Study Desk

class="poetry"> What's God going to say to my questions? I'm braced for the worst. I'll climb to the lookout tower and scan the horizon. I'll wait to see what God says, how he'll answer my complaint. And then God answered: "Write this. Write what you see. Write it out in big block letters so that it can be read on the run. This vision-message is a witness pointing to what's coming. It aches for the coming—it can hardly wait! And it doesn't lie. If it seems slow in coming, wait. It's on its way. It will come right on time. "Look at that man, bloated by self-importance— full of himself but soul-empty. But the person in right standing before God through loyal and steady believing is fully alive, really alive. "Note well: Money deceives. The arrogant rich don't last. They are more hungry for wealth than the grave is for cadavers. Like death, they always want more, but the ‘more' they get is dead bodies. They are cemeteries filled with dead nations, graveyards filled with corpses. Don't give people like this a second thought. Soon the whole world will be taunting them: "‘Who do you think you are— getting rich by stealing and extortion? How long do you think you can get away with this?' Indeed, how long before your victims wake up, stand up and make you the victim? You've plundered nation after nation. Now you'll get a taste of your own medicine. All the survivors are out to plunder you, a payback for all your murders and massacres.

"I've heard the crude taunts of Moab, the mockeries flung by Ammon, The cruel talk they've used to put down my people, their self-important strutting along Israel's borders. Therefore, as sure as I am the living God," says God -of-the-Angel-Armies, Israel's personal God, "Moab will become a ruin like Sodom, Ammon a ghost town like Gomorrah, One a field of rocks, the other a sterile salt flat, a moonscape forever. What's left of my people will finish them off, will pick them clean and take over. This is what they get for their bloated pride, their taunts and mockeries of the people of God -of-the-Angel-Armies. God will be seen as truly terrible—a Holy Terror. All earth-made gods will shrivel up and blow away; And everyone, wherever they are, far or near, will fall to the ground and worship him. Also you Ethiopians, you, too, will die—I'll see to it."

"The accumulated sorrows of your exile will dissipate. I, your God, will get rid of them for you. You've carried those burdens long enough. At the same time, I'll get rid of all those who've made your life miserable. I'll heal the maimed; I'll bring home the homeless. In the very countries where they were hated they will be venerated. On Judgment Day I'll bring you back home—a great family gathering! You'll be famous and honored all over the world. You'll see it with your own eyes— all those painful partings turned into reunions!" God 's Promise.

On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the Word of God came through the prophet Haggai: "Tell Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak and all the people: ‘Is there anyone here who saw the Temple the way it used to be, all glorious? And what do you see now? Not much, right?

This Temple Will End Up Better Than It Started Out On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the Word of God came through the prophet Haggai: "Tell Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak and all the people: ‘Is there anyone here who saw the Temple the way it used to be, all glorious? And what do you see now? Not much, right? "‘So get to work, Zerubbabel!'— God is speaking. "‘Get to work, Joshua son of Jehozadak—high priest!' "‘Get to work, all you people!'— God is speaking. "‘Yes, get to work! For I am with you.' The God -of-the-Angel-Armies is speaking! ‘Put into action the word I covenanted with you when you left Egypt. I'm living and breathing among you right now. Don't be timid. Don't hold back.' "This is what God -of-the-Angel-Armies said: ‘Before you know it, I will shake up sky and earth, ocean and fields. And I'll shake down all the godless nations. They'll bring bushels of wealth and I will fill this Temple with splendor.' God -of-the-Angel-Armies says so. ‘I own the silver, I own the gold.' Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies. "‘This Temple is going to end up far better than it started out, a glorious beginning but an even more glorious finish: a place in which I will hand out wholeness and holiness.' Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies." On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month (again, this was in the second year of Darius), God 's Message came to Haggai: " God -of-the-Angel-Armies speaks: Consult the priests for a ruling. If someone carries a piece of sacred meat in his pocket, meat that is set apart for sacrifice on the altar, and the pocket touches a loaf of bread, a dish of stew, a bottle of wine or oil, or any other food, will these foods be made holy by such contact?" The priests said, "No." Then Haggai said, "How about someone who is contaminated by touching a corpse—if that person touches one of these foods, will it be contaminated?" The priests said, "Yes, it will be contaminated." Then Haggai said, "‘So, this people is contaminated. Their nation is contaminated. Everything they do is contaminated. Whatever they do for me is contaminated.' God says so. "‘Think back. Before you set out to lay the first foundation stones for the rebuilding of my Temple, how did it go with you? Isn't it true that your foot-dragging, halfhearted efforts at rebuilding the Temple of God were reflected in a sluggish, halfway return on your crops—half the grain you were used to getting, half the wine? I hit you with drought and blight and hail. Everything you were doing got hit. But it didn't seem to faze you. You continued to ignore me.' God 's Decree. "‘Now think ahead from this same date—this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Think ahead from when the Temple rebuilding was launched. Has anything in your fields—vine, fig tree, pomegranate, olive tree—failed to flourish? From now on you can count on a blessing.'" God 's Message came a second time to Haggai on that most memorable day, the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month: "Speak to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah: "‘I am about to shake up everything, to turn everything upside down and start over from top to bottom—overthrow governments, destroy foreign powers, dismantle the world of weapons and armaments, throw armies into confusion, so that they end up killing one another. And on that day'"—this is God 's Message—"‘I will take you, O Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, as my personal servant and I will set you as a signet ring, the sign of my sovereign presence and authority. I've looked over the field and chosen you for this work.'" The Message of God -of-the-Angel-Armies.

