From the Greek Septuagint text as was used by First Century Christians
A prophecy to the people of JeruSalem, witten during the late 6^th Century BCE,
concerning the need to rebuild God's Temple and to restore true worship there.

Chapter 1

¹ In the second year [of the reign] of King Darius, in the sixth month, and on the first day of the month, the word of Jehovah came by the hand of HagGai the Prophet, saying, ‘Speak to ZerubBabel the son of ShealtiEl, from the [great] tribe of Judah, and to JoShua (son of JoZadek) the High Priest, and tell them ² that Jehovah the Almighty says this: These people say that the time isn’t right, to rebuild the House of Jehovah.’

³ Then this word came by the hand of HagGai the Prophet, saying, ⁴ ‘Is it indeed the right time, for you men to live in nice houses, while this [Temple] lies ruined? ⁵ And now, says Jehovah the Almighty, set your hearts on your ways! ⁶ You plant a lot, but don't harvest much; you eat, but not ‘til you’re full; you drink, but not 'til you're drunk; you wear clothes that don’t warm you; and those to whom you paid wages, keep them in bags full of holes.

⁷ ‘Thus says Jehovah the Almighty: Now set your hearts on your ways! ⁸ You must climb the mountains to cut the wood, with which you must build [My Temple]. If you do this, I will think well of you, for it will bring glory to Me, said Jehovah.

⁹ ‘You look for much [but find] little; and then you carry it home, but I just blow it away. This happens, says Jehovah the Almighty, because My House is deserted, while you each pursue your own homes. ¹⁰ It’s because of this that the sky withholds dew, and the ground holds back its blessings.

¹¹ ‘So, to your land and your mountains, I will soon bring the broadsword… to your olive oil and your grain, to the ground that brings wine to men, and upon all of the cattle, as well as to the works of your hands.’

¹² Well, ZerubBabel (the son of ShealtiEl) from the tribe of Judah, and JoShua (the son of JoZadek) the High Priest, and all the rest of the people listened to the voice of Jehovah their God and to the words of HagGai the Prophet, and to all [the words] that Jehovah their God had sent to them. And the people became fearful before Jehovah.

¹³ Then HagGai, one of the messengers of Jehovah, told the people: ‘Jehovah says, I am with you!’

¹⁴ Thereafter, Jehovah awakened the spirit of ZerubBabel (the son of ShealtiEl) from the tribe of Judah, the spirit of JoShua (the son of JoZadek) the High Priest, and the spirit of the rest of the people, and they went to work on the [Temple] of their God, Jehovah the Almighty. ¹⁵ ([This happened] on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year [of the reign] of Darius the king.)

Chapter 2

¹ It was in the seventh month and on the twenty-first day of the month that the word of Jehovah came by the hand of HagGai the Prophet. He said, ² ‘Speak to ZerubBabel (the son of ShealtiEl) of the tribe of Judah, and JoShua the High Priest (the son of JoZadek), and say to all who are are left there: ³ Who among you once saw this [Temple], in [the days of] its glory? Do you see how it has become now? It no longer exists here before you!

⁴ ‘So, O ZerubBabel, be strong , says Jehovah; and High Priest Joshua, also be strong… be strong all you people of the land, because now you must take some action,’ says Jehovah! ‘For I'm with you, says Jehovah the Almighty.

⁵ ‘This is the same thing I told you, when you were fleeing from Egypt… when I sent My Breath in your midst. Once more you must be courageous! ⁶ For, thus says Jehovah the Almighty: Once more I will shake the earth and the sky, as well as the sea and dry land… ⁷ and I will shake all the nations. Then My chosen ones will return from all nations, and I’ll fill this [Temple] with glory, says Jehovah the Almighty.

⁸ ‘All the silver is Mine, and all the gold is Mine too, says Jehovah the Almighty. ⁹ And great will be this [Temple’s] glory, for the last will be greater than the first, says Jehovah the Almighty. And to this place I’ll bring peace, says the Almighty Jehovah; peace for the saving of lives, of all who’ll arise to rebuild this Temple.’

