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CHAPTER I.

1 Haggai reproveth the people for neglecting the building of the house. 7 He inciteth them to the building. 12 He promiseth God's assistance to them, being forward.

N the second
year of Darius
the king, in
the sixth
month, in the
first day of the
month, came
the word of

the LORD 'by
Haggai the
the
prophet unto
Zerubbabel
the son of She-
altiel, gover-
nor of Judah,
and to Joshua

the son of Josedech, the high priest, saying,
2 Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, say-
ing, This people say, The time is not come,
the time that the LORD's house should be
built.

3 Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,

4 Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your cieled houses, and this house lie waste?

5 Now therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.

6 Ye have 'sown much, and bring in little; ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled with drink; ye clothe you, but there is none warm; and he that earneth wages earneth wages to put it into a bag with holes.

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7

Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Consider your ways.

8 Go up to the mountain, and bring wood, and build the house; and I will take pleasure in it, and I will be glorified, saith the LORD.

9 Ye looked for much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did blow upon it. Why? saith the LORD of hosts. Because of mine house that is waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.

10 Therefore the heaven over you is stayed from dew, and the earth is stayed from her fruit.

11 And I called for a drought upon the land, and upon the mountains, and upon the corn, and upon the new wine, and upon the oil, and upon that which the ground bringeth forth, and upon men, and upon cattle, and upon all the labour of the hands.

12 T Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Josedech, 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 did fear before the LORD.

13 Then spake Haggai the LORD's messenger in the LORD's message unto the people, saying, I am with you, saith 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 Josedech, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and did work in the house of the LORD of hosts, their God,

15 In the four and twentieth day of the sixth month, in the second year of Darius the king.

3 Heb. Set your heart on your ways.
Or, blow it away.

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7 Deut. 28. 23.

4 Deut. 28. 38. Mic. 6. 14, 15.

CHAPTER II.

1 He encourageth the people to the work, by promise of greater glory to the second temple than was in the first. 10 In the type of holy things and unclean, he sheweth their sins hindered the work. 20 God's proImise to Zerubbabel.

IN the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD 'by the prophet Haggai, saying,

2 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,

3 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?

4 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:

Heb. by the hand of.

5 According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.

6 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;

7 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.

8 The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts.

9 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.

10 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,

11 Thus saith the LORD of hosts; Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying,

12 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.

13 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.

14 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.

15 And now, I pray you, consider from this

2 Heb. 12. 26.

day and upward, from before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the LORD:

16 Since those days were, when one came to an heap of twenty measures, there were but ten: when one came to the press-fat for to draw out fifty vessels out of the press, there were but twenty.

17 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.

18 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.

19 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.

20 And again the word of the LORD came unto Haggai in the four and twentieth day of the month, saying,

21 Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth;

22 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.

23 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.

3 Amos 4. 9.

Verse 7. The desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory.'--Many Jewish and some Christian interpreters understand the clause, rendered the desire of all nations,' to mean not a person, but things the desirable things of all nations-their wealth, their treasure, and productions, which should be brought to adorn and glorify the second house. It does indeed appear, from the account of the valuable things taken away by Antiochus (1 Macc. i. 21, 22), that this temple did become very rich; and still more so, when, in a later age, Herod expended immense sums in rebuilding, improving, and ornamenting the sacred structure--producing the temple which stood in the time of our Saviour, and was destroyed by Titus; and of which Josephus says that with respect to magnitude, building, and the splendour of its ornaments, utensils, and furniture, it was the most magnificent structure he had ever seen or heard of. Yet probably if he or any other Jew had been asked whether he thought it more glorious than Solomon's temple, a negative reply would have been given. We are much of opinion that the later temple was probably more magni

ficent and beautiful, considered architecturally, than the former; but that it equalled or approached it in the abundance of its precious things, and the costliness of its materials, ornaments, and utensils, there is every reason to doubt, particularly when we compare the resources of Herod with those of David and Solomon. But, above all, the latter house wanted the Shechinah, or divine glory, which filled the former house, as well as the tables of the law, the pot of manna, etc.: and wanting these, we are firmly convinced that no Jew, before the later temple was destroyed, would for a moment have allowed that it exceeded the former in glory, even had he believed its material magnificence greater than that of Solomon's temple. We have therefore no hesitation in believing that this important prophecy refers to the Messiah as the Desire of all Nations,' and predicts his coming in the times of the later temple. To what else, also-to what increase of temporal splendour or security--can we refer the declaration in verse 9, In this place will I give peace, saith the LORD of Hosts? No other peace than that which Christ brought was ever given there.

