King James Version
Haggai 2
23 verses with commentary
The Glory of the New Temple
In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD by the prophet Haggai, saying, by: Heb. by the hand of
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD by the prophet Haggai</strong>—This precise dating (October 17, 520 BC) marks Haggai's second oracle, delivered exactly three weeks after the people resumed temple construction (Haggai 1:15). The timing is significant: the seventh month (תִּשְׁרִי/<em>Tishri</em>) was Israel's most sacred month, cont...
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II.
(1-9) *The Third Utterance.*—This utterance treats of the glory which, in a later time, is to attach itself to the sacred spot whereon the returned exiles are labouring. It was intended more especially as a message of consolation to those who remembered Solomon’s magnificent structure, and who now gazed sadly on the humble proportions of its successor.
(1) **In the one and twentieth day.**—Her...
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**8. when he was strong ... great horn was broken--**The empire was in full strength at Alexander's death by fever at Babylon, and seemed then least likely to fall. Yet it was then "broken." His natural brother, Philip Aridoeus, and his two sons, Alexander Ægus and Hercules, in fifteen months were murdered.
**four ... toward ... four winds--**Seleucus, in the east, obtained Syria, Babylonia, Med...
Read full commentary →Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying,
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<strong>Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people</strong>—God addresses the community through its leadership structure: civil authority (Zerubbabel), religious authority (Joshua), and the entire congregation. This comprehensive address emphasizes that God's message applies to leaders and la...
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(2) **The residue.**—See Haggai 1:12, Note.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**9. little horn--**not to be confounded with the little horn of the fourth kingdom in Da 7:8. The little horn in Da 7:8 comes as an eleventh horn after ten preceding horns. In Da 8:9 it is not an independent fifth horn, after the four previous ones, but it arises out of one of the four existing horns. This horn is explained (Da 8:23) to be "a king of fierce countenance," &c. Antiochus Epiphan...
Read full commentary →Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?
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<strong>Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?</strong>—God acknowledges the painful reality of comparison. Some older Israelites remembered Solomon's temple—destroyed 66 years earlier (586 BC)—and this new structure seemed pitiful by comparison. The rhetorical questions don't deny their assessm...
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(3) **Is it not** . . .—Better, *is not such a* (Temple) *as this like nothing in your eyes?*
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. great, even to ... host of heaven--**explained in Da 8:24, "the mighty and holy people," that is, the Jews (Da 7:21) and their priests (compare Is 24:21). The Levites' service is called "a warfare" (Nu 8:24, 25, Margin). Great civil and religious powers are symbolized by "stars" (Mt 24:29). See 1 Maccabees 1:25, &c.; 1 Maccabees 2:35, &c.; 1 Maccabees 5:2, 12, 13. Tregelles refers "s...
Read full commentary →Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:
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<strong>Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:</strong> After confronting the people's discouragement about the rebuilt temple's inferior appearance compared to Solomon's temple, God issues a threefold call to strength....
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**11. to the prince of the host--**that is, God Himself, the Lord of Sabaoth, the hosts in heaven and earth, stars, angels, and earthly ministers. So Da 8:25, "he shall stand up against the Prince of princes"; "against the God of gods" (Da 11:36; compare Da 7:8). He not only opposes God's ancient people, but also God Himself.
**daily sacrifice--**offered morning and evening (Ex 29:38, 39).
**t...
Read full commentary →According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.
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<strong>According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.</strong>—God anchors present encouragement in past covenant faithfulness. The phrase "the word that I covenanted" (אֶת־הַדָּבָר אֲשֶׁר־כָּרַתִּי/<em>et-hadavar asher-karati</em>) refers to the Mosaic covenant established at Sinai after the Exodus. God's covenant wasn't...
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(5) **According to the word.**—Better, *with the word.* The clause is connected with the closing words of Haggai 2:4. Jehovah is present with them, and so is His Promise made by solemn covenant in the days of old.
**So my spirit.**—Better, *and my spirit.* Besides such promises of God’s abiding favour as Exodus 29:45-46, they have among them the abiding presence of His Holy Spirit. Having these, l...
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**12. an host--**rather, "the host was given up to him," that is, the holy people were given into his hands. So in Da 8:10 "the host" is used; and again in Da 8:13, where also "give" is used as here for "giving up" for destruction (compare Da 11:6) [Maurer].
**against ... daily sacrifice--**rather (the host was given up for him to tread upon), "together with the daily sacrifice" (compare Da 8:13...
