Let's Rebuild the House

Roughly 3000 years ago, King Solomon dedicated the Temple, the house that he built as a dwelling place for the God of Israel1 at or just after the close of the Feast of Tabernacles.  In his prayer of dedication, he petitioned God for a number of things, but the very last petition was to ask God to hear the prayer of His people when they cry out to Him from the land of their captivity.

^ESV 1 Kings 8:46-51   "If they sin against you - for there is no one who does not sin - and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near,  ⁴⁷ yet if they turn their heart in the land to which they have been carried captive, and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors, saying, 'We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,'  ⁴⁸ if they repent with all their mind and with all their heart in the land of their enemies, who carried them captive, and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name,  ⁴⁹ then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause  ⁵⁰ and forgive your people who have sinned against you, and all their transgressions that they have committed against you, and grant them compassion in the sight of those who carried them captive, that they may have compassion on them  ⁵¹ ( for they are your people, and your heritage, which you brought out of Egypt, from the midst of the iron furnace).

In this petition, Solomon is asking a lot of God. Not only is he asking God to forgive them when they repent, he is also asking that God move the heart of their captors to be compassionate to them while still in captivity.

Though spoken nearly four hundred years earlier, this last petition of Solomon’s prayer is remarkably similar to some of the last words spoken by Moses to the children of Israel as they were preparing to cross the Jordan and enter the promised land. Moses said -

^ESV Deuteronomy 30:1 "And when all these things come upon you, the blessing and the curse, which I have set before you, and you call them to mind among all the nations where the LORD your God has driven you,  ² and return to the LORD your God, you and your children, and obey his voice in all that I command you today, with all your heart and with all your soul,  ³ then the LORD your God will restore your fortunes and have compassion on you, and he will gather you again from all the peoples where the LORD your God has scattered you.  ⁴ If your outcasts are in the uttermost parts of heaven, from there the LORD your God will gather you, and from there he will take you.  ⁵ And the LORD your God will bring you into the land that your fathers possessed, that you may possess it . . .

These two prophecies were fulfilled in part by the Jewish people after the Babylonian captivity.  After the Jews were taken captive, they repented of their ways and set up traditions by which they would avoid falling into idolatry and lawlessness again.  As a result, God filled the heart of the Persian king Cyrus with compassion and he released them from bondage so they could return to the land - charged with the job to rebuild Solomon’s Temple.

The captivity, scattering, and subsequent re-gathering of the Israelite people is one of the most important topics of the Bible.  It is the focus of practically all the prophets and one of the major themes of the gospels as well as the epistles of Yeshua’s apostles.  In the first re-gathering of the Israelites, the tribe of Judah was given the responsibility to rebuild the Temple, which in itself is very important in scripture, not just as a building, but for what it represents as well.  What’s more, the Temple, the gathering of Israel, and Sukkot - the feast of Tabernacles -  all have a common link.  They all three represent a time of restoration for the people of God.

In this study, we’re going to discuss the re-building of the Temple - the future gathering of Israel, and the Feast of Tabernacles - and see how they commonly share the concept of restoration.  We’re going to:

• Show how it the Temple represents the body - the followers of the God of Israel
• Show how the fall festivals, and specifically this 7^th day of the festival is significant to its rebuilding
• Show what we must do to further its construction.

The Temple

The Temple represents a number of things to God, but primarily it represents the dwelling place of God’s holy name.  When King David asked Nathan the prophet if it would be proper for him to build a dwelling place for the God of Israel, Nathan relayed to David God’s answer -

^ESV 2 Samuel 7:5-6 "Go and tell my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to dwell in?  ⁶ I have not lived in a house since the day I brought up the people of Israel from Egypt to this day, but I have been moving about in a tent for my dwelling.

