John Calvin Commentary Haggai 2:6-9

"For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations; and the precious things of all nations shall come; and I will fill this house with glory, saith Jehovah of hosts. The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith Jehovah of hosts. The latter glory of this house shall be greater than the former, saith Jehovah of hosts; and in this place will I give peace, saith Jehovah of hosts." — Haggai 2:6-9 (ASV)

Here the Prophet expresses more clearly, and confirms more fully, what I have said—that God would in time bring help to the miserable Jews, because he would not disappoint the assurance given to the fathers. This declaration, then, depends on the covenant previously mentioned; and for this reason the causative particle is used, For thus says Jehovah of hosts, as yet a small one it is, or, yet shortly, I will fill this house with glory. Most interpreters apply the expression "a small thing" to time. Yet there are those who think the subject itself is denoted. The more accepted opinion is that it means a small duration, a short time, because God would soon make a change for the better. “Though then there does not yet appear the accomplishment of the promises, by which you have until now supported your faith and your hope, yet after a short time God will really prove that he has spoken nothing falsely to you.”

There are still some, as I have said, who think that the matter itself is denoted by the Prophet, even that the Temple did not yet appear in splendor before the eyes of men, a small one it is; that is, You do not indeed see a building such as that was, before the Assyrians and the Chaldeans took possession of the city; but do not let your eyes remain fixed on the appearance of this Temple. Let then this small one as yet pass by; but in a short time this house will be filled with glory.

With regard to the main object, it was the Prophet’s design to strengthen the minds of the godly, so that they might not think that the power of God was inefficient, though he had not yet performed what they had hoped. In short, they were not to judge by present appearances what had been previously said of their redemption.

We said yesterday that the minds of the godly were heavily depressed, because the Prophets had spoken in high terms of the Temple as well as of the kingdom: the kingdom was still nothing, and the temple was more like a shed than what might have been compared in glory with the former Temple. It was therefore necessary for the Prophet to meet this objection; and this is the reason why he tells them to overlook the present appearance and to think of the glory which was yet hidden. As yet, he says, it is a small one; that is, “There is no reason for you to despair, though the grandeur of the Temple does not yet appear to be so great as you have conceived; but, on the contrary, let your minds pass over to that restoration which is still far distant. As yet then a small one it is; and I will move the heavens and the earth.”

In a word, God here tells them to exercise patience, until he should put forth the ineffable power of his hand to restore fully his Church; and this is what is meant by the shaking of the heaven and the earth.

But this is a remarkable passage. The Jews indeed, who are very absurd in everything connected with the kingdom of Christ, pervert what is said here by the Prophet, and even reduce it to nothing. But the Apostle in Hebrews 12:1 reminds us of what God means here. For this passage contains an implied contrast between the law and the gospel, between the redemption just mentioned here, and that which was to be expected and was eventually made known by the coming of Christ. God, then, when he redeemed his people from Egypt, as well as from Babylon, moved the earth; but the Prophet announces here something greater—that God would shake the heaven and the earth. But so that the meaning of the Prophet may appear more evident, each sentence must be examined in order.

He says first, this once, shortly. I am inclined to apply this to time, so that I may not depart from what is commonly accepted. But there is no reason for us to contend on the subject, because it makes little or no difference to the main point. For we have said that what the Prophet had in view was to show that the Jews were not to fix their eyes and their minds on the appearance of the Temple at the time: “Allow,” he says, “and give place to hope, because your present state shall not long remain; for the Lord will shake the heaven and the earth. Think then of God’s power, how great it is; does he not by his providence rule both the earth and the heaven?”

And he will shake all things above and below, rather than fail to restore his Church; he will rather change the appearance of the whole world, than let redemption not be fully accomplished. Do not then be unwilling to be satisfied with these preludes, but know what God’s power can do: for though it may be necessary to throw the heaven and the earth into confusion, yet this shall be done, rather than let your enemies prevent that full restoration of which the Prophets have so often spoken. But the Apostle very justly says that the gospel is here set in contrast with the law; for God exhibited his wonderful power when the law was promulgated on Mount Sinai, but a fuller power shone forth at the coming of Christ, for then the heaven, as well as the earth, was shaken.

It is not, then, without reason that the Apostle concludes that God speaks now to us from heaven, for his majesty appears more splendid in the gospel than formerly in the law; and therefore we are less excusable if we despise him now speaking in the person of his only begotten Son, and thus speaking to show us that the whole world is subject to him.