9. The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former.'-As a sequel to the preceding note, we may here notice a difficulty which has been suggested in the view which it states-this is, that the house which the presence of the Messiah glorified, was not the same as that of which Haggai spoke, but a new one built by Herod. For we are informed by Josephus, that, before the birth of Christ, the temple built by the returned captives was pulled down, the very foundations being removed, and a new and larger structure erected by Herod. As, however, the Jewish writers are in the habit of speaking of improvements in a large sense-as when some kings are described as having built' cities which we know to have been in previous existence, and which they merely improved or fortified--the statement of Josephus is quite open to the explanation--that Herod did not wholly rebuild the temple, but repaired it generally and extensively, taking down certain parts that were decayed, and constructing them again on new foundations, and adding new buildings and walls; completing, strengthening, and adorning the whole, on a regular plan. Such alterations and repairs, although very extensive, would not destroy the identity of the building. As we do not read of any alteration in the mode of celebrating the services of religion while these works were in progress, it is more than probable that the Holy Place at least remained standing; and if so, this was alone sufficient to maintain the identity of the building, for that was essentially the 696

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To this explanation, which is in substance that most usually given, we will venture to add the suggestion that the Hebrews did not consider the identity of a building destroyed unless when a new one was erected after the old one had lain for a time in a state of desolation, ruined and overthrown. Such an interval occurred between the destruction of Solomon's temple and the foundation of a new one by the returned captives; and the latter was therefore a second temple. But no such interval occurred between this and the temple built or improved by Herod; and therefore the latter was not a third temple, but continued to be identified with the second. At all events, nothing is more certain than that the Jews did regard the temple which stood in the time of our Saviour, and which was destroyed by Titus, as the second temple; and this is really all that is essential to be known. Even Josephus, on other occasions, regards it as the second temple with respect to that of Solomon; as do all the Jewish writers who have occasion to make any distinction. And, still more, the early Jews, who did consider the present prophecy to refer to the advent of the Messiah, continued to expect that he would come in the time of Herod's temple. Hence the mournful and memorable cry which the Rabbi Jose is said to have uttered when that temple was destroyed, Alas! the time of the Messiah is past!'

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ZECHARIAH.

It appears from the prefixed inscription, that Zechariah was the contemporary of Haggai, beginning to prophesy two months after Haggai had delivered his commencing prophecy. He was, of course, one of that body which returned from Babylon with Zerubbabel. Although the names of his father and grandfather are given, we are not told to what tribe he belonged; nor are any particulars of his history supplied for this Zechariah is not to be confounded with any other person of the same name mentioned in Scripture. It may be presumed from ch. ii. 4, that he was a young man when he commenced his prophetic career; but how long he lived or where he died, is not known. Traditions state that he was buried near Jerusalem; and with this concurs the existing belief which finds, in a remarkable monument in the Valley of Jehoshaphat, the tomb of Zechariah. Some further information concerning this monument will be found at the end of this book.

The object of Zechariah's prophecy is the same as that of Haggai's-to stimulate the returned captives to rebuild the temple and restore the regular worship of God; and to encourage their faith and hope by the promise of the Messiah. No one has ever questioned that the first eight chapters of this book were really the prophecies of Zechariah: but in these latter times several critics have contested the authenticity of the six last, which form the second portion of the book. Some allege that these chapters must have been composed in times long anterior to Zechariah-under Joash or even Ahaz; while others, on the contrary, urge that they were not written till long after Zechariah-in the times of Alexander the Great, of Antiochus Epiphanes, or even of king Hyrcanus. These positions may be safely left to neutralize each other. But it may be added, in answer to the first of them, that in the second part the style and literary characteristics of both portions are similar, and that the second, equally with the first, exhibits marks peculiar to the later prophets, and such as are not found in those of earlier date; and that the compilation of the canonical Scriptures being an event touching upon, if not actually in the time of Zechariah himself, nothing is less probable than that the writings of a more ancient prophet should have been placed under his name. It could not have been done. All the intimations of this portion also agree with the state of things which existed in the time of Zechariah, while there is an entire absence of those allusions which should be expected in a writer who lived before the ten tribes went into captivity, and while kings still sat upon the throne of David. The other notion, which assigns to this portion of Zechariah the later date, is met by the reasons we have already had more than once occasion to produce, shewing the impossibility that any additions could be made to the canon of Old Testament Scripture at so late a period. The notion, indeed, deserves the less attention as it is in fact founded upon the rationalistic principle that the prophet could not announce distant events, but only those which were passing before his eyes; and hence, that as these chapters appear to refer to the events of this later date, they must have been composed at the time when these events occurred. Such an opinion it is not in this country necessary to refute; but those who are curious on the subject, may see the argument of both sets of writers ably handled by Jahn in his Introduction, and by Hengstenberg in his Beiträge zur Einleitung ins Alte Testament, i. 361 sq. The Jews considered the style of Zechariah so remarkably similar to that of Jeremiah, that they were accustomed to observe that the spirit of the latter prophet had passed into him. This style is characterized by Bishop Lowth as generally prosaic: but towards the conclusion of the prophecy there are some poetical passages, and those highly ornamented; they are also perspicuous, considering that they are the production of the most obscure of all the prophetic writers. Jahn expresses his view of this prophet's writings with more completeness. In the first part of the book future events are expressed by symbolical visions, the sense of which is explained not by God himself, as in Ezekiel, but by an angel as in Daniel. It is a peculiarity in this prophet also, that the angel never interprets the vision till the prophet has declared that he does not comprehend what it signifies. The symbolical images are not so bold or so grand as those of Daniel. This prophet is also wanting in the marked delineations of Ezekiel: he often merely indicates the subject of his vision, leaving the details to be supplied by the mind of the reader. This may be seen in i. 8-11; ii. 1-2; iii. 1-4; iv. 1-14; and v. 1-5.' This he regards as one cause of the obscurity of this prophet; and after some further remarks on the style of the first part, Jahn proceeds: The second part of the book, although poetical, exhibits none of that fire, nor of that enthusiasm which characterize the writings of the older

