You have sowed much, and brought in little: you have eaten, but have not had enough: you have drunk, but have not been filled with drink: you have clothed yourselves, but have not been warmed: and he that hath earned wages, put them into a bag with holes.
Haggai 1:4 Is it time for you to dwell in ceiled houses, and this house lie desolate?
Haggai 1:5 And now thus saith the Lord of hosts: Set your hearts to consider your ways.
Haggai 1:6 You have sowed much, and brought in little: you have eaten, but have not had enough: you have drunk, but have not been filled with drink: you have clothed yourselves, but have not been warmed: and he that hath earned wages, put them into a bag with holes.
Haggai 1:7 Thus saith the Lord of hosts: Set your hearts upon your ways:
Haggai 1:8 Go up to the mountain, bring timber, and build the house: and it shall be acceptable to me, and I shall be glorified, saith the Lord.
The verse centers on "sowed", "much", "brought", "little", "eaten", "enough", "drunk", and "been". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "sowed" and "much", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.
The nearby context moves from verse 5's "And now thus saith the Lord of..." into verse 7's "Thus saith the Lord of hosts Set...", so "sowed" and "much" belong inside that flow. In Haggai context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.
A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "sowed" and "much" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.