Haggai lived at about the same time as the first half of the book of Ezra. The interesting difference is that Ezra tells of the adversaries (4th chapter) but doesn’t tell of the condition of the heart of the people; whereas Haggai tells of the state of soul of the people and not of the adversaries. The Lord allows the circumstances in order to draw our souls closer to Him. Then we understand.
V.3 The Lord reminds them of the glory of the first house; but in verse 7, He tells them of the future glory of “this house.”
V.4-5 Beautiful promises. He tells them to be strong, and better still, He tells them why they could be strong, “I am with you.” Ephesians 6:10 is worth turning to.
V.6-9 They could look forward to a great future on earth — we look heavenward! (Phil. 3:13, 20). In this first message, the Lord encourages the leaders to look to the Lord, not at the circumstances.