This introductory verse consists of a single sentence in most English versions, and may indeed be combined with verse 2 into one sentence, as in Revised Standard Version. In many languages it would be better to follow the example of Good News Translation and translate as two or even more sentences. (See also the alternative translation model given at the end of the comments on verse 2.)

Darius the king is Darius Hystaspes, who ruled over Persia 522-486 B.C. Good News Translation makes this clear by saying that “Darius was emperor of Persia.” Darius was really a high king or “emperor” as Good News Translation shows. An “emperor” ruled over a large number of countries and had many lesser rulers under him. Some languages refer to this type of ruler as “supreme ruler [or, supreme chief],” “chief ruler,” or “ruler over many kings [or, chiefs].” Other languages may need to borrow a foreign word such as the English word “emperor,” and also include a footnote or explanatory note in the glossary.

In the second year of Darius the king may also be rendered as “During the second year that Darius the emperor ruled.” In some languages there may be an idiomatic expression for ruled, such as “was on the drum.” Darius’ second year was 520 B.C.

The sixth month is equivalent to August/September in our modern calendar. After the exile, the Jews adopted the Babylonian calendar in which the year began in the spring. In languages where the sixth month will be understood to mean June, translators should provide information to help the reader understand that the Jewish calendar during that period was very different from the one used today in most cultures. Such information can be provided through a table that shows the different calendar systems that were used in the Old Testament.

The first day of the month: This was the day of the new moon. According to Parker and Dubberstein, in 520 B.C. it fell on August 29th. Some translators may wish to refer to the modern date in a footnote. That day would have been a holy day, and therefore a good opportunity to deliver the LORD’s message to the people who assembled for worship. In certain languages it will be helpful to place the phrases in the sixth month, on the first day of the month at the beginning of the verse; for example, “During [or, on] the first day of the sixth month of the second year that Darius ruled as emperor over Persia….” Or it may be better to make a separate sentence and say, “During the second year that Darius ruled as emperor of Persia, the LORD spoke…. This message came to Haggai on the first day of the sixth month in that year.”

The word of the LORD came by Haggai the prophet: There is no indication of how the word of the LORD came, and no suggestion of any dream or trance. Good News Translation expresses these words in natural modern English as “the LORD spoke through the prophet Haggai,” but another possible model is “the LORD used [or, caused] Haggai the prophet to give [or, deliver] the following message.” Haggai is mentioned elsewhere only in Ezra 5.1; 6.14, where he is linked with Zechariah and is again referred to as a prophet. Prophet translates a common Hebrew word and means “one who proclaims the LORD’s message.” In most languages an expression similar to this will be the best solution for translating prophet; for example, “one who speaks the things of God,” “one who is an interpreter for God,” and so on. However, translators should try to find a short, concise expression, as this word appears many times in the Bible. The following advice, found in A Translator’s Handbook on the Book of Amos may help in the translation of this word:

There are also problems related to the translation of LORD. Many translators will already be familiar with the term used in the New Testament where “Lord” applies both to God and to Jesus Christ. Here in Haggai, and elsewhere in the Old Testament, it applies to God alone.

The message that the LORD gave Haggai was intended for the civil and religious leaders of the Jewish community, the governor of Judah and the high priest. The governor was Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, a grandson of Jehoiachin, the king of Judah taken into exile in 597 B.C. (2 Kgs 24.15). He was therefore a descendant of King David. According to 1 Chr 3.19, Zerubbabel was son of Pedaiah, a younger brother of Shealtiel, who appears to have had no children. It may be that Shealtiel adopted his nephew Zerubbabel, and if so, it would explain the description of him here as the son of Shealtiel. It is not clear whether Zerubbabel is to be identified with the person called Sheshbazzar in Ezra 1.8. Governor here refers to an official appointed by the Persian emperor to rule over a province of his empire, in this case Judah. Governors were different from local kings or chiefs and were directly responsible to the emperor. If translators follow the ordering of the two phrases in Revised Standard Version Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, readers in many languages may think that Shealtiel, not Zerubbabel was governor of Judah. In such cases it will be better to reorder the phrases as Good News Translation does: “The message was for the governor of Judah, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel.”