prophets. Many of the figures and allegories offer something new, and are not wanting in a degree of elegance; but they are not always perfectly natural, nor completely drawn.' A much more elaborate and minute examination of the style of these prophecies is given by the accomplished Eichhorn, which we would quote but for its length, and but for the strong degree in which it is tainted with his usual fault of ascribing to the particular genius of the writer all that belongs to the Divine Spirit by which he was inspired.

The following are the principal separate commentaries on Zechariah. Luther, Der Prophet Zacharias ausgelegt, Vitemb., 1528; Stunica, Comment. in Zachariam Prophetam, etc., Salmant., 1577; Grynæi Comm. in Zachariam, Geneva, 1581; Osorii Comm. in Zachariam, Colon., 1584; Sanctii Comm. in Zachariam, Lugd., 1616; Pembley, An Exposition on the Prophecy of Zachariah, Lond., 1629; Ursini Comm. in P. Zachariam, Francof., 1652; Hase, Analysis Prophetiæ Zachariæ, Bremæ, 1689; Biermann, De prophetie van Zacharias, Utrecht, 1697; Gerbade, Zions Vertroosting opgeslooten in de prophetie van Zacharias, Leyden, 1702; Meiss, Der Prophet Zacharias kurz und deutlich erklärt, Leipz., 1706; Bohlii Analysis et exegesis Propheta Zacharia, Rostochii, 1711; Nemethi Prophetia sancti P. Zachariæ explicata, Ultrajecti, 1714; Boekholt, De Prophet Zacharias verklaart, Amstelod., 1718; Andala, Dissertationes in præcipua Zachariæ dicta, Franek., 1720; Vitringa, Comm. ad librum prophetiarum Zachariæ quæ supersunt, Leovardiæ, 1734; Mann, Die dem Propheten Zachariah, etc., Bremen, 1734; Trinius, Uebersetzung des Propheten Zacharias mit Anmerkungen, Quedlinburg, 1780; Venema, Sermones Acadamici, vice Comm. ad librum Prophetiarum Zacharia, Leovardiæ, 1787; Blayney, Zechariah, a new Translation, with Notes Critical, Philological, and Explanatory, Lond., 1797; Koester, Meletemata Critica et Exegetica in Zach. Prophetæ partem posteriorem, cap. ix.-xiv., pro tuenda ejus authentia, Göttinge, 1818; Stonard, A Commentary on the Vision of Zechariah the Prophet, with a corrected Translation and Critical Notes, Lond., 1824; Forberg, Comm. crit. et exeget. in Zachariæ Vaticinior. partem posteriorem, Coburg, 1824; Kimchi, Commentary upon the Prophecy of Zechariah. Translated from the Hebrew with Notes by A. M'Caul, D.D., Lond. 1837; Burges, Etudes exégétiques et critiques sur le P. Zacharie, Strasb., 1841. [On the Minor Prophets collectivelyDie 12 kleinen Propheten erklärt v. F. Hitzig, 2 Aufl. 1852; Baumgarten, Die Nachgesichte Sacharias, 1855.]

CHAPTER I.

18 The

1 Zechariah exhorteth to repentance. 7 The vision of
the horses. 12 At the prayer of the angel comfort-
able promises are made to Jerusalem.
vision of the four horns, and the four carpenters.
N the
eighth
month, in
the second
year of Da-
rius, came
the word of
the LORD
unto Ze-
chariah,
the son of
Berechiah,
the son of
Iddo the
prophet,
saying,
2 The
LORD hath been 'sore displeased with your
fathers.

3 Therefore say thou unto them, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; "Turn ye unto me, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will turn unto you, saith the LORD of hosts.

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4 Be ye not as your fathers, unto whom the former prophets have cried, saying, Thus saith the LORD of hosts; "Turn ye now from your evil ways, and from your evil doings: but they did not hear, nor hearken unto me, saith the LORD.

5 Your fathers, where are they? and the prophets, do they live for ever?

6 But my words and my statutes, which I commanded my servants the prophets, did they not 'take hold of your fathers? and they returned and said, 'Like as the LORD of hosts thought to do unto us, according to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath he dealt with us.

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7

Upon the four and twentieth day of the eleventh month, which is the month Sebat, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD unto Zechariah, the son of Berechiah, the son of Iddo the prophet, saying,

8 I saw by night, and behold a man riding upon a red horse, and he stood among the myrtle trees that were in the bottom; and behind him were there red horses, 'speckled, and white.

9 Then said I, O my lord, what are these? And the angel that talked with me said unto me, I will shew thee what these be.

3 Isa. 31. 6. Jer. 3. 12, and 18. 11. Ezek. 18. 30. Hos. 14. 1.
5 Lam. 1. 18.
6 Or, bay.

4 Or, overtake.

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