This Temple Will End Up Better Than It Started Out On the twenty-first day of the seventh month, the Word of God came through the prophet Haggai: "Tell Governor Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and High Priest Joshua son of Jehozadak and all the people: ‘Is there anyone here who saw the Temple the way it used to be, all glorious? And what do you see now? Not much, right? "‘So get to work, Zerubbabel!'— God is speaking. "‘Get to work, Joshua son of Jehozadak—high priest!' "‘Get to work, all you people!'— God is speaking. "‘Yes, get to work! For I am with you.' The God -of-the-Angel-Armies is speaking! ‘Put into action the word I covenanted with you when you left Egypt. I'm living and breathing among you right now. Don't be timid. Don't hold back.' "This is what God -of-the-Angel-Armies said: ‘Before you know it, I will shake up sky and earth, ocean and fields. And I'll shake down all the godless nations. They'll bring bushels of wealth and I will fill this Temple with splendor.' God -of-the-Angel-Armies says so. ‘I own the silver, I own the gold.' Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies. "‘This Temple is going to end up far better than it started out, a glorious beginning but an even more glorious finish: a place in which I will hand out wholeness and holiness.' Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies." On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month (again, this was in the second year of Darius), God 's Message came to Haggai: " God -of-the-Angel-Armies speaks: Consult the priests for a ruling. If someone carries a piece of sacred meat in his pocket, meat that is set apart for sacrifice on the altar, and the pocket touches a loaf of bread, a dish of stew, a bottle of wine or oil, or any other food, will these foods be made holy by such contact?" The priests said, "No." Then Haggai said, "How about someone who is contaminated by touching a corpse—if that person touches one of these foods, will it be contaminated?" The priests said, "Yes, it will be contaminated." Then Haggai said, "‘So, this people is contaminated. Their nation is contaminated. Everything they do is contaminated. Whatever they do for me is contaminated.' God says so. "‘Think back. Before you set out to lay the first foundation stones for the rebuilding of my Temple, how did it go with you? Isn't it true that your foot-dragging, halfhearted efforts at rebuilding the Temple of God were reflected in a sluggish, halfway return on your crops—half the grain you were used to getting, half the wine? I hit you with drought and blight and hail. Everything you were doing got hit. But it didn't seem to faze you. You continued to ignore me.' God 's Decree. "‘Now think ahead from this same date—this twenty-fourth day of the ninth month. Think ahead from when the Temple rebuilding was launched. Has anything in your fields—vine, fig tree, pomegranate, olive tree—failed to flourish? From now on you can count on a blessing.'" God 's Message came a second time to Haggai on that most memorable day, the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month: "Speak to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judah: "‘I am about to shake up everything, to turn everything upside down and start over from top to bottom—overthrow governments, destroy foreign powers, dismantle the world of weapons and armaments, throw armies into confusion, so that they end up killing one another. And on that day'"—this is God 's Message—"‘I will take you, O Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, as my personal servant and I will set you as a signet ring, the sign of my sovereign presence and authority. I've looked over the field and chosen you for this work.'" The Message of God -of-the-Angel-Armies.

"‘I've come back to Jerusalem, but with compassion this time.' This is God speaking. ‘I'll see to it that my Temple is rebuilt.' A Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies! ‘The rebuilding operation is already staked out.' Say it again—a Decree of God -of-the-Angel-Armies: ‘My cities will prosper again, God will comfort Zion again, Jerusalem will be back in my favor again.'"

I looked up and was surprised to see a man holding a tape measure in his hand. I said, "What are you up to?" "I'm on my way," he said, "to survey Jerusalem, to measure its width and length." Just then the Messenger-Angel on his way out met another angel coming in and said, "Run! Tell the Surveyor, ‘Jerusalem will burst its walls— bursting with people, bursting with animals. And I'll be right there with her'— God 's Decree—‘a wall of fire around unwalled Jerusalem and a radiant presence within.'"