Read full commentary →For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;
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<strong>For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land</strong>—God shifts from immediate encouragement to eschatological promise. The phrase "yet once" (עוֹד אַחַת/<em>od achat</em>) indicates a decisive, climactic divine intervention still to come. "It is a little while" (מְעַט הִיא/<em>me'at hi</em>) e...
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(6) **Yet once, it is a little while.**—The construction is very difficult. The best rendering appears to be, *Yet one season more* (supplying *êth* before *achath*)*, it is but a little while, and, &c.* The meaning of these clauses is then that given by Keil—viz., “that the period between the present and the predicted great change of the world will be but one period—*i.e.,* one uniform epoch—and ...
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**13. that certain saint--**Daniel did not know the names of these two holy angels, but saw only that one was speaking to the other.
**How long shall be the vision concerning ... daily sacrifice--**How long shall the daily sacrifice be suspended?
**transgression of desolation--**literally, "making desolate," that is, Antiochus desolating profanation of the temple (Da 11:31; 12:11). Compare as ...
Read full commentary →And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.
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<strong>And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts.</strong>—God extends the shaking from creation (v.6) to geopolitics—"all nations" (כָּל־הַגּוֹיִם/<em>kol-hagoyim</em>) will be agitated. This comprehensive scope emphasizes that no earthly power, empire, or kingdom lies beyond God's sovereign intervention...
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(7) **And the desire of all nations shall come**.—Better, *and the precious things of all the nations shall come*—*scil.,* shall be brought as offerings. (Comp. Zephaniah 3:10; Zechariah 14:16.) So apparently the LXX., ἥξει τὰ ἐκλεκτὰ πάντων τῶν ἐθνῶν*.* The rendering of the Authorised Version, which is based on Jerome’s *et venit desideratus cunctis gentibus,* is grammatically impossible with the...
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**14. unto me--**The answer is to Daniel, not to the inquirer, for the latter had asked in Daniel's name; as vice versa the saint or angel (Job 15:15; Psa 89:6, 7) speaks of the vision granted to Daniel, as if it had been granted to himself. For holy men are in Scripture represented as having attendant angels, with whom they are in a way identified in interests. If the conversation had been limite...
Read full commentary →The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.
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<strong>The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.</strong>—This verse addresses the underlying anxiety about resources. The people worried they couldn't afford to build a temple matching Solomon's glory because they lacked wealth. God's response is radical: He owns all wealth—every ounce of silver (הַכֶּסֶף/<em>hakesef</em>) and gold (הַזָּהָב/<em>hazahav</em>) in existenc...
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(8) **Silver . . . gold.**—It is unnatural to suppose that this is said in the sense of Ps. 1:10, as implying “I have no need of silver or gold.” Clearly what is meant is that the treasures of earth are at God’s disposal, and that He will incite the Gentiles to offer their silver and gold in His Temple. A rigid application of this prediction is impossible. (See Introduction, § 2.)
The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.
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<strong>The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the LORD of hosts: and in this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of hosts.</strong> God makes an astonishing promise: despite its inferior appearance, the second temple's glory will surpass Solomon's magnificent temple. The Hebrew "latter house" (הַבַּיִת הָאַחֲרוֹן/<em>habayit ha'acharon</em>) and "former" (הָ...
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(9) **The glory** . . .—Better, *The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former.* The new sanctuary is regarded as identical with that reared by Solomon. It shall have a claim to celebrity unrivalled even in the palmiest days of olden time, when Jehovah shall turn the attention of all nations to His sacred place, as predicted in Haggai 2:6-7.
Between this third utterance and the f...
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**16. Gabriel--**meaning, "the strength of God."
Blessings for a Defiled People
In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,
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<strong>In the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet</strong>—This date (December 18, 520 BC) marks Haggai's third and fourth messages, delivered on the same day. Three months had passed since work resumed (1:15, September 21), and two months since his second message about the temple's glory (2:1, October 17). The p...
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(10-19) *The Fourth Utterance.—*The recent season of scarcity is again accounted for and immediate blessings are announced. This address dates about two months later than its predecessor—viz., from the ninth month—*scil.,* Chisleu (November—December), when the early rain would be looked for to water the newly-sown crops. At such a time, especially after the scarcity of the preceding season, there ...
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**17. the time of the end--**so Da 8:19; Da 11:35, 36, 40. The event being to take place at "the time of the end" makes it likely that the Antichrist ultimately referred to (besides the immediate reference to Antiochus) in this chapter, and the one in Da 7:8, are one and the same. The objection that the one in the seventh chapter springs out of the ten divisions of the Roman earth, the fourth king...
