374
Prophets and Kings
prosper. The very elements of nature seemed to conspire against them.
Because they had let the temple lie waste, the Lord sent upon their
substance a wasting drought. God had bestowed upon them the fruits
of field and garden, the corn and the wine and the oil, as a token of
His favor; but because they had used these bountiful gifts so selfishly,
the blessings were removed.
Such were the conditions existing during the early part of the reign
of Darius Hystaspes. Spiritually as well as temporally, the Israelites
were in a pitiable state. So long had they murmured and doubted; so
long had they chosen to make personal interests first, while viewing
with apathy the Lord’s temple in ruins, that many had lost sight of
God’s purpose in restoring them to Judea; and these were saying,
“The time is not come, the time that the Lord’s house should be built.”
Haggai 1:2
.
But even this dark hour was not without hope for those whose trust
was in God. The prophets Haggai and Zechariah were raised up to
meet the crisis. In stirring testimonies these appointed messengers
revealed to the people the cause of their troubles. The lack of temporal
prosperity was the result of a neglect to put God’s interests first, the
prophets declared. Had the Israelites honored God, had they shown
Him due respect and courtesy, by making the building of His house
[574]
their first work, they would have invited His presence and blessing.
To those who had become discouraged, Haggai addressed the
searching inquiry, “Is it time for you, O ye, to dwell in your ceiled
houses, and this house lie waste? Now therefore thus saith the Lord
of hosts; Consider your ways.” Why have you done so little? Why do
you feel concern for your own buildings and unconcern for the Lord’s
building? Where is the zeal you once felt for the restoration of the
Lord’s house? What have you gained by serving self? The desire to
escape poverty has led you to neglect the temple, but this neglect has
brought upon you that which you feared. “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.”
Verses
4-6
.
And then, in words that they could not fail to understand, the Lord
revealed the cause that had brought them to want: “Ye looked for
much, and, lo, it came to little; and when ye brought it home, I did