¹⁰ Then on the twenty-fourth day of the ninth month of the second year of Darius, these words came from Jehovah to HagGai the Prophet. He told them that ¹¹ Jehovah the Almighty had said: ‘Indeed, ask the Priests concerning the Law; ¹² If a man should touch holy meat, with the edge of his clothes, and the edge of his clothes should then contact, bread, stew, wine, or olive oil, or any other such food, would they thereafter be holy?’

And all the Priests replied, ‘No!’

¹³ Then HagGai asked, ‘But, if it should touch someone who's died, would any of these be unclean?’

And the Priests replied, ‘[Yes they’d] be defiled!’

¹⁴ Then HagGai answered and said, ‘So it will be of this people, and so it will be of this nation before Me, says Jehovah. It will be so of the works of their hands… whoever should go there will be defiled, if they show more concern for their chores. Then, for their wicked ways they will grieve, since they hated those, who gave them reproof at their gates.

¹⁵ ‘So now; take [these words] to your hearts from this day, before laying stone upon stone, for the Temple of Jehovah: ¹⁶ Remember when you went to your stores, to get twenty measures of barley, and found there were just ten measures; or, when you went to the wine vat, to draw fifty measures [of wine], and found there just twenty measures? ¹⁷ Well, it was I who had struck you, with a lack of production, and the works of your hands with strong winds and hail, for to Me you didn’t return, says Jehovah.’

¹⁸ ‘So, keep this in your hearts from this day… from the twenty-fourth day and ninth month… from the day the Temple’s foundation was laid… keep it inside of your hearts! ¹⁹ Will the threshing-floor still [be barren]? No! Will it happen to the grapevine and fig tree, or the pomegranates or olives… will they no longer bear fruit? No! Because, from this day I will bless them!’

²⁰ Then the word of the Lord came to HagGai the Prophet a second time (on the twenty-fourth day of the month), saying, ²¹ ‘Speak to ZerubBabel (the son of ShealtiEl) of Judah's tribe, and say this: I will shake the earth and the sky, as well as the sea and dry land. ²² The thrones of kings I’ll wipe away; I’ll destroy the power of the nations' kings; I’ll wipe away their chariots and horsemen… their horses and horsemen will fall, as each turns his sword on his brother.

²³ ‘In that day, says Jehovah the Almighty, I’ll take you, O ZerubBabel (son of ShealtiEl) My servant, says Jehovah, and I’ll set you up as a seal. For I’ve chosen you, says Jehovah the Almighty [God].’

Notes

Soul or?

The Greek word psyche (as in psychology) has been translated many ways, including soul, life, etc. However, psyche actually means something that breathes. It is used in the Bible to describe both breathing animals and breathing humans. So by definition, a soul cannot leave the body, because a soul is what the living body (whether human or animal) is (see Genesis 2:7).

In ancient Greece, philosophers eventually added another meaning to psyche: The inner person (as opposed to the person that others see and come to know). And with time, the pagan religion of Greece started to teach that this inner person is its own entity and can never die (is immortal). Over the centuries, this pagan Greek doctrine thereafter crept into the Christian religions. Please see the Wikipedia definition Soul for more history of the word.

However, such Greek philosophical thought never influenced Jesus and his Apostles. So, they consistently used psyche to indicate a living person or animal. Therefore, the later teaching that the soul is immortal stands in direct conflict with Jesus' promise of a resurrection, because, if a person is immortal (can never die) he/she can never be resurrected (brought back to life).

In addition, the teaching of the immortality of the human soul is totally without support from the Bible. For the word immortal(ity) (Gr: athanasia or undying) is only mentioned in the Bible in two places, and it isn't used with or applied to the word soul in either case. Both of these scriptures show that immortality is only given by God as a reward for righteousness. And as EzekiEl 18:4 says, 'The person (gr. psyche or soul) that is sinning will die (gr. apothaneitai).'