Read full commentary →Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying,
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<strong>Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ask now the priests concerning the law</strong> (כֹּה־אָמַר יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת שְׁאַל־נָא אֶת־הַכֹּהֲנִים תּוֹרָה/<em>koh-amar YHWH Tzeva'ot she'al-na et-hakohanim torah</em>)—God commands Haggai to <strong>ask</strong> (שָׁאַל/<em>sha'al</em>) the <strong>priests</strong> (כֹּהֲנִים/<em>kohanim</em>) concerning <strong>the law</strong> (תּוֹרָה/<em>torah</em>). ...
Read full commentary →If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No.
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<strong>If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy?</strong> (הֵן יִשָּׂא־אִישׁ בְּשַׂר־קֹדֶשׁ בִּכְנַף בִּגְדוֹ וְנָגַע בִּכְנָפוֹ אֶל־הַלֶּחֶם וְאֶל־הַנָּזִיד וְאֶל־הַיַּיִן וְאֶל־שֶׁמֶן וְאֶל־כָּל־מַאֲכָל הֲיִהְיֶה קֹּדֶשׁ/<em>hen yissa-ish besar-kodesh biknaf bigdo venaga bikhnafo el-halechem...
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(12) **Holy flesh.**—The flesh of the sacrifice hallowed the person who touched it (Leviticus 6:27), but this sanctification was not conveyed to anything he might afterwards touch. On the other hand (Haggai 2:13), he who was defiled by such a pollution as contact with a dead body, *conveyed defilement* even to the tabernacle. (See Numbers 19:13 : “Whosoever toucheth the dead body of any man that i...
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**19. the last end of the indignation--**God's displeasure against the Jews for their sins. For their comfort they are told, the calamities about to come are not to be for ever. The "time" is limited (Da 9:27; 11:27, 35, 36; 12:7; Ha 2:3).
Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.
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<strong>Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean?</strong> (וַיֹּאמֶר חַגַּי אִם־יִגַּע טְמֵא־נֶפֶשׁ בְּכָל־אֵלֶּה הֲיִטְמָא/<em>vayomer Chaggai im-yiga teme-nefesh bekhol-eleh hayitma</em>)—The second scenario: someone ceremonially unclean through contact with a corpse (טְמֵא־נֶפֶשׁ/<em>teme-nefesh</em>, literally "unclean of soul/person," th...
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(13) **Unclean.**—The defilement incurred by contact with a dead body was one of the deepest. (See Numbers 19:11-16.) On the force of the term *tmê nephesh,* compare the passages Leviticus 21:11; Leviticus 22:4; Numbers 6:6.
Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean</strong> (וַיַּעַן חַגַּי וַיֹּאמַר כֵּן הָעָם־הַזֶּה וְכֵן הַגּוֹי־הַזֶּה לְפָנַי נְאֻם־יְהוָה וְכֵן כָּל־מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵיהֶם וַאֲשֶׁר יַקְרִיבוּ שָׁם טָמֵא הוּא/<em>vaya'an Chaggai vayomer ken ha'am-hazeh vekhen ...
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(14) **That which they offer there**—*i.e.,* probably, “on yon altar,” but the expression is singular. In Ezra 3:3 we read, “And they set the altar upon his bases. . . . and they offered burnt offerings thereon unto the Lord, even burnt offerings morning and evening.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**21. the first king--**Philip was king of Macedon before Alexander, but the latter was the first who, as a generalissimo of Greece, subdued the Persian empire.
And now, I pray you, consider from this day and upward, from before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the LORD:
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<strong>And now, I pray you, consider from this day and upward, from before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the LORD</strong> (וְעַתָּה שִׂימוּ־נָא לְבַבְכֶם מִן־הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה וָמָעְלָה מִטֶּרֶם שׂוּם־אֶבֶן אֶל־אֶבֶן בְּהֵיכַל יְהוָה/<em>ve'attah simu-na levavkhem min-hayom hazeh vama'lah miterem sum-even el-even beheikhal YHWH</em>)—God calls for reflection: <strong>consider</stro...
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(15) **From this day and upward**—*i.e.,* backward.
**Before a stone was laid** . . .—Alluding to the recent resumption of building, not to the laying of the foundations fifteen years previously.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**22. not in his power--**not with the power which Alexander possessed [Maurer]. An empire united, as under Alexander, is more powerful than one divided, as under the four Diadochi.
Since those days were, when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty.
