The Pulpit Commentary — Haggai — Section 15

to his meR~age will account for this. It did not devolve upon him to any extent, as it had done up~n ?is pred~ce_ssors, to ma_ke prophetic ~nnouncements concerning the future age; his simple m1ss1on was to stimulate and stir a lethargic people to renewed nction, to reprove them for their neglect of solemn rluty, and to impel them to fnlfil their trust. And w?alover there may be lacking ~ere of poetic genius, the picture presented to us of this noble-hearted man standing "m grey-haired might" amidst the ruins of Jerusalem, and, strong in conviction that the favour and blessincr of Jehova;, was the grea~ As_sential i~ order to the. happiness of bis people, urging tbem to acknowledge bun ,m all their ~aye, and without ~urther delay to rear his sanctuary, is one truly beautiful, and which we could have 111 spared from these holy records. Consider bis stirring appeal. I. HIB SUMMONS TO REFLECTION. "Consider your ways" (vers. 5, 7); i.e. "Set your heart upon your ways"-your conduct, actions, designs, purposes. Thoughtlessness is the source of so much evil. Men do not always intend to do wrong or to fail in respect of duty, but they do not "give heed." They allow their minds to wander into other courses, and to be preoccupied with other matters. " Evil is wrought by want of thought, As well a.s want of heart." It is in view of men's highest interests, then, that God by his providential dealings, or the ministry of his servants, or the inward voice of conscience, says to them at times, "Consider your ways." We should consider: 1. Whether onr ways are true and r\ght. 2. How they stand affected to the claims which God bas upon us. 3. The motives by which we a.re being influenced. 4. The results to which our actions are tending, whether the sowing is such as will yield a harvest of good. The momentous importance of tbe admonition is seen in its repetition here. Man is wondrously free. He can choose good or evil. This freedom increases his responsibility, and the sense of this should lead to frequent self-examination. "Let each man prove bis own work" (Gal. vi. 4). II. THE WEIGHTY CONSIDERATIONS HE URGED UPON THEIR ARRESTED ATTENTION. Their great excuse for the unwarrantable delay which had taken place in the work of rebuilding the temple was the hardness of the times ; and in his stimulating address Haggai kept this excuse before his mind, and completely exposed to them its hollow- ness, and swept it a.way by setting before them two important facts. 1. He brought home to them a sense of their own inconsistency. Hard though the times were, tbe fact remained that in these hard times they had built for themselves durable dwellin.;s, and had enriched these with costly adornments; and surely if they could do all this for themselves, they might have done something by way of proceeding with the erection of the house of the Lord (ver. 4). Clearly they had lacked not so much the ability as the disposition to do their duty. 2. Admitting the severity of the times, Haggai pointed out that the way in which to have improved these would have been by their discharging more faithfully their duty to their God. In vivid language he described the depressed state of things then prevailing (ver. 6), but his contention wa., that God had visited them with such adverse experiences in retribution. They had forgotten his claims, and had selfishly cared only for their own interests; and he, knowing their hearts and observing their ways, bad withbeld from them the dews of heaven, and had caused drought to prevail, that by failure and loss they might be led to reflection and to a truer and more devoted life (vers. 9-11). ·when the times are hard-trade slack and commercial depression prevailing-men too often begin retrench- ment. by withholding from God his due, and loug before they sacrifice a single luxury of life will they plead inability to sustain his cause, Wiser far would it be for them to give full recognition to him and to his claims, and, whilst thus honouring him, to look to him for bis blessing and the renewal of the temporal blessings of his providence. Ill. 'l'HE PROMPT ACTION, IN VIEW OF THESE THOUGH1'S, UPON WHICH HE SO STRONGLY INSISTED. "Go up to the mountain," etc. (ver. 8), This stirring appeal of the prophet was made on "the sixth month, in the first day of the month" ( ver. 1), i.e. the new moon's day. 'l'ha.t day was a. special day amongst the people. A festal sacrifice was offered (Numb. xxviii. 11-15), and a. solemn assembly of the people at ihe sanctuary took place (Isa.. i. 13; 2 Kings iv, 23). On this occasion, therefore, we 14 'lH:E BOOK OF HAGGAI. [OH, I, 1-16,