Bible Buk Namba 37—Haggai
Man wea Raetem: Haggai
Ples Hem Raetem: Jerusalem
Taem Hem Finis Raetem: 520 B.C.E.
Taem Hem Storyim: 112 day (520 B.C.E.)
HAGGAI nao nem bilong hem; profet and “man for talemaot message bilong Jehovah” nao position bilong hem, bat hem kam from wea? (Hag. 1:13) Hu nao hem? Haggai hem mek-ten long olketa smol profet, and hem first wan long thrifala wea serve bihaen olketa Jew go bak long homples bilong olketa long 537 B.C.E., Zechariah and Malachi nao nara tufala. Nem bilong Haggai (Hebrew, Chag·gaiʹ ) garem mining “[Born long wanfala] Festival.” Diswan maet showaot hem born long taem bilong festival.
2 Olsem olketa Jew bilivim, hem fitim for iumi sei Haggai hem born long Babylon and go bak long Jerusalem witim Zerubbabel and Hae Priest Joshua. Haggai serve witim profet Zechariah, and long Ezra 5:1 and 6:14, tufala nao encouragem olketa wea kam bak for start buildim temple moa. Hem profet bilong Jehovah long tufala wei, hem encouragem olketa Jew for fulfillim responsibility bilong olketa long God and wanfala profesi abaotem wei wea Jehovah bae sekem olketa nation.—Hag. 2:6, 7.
3 Why nao Jehovah appointim Haggai? For disfala reason: Long 537 B.C.E., Cyrus givim law wea letem olketa Jew go bak long homples bilong olketa for buildim moa haos bilong Jehovah. Bat distaem hem 520 B.C.E., and temple nating klosap finis yet. Olketa Jew bin letem wei wea enemy againstim olketa, wei for no interest, and wei for lovem material samting stopem olketa for luksavve long purpose bilong olketa for go bak.—Ezra 1:1-4; 3:10-13; 4:1-24; Hag. 1:4.
4 Olsem buk hia showimaot, kwiktaem bihaen olketa leim faondeson bilong temple (long 536 B.C.E.), “pipol bilong datfala land go ahed for mekem wikdaon hand bilong pipol bilong Judah and mekem olketa wikdaon for build, and peim olketa man wea givim kaonsel for spoelem kaonsel bilong olketa.” (Ezra 4:4, 5) Gogo, long 522 B.C.E., olketa enemy hia wea no Jew win for putim tambu long disfala waka. Long 520 B.C.E., mek-tu year bilong rul bilong king bilong Persia Darius Hystaspis, Haggai start for profesi, and diswan encouragem olketa Jew for start moa for buildim temple. From diswan, olketa governor bilong olketa neiba kantri raet go long Darius for givim disison long diswan; Darius bringim bak law bilong Cyrus and saportim olketa Jew againstim olketa enemy.
5 Olketa Jew nating daot hao profesi bilong Haggai hem part bilong olketa Hebrew scripture, and diswan kasem saport tu from Ezra 5:1 wea sei Haggai profesi “long nem bilong God bilong Israel,” and from Ezra 6:14 tu. Wei wea profesi bilong Haggai hem part bilong ‘evri Scripture wea kam from God’ hem showaot long wei wea Paul hem talem moa toktok bilong hem long Hebrews 12:26: “Distaem hem promis finis, taem hem sei: ‘Wanfala taem moa mi bae sekem earth and heven tu.’”—Hag. 2:6.
6 Profesi bilong Haggai garem fofala message wea hem talem insaed 112 day. Hem tok long stret and simpol wei, and wei wea hem strongim nem bilong Jehovah hem barava spesol. Insaed 38 verse bilong hem, hem storyim nem bilong Jehovah 35 taem, wea 14-fala long olketa hem insaed toktok “Jehovah bilong olketa army.” Hem no givim eni daot hao message bilong hem kam from Jehovah: “Haggai datfala man for talemaot message bilong Jehovah olsem Jehovah appointim hem for duim go ahed for sei long olketa pipol: ‘Mi stap witim iufala pipol,’ hem nao toktok bilong Jehovah.”—1:13.
