Then answered Haggai, and said, So is this people, and so is this nation before me, saith the LORD; and so is every work of their hands; and that which they offer there is unclean.

HAGGAI 2:14KJV
Know the Bible

Haggai 2:14 (KJV)

What does Haggai 2:14 mean?

Haggai 2:14 says that the people of Israel, their nation, and everything they do—including their offerings—are considered unclean before God. The prophet Haggai is explaining that because the people themselves are spiritually impure, even their religious actions and sacrifices are not acceptable to God.

Haggai is speaking to the returned exiles in Jerusalem, addressing their spiritual condition as they rebuild the temple. In this verse, Haggai uses the example of ritual impurity to show that outward religious acts cannot make up for an unclean heart or life. God, through Haggai, is making it clear that the people's relationship with Him affects the acceptability of their worship and work.

The Hebrew behind Haggai 2:14

  • "unclean" (טָמֵא, tame): This word means ritually or morally impure. Haggai uses it to show that the people's impurity affects everything they do, not just their offerings.
  • "work" (מַעֲשֶׂה, ma'aseh): This word refers to deeds or actions. Haggai is emphasizing that all of the people's activities, not just their religious rituals, are affected by their spiritual state.
  • "offer" (קָרַב, qarav): This word means to bring near or present, often used for sacrifices. Haggai points out that even when the people bring offerings to God, those offerings are tainted by their uncleanness.

Why Haggai 2:14 matters

  • Haggai 2:14 clarifies that ritual acts or religious practices alone cannot make a person right with God if their heart and life are not clean.
  • The verse highlights the seriousness of spiritual impurity and its impact on every aspect of life and worship, not just on formal sacrifices.
  • This verse connects to the wider message of Haggai, where God calls the people to genuine repentance and wholehearted devotion as they rebuild the temple.

Where else these words appear

“Haggai” Hebrew H2292 · used in 11 verses

  • Ezra 5:1 Then the prophets, Haggai the prophet, and Zechariah the son of Iddo, prophesied unto the Jews that were in Judah and Jerusalem in the name of the God of Israel, even unto them.
  • Haggai 1:3 Then came the word of the LORD by Haggai the prophet, saying,
  • Haggai 2:1 In the seventh month, in the one and twentieth day of the month, came the word of the LORD by the prophet Haggai, saying,

“unclean” Hebrew H2931 · used in 78 verses

  • Leviticus 5:2 Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.
  • Leviticus 14:40 Then the priest shall command that they take away the stones in which the plague is, and they shall cast them into an unclean place without the city:
  • Deuteronomy 14:7 Nevertheless these ye shall not eat of them that chew the cud, or of them that divide the cloven hoof; as the camel, and the hare, and the coney: for they chew the cud, but divide not the hoof; therefore they are unclean unto you.