Blessings for a Defiled People

Haggai 2:10-19

#1 Steward the prophetic word of God

#2 Remember God’s “I WILL” - Remember God’s promises

#3 God feels “delayed” to us

Haggai 2:11–12 ““Thus says the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests about the law: ‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?’ ” The priests answered and said, “No.””

Haggai 2:13 “Then Haggai said, “If someone who is unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?” The priests answered and said, “It does become unclean.””

What on planet earth is going on here?

Honestly, I read this section so many times over the last month and thought, dang I feel like I kind of get what it’s saying but not fully. There’s something missing.

How do I read the Bible when I’m looking to answer questions?

Brennan’s Principles of Proper Exegesis (fancy word for studying meaning of scripture)

1st: Literal & Historical Interpretation

2nd: Biblical Context

3rd: Biblical Theme

4th: Original language

5th: Jesus in everything

1st: Literal & Historical Interpretation

Study history:

Who was speaking? Haggai

Who was the text written to? Jews

Where was this written? Post-exile from Babylon/Assyria

What was the culture of all people groups who influenced the account? Jew with a deep political understanding of Assyria’s power.

How did people speak during this era? (Common metaphors, stories, etc.)

2nd: Biblical Context

Read all surrounding verses and chapters

What do the verses before and after teach? God has promises but they feel delayed

What do the chapters before and after teach? Neglected to rebuild God’s temple due to political pressure and life has been miserable.

Is this setting up a future answer in the text or answering a prior question? Both

How does this tie into the salvific theme of Jesus? Jesus made us holy by his sacrifice

Since I’m in the OT:

How is this expounded upon in the NT?

How does the lens of the law effect the way the people are interpreting Haggai?

3rd: Biblical Theme

Why was this book even written? God wants to restore and reinstate his presence.

What’s the theme of this book? Political, Restoration

What was the social and political climate? Tense political climate, struggling morals but open to correction

What was the state before and after the restoration?

Before: Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh, depressed and gloomy as can be

After: Winnie the Pooh, lovable, naive, think they just unlocked an unlimited honey hack

What’s the theme of this chapter? Chapter 2: Moving from selfish fear to Godly trust. Restorative.

4th: Original language

Haggai 2:11 ask the Priests about the “Law”

Law = torah

OT: Go to Leviticus, Numbers, & Deuteronomy

NT: Quotes or references to OT law

Haggai 2:12: If someone carries “holy meat”

Holy = Qodesh, noun (consecrate is Qadash, the adjective form “Qodesh”)

Holy is the noun, consecrate is the adjective

That’s weird, in English holy is an adjective. It’s used to describe something.

Here, Holy is not used to describe the type of meat.

In Hebrew thought, it’s almost like a type of meat. Like “Ribeye Steak” is a noun.

Ribeye is a more specific type of steak. You cannot modify a Steak into a Ribeye. That’s just what it is. Because it’s a noun.

Holy meat is a noun. In Jewish thought, the meat itself is holy and cannot be modified into being holy.

Holy is the status of the meat. It’s not something transferred. That’s just what it is.

Although Ribeye tastes holy… it isn’t in itself holy.

Haggai 2:11–12 ““Thus says the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests about the law (The first 5 books of the Bible):

‘If someone carries a ribeye steak the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does that food become a ribeye steak?’ ” The priests answered and said, “No.””

…Bro I’m getting hungry for a juice ribeye my goodness…

‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become holy?’ ” The priests answered and said, “No.””

Haggai 2:13 “Then Haggai said, “If someone who is unclean…”

unclean = tame (adjective) —> something that happens to you, it can be transmitted

“…by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?” The priests answered and said, “It does become unclean.””

become unclean = yitma (verb) —> is the adjective of unclean transmitted via the action of becoming unclean from one noun to another

If a person touches a raw ribeye steak

a noun (ribeye steak) that is described as raw (or unclean)

If a person touches a raw ribeye steak. Do you need to wash your hands before picking up your phone to doom scroll?

Duh, I don’t want to spread bacteria for little Johnny to get sick from

Let’s put this all together…

Haggai the prophet is speaking to the Jews in 530 B.C. after they returned from Exile in Babylon.

They are trying to reestablish their nation and rebuild the temple of God to reinstate the presence of God.

They got scared due to governmental overreach and stopped rebuilding the temple.

Haggai rebukes the Jews for not prioritizing God even during governmental overreach. And the people of God listen.