Though it may appear that God did not need or even want a house, we find that He did indeed have the house built, but not by David. Nathan continues to relay God’s words saying -

^ESV 2 Samuel 7:12  When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.  ¹³ He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

Though God did not necessarily need a place for Himself, it appears that He wanted a place on earth where He could “place his name” 2.  Again, going back to Moses, we see that God did indeed intend to have a place where His name would dwell 3

^ESV Deuteronomy 12:10-11 But when you go over the Jordan and live in the land that the LORD your God is giving you to inherit, and when he gives you rest from all your enemies around, so that you live in safety,  ¹¹ then to the place that the LORD your God will choose, to make his name dwell there, there you shall bring all that I command you:

This prophecy was given 400 years before David became king, but it was not until David had joined the Israelites into one kingdom that God spoke to him through Nathan. It appears that God could not place His name in Jerusalem until Israel had become a united people.  So when David’s kingdom - under the leadership of Solomon - became “firmly established” 4 - the Temple was built, and it was dedicated during or just prior to the Feast of Tabernacles.

But the kingdom was short lived.  History reveals that Israel did just as Moses and Solomon had predicted.  Roughly  40 years after the Temple was dedicated, the kingdom of Israel once again split in two.  The northern tribes immediately began to mix idolatry with the worship of God, and the southern kingdom of Judah soon began the wholesale practice of idolatry.  Within 200 years, Ephraim, the northern kingdom, was taken captive by the Assyrians and subsequently scattered throughout the nations.  About 300 years later, Judah followed that path and was taken captive by the Babylonians.

The scattering of Ephraim and the captivity of Judah brought about one of the worst evils that could be bestowed on the God of Israel.  Those two events led to God’s name being blasphemed among the nations. 

^NKJ Isaiah 52:5 Now therefore, what have I here," says the LORD, "That My people are taken away for nothing? Those who rule over them Make them wail," says the LORD, "And My name is blasphemed continually every day.

This is where we are today.  God’s people are scattered and God’s name is being blasphemed. God’s Temple - the place where He placed His name - is destroyed.   Though Judah is still somewhat identifiable as a people, for all practical purposes the northern tribes  have vanished.  In the eyes of most people, the lost tribes of Israel are no more.  In the eyes of the world, God was unable to perform His promise of bringing and sustaining His people in the Promised Land.

But things are beginning to change.  Another restoration has begun.  God’s people are beginning to re-emerge.  They are putting away their idols, repenting of years of disobedience to God’s Torah,  and are clinging to the Sabbath and the festivals. They are returning to God and to their Hebraic roots . . .  and like the Jews who were sent back to rebuild the Temple, we’ve been given a job as well.

As I said earlier, this day - the seventh day of the Feast of Tabernacles - has a lot to do with God’s name, the Temple, and the restoration of God’s people.  Besides being pointed out in Leviticus 23 as the last day of the feast, it is mentioned in two other places in scripture.  One of those places is in John chapter seven where Yeshua proclaims to the world that He is the source of living water.

^NKJ John 7:37-38 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.  ³⁸ "He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water."

This event probably took place during the morning hours of the last day of Sukkot as the Jews celebrated the “Beit haShuava” or the “House of the Water Drawing”.  Though the Jews performed this ritual each morning of the feast, it took on special significance on the last day, or what the Jews called “the Great Day” of the feast or by the Jewish term - Hoshanna Rabbah, a day that pictures the restoring of understanding to the masses of God’s people.

The other place we find this day mentioned is in the book of Chaggai, and for the remainder of this message, I’m going to focus on Chaggai’s prophecies and their ramifications for those of us who call ourselves by the name of the God of Israel.

Chaggai

Chaggai5 was a prophet who came on the scene shortly after the Babylonian captivity. His name comes from the Hebrew word “chag” (חַג - 2282) which means “festive”.  Thus Chaggai means “my festive” or “my festival”. Because of his name, it is not surprising that the book of Chaggai revolves around four prophecies that were given between the first day of Elul - the sixth month of the Hebrew calendar, and the twenty fourth day of Kislev - the ninth month.  That time frame begins with the traditional 30 day period of time called “Teshuva” which is a traditional time of repentance before Yom Teruah and the beginning of the “Days of Awe”. Chaggai’s prophecy continues through the fall festivals, including Sukkot, and ends on the day before the 8-day celebration of Hanukkah6.