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<strong>Since those days were, when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came to the pressfat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty</strong> (מִהְיוֹתָם בָּא אֶל־עֲרֵמַת עֶשְׂרִים וְהָיְתָה עֲשָׂרָה בָּא אֶל־הַיֶּקֶב לַחְשֹׂף חֲמִשִּׁים פּוּרָה וְהָיְתָה עֶשְׂרִים/<em>mihyotam ba el-'aremat esrim vehayetah asarah ba el-hayekev lachsof...
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(16) **Since those days were.**—Better, *from the time when things were* so, or, *since such things were*—*i.e.,* throughout that whole period of neglect up to the date when they resumed the work of restoration. Throughout that period the harvests had grievously disappointed expectation. A heap of sheaves which ought to have contained “twenty “—the measure is not specified—yielded only “ten;” and ...
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**23. transgressors are come to the full--**This does not hold good of the times of Antiochus, but of the closing times of the Christian era. Compare Lu 18:8, and 2Ti 3:1-9, as to the wickedness of the world in general just before Christ's second coming. Israel's guilt, too, shall then be at the full, when they who rejected Christ shall receive Antichrist; fulfilling Jesus words, "I am come in My ...
Read full commentary →I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands; yet ye turned not to me, saith the LORD.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>I smote you with blasting and with mildew and with hail in all the labours of your hands; yet ye turned not to me, saith the LORD</strong> (הִכֵּיתִי אֶתְכֶם בַּשִּׁדָּפוֹן וּבַיֵּרָקוֹן וּבַבָּרָד אֵת כָּל־מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵיכֶם וְאֵין־אֶתְכֶם אֵלַי נְאֻם־יְהוָה/<em>hikeiti etkhem bashidafon uvayerakon uvabarad et kol-ma'aseh yedeikhem ve'ein-etkhem elai ne'um-YHWH</em>)—God explicitly claims ...
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(17) **I smote you with blasting and with mildew** . . .—This is a reminiscence of Amos 4:9, “I have smitten you with blasting and mildew . . . yet have not ye returned unto me, saith the Lord.” “Blasting” and “mildew” are two diseases on corn enumerated by Moses (Deuteronomy 28:22) among the curses on disobedience. The “hail” is added by Haggai, perhaps as particularly destructive to the vines. O...
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**24. not by his own power--**which in the beginning was "little" (Da 8:9; 7:8); but by gaining over others through craft, the once little horn became "mighty" (compare Da 8:25; 11:23). To be fully realized by Antichrist. He shall act by the power of Satan, who shall then be permitted to work through him in unrestricted license, such as he has not now (Re 13:2); hence the ten kingdoms shall give t...
Read full commentary →Consider now from this day and upward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the LORD'S temple was laid, consider it.
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<strong>Consider now from this day and upward, from the four and twentieth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the LORD'S temple was laid, consider it</strong> (שִׂימוּ־נָא לְבַבְכֶם מִן־הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה וָמָעְלָה מִיּוֹם עֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה לַתְּשִׁעִי לְמִן־הַיּוֹם אֲשֶׁר יֻסַּד הֵיכַל־יְהוָה שִׂימוּ לְבַבְכֶם/<em>simu-na levavkhem min-hayom hazeh vama'lah miyom esr...
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(18) **Even from the day.**—Better, *even to the day.* The rendering of the Authorised Version makes the passage quite unintelligible, for in no sense can the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month coincide with the day “that the foundation of the Lord’s Temple was laid.” The Temple had been founded fifteen years before, in the second month of the second year of Cyrus (Ezra 3:10). The work of buildi...
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**25. by peace--**by pretending "peace" and friendship; in the midst of security [Gesenius], suddenly striking his blow (compare Note, see on Jr 15:8). "A spoiler at noon-day."
**also ... against the Prince of princes--**not merely against the Jews (Da 8:11; 11:36).
**broken without hand--**by God's special visitation. The stone "cut out of the mountain without hands," that is, Christ is to sm...
Read full commentary →Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Is the seed yet in the barn? yea, as yet the vine, and the fig tree, and the pomegranate, and the olive tree, hath not brought forth: from this day will I bless you</strong> (הַעוֹד הַזֶּרַע בַּמְּגוּרָה וְעַד־הַגֶּפֶן וְהַתְּאֵנָה וְהָרִמּוֹן וְעֵץ הַזַּיִת לֹא נָשָׂא מִן־הַיּוֹם הַזֶּה אֲבָרֵךְ/<em>ha'od hazera bamegurah ve'ad-hagefen vehate'enah veharimon ve'etz hazayit lo nasa min-hayo...
