The Prophet Haggai

Haggai was one of the twelve Minor Prophets in the Hebrew/Christian Bibles and was noted for his exhortation to the Jews to rebuild their Temple. There is not much known about this ancient prophet, as the Holy Books do not go into detail about his personal history, but many scholars believe he was one of the captives taken to Babylon by Nebuchadnezzar. 

It is purported Haggai began his ministry about sixteen years after Cyrus the Great conquered the Babylonian Empire and the return of the Jews to Judah around 520 B.C. 

His book was purported to exist around this same time period and contained four prophecies, all of them dealing with rebuilding the Temple under the reign of Zerubbabel.

The first chapter contains:

The first prophecy (2–11) and its effects (12–15).

The second chapter contains:

The second prophecy (1–9), which was delivered a month after the first 

The third prophecy (10–19), delivered two months and three days after the second

The fourth prophecy (20–23), delivered on the same day as the third 

These discourses are referred to in Ezra 5:1 and 6:14. (Compare Haggai 2:7, 8 and 22)

He was the first of three post-exile prophets from the Neo-Babylonian Exile of the House of Judah (with Zechariah, his contemporary, and Malachi, who lived about one hundred years later), who belonged to the period of Jewish history which began after the return from captivity in Babylon. The work of rebuilding the temple had been put to a stop through the political intrigues of the Samaritans. After having been suspended for eighteen years, the work was resumed through the efforts of Haggai and Zechariah. They exhorted the people, which roused them from their lethargy, and induced them to take advantage of a change in the policy of the Persian government under Darius the Great.

Haggai in Jewish Tradition

Haggai, in rabbinic tradition, is often referred to as one of the "Men of the Great Assembly". The Babylonian Talmud (5th century BC) mentions a tradition concerning the prophet Haggai, saying that he gave instruction concerning three things: (1) that it is not lawful for a man whose brother married his daughter (as a co-wife in a polygamous relationship) to consummate a levirate marriage with one of his deceased brother's co-wives (a teaching accepted by the House of Hillel, but rejected by the House of Shammai); (2) that Jews living in the regions of Ammon and Moab separate from their produce the poor man's tithe during the Sabbatical year; (3) that they accept of proselytes from the peoples of Tadmor (Palmyra) and from the people of Ḳardu.

Haggai and Officials of His Time

Haggai supported the officials of his time, specifically the governor, Zerubbabel, and Joshua the High Priest. In the Book of Haggai, the God of the Israelites refers to Zerubbabel as "my servant" [as King David was] and says he will make him as a "signet ring" [as King Jehoiachin was] (Haggai 2:23; cf. Jer. 22:24). The signet ring symbolized a ring worn on the hand of Yahweh (or the God of Israel), showing that a king held divine favour. Thus, Haggai is implicitly, but not explicitly, saying that Zerubbabel would preside over a restored Davidic kingdom.

The Book of Haggai

The Book of Haggai was written in 520 BCE some 18 years after Cyrus had conquered Babylon and issued a decree in 538 BC allowing the captive Jews to return to Judea. Cyrus saw the restoration of the temple as necessary for the restoration of the religious practices and a sense of brotherhood after a long exile.

Haggai reports that three weeks after his first prophecy, the rebuilding of the Temple began on September 7 521 BCE. "They came and began to work on the house of the LORD Almighty, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year of Darius the King.(Haggai 1:14–15) and the Book of Ezra indicates that it was finished on February 25 516 BCE "The Temple was completed on the third day of the month Adar, in the sixth year of the reign of King Darius." (Ezra 6:15)

Haggai's message is filled with an urgency for the people to proceed with the rebuilding of the second Jerusalem temple. Haggai attributes a recent drought to the people's refusal to rebuild the temple, which he sees as key to Jerusalem’s glory. The book ends with the prediction of the downfall of kingdoms, with one Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, as the Lord’s chosen leader. The language here is not as finely wrought as in some other books of the minor prophets, yet the intent seems straightforward.

Synopsis of the Prophecies

     The Command to Rebuild the Temple ---------------------------------------------(1:1–15)

     Reluctant Rebuilders --------------------------------------------------------------- (1:1–2)

     Fruitless Prosperity ----------------------------------------------------------------  (1:3–12)

     Promise and Progress -------------------------------------------------------------- (1:13–15)

     The Coming Glory of the Temple -------------------------------------------------- (2:1–2)

     God Will Fulfill His Promise ------------------------------------------------------ (2:1–5)

     Future Splendor of the Temple ----------------------------------------------------- (2:6–9)

     Blessings for a Defiled People ---------------------------------------------------- (2:10–19) 

     Former Misery ---------------------------------------------------------------------- (2:10–17)

     Future Blessing --------------------------------------------------------------------- (2:18–19)

     Zerubbabel Chosen as a Signet ---------------------------------------------------- (2:20–23)

Haggai's Final Resting Place

The Tomb of the Prophets Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi (Arabic: Qubur el Anbia) is an ancient burial site located on the upper western slope of the Mount of Olives, Jerusalem. According to a medieval Jewish tradition also adopted by Christians, the catacomb is believed to be the burial place of Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi, the last three Hebrew Bible prophets who are believed to have lived during the 6th-5th centuries BC. Archaeologists have dated the three earliest burial chambers to the 1st century BC, thus contradicting the tradition.