Chaggai was contemporary with Zachariah and possibly Malachi.  All three prophesied to the Jewish leadership in the early years after the return from Babylon. In fact Malachi’s prophecy about the coming of the Messiah may have provided the impetus to begin the project of rebuilding the Temple -

^ESV Malachi 3:1 "Behold, I send my messenger and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple; and the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.

In Chaggai’s day, the Jews had begun the project of rebuilding the Temple.  They began to clear the rubble and had laid the foundation, but soon abandoned the project.  Sixteen years went by with little or no progress while the people focused their attention on making themselves comfortable.  To again get the people engaged in the project, God instructed Chaggai to give this message to Zerubbabel, the governor of Judea.  He said -

Chaggai’s First Prophecy

^ESV Haggai 1:2-4  ". . .  These people say the time has not yet come to rebuild the house of the LORD."  ³ Then the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet,  ⁴ "Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?

According to the prophecy, the people were focusing their attention on themselves - “building their own houses” (so to speak) and trying to make ends meet.  Apparently they had forgotten Malachi’s prophecy of the coming of the Messiah or maybe they had simply decided that the Messiah was not going to come in their day.  Whatever the reason, they had decided to leave the project for the next generation — but God was not buying it.  He continued -

^ESV Haggai 1:5-9   Now, therefore, thus says the LORD of hosts: “Consider your ways.  ⁶ You have sown much, and harvested little. You eat, but you never have enough; you drink, but you never have your fill. You clothe yourselves, but no one is warm. And he who earns wages does so to put them into a bag with holes.”  ⁷ "Thus says the LORD of hosts: Consider your ways.  ⁸ Go up to the hills and bring wood and build the house, that I may take pleasure in it and that I may be glorified, says the LORD.  ⁹ You looked for much, and behold, it came to little. And when you brought it home, I blew it away. Why? declares the LORD of hosts. Because of my house that lies in ruins, while each of you busies himself with his own house.”

As it turned out, they were experiencing hard times because they were not doing the work they had been commissioned to do.  They were putting in the effort to make themselves more comfortable while leaving God’s house in shambles.  Therefore God was not blessing them. 

He told them to “consider your ways”.  In Hebrew it is “simu lebabkem al-darkekem” which literally means “set your heart to your path”.  They had been given a path to follow - the road to a rebuilt Temple; but instead of having their heart set on that path, they had their heart set on their own paths - on making their own lives better.

Apparently, Chaggai’s admonition stirred them to action.  They repented of their dereliction of duty and resumed work on restoring the House of God.  He responded by saying through the prophet -

^ESV Haggai 1:13 "I am with you."

House of God - Restoring the People

Let’s pause for a moment and talk a little about the “house” of God and specifically what it represents.  We know that when David proposed to Nathan that he build a house for the God of Israel, God’s response was that David would not build the house, but on the other hand, God would build a “house” for David from David’s loins. God told Nathan -

^ESV 2 Samuel 7:5 "Go and tell my servant David, 'Thus says the LORD: Would you build me a house to dwell in?

God then showed what He had done for David down through the years as David had lead Israel to become a great nation.  Then He said -

^ESV 2 Samuel 7:11-13  … Moreover, the LORD declares to you that the LORD will make you a house.  ¹² When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come from your body, and I will establish his kingdom.  ¹³ He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever.

David’s “house” was not a building, but a people.  To a lesser degree, David’s house was fulfilled in the person of Solomon who reigned over all Israel for 40 years.  But except for a just a few years, Solomon’s sons only reigned over Judah, and as a result of the Bablylonian captivity, that dynasty failed as well.

The greater fulfillment of Nathan's prophecy is Messiah Yeshua.  He is going to restore the Kingdom of Israel and Israel is going to be His house.  Ultimately, He is going to live within His holy people.   He is going to restore His people into an everlasting kingdom as pictured by the festival of Sukkot, and as David said, His Temple - His dwelling place - will be the praises of His people Israel -

^NKJ Psalm 22:3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.

