Our last portion of Haggai: 2:20-23

v20 Once again we see the 24th of Kislev being emphasized.

v21 Zerubbabel is a leader in the land and holds a position of authority. Rabbinical and Christian scholars say he is a typology for the Messiah – Yeshua.

· Shaking the heavens and earth is very similar to what we read in chapter 2:6. There is going to be a new creation. There is a relationship between this day (the 24th Kislev) and the revelation of the Kingdom of G-d. In what way is the start of Hanukkah (the dedication) connected to the Kingdom of G-d? We will explore this in a bit…

v22 In this verse we see a massive change is going to take place. This is what Yeshua is going to do when He returns for His second coming – Rev 19:11-16 (Remember, the rapture is a VERY different event to the second coming of Yeshua. No-one knows the day or the hour when the rapture will take place, but is it possible to know the day when the second coming will take place?? )

· Every one by the sword of his brother: They are not going to fight G-d, but are going to fight and kill each other. G-d’s coming will cause such confusion in the midst of the armies (see what happened in 2 Chron 20:4-29).

v23 ‘In that day’ gives this prophecy a last day context.

· My servant: Old Testament prophets used this term to speak about the coming Messiah.

· A signet ring: A seal. A seal marked authority. Yeshua is the One who speaks of the promise and seals it with the signature of G-d.

So, let’s answer the unanswered questions that were asked above:

In John 10:22-39 Yeshua went to Jerusalem for Hannukah – the feast of dedication (Hanukkah is an eight-day festival. Eight is a Biblical number associated with new beginnings and a change taking place) It was winter, and Yeshua was pacing up and down in a place that Solomon had built – this place was the closest an unauthorized person could get to the Holy of Holies.

While Yeshua was in this place, the leaders gathered around Him and asked Him to tell them plainly whether or not He was the Messiah. They wanted evidence and action – they didn’t want words. It is believed that on one Hanukkah Messiah (who we know as Yeshua) is going to enter into the Holy of Holies. When He sits on the mercy seat, it is believed, that the Kingdom of G-d is going to be inaugurated (dedicated). This is what the leaders in Jerusalem wanted Yeshua to do in order to demonstrate to them whether He was in fact the Messiah or not. The purpose of Yeshua’s first coming, though, was not to inaugurate His Kingdom – but this will be the purpose of His second coming. This is why the leaders got so angry with Yeshua. He made a claim that He was G-d (He gave them His Word) but that was not enough for them – they wanted to see Him enter into the Holy of Holies and take His seat.

Now on the flip side of this we read about Antiochus Epiphanes (around 168BC) who went into the Holy of Holies and corrupted it. He is a type of antichrist. We are also going to see this at the end when the antichrist goes into the Holy of Holies and declares himself G-d (Dan 9:27, Dan 11:31, Dan 12:11, Mt 24:15 and 2 Thess 2:3-4)

With all of this in mind let’s turn to Daniel 12:11.

A time is coming when a third temple will be built in Jerusalem. Sacrifices are going to be restarted. And then they are going to be taken away. From that time the counting can begin, and this verse says we can count 1290 days (just over 3.5years).

There seems to be a date discrepancy – Rev 11:3 and Rev 12:6 speak of 1260 days – we have a “missing” 30-day period. In Jewish tradition 30 days is the period of mourning. Therefore, we can conclude that those additional thirty days are days of mourning (Zech 12:10-14)

After these days of mourning Daniel adds another 45 days to the tally (Dan 12:12). So that is a total of 75 extra days – 1260+30+45

Zechariah 13:1 speaks of a day of washing away the impurity of the children of Israel. On the Biblical calendar the day set aside for this is Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement).

On the Biblical calendar there are 75 days between Yom Kippur (the washing away of sins) and Hanukkah (the day of dedication).

On that 24th day of Kislev G-d is going to lay the foundation of His Kingdom – the dedication and inauguration of Messiah Yeshua. For the 1000 years that follow, Yeshua is going to rule and reign, in His millennial Kingdom, from the Holy of Holies!