The high priest was Joshua the son of Jehozadak. Jehozadak was the high priest who had been taken into exile when Jerusalem was captured by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Joshua is also mentioned in Zech 3.1; 6.11; and in the books of Ezra (2.2 and elsewhere) and Nehemiah (12.1, 26), where his name is spelled in Hebrew “Jeshua” (Revised Standard Version). In some languages, translators may wish to keep the spelling “Jeshua” in the books of Haggai and Zechariah, in order to distinguish this man from the better known Joshua the son of Nun, who led the people of Israel into the promised land. This is done for instance by New Living Translation. The primary duty of a priest in the Hebrew culture was to be an intermediary (a person who was a channel of communication) between the LORD and his people. The means used was sacrifice. So, in some languages translators have used terms meaning “sacrificer” or “intermediary.” We should note, however, that it was not the priest who actually killed the sacrificial animal but rather the worshiper. Translators must take care not to use a term that refers to pagan sacrifices radically different from those offered by the people of Israel. If a translation is already using borrowed terms such as “priest” or “padre,” it will be helpful to have a note in the glossary explaining the duties and role of a priest in the Jewish culture. High priest may be translated in many languages as “chief priest” or “big priest.” Again the ordering of the two phrases in Revised Standard Version might seem to indicate that Jehozadak was the high priest. Translators should be careful and follow the model of Good News Translation.

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Haggai. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In Hebrew the words Thus says the LORD of hosts are repeated in verse 5 and verse 7. Good News Translation translates them here, but omits them in the other places so as to be able to treat 1.4-11 as the unbroken words of the LORD through the prophet. Translators in many other languages will find that the rendering of Good News Translation is more natural style in their languages: “The LORD Almighty said to Haggai.” However, translators need to be aware that the repetition of this formula has a function at the discourse level, and marks the beginning of a new paragraph in each case. Even if it is not natural to repeat the formula in their language, translators should preserve its function of indicating the beginning of a new paragraph. See further comments on verses 5 and 7, and also on verse 9, where a similar formula with a different discourse function occurs.

Good News Translation adds the words “to Haggai” to make it clear that this part of the message is introductory, and is not spoken directly to Zerubbabel and Joshua as verse 1 would otherwise suggest. The content of the direct speech in this verse forms the basis for the message in 1.3-11, but is not part of that message. This is why 1.2 is included with 1.1 as part of the introduction to the prophecy as a whole.

This people say: The expression This people (Good News Translation “These people”) rather than “my people” is somewhat reproachful (compare Isa 6.9, 10; 8.6, 11, 12; Jer 6.19, 21), and translators are urged to find expressions in their languages that convey the idea of reproach.

The time has not yet come to rebuild: Although a start had been made (Ezra 1–3), the work of rebuilding the Temple had run into difficulties and had been abandoned. The people had become discouraged, and a series of bad harvests (1.6, 11) had turned their minds to more urgent physical needs. It is possible also that some of the people thought that the rebuilding of the Temple should wait until the end of the seventy years mentioned in Jer 25.11; 29.10. This would not be until the year 516 B.C. The time has not yet come may be expressed as “this is not the right time” (Good News Translation; similarly Contemporary English Version) or “it is too soon” (Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch).

The house of the LORD: In languages that do not have a suitable term for “the Temple” (Good News Translation), it may be possible to translate it as “God’s house” or “the building where the LORD is worshiped.” To translate like this will probably be better than to borrow the word Temple from English or some other major language. In certain languages that do not use indirect speech, this final sentence may be rendered something like “These people say, ‘This is not the right time for us to rebuild the Temple [or, the LORD’s house].’ ”

An alternative translation model for verses 1-2 is:

• On the first day of the sixth month of the second year that Darius ruled as emperor of Persia, the LORD used [or, caused] Haggai the prophet to give a message to the governor of Judah who was Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and to the High Priest who was Joshua the son of Jehozadak. The LORD who is all-powerful first said to Haggai, “These people say, ‘This is not the right time for us to rebuild God’s house.’ ”

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Haggai. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Then the word of the LORD came: Good News Translation has restructured this to make the LORD the subject, “The LORD then gave this message.” Good News Translation has also made it clear that the message is “to the people” as a whole, though their two leaders are addressed by name in 1.1. This is clearly right, as the content of verses 4-11 would hardly be of great importance if it applied only to two men.