So even though the Jews who had returned to Judea were rebuilding the physical “house of God”, they should - and probably did think of it as building the place where the Messiah would come and begin the restoration of the Kingdom of Israel.  But like what was said earlier, their heart was not in it and they were willing to leave it for the next generation.

Let’s continue with Chaggai’s second prophecy.

Chaggai’s Second Prophecy

^ESV Haggai 2:1-5 In the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the hand of Haggai the prophet,  ² "Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and to all the remnant of the people, and say,  ³ 'Who is left among you who saw this house in its former glory? How do you see it now? Is it not as nothing in your eyes?  ⁴ Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts, ⁵ according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not.

Chaggai’s second prophecy was given about 2540 years ago on the 21^st day of the seventh month - the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.  In the first century, this was the day that the priests marched around the altar seven times during the Beit haShuava.  It was also the day that Yeshua declared himself to be the source of “mayim hayim” - the living waters that would bring healing to the people and the land.

For the Jews in Chaggai’s day, the project to rebuild the Temple had resumed after 16 years of neglect.  The people were excited - possibly because they had begun to see their misfortunes reversed after God had restored their blessings. But they were also discouraged by the enormity of the task before them.  Though the foundation for the rebuilt Temple had been completed, what they saw were the broken down remains of a once extraordinary building.  Chaggai encouraged them by admonishing them to focus on what they had witnessed in the past - the glorious Temple of Solomon and the greatness of the kingdom that it represented.

He told the people to  “chazak” - be strong and to “fear not” because God was with them in their endeavour, and most importantly, he told them that they were still a part of the covenant people.  This was probably the most encouraging thing they heard.  After all, they had just come out of a captivity that was brought on by the idolatrous practices of their fathers and by the failure of Judah to live within the covenant.  They probably wondered - “had God cast us off” as it appeared He had done to the northern tribes?  But clearly, that was not the case.  God confirmed that they were still part of the covenant and that He is true to His covenant responsibilities.

To further encourage them, Chaggai continued with the prophecy -

^ESV Haggai 2:6-9  For thus says the LORD of hosts: Yet once more, in a little while, I will shake the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land.  ⁷ And I will shake all nations, so that the treasures of all nations shall come in, and I will fill this house with glory, says the LORD of hosts.  ⁸ The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the LORD of hosts.  ⁹ The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, says the LORD of hosts. And in this place I will give peace, declares the LORD of hosts.'"

To understand this part of the prophecy it is important to understand that the Temple that was rebuilt in Chaggai’s day, even after its expansion in Herod’s day, never came close to the glory of Solomon’s temple.  It did not follow the same pattern, was not built with the same materials, and most importantly - never had the Ark of the Covenant nor the presence of God within it.  Thus this part of the prophecy did not pertain to a physical building.  Instead, it was a prophecy about the return of God’s people to the God of Israel. 

This prophecy - which again was given on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles - gave the people insight into why completion of the project was so important.  It was going to be the place to where all God’s people would return.  Let us read again excerpts from Solomon’s last petition in his prayer for the dedication of God’s Temple -

^ESV 1 Kings 8:46-50   "If they sin against you . . . and you are angry with them and give them to an enemy, so that they are carried away captive to the land of the enemy …  ⁴⁷ (and) if they turn their heart … and repent and plead with you in the land of their captors, saying, 'We have sinned and have acted perversely and wickedly,'  ⁴⁸ if they repent with all their mind and with all their heart in the land of their enemies … and pray to you toward their land, which you gave to their fathers, the city that you have chosen, and the house that I have built for your name,  ⁴⁹ then hear in heaven your dwelling place their prayer and their plea, and maintain their cause  ⁵⁰ and forgive your people who have sinned against you …”

Solomon’s prayer - coupled with Moses’ prophecy of the gathering of God’s people - give the reason why it was important that the people heed Chaggai’s words.  The Temple needed to be completed because God wanted to begin the re-gathering of His people.  It is His intent to “shake” them out of the nations where they have become cozy and warm so they will return to His house - the House of Israel, and His house will become even greater than it was during the days of David and Solomon.

