But now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. And be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work! For I am with you, declares the LORD of Hosts.
Parallel translations
- WEB Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ says Yahweh. ‘Be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land,’ says Yahweh, ‘and work, for I am with you,’ says Yahweh of Armies.
- KJV Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:
- NKJV Yet now be strong, Zerubbabel,’ says the Lord; ‘and be strong, Joshua, son of Jehozadak, 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.
- NASB But now take courage, Zerubbabel,’ declares the Lord, ‘take courage also, Joshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and all you people of the land take courage,’ declares the Lord, ‘and work; for I am with you,’ declares the Lord of armies.
- NLT But now the Lord says: Be strong, Zerubbabel. Be strong, Jeshua son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people still left in the land. And now get to work, for I am with you, says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
God commands the leaders and people to be strong and work, grounding their courage in His promise, 'I am with you.' His presence, not their resources, is their strength.
Overview
The threefold 'be strong' echoes God's charge to Joshua of old (Joshua 1:6-9), summoning the community to bold, faithful labor. The basis of their courage is not the building's grandeur but God's abiding presence. This same assurance undergirds the church's work today (Matthew 28:20).
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 17
- 1 Chr 28:20David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do it. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD God, my God, is with you. He will neither fail you nor forsake you before all the work for the service of the house of the LORD is finished.
- Zech 8:9This is what the LORD of Hosts says: “Let your hands be strong, you who now hear these words spoken by the prophets who were present when the foundations were laid to rebuild the temple, the house of the LORD of Hosts.
- Josh 1:9Have I not commanded you to be strong and courageous? Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”
- Deut 31:23Then the LORD commissioned Joshua son of Nun and said, “Be strong and courageous, for you will bring the Israelites into the land that I swore to give them, and I will be with you.”
- 2 Sam 5:10And David became greater and greater, for the LORD God of Hosts was with him.
- 2 Tim 2:1You therefore, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.
- 1 Chr 22:13Then you will succeed, if you carefully follow the statutes and ordinances that the LORD commanded Moses for Israel. Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or discouraged.
- Eph 6:10Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power.
- 1 Cor 16:13Be on the alert. Stand firm in the faith. Be men of courage. Be strong.
- 2 Tim 4:17But the Lord stood by me and strengthened me, so that through me the message would be fully proclaimed, and all the Gentiles would hear it. So I was delivered from the mouth of the lion.
- Hag 1:13Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, delivered the message of the LORD to the people: “I am with you,” declares the LORD.
- Exod 3:12“I will surely be with you,” God said, “and this will be the sign to you that I have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, all of you will worship God on this mountain.”
- Acts 7:9Because the patriarchs were jealous of Joseph, they sold him as a slave into Egypt. But God was with him
- Mark 16:20And they went out and preached everywhere, and the Lord worked through them, confirming His word by the signs that accompanied it.
- Josh 1:6Be strong and courageous, for you shall give these people the inheritance of the land that I swore to their fathers I would give them.
- Judg 2:18Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for the Israelites, He was with that judge and saved them from the hands of their enemies while the judge was still alive; for the LORD was moved to pity by their groaning under those who oppressed them and afflicted them.
- 1 Sam 16:18One of the servants answered, “I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a mighty man of valor, a warrior, eloquent and handsome, and the LORD is with him.”
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Christ at the center
The promise that the latter glory of the temple will exceed the former, and that God will shake the nations and bring 'the desire of all nations,' is fulfilled when Christ enters his temple.
How Haggai 2:4 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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