Zechariah 8:10Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The God of all urged them to diligently attend to what was essential: to construct a temple and establish within it a sacred altar, to fulfill the commandments of the law honorably and seek favor with the God of all. However, they procrastinated for various reasons; they claimed to lack sufficient funds or lamented the wickedness of their people who obstructed the temple's reconstruction. As a result of their disobedience, they suffered numerous calamities—crop failures, droughts, and incursions from neighboring nations. The God of all chastised them for their negligence, stating through the prophet Haggai, "These men say, 'The time has not come to build the temple of the Lord.' But is it a time for you to dwell in your paneled houses, while this house lies in ruins?" (Haggai 1:2, 4). Due to their surrender to laziness, they faced continuous shortages and hostilities with their neighbors. Yet, when they finally constructed the temple, divine wrath ceased; they found contentment and experienced considerable prosperity. It is therefore asserted that before the days of rebuilding the temple, the reward for humans and livestock was unsuccessful; farmers reaped no benefits from their labor, and they departed the fields empty-handed, alongside their weary oxen. Peace was absent among those entering and exiting the city, referring to individuals who came for trade or other business, indicating their unrest due to oppressive neighboring nations; friendships turned sour as relatives and neighbors became perceived as fierce adversaries. It is essential to recognize that prior to the Incarnation of the Only Begotten and the establishment of the Church, both people and livestock rendered no true value. Those deemed most sagacious and esteemed in this life engaged in futile intellectual pursuits, unable to convey anything of import. Likewise, those leading a life devoid of virtue had little merit before God. Consequently, there was no peace on earth, as demonic forces spread chaos, leaving individuals' thoughts and endeavors in turmoil without any enduring substance.

External foes and betrayal from within disrupted a harmonious existence, leading to a breakdown of justice, frequent conflicts, and personal rivalries where brothers no longer trusted each other, and relatives turned against one another.

The prophet Haggai states, “And now set your hearts from this day backward, while stone upon stone was not yet laid in the temple of the Lord; when you came to the heap of twenty measures, it was only ten; when you went to the winepress to draw out fifty measures, there were but twenty. I struck you with blight and mildew, and hail, all the labor of your hands; yet you did not turn to Me, says the Lord” (Haggai 2:16-17). These words apply both to the Church and to us as individuals. Before the foundation of God's dwelling in our hearts and the establishment of a temple for Him, and before the Apostle reminds us, “You are the temple of God, and the Spirit of God dwells in you” (1 Corinthians 3:16), any perceived good we accomplish, whether we are learned or simple, holds no merit. As the Scripture states, “Lord, You will save men and cattle” (Psalm 35:7), these deeds do not earn divine favor, and we find ourselves amidst conflicts and strife, lacking the peace that Christ bestowed upon His apostles as He returned to the Father (John 14:27). The truth of the Lord resonates in our lives: “His household are enemies to man” (Micah 7:6).

Every brother is treacherous, every friend speaks deceitfully, and every person ridicules their neighbor, failing to speak the truth; their tongues have learned to deceive (Jeremiah 9:4). Therefore, if we turn our hearts toward Christ and establish His temple, we will soon hear the apostolic declaration, “Everyone will receive his own reward according to his own labor” (1 Corinthians 3:8).