Of course, there are places in the Bible where the word soul means more than just a living, fleshly body. For example, God is recorded to have spoken of 'My Soul' in several places. Obviously, God is much more than just a 'soul' as most people think of that term, and He surely wasn't talking about His having a human body. So we must conclude that what He was referring to is His life or His person.

Then there are Jesus' words found at Matthew 10:28, which read, 'Don't be afraid of those who kill the body but can't kill the person (psyche or soul). Rather, be afraid of him who can destroy both the person (soul) and the body in the garbage dump.' Here, Jesus is using the word psyche (soul) to refer to the value of life that remains with God until the resurrection. And he obviously isn't referring the soul as immortal in this instance, because he says God will destroy (gr. apolesai) the [unrighteous] soul or person.

Unfortunately, no single word can be used to translate psyche in every possible Bible application, so various terms are used herein, depending on the circumstances, but always in an attempt to harmonize with the meaning.

Use your browser BACK button to return to the text you were reading

The Heavens or Sky, the Earth or the Land?

In both the Ancient Scriptures of IsraEl (OT) and the Christian Era Scriptures (NT), we find all the realm of non-living creation divided into just three entities; the heavens (or sky), the earth (the land or ground), and the seas (or the waters) and rivers.

Now, in contemporary English, we understand that there is a difference between the heavens and the sky, the earth and the land (or ground), and the seas and waters. However, in both Hebrew and Greek, these fine distinctions that we accept because of our modern technology, can't be found. So, Genesis 1:1 is literally translated herein as, 'In the beginning, The God created the skies and the lands.' This is very accurate, because it was man's view of creation from the earth. There was just the land that he stood on, the sky above him, and the waters or seas over there. He had no technical understanding of the earth as a planet, because men had never seen the earth as a globe in space, as most of us have done today. However, because of these distinctions that we are aware of, translators must choose the proper words to provide the right nuances in English, in order for readers to grasp the proper meaning of each text. And as you will see, something as simple as selecting another synonym can give us a quite different view of the meanings of some common verses.

The Greek word ourano(n), for example, can be correctly translated as heaven, heavens, sky, and skies, depending on the context and tense. But if the translator should choose the wrong word, people will reach very different (and often wrong) conclusions, because of the nuances implied in English.

Likewise, the Greek words ge, ges, and gen can be translated as earth, earths, ground, grounds, land, or lands, depending on the context and tense. So, the symbolic words at 2 Peter 3:5, 6, for example, are translated herein as, 'The thing that they don't want to understand is this: That the ancient skies and land were out of the water, but (in obedience to God's instructions) they stood together between the waters.' (For an example of the problems created by the wrong use of the words ge, ges, and gen, see the linked document Isaiah 24 - Is It Speaking of Armageddon?).

Notice that the 'skies and land' were located 'between the water.' So, although other Bibles translated this verse as speaking of the 'heavens and earth,' the reference is to the portion of the heavens that are close to the earth… to the skies.

The same is true of the famous words of Jesus at Matthew 5:5, which read in Greek: 'Makarioi oi praeis hoti outoi kleronomesousin ten gen,' or, Blest the gentle for they will/inherit the (earth, ground, or land).' Notice that in some Bibles Jesus is recorded as saying, 'The meek will inherit the earth;' while in others he said, 'The meek will inherit the land.' Do you see the difference in nuances implied here? Yet, both word choices are equally correct.

And finally, when it comes to the seas (gr. tas thalassan), there are already distinctions as to different types of waters in the Greek text. For instance, seas are called thalassan and rivers are called potamos (or 'flowing'). However, notice (in Revelation 20: 13) how the resurrection of the dead is divided between those who died on land and those who were lost in the water; 'The sea gave up its dead, death and the grave gave up those dead in them, and they were all judged by the things that they did.'