He then adds, I will move all the nations, and they shall come. After having mentioned the heaven and the earth, he now shows that he would arrest the attention of all mortals, so as to turn them according to his will, in any way it may please him: Come, he says, shall all nations—How? Because I shall shake them.

Here again the Prophet teaches us that men do not come to Christ except through the wonderful agency of God. He might have spoken more simply, "I will lead all nations," as it is said elsewhere; but his purpose was to express something more, even that the impulse by which God moves his elect to go to the fold of Christ is supernatural.

Shaking seems a forcible act. So that men, then, should not obscure the power of God, by which they are roused to obey Christ and submit to his authority, it is expressed here by the Prophet by this term, so that they might understand that the Lord does not work in a usual or common way when they are thus changed.

But it must also be observed that men are thus powerfully, and in an extraordinary or supernatural way influenced, so that they follow spontaneously at the same time. The operation of God is then twofold; for it is first necessary to shake men, so that they may unlearn their whole character; that is, forgetting their former nature, they may willingly receive the yoke of Christ.

We indeed know how great our perverseness is, and how untamable we are, until God subdues us by his Spirit. In such a case, a violent shaking is needed. But we are not forced to obey Christ, as lions and wild beasts are, who indeed yield, but still retain their inward ferocity, and roar, though led in chains and subdued by scourges and beatings.

We are not, then, so shaken that our inward rebellion remains in us; but we are shaken so that our disposition is changed, and we willingly receive the yoke of Christ. This is the reason why the Prophet says, I will shake all nations, and they shall come. That is, there will indeed be a wonderful conversion when the nations who previously despised God, and regarded true religion and piety with the utmost hatred, will accustom themselves to the ruling power of God. And they shall come, because they shall be so drawn by his hidden influence that the obedience they render will be voluntary. We now perceive the meaning of the Prophet.

He afterwards adds, The desire of all nations. This admits of two explanations. The first is that nations will come and bring with them everything that is precious, in order to consecrate it to the service of God; for the Hebrews call whatever is valuable a "desire," so that under this term they include all riches, honors, pleasures, and everything of this kind.

For this reason, some render the passage thus: I will shake all nations, and come shall the desire of all nations. As there is a change of number, others will have ב, beth, or מ, mem, to be understood: They shall come with what they desire; that is, the nations will not come empty, but shall gather all their treasures to be a holy oblation to God.

But we may understand what he says of Christ: Come shall the desire of all nations, and I will fill this house with glory. We indeed know that Christ was the expectation of the whole world, according to what is said by Isaiah. And it may be properly said that when the desire of all nations shall come, that is, when Christ shall be manifested, in whom the wishes of all ought to center, the glory of the second Temple will then be illustrious. But as it immediately follows, Mine is the silver, and mine is the gold, the more simple meaning is that which I first stated—that the nations would come, bringing with them all their riches, so that they might offer themselves and all their possessions as a sacrifice to God.

It is, then, better to read what follows as an explanation, Mine is the silver, mine is the gold, says Jehovah; that is, “I have not through lack of money deferred until now the complete building of the Temple; for what can hinder me from amassing gold and silver from everywhere? If it should so please me, I could in a short time build a Temple with all the wealth of the world. Is it not indeed in my power to create mountains of gold and silver, with which I might erect for myself a Temple? You therefore see that I do not lack wealth to build the Temple which I have promised; but the time has not arrived. Therefore those who believe the preceding predictions should wait and look forward, until the suitable time shall come.” This is the meaning of the passage.

He finally declares that the glory of the second Temple would be greater than that of the first, and that there would be peace in that place. As to the words, there is nothing obscure; but we should especially pay attention to what is said.

It must, indeed, be first observed that what is said here of the future glory of the Temple is to be applied to the excellence of those spiritual blessings which appeared when Christ was revealed, and are still conspicuous to us through faith; for ungodly men are so blind that they do not see them.

And this we must bear in mind, so that we do not dream like some gross interpreters, who think that what is said here was in part fulfilled when Herod reconstructed the Temple. For though that was a sumptuous building, yet there is no doubt that it was an attempt of the Devil to delude the Jews, so that they might cease to hope for Christ.

Such was also, probably, the craft of Herod. We indeed know that he was only a half-Jew. He professed himself to be one of Abraham’s children; but he accommodated his habits, we know, to those of the Jews, strangely for his own advantage. So that they might not look for Christ, this delusive and empty spectacle was presented to them, so that it almost astounded them.

Though this, however, may not have entered into the mind of Herod, it is still certain that the Devil’s design was to present to the Jews this deceptive shade, so that they might not raise up their thoughts to look for the coming of Christ, as the time was then near.

