:08
Abundance is promised in the new
27:10
creation. But for now, we must be
27:13
content with sustenance as sometimes
27:15
that is all we will have.
27:18
Perhaps the bare minimum to live another
27:21
moment.
27:23
Job 14:1 says, "A man who is born of a
27:25
woman is few of days and full of
27:28
trouble."
27:30
Revelation 21:4 says, "He will wipe away
27:33
every tear from their eyes, and death
27:35
shall be no more. Neither shall there be
27:37
mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore,
27:40
for the former things have passed away."
27:44
I know it's tough now,
27:46
but practice patience for eternity. The
27:50
wait time is not long.
27:53
Now for the final section of Haggi
27:56
chapter 2 verses 20- 23.
28:05
The word of the Lord came a second time
28:07
to Hagi on the 24th day of the month
28:10
speak to Zerubbabel the governor of
28:12
Judah saying I am about to shake the
28:14
heavens and the earth and to overthrow
28:16
the throne of kingdoms. I am about to
28:18
destroy the strength of the kingdoms of
28:20
the nations and overthrow the chariots
28:22
and their riders. And the horses and
28:24
their riders shall go down, everyone by
28:26
the sword of his brother. On that day,
28:29
declares the Lord of hosts. I will take
28:31
you, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son
28:33
of Shiel, declares the Lord, and make
28:36
you like a signant ring, for I have
28:38
chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.
28:43
Let's return to verse 20.
28:46
I'm going to highlight just that verse
28:49
to start.
28:51
On the 24th, the same day as the
28:53
previous oracle, another word comes.
28:56
This time, God addresses Zerubbabel
28:59
personally.
29:01
Verses 21 through 22.
29:09
God will shake the heavens and the
29:11
earth, overthrow earthly thrones,
29:13
destroy human strength, and conquer
29:15
armies. This language echoes the day of
29:19
the Lord, such as is referenced in 2
29:21
Peter 3:10 and described in further
29:24
detail in the book of Revelation. Again,
29:26
we see multiple prophetic horizons,
29:29
including near fulfillment, the
29:32
upheavalss under Darius, Persia, and
29:34
Greece. intermediate fulfillment, the
29:37
judgment of kingdoms during the coming
29:39
of Christ and ultimate fulfillment, the
29:42
final collapse of all other kingdoms in
29:44
the establishment of the eternal
29:46
kingdom.
29:48
God is the one doing the shaking and
29:51
only his kingdom will not be shaken.
29:54
It's also important for us to understand
29:56
what God is not saying here. He's not
29:58
saying that every next geopolitical
30:01
upheaval is signaling Christ's return.
30:05
He's not saying that Christians should
30:07
wage a war and conquer the world. He is
30:10
going to conquer the world, not for
30:12
satiating a blood lust, but for
30:14
righteous rebirth in his timing by his
30:18
methods. Be ready for it any day and
30:23
prepared to wait for any day.
30:26
Look with me at verse 23.
30:29
I'm going to read this one again.
30:33
On that day, declares the Lord of Hosts,
30:35
I will take you, O Zerubbabel, my
30:37
servant, the son of Shiel, declares the
30:40
Lord, and make you like a signant ring,
30:42
for I have chosen you, declares the Lord
30:44
of hosts.
30:47
I will make you like a signant ring.
30:50
Have you considered what it means that
30:52
God made Zerubbabel to be like a signant
30:55
ring? A signant is no mere ornament on
30:59
the hand. It has a distinct purpose. To
31:02
bear the king's crest, the seal of
31:04
legitimate authority and divine
31:06
approval. To say that someone is a
31:09
signant ring is to say they bear the
31:11
promise of the king himself, which makes
31:13
what God did through the prophet
31:15
Jeremiah all the more striking.
31:18
Let me show you the connection to
31:19
Jeremiah 224
31:24
through 26.
31:27
As I live, declares the Lord, though
31:29
Kaniah the son of Jehookim, king of
31:32
Judah, wore the signant ring on my right
31:34
hand, yet I would tear you off and give
31:37
you into the hand of those who seek your
31:39
life, into the hand of those whom you
31:42
are afraid, even into the hand of
31:44
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and
31:46
into the hand of the Caldians. I will
31:48
hurl you and the mother whom bore you
31:50
into another country where you were not
31:52
born, and there you shall die.
