The latter glory of this house; or, the glory that excelleth.
I. THE HOUSE.
1. The temple of Zerubbabel, then building, which, however, was regarded as a continuation of and as one with the temple of Solomon (cf. Haggai 2:3).
2. The Christian Church, which on a similar principle of interpretation was viewed as an outcome and development of the Hebrew temple (cf. John 2:20, John 2:21).
II. THE GLORY. Called by Haggai "the latter glory" of this house, in contradistinction to the earlier or former glory which belonged to it before the Captivity, this can only signify the glory which, in Messianic times, should pertain to the temple when it should have reached its ideal form in the Christian Church, whose "glory," in comparison with that of the Solomonic structure, should be a glory that excelleth.
1. The glory of spiritual magnificence, as opposed to that of merely material splendour. Tin. temple of Solomon was, alter all, but an "earthly hour" of polished stone, carved cedar, and burnished gold; but the temple of Jesus Christ is a spiritual house, constructed of lively stones, or believing souls (1 Peter 2:5), "an holy temple" erected out of quickened and renewed hearts "for an habitation of God through the Spirit" (Ephesians 2:21).
2. The glory of an indwelling Divinity, in contrast with that of a merely symbolic residence therein. The ark with its mercy seat overshadowed by the cherubim, between whose outstretched wings shone the visible glory or the Shechinah—this ark which occupied the holy of holies in the Solomonic temple, was not Jehovah, but only the material token of his presence. Though in the Christian Church there is, as in Zerubbabel's temple there was, no ark, yet the Divine presence fills it. Not only does Paul describe it as a temple which God inhabits (see above), but he represents it as the body of the glorified Christ, the fulness of him that filleth all in all (Ephesians 1:23), and even speaks of individual believers as temples of the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 6:9) and of the living God (2 Corinthians 6:16); while Christ expressly promises to his Church a perpetual indwelling in their midst, not collectively alone, but individually as well (Matthew 18:20; Matthew 28:20; John 14:17, John 14:23; John 15:4; John 16:7, John 16:22).
3. The glory of diffusing spiritual and eternal peace, as distinguished from a peace which should be merely temporal and temporary. The Solomonic temple was indeed built by one whose name was Peace, whose reign was undisturbed by foreign or domestic wars, and whose spirit was neither military nor aggressive; but it is doubtful if the whole period during which the Solomonic temple stood could with truthfulness be characterized as one of peace (see the books of 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles). Nor could it be asserted that the era of the temple of Zerubbabel was throughout peaceful. "Temporal peace they had now, nor was there any prospect of its being disturbed;… (but) in later times they had it not. The temple itself was profaned by Antiochus Epiphanes .... Again by Pompey, by Crassus, by the Parthians, before it was destroyed by Titus and the Romans" (Pusey). But the temple of Jesus Christ was the building of One who was by pre-eminence the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6), who came to teach men the way of peace (Luke 1:79), who bequeathed to his disciples as his parting legacy his own peace (John 14:27), who died to make peace between God and man through his cross (Ephesians 2:14), and who has since come to men in and through his gospel, preaching peace (Acts 10:36), and by his Spirit shedding peace abroad in the hearts of them who believe (Romans 5:1; Romans 8:6; Romans 14:17; Galatians 5:22; Philippians 4:7; Colossians 3:15).
III. THE LESSON.
1. The certainty of God's Word. What Haggai predicted has at length been fulfilled. So will all God's promises reach realization.
2. The superiority of the gospel dispensation. A dispensation not of letter and form, but of spirit and life; not of condemnation and death, but of justification and glory; not of temporal duration, but of eternal continuance.
3. The perfectibility of the race. Human history has hitherto progressed according to the law—"first that which is natural, and afterwards that which is spiritual;" there is no reason to believe it will do otherwise in the future.