Haggai 1:12-15--The People Obey the LORD

Haggai 1:12-15
English Standard Version

The People Obey the LORD
12 Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him. And the people feared the LORD. 13 Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the LORD's message, “I am with you, declares the LORD.” 14 And the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts, their God, 15 on the twenty-fourth day of the month, in the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.

---

Last time, Haggai called for the civil and spiritual leaders of the people to call the people together and tell them it was time for them to start working on the house of God (the Temple) and the blessings of the Covenant would not return to them until they completed this task.  We see Zerubbabel (the governor) and Joshua (the high priest) along with all the remnant of the people that returned to Jerusalem obeying the voice of the LORD spoken through Haggai the prophet.  Notice that the people feared the LORD and they obeyed Him.  These ideas are closely connected in the Bible.  Those who have no fear of the LORD are rebellious and wicked, but those who fear the LORD obey Him immediately and completely.

Then the LORD begins to speak covenant blessings over His people once again.  He starts by saying "I am with you," which includes His covenant name I AM.  Because He is the same yesterday, today and forever, He is now and always will be with them.  He has never deserted them, even during their time of Exile.  Then the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the governor of Judah and the spirit of Joshua the high priest, and and all of the remnant that were gathered together in that place.  His Spirit came upon them to empower and equip them for the good work that He had prepared for them, commanded them to do, and that they agreed to do because He commanded it (even though they felt inadequate, and they were before the pouring out of the Spirit to empower and equip them).  In this way the LORD will prove to all those who are watching that this is no natural feat, but a supernatural outpouring of His Spirit on His people.

They are less than a week away from the beginning of the seventh month--the holiest of months when there is the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Booths, but they will not be able to celebrate any of these feasts in a completed Temple this year because of their delayed obedience to the LORD.  What a missed opportunity!  It would not be completed until the Spring (the date is set as March 12th) of the sixth year of King Darius's reign, just before Passover of that year.  We are in the sixth month of the second year of King Darius's reign now, so the whole project will take about three-and-one-half years.