31:58
God acknowledges the seal of authority
32:01
on the house of David. Then presiding
32:03
with Jehoaken
32:05
whom these verses call Koniah
32:08
who is the grandfather of Zerubbabel.
32:11
God stripped this signant from Jehoaken
32:14
who from then on was called Kayiah
32:18
which is a shortened form of his name
32:20
that drops the prefix referring to
32:22
Yahweh.
32:23
In case anyone's confused, Jehookim,
32:26
Koniah's previous name ends with an N as
32:30
opposed to Jehoakim here, which ends
32:32
with an M. That was his father. So, they
32:35
sound very similar, but they're slightly
32:37
different names. But anyway,
32:41
this removal of the Yahweh prefix from
32:44
his name serves as a prophetic rebuke
32:47
from God through the prophet Jeremiah,
32:50
symbolically mirroring the removal of
32:52
the signant of authority and approval of
32:55
God from this disobedient king. God gave
32:58
Kayiah and his disobedient flock over to
33:01
Babylon, where the remnant of Israel
33:03
that Hagi is speaking to has recently
33:06
returned from. God cursed Kona for his
33:10
refusal to obey and blessed Zerubbabel
33:13
for his willingness to obey.
33:16
As you see in Hagi 2:23,
33:21
God's signant was returned to David's
33:23
line in preparation for the arrival of
33:25
Jesus in Bethlehem.
33:27
Then
33:29
sorry when God bestowed it to a grandson
33:32
of Kona Zerubbabel who despite not
33:35
serving as a king helped Joshua and the
33:38
prophets lead the people back to a
33:41
lifestyle of obedience to God. The
33:44
Davidic line was not abandoned. The
33:46
curse on Kaniah is reversed and God
33:49
affirms the plan that he laid out for
33:50
them in generations prior. This is a
33:53
reminder that even though God's people
33:55
are constantly backpedaling into
33:57
rebellion against him, God will remain
33:59
faithful to his covenant with them and
34:02
produce the promised Messiah from the
34:04
line of David, the savior we know as
34:07
Jesus Christ.
34:09
The signate returns. The promise stands.
34:12
The throne awaits the son of David.
34:16
Holiness does not cling to us by
34:18
accident. It does not settle on our
34:20
souls as we listen to a preacher speak.
34:23
It does not seep into our spirits while
34:26
we stand next to sacred objects.
34:28
Holiness is found in complete submission
34:31
to the will of God, in giving your soul
34:34
to him, in setting your heart aside for
34:36
him. As with Israel under the temple
34:39
traditions, until you give him your
34:41
submission, until you're washed by the
34:43
blood of Christ, everything you touch
34:46
will bear the fingerprints of your
34:48
uncleanness.
34:50
God will not flatter you. He tells us
34:52
plainly that our best works are as
34:55
filthy rags compared to his holiness.
34:57
Yet in the same breath, he offers you
35:00
redemption through the cross and life in
35:02
the resurrection. Remember that in Hagi
35:06
1:13,
35:08
God affirmed his covenant with Israel. I
35:10
am with you, declares the Lord. Not
35:13
after years of toil, not after the work
35:16
is finished, not after the temple
35:18
gleams. From the moment you submit in
35:21
obedience,
35:23
I am with you.
35:26
All of this directs our gaze to
35:28
Zerubbabel's greater son, the true
35:30
signant, the king whose holiness does
35:33
not fade and whose blessing depends not
35:36
on our works but on his grace.
35:40
This is the merciful grace of God. He
35:42
meets us in our ruins with an
35:44
outstretched hand, not wanting that any
35:47
should perish.
35:49
God invites you into his presence to be
35:51
made holy so that you can partake in
35:53
perfection, eternal worshipful life in
35:56
his final temple, the reborn creation
35:59
that he will usher in. That may be all
36:02
for Hagi for now, but that's not all
36:05
that God has to say to you. So, keep
36:07
your ears and your eyes open and attuned
36:09
to the word.
36:13
Thinking through the word of God always
36:15
blesses me. And I hope the way I've
36:18
presented scripture in this message
36:19
encourages genuine dialogue, both
36:21
private and public, rather than merely
36:24
passive media consumption.
36:26
If you're interested in further studies
36:28
and reflections related to the Holy
36:30
Bible, then you're welcome to subscribe
36:32
and engage with my other teachings and
36:33
reflections. Media metrics drive the
36:36
algorithms, but the word of God is what
36:39
drives me, and that's what I hope to
36:41
pass on.
36:43
May the Lord bless
