Old/New Testament
Call to Rebuild the Temple
1 On the first day of the sixth month of the second year of the reign of[a] King Darius, this message from the Lord came by[b] Haggai[c] the prophet to Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, and to Jehozadak’s son Joshua, the high priest:
2 “This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘These people keep saying, “No, the right[d] time for rebuilding the Lord’s Temple has not yet come.”’”
3 Then this message from the Lord came by[e] Haggai the prophet: 4 “Is it the right[f] time for all of you to live in your own paneled houses while this house remains in ruins?”
Consequences of Not Rebuilding
5 “Now this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, says: ‘Carefully consider your ways:
6 You have sowed much
but have reaped little.
You have eaten
but don’t have enough to become satisfied.
You have drunk
but don’t have enough to become intoxicated.
You have clothed yourself
but don’t have enough to keep warm.
And the hired laborer deposits his salary
in a bag full of holes!’”
Command to Rebuild the Temple
7 “This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Carefully consider your ways: 8 Go up into the mountains, bring timber, and reconstruct my house. Then I will be pleased with it and I will be honored,’ says the Lord. 9 ‘You turned away in pursuit of abundance, but look at how little you found![g] What you did manage to bring home, I blew away! And why?’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. ‘It’s because of my house! It lies in ruins while each of you runs off to his own house! 10 That is why the heavens keep withholding dew from you, and the earth withholds her fruit. 11 I sent a drought on the land, on the mountains, on your grain, on your new wines, on your oil—on everything the ground produces—on men, on livestock, and on everything you do![h]’”
The People Obey
12 Then Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, Jehozadak’s son Joshua the high priest, and all the rest[i] of the people obeyed the Lord their God and the words of Haggai the prophet, because the Lord their God had sent him. And the people feared the Lord. 13 Haggai, the messenger of the Lord, spoke to the people with a special commission[j] from the Lord: “‘I am with you,’ declares the Lord.”
14 Then the Lord revitalized the spirit of Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, the spirit of Jehozadak’s son Joshua the high priest, and the spirit of all the rest[k] of the people, so they came and began to work on the house of their God, the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. 15 This took place on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month of the second year of the reign of[l] King Darius.
The Future Glory of the Lord’s House
2 On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, this message from the Lord came by[m] Haggai the prophet: 2 “Speak to Shealtiel’s son Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, to Jehozadak’s son Joshua, the high priest, and to the rest[n] of the people, asking, 3 ‘Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? And what does it look like now? From what you can see, it seems like nothing, doesn’t it? 4 Now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘and be strong, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and be strong, all you people of the land,’ declares the Lord. ‘Go to work, because I am with you,’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. 5 ‘My Spirit continues to dwell among you, according to[o] the covenant I established when you came out from Egypt. Don’t be afraid!’
6 “For this is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Once more, in a little while, I will make the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the dry land to shake. 7 I will shake all nations, and the One desired by all nations will come. Then I will fill this house with glory,’ says the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.
8 “The silver belongs to me, as does the gold,”[p] declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. 9 “The glory of this present house will be greater than was the former,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies. “And in this place I will grant peace,” declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.”
God’s Promise to His Sinful People
10 On the twenty-fourth day[q] of the ninth month[r] of the second year of the reign of[s] King Darius, this message from the Lord came to Haggai the prophet: 11 “This is what the Lord of the Heavenly Armies says: ‘Ask the priests about what the Law says: 12 “If a man carries consecrated meat in the folds of his garment, and if his garment touches bread, stew, wine, oil, or any other edible thing,[t] will these things become consecrated?”’”[u]
The priests answered, “No.”
13 So Haggai responded, “If someone who is unclean[v] because of contact with a dead body were to touch any of these things, would they become unclean?”[w]
The priests responded, “They would be unclean.”[x]
14 Then Haggai answered, “‘That’s how I look at this people and this nation,’ declares the Lord. ‘And that’s how it is with everything they undertake[y] and with what they offer there—it is unclean.[z] 15 Pay attention[aa] from now on to how things used to be before one stone had been laid upon another in the Temple of the Lord. 16 When someone came to a pile of grain to get 20 measures,[ab] there were only ten. Or when someone approached the wine press to siphon out 50 measures, there were only 20. 17 I punished you and everything that you undertook[ac]—with scorching wind, with mildew, and with hail, and you still did not return[ad] to me,’ declares the Lord. 18 ‘Pay attention from now on, from this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month,[ae] when the foundation of the Lord’s Temple was laid. Pay attention! 19 Is there seed left in the granary? Up until now, neither the vine, the fig tree, the pomegranate, nor the olive tree has borne fruit, but from this very day I will bless you.’”[af]
God’s Promise to Zerubbabel
20 This message from the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month: 21 “Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah. Tell him, ‘I’m going to shake the heavens and the earth. 22 I will overthrow royal thrones. I will annihilate the strength of national governments. I will overthrow chariots along with those who drive them. Both[ag] horses and their riders will fall, each one by means of his comrade’s weapon.[ah] 23 On that day,’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies, ‘I will take you, my servant Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel,’ declares the Lord, ‘and I will set you in place like a signet ring. For I have chosen you,’ declares the Lord of the Heavenly Armies.”
The Vision of Babylon the Great
17 Then one of the seven angels who held the seven bowls came and told me, “Come, I will show you how the notorious prostitute who sits on many waters will be judged. 2 The kings of the earth committed sexual immorality with her, and those living on earth became drunk with the wine of her immorality.”
3 Then the angel[a] carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was controlled by blasphemy.[b] It had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman wore purple and scarlet clothes and was adorned with gold, gems, and pearls. In her hand she was holding a gold cup filled with detestable things and the impurities of her immorality. 5 On her forehead was written a secret name:
Babylon the Great,
the Mother of Prostitutes
and Detestable Things of the Earth
6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of the saints and the blood of the witnesses to Jesus. I was very surprised when I saw her.
7 “Why are you surprised?” The angel asked me. “I will tell you the secret of the woman and the beast with the seven heads and the ten horns that carries her. 8 The beast that you saw existed once, but is no longer, and is going to crawl out of the bottomless pit[c] and then proceed to its destruction. Those living on earth, whose names were not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world, will be surprised when they see the beast because it was, is no longer, and will come again. 9 This calls for a mind that has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman is sitting. They are also seven kings. 10 Five of them have fallen, one is living, and the other has not yet come. When he comes, he must remain in power[d] for a little while. 11 The beast that was and is no longer is the eighth king,[e] but it belongs with the seven kings[f] and goes to its destruction. 12 The ten horns that you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom. They will receive authority to rule[g] as kings with the beast for one hour. 13 They have one purpose: to give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will wage war against the lamb, but the lamb will conquer them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings. Those who are called, chosen, and faithful are with him.”
15 The angel[h] also told me, “The bodies of water you saw, on which the prostitute is sitting, are people, multitudes, nations, and languages. 16 The ten horns and the beast you saw will hate the prostitute. They will leave her abandoned and naked. They will eat her flesh and burn her up with fire, 17 for God has placed within them a desire to carry out his purpose by uniting to give their kingdom to the beast until God’s words are fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.”
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