Haggai 2:4 (KJV)

Passage

Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:

Nearby Context

Haggai 2:2 Speak now to Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and to Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest, and to the residue of the people, saying,

Haggai 2:3 Who is left among you that saw this house in her first glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of it as nothing?

Haggai 2:4 Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, saith the LORD; and be strong, O Joshua, son of Josedech, the high priest; and be strong, all ye people of the land, saith the LORD, and work: for I am with you, saith the LORD of hosts:

Haggai 2:5 According to the word that I covenanted with you when ye came out of Egypt, so my spirit remaineth among you: fear ye not.

Haggai 2:6 For thus saith the LORD of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "strong", "zerubbabel", "saith", "lord", "joshua", "josedech", and "high". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "strong" and "zerubbabel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Who is left among you that saw..." into verse 5's "According to the word that I covenanted...", so "strong" and "zerubbabel" 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 "strong" and "zerubbabel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.