In some languages it will not be necessary to repeat the words the prophet after Haggai as this information has been provided in the first verse.

We may translate this verse as “The LORD then gave the following message to the people using Haggai as his mouthpiece” or “The LORD then used Haggai to convey the following message to the people.”

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Haggai. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

Is it a time for you yourselves to dwell…?: This verse in Hebrew has the form of a rhetorical question which expects the answer “no.” In languages that do not use rhetorical questions in this way, it could be restructured as a negative statement: “This is not the time for you to live….” The repetition of the word time in this verse takes up its previous occurrence in verse 2, and makes Haggai’s response very appropriate to the statement in that verse. Translators may be able to keep this link by saying something like “Is this the right time then…?” or “Is it not too soon then…?” Yourselves emphasizes the contrast between the state of the people’s own houses and the house of the LORD. Translators should try to reflect the contrast, as Good News Translation does by saying, “you … while my….”

In your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins: The people Haggai was speaking to were able to dwell in … paneled houses. The Hebrew term translated paneled means having wooden panels on the walls and perhaps even the ceiling. Good News Translation drops the details of the house construction, and states only that it is costly by saying “well-built.” This paneled style was expensive, and had been used by the rich in the days before the exile (Jer 22.14), and especially in the Temple built by Solomon (1 Kgs 6.9, 18). Other ways of expressing this phrase are “houses built with costly materials,” “expensive houses” (Contemporary English Version), or even “richly decorated houses,” as in the French common language version (Bible en français courant) and Parola Del Signore: La Bibbia in Lingua Corrente. When Haggai compares the homes of the people of his time with the Temple of Solomon, he is cleverly pointing out the contrast between the past and the present, in which this house [that is, the Temple] lies in ruins. Another possibility is that the word translated paneled means “having a roof” (“well-roofed” in The New English Bible [New English Bible] and Revised English Bible). If this is the case, the contrast would then be between the houses of the people, completely roofed for warmth and protection, and the Temple, having no roof and probably little in the way of walls. This interpretation seems to fit the known circumstances better, and is probably to be preferred, though most translations take the same interpretation as Revised Standard Version and Good News Translation. In reality, conditions in Haggai’s day were difficult ones, and relatively few people would have been able to afford expensive homes. But if anyone could do so, it showed that the people as a whole could have made more effort to get the Temple completely rebuilt. Haggai is here trying to shame them into a renewed effort.

Lies in ruins: The Temple had been destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. The returned exiles had apparently cleared the site and set up an altar, but actual building had not proceeded further than that (Ezra 3). In Haggai’s day, therefore, the site was probably clear of rubble, but without any complete walls, and could fairly be described as in ruins. See the comments on 2.15. In certain languages in ruins will be translated as something like “broken in pieces.”

Alternative models for this verse are:

• This is not the right time for you to live in your expensive houses while my house lies in ruins.

• Is this then the time for you to live in houses that are completed, when my Temple is all broken down?

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Haggai. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .

In Hebrew the words introducing the direct speech are identical with those in verse 2, but with the addition of the opening Now. Such repetition is unnatural in English and Good News Translation therefore drops these words here, and continues the words of the LORD’s message directly from the previous verse. Many translators will wish to follow Good News Translation, but they should nevertheless indicate that a new paragraph begins at this point. The force of the word Now is to show that the argument is moving to a new stage.

Consider how you have fared: The exact sense of the Hebrew is expressed more clearly by such renderings as “Consider your way of life” (Revised English Bible), “Give careful thought to your ways” (New International Version), and “Think carefully about your behavior” (New Jerusalem Bible). The focus of the whole section 1.3-11 is more on the way the people have acted than on their lack of agricultural success. This focus becomes sharper in verses 7-11. The crop failures are a result of the people’s casual attitude toward God, and it is this attitude that God calls upon them to Consider. The command to Consider or think carefully is repeated in 1.7; 2.15, 18. Good News Translation translates the command here as “Don’t you see what is happening to you?” A negative question like this is very natural in English, and leads on easily to the answer given in verse 6. However, in many languages a negative question would be very confusing, and translators would give the correct meaning by staying closer to the form of the Hebrew, and saying, for example, “See [or, Look] what has happened to you,” or better, “Look at your way of life.”

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Haggai. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 2002. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .