Hag. 2:20-23: God's Signet Ring

Watch this lesson on YouTube.

1)     Important background

A)   God’s promise to David

1)     2 Sam. 7:8-16

(a)   v. 11b – “the Lord will make you a house” = dynasty

(b)   v. 13b – “I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever”

(c)   v. 15 – God will not take away his kingdom like he took the kingdom away from Saul

(d)   *v. 16 – “And your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me. Your throne shall be established forever.”

2)     Timeline pic. The northern kingdom of Israel was constantly changing dynasties, but (for the most part) the southern kingdom of Judah was ruled by David’s descendants.

B)    God suspended his promise with Jehoiachin / Coniah

1)     Timeline pic

2)     2 Kgs. 24:6, 8-9 – Jehoiachin (also called Coniah, and Jeconiah)

(a)   v. 17 – Nebuchadnezzar made Zedekiah king in his place (Josiah’s sons, Jer. 37:1).

(b)   2 Kgs. 25:21-22 – Non-Davidic “governor”

3)     Jer. 22:24-30 – Note 2 important things:

(a)   v. 24 – “though Coniah…were the signet ring on my right hand, yet I would tear you off.”

(i)    NET Notes

(ii)  “The signet ring was the king’s seal by which he verified all his legal and political transactions. To have the signet ring was to exercise authority in the king’s name.”

(iii)          “The Lord is swearing emphatically that Jeconiah will not be the earthly representative of his rule; i.e., not carry the authority of the signet ring bearer.”

(iv) “Jeconiah is being denied the right to function any longer as the Davidic king and any hopes of ever regaining that right in his lifetime or through the succession of his sons is also denied.”

(b)   v. 30 – “Write this man down as childless, a man who shall not succeed in his days, for none of his offspring shall succeed in sitting on the throne of David and ruling again in Judah.”

(i)    In the context of God’s promise to David, and Judah’s history, this sounds like God revoking that promise.

(ii)  i.e. The promise that I made to David is OFF.

(iii)          From our perspective, God just hit pause.

2)     Haggai

A)   The restoration generation rebuilt the altar and started the temple, but then put it on hold for 15 years. Haggai told them to stop forsaking God’s house, and they listened.

B)    2:19b – “But from this day on I will bless you.”

C)    Hag. 2:20-23 – Our text for this lesson.

1)     God reaches into the historical wreckage of the exile, picks up the discarded, disgraced signet ring, cleans it off, and hands it to Zerubbabel.

2)     POINT: God’s promise to David is back on!

3)     vv. 21-22 – “I am about to shake the heavens and the earth”

A)   God will destroy his enemies (NOTE: God is the one who does the action (“I am about to… x3)).

1)     Overthrow the throne of kingdoms

2)     Destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations

3)     Overthrow the chariots and their riders

B) POINT: God is going to flip the current order of things upside down.

1)     Imagine living in a tiny, impoverished postage stamp sized province. You are a defeated people. Your capital is a pile of rocks. Your economy is barely functional. You are a geopolitical afterthought who is controlled by the most powerful Empire the world had seen up to that point in history.

2)     You have no military, no true independence, and God announces that he is about to overturn the world order…

3)     And Zerubbabel is going to be the new king of the entire world.

C)    v. 23 – “I will take you…and make you like a signet ring, for I have chosen you”

4)     Fulfilled in Jesus (Kingdom passages)

A)   Jesus’ lineage from David

1)     Matt. 1:1-2, 6, 12, 16

2)     Lk. 3 – Go backwards

(a)   v. 38 – Adam

(b)   v. 31 – David

(c)   v. 27 – Zerubbabel

(d)   v. 23 – Jesus

B)    This is important to know because THIS IS THE GOSPEL.

1)     Here are some passages about Jesus’ kingdom. His kingdom is determined by reign (Jesus is King!), not by realm.

(a)   Because of God’s promise to David, Jesus has flipped the entire order of the world upside-down and is currently reigning over God’s creation.

(b)   Dan. 2:34-35, 44-45

(c)   Dan. 7:13-14, 26-27

(d)   Lk. 1:31-33 – Best passage to point to Jesus as David’s fulfillment.

2)     Jn. 18:33, 36-37 – “My kingdom is not of this world”

3)     Rev. 11:15-18 – The scroll has been opened, and THIS is the Gospel (Good News).

5)     Why does this matter to you? I have a motto that I preach for Tuesday, not Sunday. How is any of this going to matter to you on Tuesday?

A)   Jesus is not only THE king. He needs to be YOUR king.

B)    If you are not a Christian, then this is what it means to become one.

1)     Faith – I believe and know that Jesus is king.

2)     Confession – Actually say the words with your mouth: “I believe Jesus is king.”

3)     Baptism – Die to yourself, and be raised to live as a citizen of a new kingdom.

C)    If you already are a Christian, then our job is live our lives entirely in subjection to, and under the reign of King Jesus.

1)     If this isn’t true for you, then today is the day to repent and turn that around.

6)     Conclusion to Haggai: If you break it into principle form, it is an outline of the Gospel.

A)   You build my temple. Stop prioritizing your stuff, and put my work first.

B)    I will fill it with glory.

C)    I will set up my king.

D)   And I will overthrow all of my enemies, and he will rule over all of God’s creation.