7 Diswan hem barava important taem long history bilong pipol bilong God, and waka bilong Haggai barava helpem olketa. Hem nating shame taem hem duim waka bilong hem olsem profet, and hem tok stret witim olketa Jew. Hem talem stret long olketa hao hem taem nao for olketa finis from wei for delay and hem taem for duim samting. Hem taem for buildim moa haos bilong Jehovah and for startim bak klin worship sapos olketa laek kasem eni blessing from hand bilong Jehovah. Full mining bilong message bilong Haggai hem hao, sapos man laek kasem blessing from Jehovah, hem mas servem trufala God and duim waka Jehovah komandim hem for duim.
WEI WEA HEM HELPEM IUMI
13 Fofala message bilong Jehovah wea hem talem thru long Haggai hem helpem olketa Jew long datfala taem. Olketa kasem encouragement for startim waka stretawe, and insaed foa and haf year, olketa buildim temple finis for mekem tru worship kamap moa long Israel. (Ezra 6:14, 15) Jehovah blessim hard waka bilong olketa. Long datfala taem wea olketa buildim temple, Darius, king bilong Persia hem lukluk long olketa raeting bilong gavman and appruvim moa datfala law wea Cyrus bin givim. So olketa finisim temple witim saport bilong hem.—Ezra 6:1-13.
14 Datfala profesi garem wise kaonsel for taem bilong iumi tu. Long wanem wei? Wanfala wei, hem showim need for man putim interest bilong worship bilong God firstaem winim samting wea hemseleva laekem. (Hag. 1:2-8; Matt. 6:33) Hem showim tu hao selfish fasin hem spoelem man, hem iusles for aftarem material samting; peace and blessing bilong Jehovah nao mekem man rich. (Hag. 1:9-11; 2:9; Prov. 10:22) Hem mekhae tu hao wei for servem God bae no mekem man klin sapos service bilong hem no klin and no witim full soul, and hem mas no kamap dirty thru long fasin wea no klin. (Hag. 2:10-14; Col. 3:23; Rom. 6:19) Hem showim tu hao olketa servant bilong God mas no luk go bak long “olketa gudfala day bifor,” bat mas luk ahed, ‘lukluk gud long olketa wei bilong olketa’ and lukaotem wei for givim glory long Jehovah. Then Jehovah bae stap witim olketa.—Hag. 2:3, 4; 1:7, 8, 13; Phil. 3:13, 14; Rom. 8:31.
15 Taem olketa Jew busy for wakem temple, Jehovah hapi long olketa, and olketa kasem gudfala living. No eniting hard moa for olketa. Datfala waka hem finis long taem hem shud finis. Wei for no fraet and strong for duim waka bilong Jehovah bae evritaem kasem reward. Man savve winim olketa hard samting, taem hem showimaot faith witim wei for no fraet. Fasin for obeyim “word bilong Jehovah” hem givim gud samting.—Hag. 1:1.
16 Waswe long profesi hao Jehovah bae “sekem heven and earth”? Aposol Paul talem mining bilong Haggai 2:6 taem hem sei: “Bat distaem [God] promis finis, taem hem sei: ‘Wanfala taem moa mi bae sekem earth and heven tu.’ Toktok hia ‘Wanfala taem moa’ minim for aotem olketa samting wea olketa sekem olsem olketa samting wea olketa wakem finis, for mekem olketa samting wea olketa no sekem savve stap. Dastawe, from iumi bae kasem wanfala kingdom wea no savve seksek, iumi go ahed for garem kaeness wea man no fit for kasem, wea thru long diswan iumi savve givim holy service wea God acceptim witim fasin for fraet long hem and respect. From God bilong iumi hem olsem wanfala bigfala fire tu.” (Heb. 12:26-29) Haggai showimaot hao disfala wei for sekem hem for “torowem daon throne bilong olketa kingdom and finisim evribit strong bilong olketa kingdom bilong olketa nation.” (Hag. 2:21, 22) Taem hem talem moa disfala profesi, Paul storyim hao Kingdom bilong God hem difren from hem “no savve seksek.” Taem iumi tingim disfala Kingdom hope, iumi “mas strong and duim waka,” givim God holy service. Iumi mas tingim tu hao bifor Jehovah finisim olketa nation long earth, spesol samting mas seke and kamaot from olketa, for laef: “‘Mi bae sekem evri nation, and olketa barava spesol samting bilong evri nation mas kam insaed; and mi bae fulimap disfala haos witim glory,’ Jehovah bilong olketa army hem talem.”—2:4, 7.