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¹ IN the seventh month, on the twenty-first day of the month, the word of the LORD came by the prophet Haggai, saying,² Speak now to Zerubbabel, the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua, the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to all the rest of the people, saying,³ Who is left among you that saw this house in its former glory? And how do you see it now? Is it not now in your sight considered as nothing?⁴ Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, says the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all you people of the land, says the LORD, and work; for I am with you, says the LORD of hosts.⁵ According to the covenant which I made with you when you came out of Egypt, so my spirit remains among you; fear not.⁶ For thus says the LORD of hosts: 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, and they shall bring the precious things of all nations; and I will fill the house with glory, says the LORD of hosts.⁸ The silver is mine and the gold is mine, says the LORD of hosts.⁹ The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former, says the LORD of hosts; and in this place will I give peace, says the LORD of hosts.

¹⁰ On the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, in the second year of Darius, came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,¹¹ Thus says the LORD of hosts: Ask now the priests concerning the law, saying,¹² If a man carries holy meat in the skirt of his cloak, and touches with his skirt bread or pottage or wine or oil or any kind of food, shall it be holy? And the priests answered and said, No.¹³ Then said Haggai, If one who is unclean touches all these things, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.¹⁴ Then answered Haggai and said, So is this people and so is this generation before me, says the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and what they offer there is unclean.¹⁵ And now, consider in your hearts, from this day upward, before a stone was laid upon a stone in the temple of the LORD;¹⁶ When you came to a heap of grain of twenty measures, there were but ten; when you came to the wine press to draw out fifty vessels, there were but twenty.¹⁷ I smote you with blight and with mildew and with hail in all the labor of your hands; yet you turned not to me, says the LORD.¹⁸ Subdue your hearts from this day and upward, from the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month, even from the day that the foundation of the LORDS temple was laid, consider it.¹⁹ Consider now in your hearts, for there is no grain for the seed in the threshing floor, and the vine, and as yet the fig tree and the pomegranate and the olive trees have not brought forth; from this day I will bless them, says the LORD.

²⁰ And again the word of the LORD came to Haggai, on the twenty-fourth day of the month, saying,²¹ Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I will shake the heavens and the earth;²² And I will overthrow the throne of the kingdoms, and I will destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the Gentiles; and I will upset the chariots over their riders; and the horses and the riders shall fall down, every one by the sword of his brother.²³ On that day, says the LORD of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, says the LORD, and I will make you as a signet; for I have chosen you, says the LORD of hosts.