The Scriptures are full of this assurance of God’s presence, given by God to his servants, to Abraham, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Jeremiah, and so on (Genesis 15:1; Genesis 26:24; Joshua 1:9; 2 Samuel 7:9; 1 Chronicles 28:20; 2 Chronicles 20:15, 2 Chronicles 20:17;Nehemiah 4:14, Nehemiah 4:20; Psalm 56:4, Psalm 56:11; Isaiah 41:10; Isaiah 43:1–2, Isaiah 43:5; Jeremiah 1:8, Jeremiah 1:19; Jeremiah 15:20; Jeremiah 30:10–11; Jeremiah 42:11;Jeremiah 46:28; Haggai 2:4). Notably, these words were also spoken in relation to the first temple. When David wants to build the temple, Nathan the prophet said, For the Lord is with you
(2 Samuel 7:3).1 And when David charged Solomon with the construction of the temple, he said, Is not the Lord your God with you?
(1 Chronicles 22:18–19). Just as God promised his divine presence to David and Solomon in the initial building effort, so he promises the same to Zerubbabel, Joshua, and the remnant, another generation taking on itself the passion of David, in the temple rebuild.
13 Then Haggai, the messenger of the LORD, spoke to the people with the LORD’s message, “I am with you, declares the LORD.”