Thus saith the Lord of hosts is His command to His people to carefully examine their conduct and condition, pressed home by repetition. It was spoken to the returned Israelites who for over a year left His temple neglected, unfinished and almost forsaken while they dwelt in their own ceiled houses and ran each to his own house. Their putting of their own homes, buildings and personal interests first came from seeking temporal prosperity and escaping poverty, yet it brought upon them the very want they feared so that nothing prospered despite hard work. That hardship was God's own doing in judgment, withholding dew and fruit and sending futile labor, diminished harvests and drought upon land, corn, wine, oil, men, cattle and all the labor of the hands because His gifts were used selfishly and His house was neglected. The call therefore summons them to honor Him at once without further waiting by putting His interests first and building His house that He may take pleasure in it and be glorified, and it still demands making a proper place of worship the first consideration rather than lavishly improving one's own home, with financial faithfulness as stewards in tithes and offerings and in examining duty and management when His work is burdened with debt.
Israel's Neglect and Rebuke
Thus says the Lord of hosts, commanding His people to carefully examine their conduct and condition, and the command is repeated to press it home. It was spoken to the returned Israelites in the early reign of Darius Hystaspes, who for over a year had left the temple neglected, unfinished, waste and almost forsaken. All the while they dwelt in their own ceiled houses and ran each to his own house.
It rebukes them for putting their own homes, buildings and personal interests first, for passivity and doing little, and for concern for their own buildings with unconcern for the Lord's building. It rebukes them for losing the burning zeal once shown for restoration, and for serving self at the sacrifice of God's cause. Long murmuring, doubting and apathy toward the ruined temple had made many lose sight of God's purpose in restoring them to Judea.
Their neglect came from desire to escape poverty and seek temporal prosperity in their own homes. But that neglect brought upon them what they feared, so that nothing prospered despite hard work. They were left in deplorable and pitiable condition spiritually and temporally.
Their want and hardship were God's doing and divine judgment for that neglect. He had given corn and wine and oil as a token of favor but removed the blessings because the gifts were used selfishly. Neglecting His house and withholding tithes and offerings brought futile labor and diminished harvests, so that what was earned and gathered did not meet need and expected abundance came to little. They sowed much but brought in little, ate without enough, drank without being filled, clothed without warmth, and earned wages put into a bag with holes, with heaven stayed from dew and earth stayed from fruit. Drought was called upon land, mountains, corn, new wine, oil, ground produce, men, cattle and all the labor of the hands, with a wasting drought sent upon their substance.
The call summons them to honor God at once without further waiting, putting His interests first. They were to go up to the mountain, bring wood and build the house. They were to prepare it quickly and dedicate it as a place to worship Him in humbleness of mind, to kneel before Him and to serve Him fittingly and in order. Doing so would honor Him and invite His presence, so that He may take pleasure in it and be glorified, after which He promised to bless them.
Present Call to Faithfulness
To consider ways is to face delay and want of faith and to honor God at once without further waiting by rising up and building a house for Him. It means making the building of a proper house for God the first consideration and not leaving it to the last, providing quickly an adequate, accessible place of worship with suitable room and seating to bow before Him in humbleness of mind, to kneel before Him, and to serve Him fittingly and in order, rather than continuing in a place that is too small and unsuitable. On school grounds this means building a place for worship before other work, so that He is honored and reverenced. When finished and dedicated to Him, that house stands as a witness to the truth held by those who built it where He directed them to settle.
Those who set their hand cheerfully to that work and go forward bringing wood and erecting the house have angels present on the ground to direct the work and guide their judgment. The work is to be pushed forward earnestly with prayer for wisdom and a heart to understand every impression of His Spirit, and He takes pleasure in the building and is glorified by it. The result is rejoicing and praise to God with singing and shouting.
The call exposes neglecting to build or maintain houses of worship while pursuing own interests, lavishly improving one's own home while leaving the place of worship neglected, and giving grudgingly to prepare a house for God. Such treatment of the place of worship shows how much sacred things and His presence are valued, and such misplaced priorities show little regard for Him and dishonor Christ. Blessing and spiritual strength correspond to care for His work, and withholding what belongs to Him brings affliction and loss in proportion to unwillingness to give. As stewards entrusted with His gifts, neglecting His house and withholding tithes and offerings brings futile labor and diminished harvests, so that what is earned and gathered does not meet need and expected abundance comes to little. Scarcity in the treasury comes from work He cannot approve, and selfishly taking resources from others to advance an institution cannot be justified as service to Him, because it violates His Word and leads away from principle.
When churches are burdened with debt the call means examining conduct, duty and management, for debt dishonors Him and shows wrong management from beginning to end, rooted in thinking much of self and selfish interests. It applies both to neglecting to arise and build and to building with borrowed money while failing to donate to free church buildings from debt, letting year after year pass with very little sacrifice while interest swallows up means that should pay the principal. What duty requires must be asked, and sacrifice made to lessen and remove the debt. Those who realize the nearness of the Lord's coming consider their ways by acting faith with heart and soul interest when one of His instrumentalities is languishing or in peril, being one in mind and heart with heavenly intelligences so as to be worked by them, and unitedly taking of the Lord's own substance to lift the burdens resting on His institutions, with assurance that He will cooperate with them. The same examination is demanded of workers in His service who corrupt truth and righteousness by working on principles He cannot sanction, depending on human effort instead of His power and bringing in presumption and human wisdom, who must stop and examine their course because they are not in harmony with Him and their spirit is not one with His Spirit, and of a leader urged to stop, repent and change a course He cannot endorse.