We again find all three of these realms of creation brought together symbolically at Revelation 21:1, whIch we have translated as saying, 'Then I saw new skies and new lands, because the previous sky and land had disappeared, as did the sea.' So, did John see 'a new heavens and a new earth,' as some translate his words, or did he see 'new skies and new lands,' as we have quoted him? The Greek words that are used in the beginning of this verse are both in the plural tense, but in the singular tense in the latter half of the verse. So, what John says that he saw was 'new skies and new lands' which took the place of the old 'sky, land, and sea' that had just disappeared before him (he didn't see the globe and the realm of God disappear).

Also, in the case of where EliJah was taken away in a celestial chariot; most people think he was taken (as their Bibles put it) 'to heaven,' where he went to live with God. This isn't true, because King JehoRam later received a letter from Elijah (see 2 Chronicles 21:12). So, God had apparently used the celestial chariot to take him into 'the sky' (the proper translation here), where he was then sent to another place here on the earth. For more information on this, see the linked document, The Hereafter.

Use your browser BACK button to return to the text you were reading

Age, Eternal, Perpetual, Everlasting, Immortal, or Forever?

Two words imply infinite states in the Bible; one is the Greek word athanasia (undying), which is only found in two places, 1 Corinthians 15:53, where it mentions resurrected ones as clothing themselves with immortality, and at 1 Timothy 6:16, where Paul speaks of Jesus alone as having it. The other Greek word is aidios, which is used at Romans 1:20 to describe God's Power and Might as eternal, and at Jude 6 when speaking of the perpetual state of gloomy darkness that rebellious angels have been confined to.

However, the Greek word aionos, which is used throughout the Bible in various conjugated forms and is often translated as eternal and forever, is what the English word eon is derived from. It means an indefinite period, and there is no exact English word to translate it. The best equivalents are age or era.

Where the singular form (aionos) is used, this appears to mean a period such as a lifetime, generation, or era. And where the plural form of the word (aiōnōn) is used, it refers to a longer time… at least multiple generations. Also, where the term ages of the ages is used (such as at Ephesians 3:21), which is usually said in reference to The God, we would assume that this truly means forever.

It is noteworthy that aionos is the word that is used in the Greek Septuagint in place of the Hebrew word ohlam, which is also translated as forever and time indefinite in popular versions of the Ancient Scriptures of IsraEl. So, this one word (aionos) is translated as forever, everlasting, eternal, system of things, time indefinite, [end of] the world, long ago, from of old, etc. Obviously, something is very wrong here, because the word can't mean a period having a definite end in one place and infinity in another.

Take for example, the unique way that aionos is used in the question that Jesus' Apostles asked him, which is found at Matthew 24:3: 'Tell us; When will these things happen… what will be the signs when you are to arrive and this age will come to its conclusion?' Notice that aionos is also translated as world here in many Bibles, such as the KJ, and as system of things in other Bibles, such as the NWT. However, if the Apostles had meant any of those things, they would have used the Greek word cosmos (world or arrangement), not aionos.

You can see that aionos obviously doesn't mean forever, everlasting, or eternal in this case, nor did it mean world or system of things. It simply meant the age, or, the time before the end would come. And for them, that meant the age when God's Temple in JeruSalem would be destroyed, because that's what Jesus was explaining to them.

Yet, there are instances when some forms of the word could imply forever, such as when we find it in the form aiōniŏn. This is an adjective in the singular case, which, when combined with the Greek word zoe (in its various forms) is usually translated in other Bibles as everlasting life. However, that isn't a totally-accurate description.

In the past, we had tried to reconcile the words zoe aiōniŏn as meaning, life in the age. However, the word age in this instance would not be an adjective, so we have recently chosen, in most cases where we find this word combination, to translate them more accurately as age-long life, which we will agree could mean everlasting life.

For more information, see the linked Scriptural Commentary, Does the Bible Promise Everlasting Life?

