HAGGAI, the tenth in order of the "minor prophets," whose writings are preserved in the Old Testament. The book contains four short prophecies delivered between September and Decem ber of the second year of Darius; that is, Darius Hystaspis B.c.). The language of the prophet in ii. 3 has sug gested that he was so old as to have seen the Temple of Solomon which had been destroyed in 586 B.c. This would agree with the shortness of the period covered by his book, and with the fact that his contemporary Zechariah, who began to prophesy in the same autumn, afterwards appears as the leading prophet in Jeru salem (Zech. vii. 1-4)• In his first prophecy (i. I—I I) Haggai addresses Zerubbabel and Joshua, rebuking the people for leaving the temple unbuilt. The prevalent famine and distress are due to Yahweh's indigna tion : let them build the house and Yahweh will take pleasure in it and acknowledge the honour paid to Him. The people there upon began to work at the temple, strengthened by the prophet's assurance that the Lord was with them (i. 12-15). In a second prophecy (ii. 1-9) delivered in the following month, Haggai for bids the people to be disheartened by the apparent meanness of the new temple. The silver and gold are the Lord's. He will soon shake all nations and their choicest gifts will be brought to adorn His house. Its glory shall be greater than that of the former temple, and in this place He will give peace. A third prophecy (ii. 10-19) contains a promise, enforced by a figure drawn from the priestly ritual, that God will remove famine and bless the land from the day of the foundation of the temple onwards. Finally, in ii. 20-23, Zerubbabel is assured of God's special love and protection in the impending catastrophe of king doms and nations to which the prophet had formerly pointed as preceding the glorification of God's house on Zion.
The characteristic features of the book are three. (1) The im portance assigned to the personality of Zerubbabel, who, though a living contemporary, is marked out as the Messiah. The hopes fixed on Zerubbabel, the chosen of the Lord, dear to Him as His signet ring (cf. Jer. xxii. 24), indicate the importance of the house of David. But in the book of Zechariah Zerubbabel is falling into the background, and the kingship is yielding to the priest hood. After the foundation of the temple Zerubbabel disappears from history and lives only in legend, which continued to busy itself with his story, as we see from the apocryphal book of Esdras. (2) An almost sacramental significance is attached to the temple. Haggai argues that material prosperity was condi tioned by zeal in worship : the prevalent suffering was an indica tion of divine anger. While the temple lay waste, the people and all their works and offerings were unclean (ii. 14): In this Haggai stands in contrast to those prophets who warn their hearers against attaching intrinsic importance to the temple (e.g., Isa. lxvi. I), and he betrays his affinity with Ezekiel, who taught that it was by the possession of the sanctuary and priesthood that Israel was sanctified (Ezek. xxxvii. 28). Finally (3) what is the cause of the indifference of the Jews to the desolate condition of their sanctuary? Neither Haggai nor his contemporary Zechariah mentions or implies any return of exiles from Babylon, and the view is accordingly held that the return under Cyrus described in Ezra i.–iv. is unhistorical, and that the community addressed by Haggai consisted, in the main, of the Judaeans that had been left in Jerusalem and its neighbourhood after the majority had gone into exile or fled to Egypt (Jer. xliii.) . (See JEws.) From the prophecies of Haggai and Zechariah it would never be supposed that some 5o,000 Jews had returned when Cyrus became king of Babylon and showed high favour to the exiles (Ezra i.). Even if their enthusiasm had melted away under the stress of bad seasons, the enmity of jealous neighbours, and other troubles, the contrast which Zechariah draws between Yahweh's past wrath and his imminent intervention on behalf of his people, points to the approach of new conditions. And in fact the Jews everywhere were not likely to have been unmoved by the revolts which broke out in the Persian empire at the accession of Darius. Haggai accordingly sees a shaking of the nations which seemed destined to spread; and with the characteristic tendency of Hebrew prophecy to estimate history only in its bearing upon the destiny of Yahweh's people, he looks for an age when Yahweh's enemies would be overthrown, there would be peace, Yahweh's temple would be enriched by willing nations, and Zerub babel would occupy the highest place of honour. (See JEWs.) BIBLIOGRAPHY.-Haggai is usually treated along with Zechariah or Bibliography.-Haggai is usually treated along with Zechariah or with the rest of the minor prophets: see the bibliographies to these.
(W. R. S.; S. A. C.)