Thus saith the Lord of hosts is His command to His people to carefully examine their conduct and condition, pressed home by repetition. It was spoken to the returned Israelites who for over a year left His temple neglected, unfinished and almost forsaken while they dwelt in their own ceiled houses and ran each to his own house. Their putting of their own homes, buildings and personal interests first came from seeking temporal prosperity and escaping poverty, yet it brought upon them the very want they feared so that nothing prospered despite hard work. That hardship was God's own doing in judgment, withholding dew and fruit and sending futile labor, diminished harvests and drought upon land, corn, wine, oil, men, cattle and all the labor of the hands because His gifts were used selfishly and His house was neglected. The call therefore summons them to honor Him at once without further waiting by putting His interests first and building His house that He may take pleasure in it and be glorified, and it still demands making a proper place of worship the first consideration rather than lavishly improving one's own home, with financial faithfulness as stewards in tithes and offerings and in examining duty and management when His work is burdened with debt.
Israel's Neglect and Rebuke
Thus says the Lord of hosts, commanding His people to carefully examine their conduct and condition, and the command is repeated to press it home. It was spoken to the returned Israelites in the early reign of Darius Hystaspes, who for over a year had left the temple neglected, unfinished, waste and almost forsaken. All the while they dwelt in their own ceiled houses and ran each to his own house.
It rebukes them for putting their own homes, buildings and personal interests first, for passivity and doing little, and for concern for their own buildings with unconcern for the Lord's building. It rebukes them for losing the burning zeal once shown for restoration, and for serving self at the sacrifice of God's cause. Long murmuring, doubting and apathy toward the ruined temple had made many lose sight of God's purpose in restoring them to Judea.
Their neglect came from desire to escape poverty and seek temporal prosperity in their own homes. But that neglect brought upon them what they feared, so that nothing prospered despite hard work. They were left in deplorable and pitiable condition spiritually and temporally.
Their want and hardship were God's doing and divine judgment for that neglect. He had given corn and wine and oil as a token of favor but removed the blessings because the gifts were used selfishly. Neglecting His house and withholding tithes and offerings brought futile labor and diminished harvests, so that what was earned and gathered did not meet need and expected abundance came to little. They sowed much but brought in little, ate without enough, drank without being filled, clothed without warmth, and earned wages put into a bag with holes, with heaven stayed from dew and earth stayed from fruit. Drought was called upon land, mountains, corn, new wine, oil, ground produce, men, cattle and all the labor of the hands, with a wasting drought sent upon their substance.
The call summons them to honor God at once without further waiting, putting His interests first. They were to go up to the mountain, bring wood and build the house. They were to prepare it quickly and dedicate it as a place to worship Him in humbleness of mind, to kneel before Him and to serve Him fittingly and in order. Doing so would honor Him and invite His presence, so that He may take pleasure in it and be glorified, after which He promised to bless them.
Present Call to Faithfulness
To consider ways is to face delay and want of faith and to honor God at once without further waiting by rising up and building a house for Him. It means making the building of a proper house for God the first consideration and not leaving it to the last, providing quickly an adequate, accessible place of worship with suitable room and seating to bow before Him in humbleness of mind, to kneel before Him, and to serve Him fittingly and in order, rather than continuing in a place that is too small and unsuitable. On school grounds this means building a place for worship before other work, so that He is honored and reverenced. When finished and dedicated to Him, that house stands as a witness to the truth held by those who built it where He directed them to settle.
Those who set their hand cheerfully to that work and go forward bringing wood and erecting the house have angels present on the ground to direct the work and guide their judgment. The work is to be pushed forward earnestly with prayer for wisdom and a heart to understand every impression of His Spirit, and He takes pleasure in the building and is glorified by it. The result is rejoicing and praise to God with singing and shouting.
The call exposes neglecting to build or maintain houses of worship while pursuing own interests, lavishly improving one's own home while leaving the place of worship neglected, and giving grudgingly to prepare a house for God. Such treatment of the place of worship shows how much sacred things and His presence are valued, and such misplaced priorities show little regard for Him and dishonor Christ. Blessing and spiritual strength correspond to care for His work, and withholding what belongs to Him brings affliction and loss in proportion to unwillingness to give. As stewards entrusted with His gifts, neglecting His house and withholding tithes and offerings brings futile labor and diminished harvests, so that what is earned and gathered does not meet need and expected abundance comes to little. Scarcity in the treasury comes from work He cannot approve, and selfishly taking resources from others to advance an institution cannot be justified as service to Him, because it violates His Word and leads away from principle.
When churches are burdened with debt the call means examining conduct, duty and management, for debt dishonors Him and shows wrong management from beginning to end, rooted in thinking much of self and selfish interests. It applies both to neglecting to arise and build and to building with borrowed money while failing to donate to free church buildings from debt, letting year after year pass with very little sacrifice while interest swallows up means that should pay the principal. What duty requires must be asked, and sacrifice made to lessen and remove the debt. Those who realize the nearness of the Lord's coming consider their ways by acting faith with heart and soul interest when one of His instrumentalities is languishing or in peril, being one in mind and heart with heavenly intelligences so as to be worked by them, and unitedly taking of the Lord's own substance to lift the burdens resting on His institutions, with assurance that He will cooperate with them. The same examination is demanded of workers in His service who corrupt truth and righteousness by working on principles He cannot sanction, depending on human effort instead of His power and bringing in presumption and human wisdom, who must stop and examine their course because they are not in harmony with Him and their spirit is not one with His Spirit, and of a leader urged to stop, repent and change a course He cannot endorse.