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(19) **Is the seed yet in the barn**?—*i.e.,* There is no grain as yet in the barn, the harvest having been blighted in the last season. The term rendered in the Authorised Version “seed” does not imply grain for sowing, but grain for provision. The fruit harvest was as defective as that of cereals, having been cut off by the hail. (See Haggai 2:17.) The prospect was thus one of deepest gloom. But...
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**26. shut ... up ... vision--**implying the vision was not to be understood for the present. In Re 22:10 it is said, "Seal not the vision, for the time is at hand." What in Daniel's time was hidden was more fully explained in Revelation, and as the time draws nearer, it will be clearer still.
**it shall be for many days--**It refers to remote times (Eze 12:27).
Zerubbabel the Lord's Signet Ring
And again the word of the LORD came unto Haggai in the four and twentieth day of the month, saying,
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And again the word of the LORD came unto Haggai in the four and twentieth day of the month</strong> (וַיְהִי דְבַר־יְהוָה שֵׁנִית אֶל־חַגַּי בְּעֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה לַחֹדֶשׁ/<em>vayehi debar-YHWH shenit el-Chaggai be'esrim ve'arba'ah lachodesh</em>)—God's word came <strong>again</strong> (שֵׁנִית/<em>shenit</em>, a second time) on the same day (December 18, 520 BC). Haggai received two m...
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(20-23) ***The Fifth Utterance.***—The promise of Haggai 2:6-9 is enlarged. The heathen powers shall be consumed one of another, but the line of Zerubbabel shall stand secure, and be a witness to Jehovah’s faithfulness. Here, as in Haggai 2:6-9, the only satisfactory interpretation is that Haggai was charged with a prediction—purposely vague and indistinct in character—of the extension of God’s ki...
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**27. I ... was sick--**through grief at the calamities coming on my people and the Church of God (compare Psa 102:14).
**afterward I ... did the king's business--**He who holds nearest communion with heaven can best discharge the duties of common life.
**none understood it--**He had heard of kings, but knew not their names; He foresaw the events, but not the time when they were to take place;...
Read full commentary →Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth;
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth</strong> (אֱמֹר אֶל־זְרֻבָּבֶל פַּחַת־יְהוּדָה לֵאמֹר אֲנִי מַרְעִישׁ אֶת־הַשָּׁמַיִם וְאֶת־הָאָרֶץ/<em>emor el-Zerubbavel pachat-Yehudah lemor ani mar'ish et-hashamayim ve'et-ha'aretz</em>)—God addresses Zerubbabel personally, the Davidic heir serving as Persian-appointed governor. The promise echoes 2:...
Read full commentary →And I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the heathen; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother.
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<strong>And I will overthrow the throne of kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the heathen; and I will overthrow the chariots, and those that ride in them; and the horses and their riders shall come down, every one by the sword of his brother</strong> (וְהָפַכְתִּי כִּסֵּא מַמְלָכוֹת וְהִשְׁמַדְתִּי חֹזֶק מַמְלְכוֹת הַגּוֹיִם וְהָפַכְתִּי מֶרְכָּבָה וְרֹכְבֶיהָ וְיָרְדוּ ס...
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CHAPTER 9 Da 9:1-27. Daniel's Confession and Prayer for Jerusalem: Gabriel Comforts Him by the Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks.
The world powers here recede from view; Israel, and the salvation by Messiah promised to it, are the subject of revelation. Israel had naturally expected salvation at the end of the captivity. Daniel is therefore told, that, after the seventy years of the captivity, seven...
Read full commentary →In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts</strong> (בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא נְאֻם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת אֶקָּחֲךָ זְרֻבָּבֶל בֶּן־שְׁאַלְתִּיאֵל עַבְדִּי נְאֻם־יְהוָה וְשַׂמְתִּיךָ כַּחוֹתָם כִּי־בְךָ בָחַרְתִּי נְאֻם יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת/<em>bayom hahu...
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(23) **Signet**.—On the figure of the signet-ring applied to one on whom confidence and affection are bestowed, see Song of Solomon 8:6; Jeremiah 22:24.
**Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. understood by books--**rather, "letters," that is, Jeremiah's letter (Jr 29:10) to the captives in Babylon; also Jr 25:11, 12; compare 2Ch 36:21; Jr 30:18; 31:38. God's promises are the ground on which we should, like Daniel, rest sure hope; not so as to make our prayers needless, but rather to encourage them.