Use your browser BACK button to return to the text you were reading

Breath

The Greek word pneuma (as in pneumonia, a breathing disease) means breath or wind – the movement of air. In other Bible translations, this word is often translated as spirit or ghost, as in Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost. However, spirit is just a shortened form of the Latin word spiritu, which just means breath in Latin. And ghost conveys another meaning altogether.

In the Bible, the most common use of the word pneuma is to convey the idea of a force that can't be seen, such as breath or wind. And the problem with translating it as spirit or ghost, is that those words have been given religious meanings that aren't implied by the Greek texts.

Therefore, to prevent confusion, the Greek word pneuma is frequently translated as breath herein. However, there are exceptions, as in instances where the Bible refers to demons as 'spirits.' Translating pneuma as breath in these cases, although correct, might just be confusing. There are also places where we have left pneuma translated as spirit, when the word implies a person's tendency (or spirit). And, since the nuance implied by the word spirit in the English language (an unseen power) is correct, we recently changed back to translating pneuma as spirit in several places, when referring to God's Holy Spirit. However, recognize that pneuma is often best defined by calling it [God's] Holy Breath. For an example, see the Note Worshiping God In Spirit and Truth.

Another important use of the word pneuma is in the phrase, 'Breath of Life.' This phrase appears to mean more than just breathing, for it seems to refer to the entire mechanics of life itself. It's the unseen force of life for all creatures… it's what makes each cell alive. However, nowhere does the Bible describe the 'pneuma' as immortal, nor is it the same as the soul (a breathing thing), so it can (figuratively) 'return to God' at death,' because all hope of future life depends on God and His promise of a resurrection.

Note in particular how the term Breath is used at Job 27:3, where Job spoke of God's Breath or Spirit. For there he asked, 'Does the Breath of the Divine One remain in my nose?' As you can see from his application of this word, pneuma obviously referred to God's Breath, not to a person or to an unseen force. He was talking about that which comes from God and which caused him (Job) to breathe… the Breath of Life.

It is interesting that at Genesis 6:3, God said concerning the wicked people on earth before the Downpour: 'I won't allow My Breath to stay with these men through the age, for they are fleshly.' In Greek that reads, 'Ou me katameine to pneuma mou en tois anthropois toutoiseis ton aiona, dia ai einai autous sarka,' or, 'Not not should stay the Breath Mine with these men the age through, their being flesh.'

While the words Breath Mine (pneuma mou) here can refer to God's Holy Breath, it seems more likely that He is referring to the breath of life that He gave to Adam. So it appears as though what God was saying here, is that the breath of life (of the people of that age) would be removed prematurely. However, since God referred to it as 'My Breath,' there may be a link implied between God's Holy Breath and the breath of life.
For more information, see the linked document, 'The Powers of God's Holy Spirit.'

However, when Jesus died (as the words recorded at John 19:30 say), 'he hung his head and gave up the breath' (gr. kai klinas ten kephalen paredoken to pneuma, or, and inclined his head giving/up the breath). In this case, the obvious reference is to 'the breath of life,' or that force which gave him life as a human.

To return to the previous document, select the Back arrow on your browser

Capitals in Bible Names

You have likely noticed that we are putting some of the letters in Bible names in capital letters. For example, we've started spelling such names as Jonathan as JoNathan, Isaiah as IsaiAh, and Eliezer as EliEzer. Why? Well, partly to help with the correct pronunciations of the names, and partly to show some translating consistency.

Of course, the common English pronunciation of Jonathan (for example) is Jon-uh-thun. But did you know that the first part of the name (Io in Greek, Ieho in Hebrew) refers to the name Jehovah, and the second part of the Name (Nathan) means Gift? So, the name was originally pronounced closer to Ye-hoh-nuh-thahn.

In the case of names that end with an iah, as in Isaiah, the last part of the name often includes the name of God. Isaiah, for example, means Salvation [of] JehovAH, and it was originally pronounced Ee-sai-Yah. Yet, there are other names (such as EliJah), where the IEs have been changed to Js.

