Haggai 2:3

Study note

Setting — The prophet Haggai addresses Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the remnant of the people as they stand before the newly rebuilt temple. He interrupts their work to force a direct comparison between the current structure and Solomon's original building.

The words — The interrogative מִ֤י (mi) means "who?" and the verb רָאָה֙ (ra.'Ah) means "he saw," structuring the verse as a challenge directed specifically at those with living memory of the first temple.

The thread — The text’s comparison mirrors the recorded weeping of older priests who saw the new foundation in Ezra 3:12, while Haggai 2:9 immediately follows with a promise that the latter glory will exceed the former.

Why it lands — The passage first states the observable reality that the rebuilt temple looks insignificant to those who remember the old one. It then demands an honest accounting of that disappointment before the subsequent command to continue working.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.