This is a message from the Lord about Israel. The Lord is the one who made the earth and the sky, and he put the human spirit in people. And this is what the Lord said:
This is the Lord’s message against the land of Hadrach and against the city of Damascus. The tribes of Israel are not the only people who know about the Lord. Everyone looks to him for help.
On the first day of the sixth month of the second year that Darius was king of Persia, Haggai received a message from the Lord. This message was for Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel and Joshua son of Jehozadak. Zerubbabel was the governor of Judah and Joshua was the high priest. This is the message:
“The people of Judah, or a prophet, or a priest may ask you, ‘Jeremiah, what is the announcement of the Lord?’ You will answer them and say, ‘You are a heavy load, and I will throw down this heavy load.’ This message is from the Lord.
The people of Judah cheated other people. People in Jerusalem and Israel did terrible things. God loves the Temple, but the people in Judah didn’t respect the Lord’s holy Temple. The people of Judah began to worship a foreign goddess.