So, why have translators substituted a capital 'J' for the letters 'Ie' in both of the above cases? Well, there is an inconsistency here, because there was no letter 'J' in Hebrew or Greek alphabets. However, the letters were changed to coincide with the common English pronunciations of these names. Unfortunately though, this process wasn't followed consistently by ancient translators; so while some names are spelled with a J, many others are still spelled with an Ie or Iah.

Another important word in names that we usually capitalize is 'El' (from the Hebrew Elohe, or God). So EliEzer (which people commonly pronounce Eelai-eezer and means God [has] Helped), should actually be pronounced Elee-ehzer. The same is true for the letters Ai, especially in the names of cities, because Ai in Hebrew refers to the word city. So, AiLam (for example) probably meant the City of Lam.

Similar words, such as Bel (as in BelShazzar), Baal, and Beel, refer to 'the Lord' or 'the God.' Also, the prefixes 'Ben' and 'Bar' mean 'the son of.' 'Beth' means 'the house of,' 'Beer' refers to a 'well,' 'Is' or 'Ish' means 'Man,' etc.

Does this mean that we have put all the capitals in the right places? No, for we make no claim to Hebrew scholarship (all our translating here has been from Greek). So, what we are trying to do is provide a better understanding to how these names were pronounced by First-Century Christians.

Use your browser BACK button to return to the text you were reading

Messengers of God

Most Bible translations render the Greek word aggelos (pronounced ahn-gel-ose – with a hard g) as angel wherever it is found. However, aggelos is just the Greek word for messenger. True, in most cases where the Bible speaks of angels, it is referring to spirit messengers from God. However, this may not be the meaning in every instance, and always translating it as angel may distort what was meant.

For example, consider the words at Acts 12:15, where Peter had just been released from prison and came to the door of some faithful Christians. Here the housemaid told the people inside that Peter was outside. And according to many other Bibles, they thought that it was 'his angel' at the door. However, this rendering doesn't sound reasonable, for it would have been unusual for Christians to assume that an angel from God (who looked like Peter) was standing and knocking at their door. Rather, the rendering we have used herein makes more sense, 'So they said, It's his messenger.'

Another good example of why aggelos shouldn't always be translated as angel can be found at Genesis 32:3, which reads in Greek, 'Apasteile de Iakob aggelous emprosthen autou pros Hesau ton adelphon autou' or, 'Sent of Jacob angels(?) ahead of/him toward Esau the brother of/him.' Here Jacob was obviously sending human messengers to his brother, not heavenly ones (angels).

And consider the words at Numbers 20:14, where we read that Moses sent messengers (gr. aggelous – messengers, plural) from Cades to the king of Edom.' Then in verse 16, it says that 'Jehovah … heard our voice and sent His messenger (gr. aggelon – messenger, singular) who brought us out of Egypt.'

Obviously, the same word (with only conjugated variations) is used there to speak of two different types of messengers… those who were human and the one who was sent from heaven by God. And in this case, most Bibles translate the first instance as messengers, but the second as angel. We have not chosen to make this distinction, however, for the readers should be able to discern from the context which ones are human and which ones are spirit by themselves. And when there is some question, each person should keep an open mind.

Consider the words of Haggai 1:13, where we read: 'Then the Messenger (or angel) of Jehovah, Haggai, one of the messengers (or angels) of Jehovah, said to the people: Jehovah says, I am with you!'

Yet, Haggai was just a man, not a spirit. So, there may be other cases in the Bible where some translations have presumptuously written angel, when the one that God sent was a human messenger!

Also consider that; Translating aggelos as messenger when it is truly speaking of a spirit from God, helps to provide readers a better, deeper understanding of the actual role that such sons of God play in His dealings with mankind… and that the term angel isn't a type of creature or a heavenly rank (as most think), but an assignment that may even be temporary. It also helps us to understand why the Bible never speaks of female or baby angels (because dead men, dead women, and dead babies don't become angels, since heavenly spirits are direct creations by God).

Use your browser BACK button to return to the text you were reading

Home Page