He said, "What do you see?" I answered, "I see a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top. Seven lamps, each with seven spouts, are set on the bowl. And there are two olive trees, one on either side of the bowl."

After that, the Word of God came to me: "Zerubbabel started rebuilding this Temple and he will complete it. That will be your confirmation that God -of-the-Angel-Armies sent me to you. Does anyone dare despise this day of small beginnings? They'll change their tune when they see Zerubbabel setting the last stone in place!" Going back to the vision, the Messenger-Angel said, "The seven lamps are the eyes of God probing the dark corners of the world like searchlights."

The Messenger-Angel said to me, "What do you see now?" I said, "I see a book flying, a huge book—thirty feet long and fifteen wide!"

The Messenger-Angel appeared and said, "Look up. Tell me what you see."

"But things have changed. I'm taking the side of my core of surviving people: Sowing and harvesting will resume, Vines will grow grapes, Gardens will flourish, Dew and rain will make everything green. "My core survivors will get everything they need—and more. You've gotten a reputation as a bad-news people, you people of Judah and Israel, but I'm coming to save you. From now on, you're the good-news people. Don't be afraid. Keep a firm grip on what I'm doing." A Message from God -of-the-Angel-Armies: "In the same way that I decided to punish you when your ancestors made me angry, and didn't pull my punches, at this time I've decided to bless Jerusalem and the country of Judah. Don't be afraid. And now here's what I want you to do: Tell the truth, the whole truth, when you speak. Do the right thing by one another, both personally and in your courts. Don't cook up plans to take unfair advantage of others. Don't do or say what isn't so. I hate all that stuff. Keep your lives simple and honest." Decree of God . Again I received a Message from God -of-the-Angel-Armies: "The days of mourning set for the fourth, fifth, seventh, and tenth months will be turned into days of feasting for Judah—celebration and holiday. Embrace truth! Love peace!" A Message from God -of-the-Angel-Armies: "People and their leaders will come from all over to see what's going on. The leaders will confer with one another: ‘Shouldn't we try to get in on this? Get in on God 's blessings? Pray to God -of-the-Angel-Armies? What's keeping us? Let's go!' "Lots of people, powerful nations—they'll come to Jerusalem looking for what they can get from God -of-the-Angel-Armies, looking to get a blessing from God ." A Message from God -of-the-Angel-Armies: "At that time, ten men speaking a variety of languages will grab the sleeve of one Jew, hold tight, and say, ‘Let us go with you. We've heard that God is with you.'"

A Message from God -of-the-Angel-Armies: "People and their leaders will come from all over to see what's going on. The leaders will confer with one another: ‘Shouldn't we try to get in on this? Get in on God 's blessings? Pray to God -of-the-Angel-Armies? What's keeping us? Let's go!'

War Bulletin: God 's Message challenges the country of Hadrach. It will settle on Damascus. The whole world has its eyes on God . Israel isn't the only one. That includes Hamath at the border, and Tyre and Sidon, clever as they think they are. Tyre has put together quite a kingdom for herself; she has stacked up silver like cordwood, piled gold high as haystacks. But God will certainly bankrupt her; he will dump all that wealth into the ocean and burn up what's left in a big fire. Ashkelon will see it and panic, Gaza will wring its hands, Ekron will face a dead end. Gaza's king will die. Ashkelon will be emptied out, And a villain will take over in Ashdod. "I'll take proud Philistia down a peg: I'll make him spit out his bloody booty and abandon his vile ways." What's left will be all God's—a core of survivors, a family brought together in Judah— But enemies like Ekron will go the way of the Jebusites, into the dustbin of history. "I will set up camp in my home country and defend it against invaders. Nobody is going to hurt my people ever again. I'm keeping my eye on them. "Shout and cheer, Daughter Zion! Raise the roof, Daughter Jerusalem! Your king is coming! a good king who makes all things right, a humble king riding a donkey, a mere colt of a donkey. I've had it with war—no more chariots in Ephraim, no more war horses in Jerusalem, no more swords and spears, bows and arrows. He will offer peace to the nations, a peaceful rule worldwide, from the four winds to the seven seas. "And you, because of my blood covenant with you, I'll release your prisoners from their hopeless cells. Come home, hope-filled prisoners! This very day I'm declaring a double bonus— everything you lost returned twice-over! Judah is now my weapon, the bow I'll pull, setting Ephraim as an arrow to the string. I'll wake up your sons, O Zion, to counter your sons, O Greece. From now on people are my swords." Then God will come into view, his arrows flashing like lightning! Master God will blast his trumpet and set out in a whirlwind. God -of-the-Angel-Armies will protect them— all-out war, The war to end all wars, no holds barred. Their God will save the day. He'll rescue them. They'll become like sheep, gentle and soft, Or like gemstones in a crown, catching all the colors of the sun. Then how they'll shine! shimmer! glow! the young men robust, the young women lovely!