God might, indeed, immediately at the beginning have caused a magnificent temple to be built: just as he had allowed the people to return, so he might have given them courage and supplied them with materials to make the latter Temple equal or even superior to the Temple of Solomon.

But Cyrus prohibited by an edict the Temple from being built so high, and he also made its length somewhat smaller. Why was this done? And why also did Darius do the same, who nevertheless liberally helped the Jews and spared no expense in building the Temple? Why did both these kings, though guided by the Spirit of God, not allow the Temple to be built with the same splendor with which it had been previously erected?

This did not happen without the wonderful counsel of God; for we know how gross in their notions the Jews had been, and we see that even the Apostles were entangled in the same error, for they expected that the kingdom of Christ would be nothing other than an earthly one.

Had then this Temple been equally magnificent as the former, and had the kingdom become such as it had been, the Jews would have acquiesced in these outward pomps, so that Christ would have been despised, and God’s spiritual favor would have been esteemed as nothing. Since, then, they were so bent on earthly happiness, it was necessary for them to be awakened; and the Lord considered their weakness by not allowing a splendid Temple to be built.

But in allowing a counterfeit Temple to be built by Herod when the manifestation of Christ was near, God manifested his vengeance by punishing their ingratitude, rather than his favor; and I call it counterfeit because its splendor was never approved by God. Though Herod spent great treasures on that building, he nevertheless profaned rather than adorned the Temple.

Foolishly, then, some commemorate what Helena, queen of Adiabene, had laid out, and think that in this way credit is in some measure attributed to this prophecy. But it was on the contrary Satan who attempted to deceive by such impostures and deceptions, so that he might draw away the minds of the godly from the beauty of the spiritual Temple.

But why does the prophet mention gold and silver? He did this in conformity with what was usual and common; for whenever the Prophets speak of the kingdom of Christ, they delineate or describe its splendor in figurative terms, suitable to their own age. When Isaiah foretells the restoration of the Church, he declares that the Church would be all gold and silver, and whatever glittered with precious stones; and in Isaiah 60:1 he especially sets forth the magnificence of the Temple, as though nations from all parts were to bring for sacrifice all their precious things. But Isaiah speaks figuratively, as all the other Prophets do. So then, what we read of gold and silver should be explained in such a way as to be applied mystically to the kingdom of Christ, as we have already observed respecting Malachi 1:11—

‘They shall offer to me, says the Lord,
pure sacrifices from the rising to the setting of the sun.’

What are these sacrifices? Are heifers still to be offered, or lambs, or other animals? By no means; but we must regard the spiritual character of the priesthood. For just as the gold and silver of which the Prophet now speaks should be taken in a spiritual sense—because since Christ has appeared in the world, it is not God’s will to be served with gold and silver vessels—so also there is no altar on which victims are to be sacrificed, and no candlestick.

In a word, all the symbols of the law have ceased. It therefore follows that the Prophet speaks of the spiritual ornaments of the Temple. And thus we perceive how the glory of the second Temple is to be greater than that of the first.

It then follows that God would give peace in this place, as though he had said that it would be well with the Jews if they only waited patiently for the complete fulfillment of redemption. But it must be observed that this peace was not so evident to them that they could enjoy it according to the perception of the flesh; but it was that kind of peace of which Paul speaks, and which, he says, exceeds all understanding (Philippians 4:7).

In short, the people could not have comprehended what the Prophet teaches here respecting the future splendor of the Temple, unless they leaped over all the obstacles which seemed to obstruct the progress of complete redemption. And so it was always necessary for them to have recourse to this truth—yet a little while, as though he said that they were to endure patiently while God was exercising their faith.

But the time would come, and that shortly, when the Lord would fill that house with glory; that is, when Christ would bring with him all fullness of glory. For though they were to gather the treasures of a thousand worlds into one mass, such a glory would still be corruptible; but when God the Father appeared in the person of his own Son, he then indeed glorified his Temple, and his majesty shone forth so much that there was nothing lacking for complete perfection.

Prayer:

Grant, Almighty God, that since we are by nature extremely prone to superstition, we may carefully consider what is the true and right way of serving you, such as you desire and approve: even that we offer ourselves spiritually to you, seek no other altar but Christ, and, relying on no other priest, hope to be acceptable and devoted to you, that he may imbue us with the Spirit that has been fully poured on him, so that we may from the heart devote ourselves to you and thus proceed patiently in our course, so that with minds raised upwards we may always go on towards that glory which is still hidden under hope, until it is finally manifested in due time, when your only begotten Son shall appear with the elect angels for our final redemption. Amen.