The Pulpit Commentary — Haggai — Section 14

Yer. 2.-Procrasti'Tlati-011. "This people say, The tirue is not come, the time that the Lord's house should be built." 'l'here are several ways of accounting for the delay which occurred in the work of re-erecting the temple in Jerusalem. 1. In part it a.rose from the returned exiles being preoccupied in seeking to secure to themselves material prosperity. 2. Then they ,vere daunted by the opposition they had to encounter as they engaged in this work. The powerful neighbouriug tribes, being a.like antagonistic to the restoration of Jerusalem as the centre of the pure and unadulterated worship of God, combined to place obstacles in the way of the repairers of the breaches. 3. Further, they had grown somewhat accustomed to being without the structure. Comparatively few of them had seen "the first house." 4. It is to be feared also that they had lost, through the changes they had experienced, that strong sense of the need of the Divine abiding presence in their midst. Influenced by such considerations as these, and forgetful that " good is best when soonest wrought," they kept postponing ~rrying out the great undertaking to which they had pledged themselves, and excused themselves by saying, "'£he time is not come," etc. (ver. 2). This habit of delay is far too general, and is not limited to any age or race. It prevails widely to-day as in all past times; and in no respect more so than in matters affecting man's relation to God. Time was when man was wholly devoted to his Maker's praise. God formed him in his own image, holy, spotless, pure; but he mournfully fell. He who had been the temple of God became a moral waste. "!cha.bod" became inscribed upon the once consecrated spiritual man. Every power of the soul became corrupt, every propensity became drawn to that which is evil. " The gold became dim, and the most tine gold changed." And the voice of God calls us to the glorious work of rebuilding this temple. He ha& presented to us, in the perfect life of his own Son, the pattern after which we should seek to raise in ourselves the superstructure of a. holy life, and offers us his gracious aid so that we may build into our character the noble ma.te1ials of truth and virtue, wisdom and love. And it is just a.t this point that the temptation to delay meets men. 1. They a.re not insensible to the claims of God, nor are they altogether indifferent about attending to these, but they say, "'l'ne time is not come," etc. (ver. 3). 2. They are immersed in other matters at present: (1) the cares of the world; (2) the pursuit of riches; (3) the pleasures of life, abs.orb them; they a.re pre- occupied just now; they say," The time is not come" (ver. 3). 3. They reason that there is the whole future yet before them, and that ample opportunity will be given them in due course. So they go on robbing themselves of "aspirations high and deathless hopes sublime." " Procrastination id the thief of time ; Year after year it steals, till all are fled, And to tbe mercies of a moment leaves The vast concerns of an eternal scene." B.D.H. Vere. 3-11.-The stirring appeal. It must not be supposed that, for purposes of rev<:lation, there was any suspension of the powers of the men who were honoured of God in being the medium of communicating a knowledge of his will; rather there was the retention of their own individual peculiarities and natural gifts, the Divine Spirit opera.ting through these, and turning them to the most profitable account. One beauty of the Bible lies in the fact that, whilst upon the writings of each of its contributors there is unmista.ke.bly the impress of the operation of the Spirit of God, there is likewise throughout the whole clear indications of the preservation of those natural endowments which the respective writers possessed, and hence the remarkable variety in style and form of presentation meeting us in the Holy Word, aud which constitutes one great charm of the volume. Viewing this particular book of Scripture from tbis human slandpc,int, biblical writers have described it as being inferior in respect of literary merit as compared with other prophetical writings; and it must be granted that we find Inch 11~ here "the poetical swing" and "the tinished beauty" characteristic of "tbo 1;arlier pr,,phetical diction." The circumstances, however, under which he gave utterance OR, I, 1-15,] THE BOOK OF HAGGAI. 13