This was the message of that day, and that is is why it was given on Tishr 21 - the last day - the Great day of the Feast of Tabernacles.

The Last Great Day of the Feast of Tabernacles is when God’s Holy Spirit is poured out on the rest of mankind.  It comes after the “house” has been rebuilt as pictured by the previous days of the festival. It comes after God’s people have prepared a place where the nations can come to learn about the God and His ways, and it comes after His workers have been trained and prepared to handle and teach this massive influx of people.

Fellow Workers

Though Chaggai’s prophecy was given to workers who were instructed to build a building over 2500 years ago, the message behind the prophecy applies to us today, for according to Paul, we are God’s workers and we are His building -

^ESV 1 Corinthians 3:9 For we are God's fellow workers. You are God's field, God's building.

We were called to be in the building business.  As disciples of Messiah Yeshua, we share the responsibility of rebuilding the people of God into a habitation where He can dwell.  To illustrate what I mean, let’s recall something Yeshua said to Peter while visiting Ceasarea Philippi with His disciples. 

Yeshua had lead His disciples to a place that epitomized the depths of paganism.  Though in Yeshua’s day it was called Ceasarea Philippi, it’s real name was Paneas - a place dedicated to the worship of the Greek god “Pan”.  It was at this place that Yeshua asked His disciples -

^ESV Matthew 16:15 "But who do you say that I am?" …

To which Peter replied -

^ESV Matthew 16:16 … "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."

Peter understood that they were standing in a place that represented the pantheon of Greek and Roman gods - gods that were not gods - god’s made of rocks and dead wood - god’s that had no life in them.  But Peter recognized Yeshua as the son of the LIVING God … a god of life.  It was important to Yeshua that Peter recognized who He was because they were soon to be given the responsibility of raising up a people who had no life in them - a people who had succumbed to idolatry - the type of idolatry represented by this place.  They were going to be charged with the responsibility of “building a house”.

Continuing, Yeshua answered Peter by saying -

^NKJ Matthew 16:18 "And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.

There are various interpretations as to what this passage means, but I believe that what Yeshua was saying was that from out of the depths of idolatry, Yeshua is going to restore His people.  Let’s take a look at this scripture and point out a couple of key words -

The first word is “build”.  It comes from the greek word “oikodomea” (Strong’s 3618) which in many cases does indeed mean “to build”.  But “oikodomea” is also translated “edify” or “build again”.  According to Strong’s, the primary meaning is “1) to build a house, erect a building 1a) to build (up from the foundation) 1b) to restore by building, to rebuild, repair”. 7

So the word can mean either build from the ground up, or restore a building by rebuilding or repairing.  Here are a couple of examples of “oikodomea” being translated that way -

^NKJ1 Corinthians 10:23 - All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful; all things are lawful for me, but not all things edify.

^NKJGalatians 2:17-18 "But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not! ¹⁸"For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.

In both cases, “oikodomea” was translated into a word that implies something that had already been built, but needed to be restored or firmed up.

The second word I want to point out is the word “church” which is derived from the Greek word “ekklisia” (Strong’s 1577) which simply means a gathering or assembly.  The Hebrew equivalent is the word “qahal” (Strongs 6951 - קהל). Qahal is oftentimes translated “congregation” as it is in this verse -

^NKJ Genesis 28:3  "May God Almighty bless you, And make you fruitful and multiply you, That you may be an assembly of peoples …”

This is the blessing by which Isaac blessed Jacob as he went to live with his uncle Laban.  Jacob would soon have 12 sons and they and their descendants collectively became “Israel”. So the “church” in the New Testament is the congregation of Israel in the Old Testiment. This is confirmed by the words of Steven just before he was stoned when he stated that the Israelites who were camped around Mount Sinai were the “church in the wilderness” -

^KJV Acts 7:38 This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:

Applying this to Matthew 16:18 we see that Yeshua was showing Peter and the other disciples that out of the depths of idolatry, He was going to rebuild the congregation of Israel.  