The Whole World Has Its Eyes on God War Bulletin: God 's Message challenges the country of Hadrach. It will settle on Damascus. The whole world has its eyes on God . Israel isn't the only one. That includes Hamath at the border, and Tyre and Sidon, clever as they think they are. Tyre has put together quite a kingdom for herself; she has stacked up silver like cordwood, piled gold high as haystacks. But God will certainly bankrupt her; he will dump all that wealth into the ocean and burn up what's left in a big fire. Ashkelon will see it and panic, Gaza will wring its hands, Ekron will face a dead end. Gaza's king will die. Ashkelon will be emptied out, And a villain will take over in Ashdod. "I'll take proud Philistia down a peg: I'll make him spit out his bloody booty and abandon his vile ways." What's left will be all God's—a core of survivors, a family brought together in Judah— But enemies like Ekron will go the way of the Jebusites, into the dustbin of history. "I will set up camp in my home country and defend it against invaders. Nobody is going to hurt my people ever again. I'm keeping my eye on them. "Shout and cheer, Daughter Zion! Raise the roof, Daughter Jerusalem! Your king is coming! a good king who makes all things right, a humble king riding a donkey, a mere colt of a donkey. I've had it with war—no more chariots in Ephraim, no more war horses in Jerusalem, no more swords and spears, bows and arrows. He will offer peace to the nations, a peaceful rule worldwide, from the four winds to the seven seas. "And you, because of my blood covenant with you, I'll release your prisoners from their hopeless cells. Come home, hope-filled prisoners! This very day I'm declaring a double bonus— everything you lost returned twice-over! Judah is now my weapon, the bow I'll pull, setting Ephraim as an arrow to the string. I'll wake up your sons, O Zion, to counter your sons, O Greece. From now on people are my swords." Then God will come into view, his arrows flashing like lightning! Master God will blast his trumpet and set out in a whirlwind. God -of-the-Angel-Armies will protect them— all-out war, The war to end all wars, no holds barred. Their God will save the day. He'll rescue them. They'll become like sheep, gentle and soft, Or like gemstones in a crown, catching all the colors of the sun. Then how they'll shine! shimmer! glow! the young men robust, the young women lovely!

The Whole World Has Its Eyes on God War Bulletin: God 's Message challenges the country of Hadrach. It will settle on Damascus. The whole world has its eyes on God . Israel isn't the only one. That includes Hamath at the border, and Tyre and Sidon, clever as they think they are. Tyre has put together quite a kingdom for herself; she has stacked up silver like cordwood, piled gold high as haystacks. But God will certainly bankrupt her; he will dump all that wealth into the ocean and burn up what's left in a big fire. Ashkelon will see it and panic, Gaza will wring its hands, Ekron will face a dead end. Gaza's king will die. Ashkelon will be emptied out, And a villain will take over in Ashdod. "I'll take proud Philistia down a peg: I'll make him spit out his bloody booty and abandon his vile ways." What's left will be all God's—a core of survivors, a family brought together in Judah— But enemies like Ekron will go the way of the Jebusites, into the dustbin of history. "I will set up camp in my home country and defend it against invaders. Nobody is going to hurt my people ever again. I'm keeping my eye on them.

When Edom (Esau) said, "We've been knocked down, but we'll get up and start over, good as new," God -of-the-Angel-Armies said, "Just try it and see how far you get. When I knock you down, you stay down. People will take one look at you and say, ‘Land of Evil!' and ‘the God -cursed tribe!'

"Yes, take a good look. Then you'll see how faithfully I've loved you and you'll want even more, saying, ‘May God be even greater, beyond the borders of Israel!'

"Begin by being honest. Do honest people rob God? But you rob me day after day. "You ask, ‘How have we robbed you?' "The tithe and the offering—that's how! And now you're under a curse—the whole lot of you—because you're robbing me. Bring your full tithe to the Temple treasury so there will be ample provisions in my Temple. Test me in this and see if I don't open up heaven itself to you and pour out blessings beyond your wildest dreams. For my part, I will defend you against marauders, protect your wheat fields and vegetable gardens against plunderers." The Message of God -of-the-Angel-Armies.