Then spake the LORD by the Prophet Haggai, and said,

"Ye yourselves can find time to dwell in sealed houses: and shall this house lie waste?

Consider now your own ways in your hearts, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.

Ye sow much, but ye bring little in; Ye eat, but ye have not enough; ye drink, but ye are not filled; ye deck yourselves, but ye are not warm; and he that earneth any wage, putteth it in a broken purse.

Thus sayeth the LORD of Hosts: Consider your own ways in your hearts,

I have called for a drought, both upon the land and upon the mountains, upon corn, upon wine, and upon oil, upon everything that the ground bringeth forth, upon men and upon cattle, yea and upon all handy labour."

Now when Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jozadak the high priest, with the remnant of the people, heard the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of the Prophet Haggai, like as the LORD their God had sent him, the people did fear the LORD.

Upon the twenty fourth day of the sixth month, in the second year of king Darius,

Wherefore the heaven is forbidden to give you any dew, and the earth is forbidden to give you increase.

So the LORD waked up the spirit of Zerubbabel the prince of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jozadak the high priest, and the spirit of the remnant of all the people: that they came and laboured, in the house of the LORD of Hosts their God.

Then Haggai the LORD's messenger said in the LORD's message to the people, "I am with you, sayeth the LORD."

'Who is left among you, that saw this house in her first beauty? But what think ye now by it? Is it not in your eyes, even as though it were nothing?

Ye looked for much, and lo it is come to little: and though ye bring it home, yet do I blow it away. And why so, sayeth the LORD of Hosts? Even because that my house lieth so waste, and ye run every man unto his own house.

get you up to the mountain, fetch wood, and build up the house: that it may be acceptable unto me, and that I may show mine honour, sayeth the LORD.

Nevertheless be of good cheer, O Zerubbabel, sayeth the LORD; be of good comfort, O Joshua thou son of Jozadak, high priest: take good hearts unto you also, all ye people of the land, sayeth the LORD of Hosts,

and do according to the word - for I am with you, sayeth the LORD of Hosts, like as I agreed with you when ye came out of the land of Egypt: and my spirit shall be among you, fear ye not.

The silver is mine, the gold is mine, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.

Thus the glory of the last house shall be greater than the first, sayeth the LORD of Hosts: and in this place will I give peace, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.'"

The twenty fourth day of the ninth month in the second year of king Darius, came the word of the LORD unto the Prophet Haggai, saying,

"Thus sayeth the LORD God of hosts: Ask the priests concerning the law, and say,

The twenty first day of the seventh month, came the word of the LORD by the Prophet Haggai, saying,

'If one bear holy flesh in his coat lap, and with his lap do touch the bread, pottage, wine, oil or any other meat: shall it be holy also?'" The priests answered and said, "No."

And now, I pray you, consider from this day forth, and how it hath gone with you afore - before there was laid one stone upon another in the temple of the LORD -

Then said Haggai, "Now if one being defiled with a dead carcass, touch any of these: shall it also be unclean?"

And as for thee, O Zerubbabel, sayeth the LORD of Hosts, thou son of Shealtiel my servant: I will take thee, sayeth the LORD, at the same time: and make thee as a seal. For I have chosen thee, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.'"

The Priests gave answer and said, "Yea, it shall be unclean." Then Haggai answered, and said, "Even so is this people and this nation before me, sayeth the LORD: and so are all the works of their hands, yea and all that they offer, is unclean.

"Speak to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel prince of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jozadak the high priest, and to the residue of the people, and say,

"Speak to Zerubbabel the prince of Judah, and say, 'I will shake both heaven and earth,

is not the seed yet in the barn? Have not the vines, the fig trees, the pomegranates and the olive trees been yet unfruitful? But from this day forth, I shall make them to prosper."

Consider then from this day forth and afore, namely, from the twenty fourth day of the ninth month, unto the day that the foundation of the LORD's temple was laid: Mark it well,

that when ye came to a corn heap of twenty bushels, there were scarce ten: and that when ye came to the wine press for to pour out fifty pots of wine, there were scarce twenty.

Moreover the twenty fourth day of the month came the word of the LORD unto Haggai again, saying,

For I smote you with heat, blasting and hailstones in all the labors of your hands: yet was there none of you, that would turn unto me, sayeth the LORD.

and overthrow the seat of the kingdoms, yea and destroy the mighty kingdom of the Heathen. I will overthrow the chariots, and those that sit upon then, so that both horse and man shall fall down, every man through his neighbour's sword.

In the second year of king Darius, in the sixth month, the first day of the month, came the word of the LORD by the Prophet Haggai, unto Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel the prince of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Jozadak the high priest, saying,

For thus sayeth the LORD of Hosts: yet once more will I shake heaven and earth, the sea, and the dry land:

"Thus speaketh the LORD of Hosts, and sayeth, 'This people doth say: The time is not yet come to build up the LORD's house.'"

Yea, I will move all Heathen, and the comfort of all Heathen shall come, and so will I fill this house with honour, sayeth the LORD of Hosts.