Rebuilding and restoring the Kingdom of Israel was Yeshua’s calling, and He handed that calling down to His disciples.  Within days of their calling, He instructed them to -

^ESV Matthew 10:5-7 … "Go nowhere among the Gentiles and enter no town of the Samaritans,  ⁶ but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  ⁷ And proclaim as you go, saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand.'

The disciples were to go out to the Lost Sheep of the House of Israel and begin the restoration that had been promised by the prophets of old including Chaggai.  Through their efforts, Yeshua was going to begin to draw His people out of paganism and build them into a Holy temple.  Those people would join the building project, and the Temple would continue to grow.  Zachariah - who wrote within a couple of years of Chaggai - said it this way -

^ESV Zechariah 6:12-15   … 'Thus says the LORD of hosts, "Behold, the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall branch out from his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD …  ¹⁵ "And those who are far off shall come and help to build the temple of the LORD …”

We are those who have come from far off?  They are God’s people who are waking up to their Hebraic roots and are turning to God and His way. We - like those in Chaggai’s day, are the ones who have been rescued from idolatry and called back to God’s way at a time when God can use us for His purposes. God is confirming His covenant in us by restoring to us the Torah, His Sabbath and the Holy Days.  And we are being called to be His disciples - to continue the work of the disciples - Peter, James, John and the others who dedicated their lives to this calling. 

It’s clear that we have been called to be in the building business - the business of rebuilding the House of God.  The question then is “are we going to remain devoted to that task, or are we - like the Jews in Chaggai’s day - going to become lax in our responsibility.”  This is certainly something we need to consider.  Solomon said -

^ESV Ecclesiastes 1:9 What has been is what will be, and what has been done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun.

If it happened before, it will happen again, and as far as I tell,  there has yet to be a third Temple.

Doing the Work

Were Chaggai’s prophecies really intended for those is his day, or for those of us who are being called in this “end time”?  Like was said earlier, the latter half of Chaggai’s second prophecy has yet to be fulfilled.  Are we the builders who are to build that most glorious house?  If so, what can we do to begin to fulfill that role and responsibility?  I believe we must take a critical look at why we’ve been called. We must then “consider our ways” or as the Hebrew implies - “set our heart to the path”.  As disciples, our calling is the same as that of Yeshua’s disciples; we are to rebuild the house.  That should be our primary objective, and if we fail to do so, we might very well end up like those in the church of Ephesus.

^NKJ Revelation 2:1 "To the angel of the church of Ephesus write, ' These things says He who holds the seven stars in His right hand …  ² "I know your works … ⁴ "Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love.  ⁵ "Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place -- unless you repent."

Once we have focused our hearts on the work we’ve been given to do, we should then determine how we can get the work done.  The first and most logical conclusion we can draw is that we cannot do the job by ourselves.  Just as one Jewish builder could not rebuild the Temple, we cannot accomplish the task we’ve been given to do if we try to do it by ourselves.  We must come together as a people. This means that we must be willing to work together.  We must be willing to work with people who don’t necessarily see all things the same way.

Working together means that we must be willing to organize to some degree.  The Temple could have not been rebuilt if the people did not work together in various crews. The workers had jobs that fit their skills, and and they came together as a crew.  Not everyone could be on the stone-laying crew.  There had to be stone-cutting crews, stone-carrying crews, scaffold building crews, and cement mixing crews — and yes, someone within each crew had to be “in charge”.

Chaggai’s message was a message for that time and for ours.  The returning Jews of Chaggai’s day headed the message of the prophet and the Temple was rebuilt.  Are we willing to do the same and  rebuild His house in our day?  I hope we are, because by building God’s Temple - the spiritual house of God, we are building a community of people to whom God can send others when it is their time to be called.  And when YHVH decides it is their time, He will open up to them the flood of Living Waters from Messiah Yeshua and they too can receive the salvation of YHVH.

Shalom Alecheim