And Haggai says:

Haggai 2:11–12 ““Thus says the Lord of hosts: Ask the priests about the first 5 books of the Bible: ‘If someone carries holy meat in the fold of his garment and touches with his fold bread or stew or wine or oil or any kind of food, does it become (a ribeye steak) does it become holy?’ ” The priests answered and said, “No.””

Haggai 2:13 “Then Haggai said, “If someone who is unclean by contact with (raw meat) unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?” The priests answered and said, “It does become unclean.””

Haggai 2:14 “Then Haggai answered and said, “So is it with this people, and with this nation before me, declares the Lord, and so with every work of their hands. And what they offer there is unclean.”

This principle doesn’t just apply to the law you are so familiar with. The reason the law is here is to REVEAL the state of the heart!

If you purposely disobey what God said to do. Everything you do or touch that is in direct disobedience to God will not be blessed by God. You’ll wonder why you’re burnt out. Living in lack.

What’s the difference between living in Lack vs. living with Little? Spiritual Fruit.

Haggai says they live in lack is because they have neglected to honor and build the house of God. They neglect the power and presence of God.

The result is: depression, want, no satisfaction in their work, left desiring more, no joy or peace.

Because you can’t receive holiness by touching something that is holy. Or being somewhere that is holy. You yourself must become the noun “holy”.

If you belong to God. You are the noun of holy son. Holy daughter. That is your state. It is not an adjective. You are not described as holy. You yourself are holy son. Holy daughter. It’s not something you can get by being near someone else who is holy.

Point 5: Jesus in everything

By the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. When he forgave all your sins. When he wiped away all your past. He wiped it away forever. He transformed the state of something that shouldn’t be capable of transformation.

A noun can’t be transformed.

Once an iPad is made. You can’t go in the past and say no, I actually wanted to make an iPhone. So this iPad now identifies as an iPhone.

That’s impossible!

But God is outside time.

In the past, you WERE unclean. But God brought the past into that present moment you gave your life to Jesus so that he could take what was unclean. And in the moment you give your life to Jesus, He cleared your search history. He cleared your past.

So that which was once unclean, is now defined as a holy vessel.

2 Timothy 2:20–21 “Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.”

Your identity is holy and set apart.

Your identity is that you are useful to the master of the house.

Why not identify as what God identifies you as! Holy and useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.

Now we identify as children of God. What’s next?

Haggai 2:15–16 “Now then, consider from this day onward Before…”

Now then —> Transition

Let’s consider something before (something in the past, not the present)

“…stone was placed upon stone in the temple of the Lord, how did you fare?…”

So you started to once again, 16yrs later rebuild the temple. Before you began to rebuild the temple of God again what was life like?

“…When one came to a heap of twenty measures, there were but ten. When one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there were but twenty.”

Y’all getting wrecked. That’s how life was.

Haggai 2:18 “Consider from this day onward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Since the day that the foundation of the Lord’s temple was laid, consider:”

Now, let’s consider something starting from the day when you began rebuilding the temple of God, from the day you began rebuilding the presence of God in your life and moving forward.

Haggai 2:19 “Is the seed yet in the barn? Indeed, the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree have yielded nothing. But from this day on I will bless you.””

You just recently began rebuilding the temple of God. Today, y’all just a few weeks ago began rebuilding the presence of God.

And nothing has changed. You’ve “yielded nothing”

You still haven’t seen the blessings of God.

You had excitement when you first started, but you haven’t gotten that result you were hoping for yet.

The work has begun but the season hasn’t changed.

You have to work in the field for a full season before you see the new harvest.

And that might be really hard. You are putting in all the effort to rebuild the presence of God in your life AND fighting against the enemy.

But soon, the season will change. You can’t give up. You haven’t worked the field long enough!

Keep working the field. Keep building the presence. And eventually the fig tree, the pomegranate, and the olive tree will yield fruit.

Keep rebuilding the presence of God in your life and once you’ve stewarded what God told you to work at. And honestly, it might take longer than you expected because

God’s time and our time are different.

It’s not just “former and latter”

it is “beginning and delayed” or “the start of something to what feels like the delayed culmination”

But once you push through that season. You really worked to rebuild the presence of God, you’ll finally start to see fruit.

And God says “But from this day on I will bless you.”

I WILL.

I DO NOT FORGET MY PROMISES TO YOU.

I CALLED YOU.

I SET YOU APART.

AND I WILL BLESS YOU.

John 15:7