22. Why did the temple builders need extraordinary faith, and what was the outlook that they needed to have?

²² When undertaking to rebuild Jehovah’s temple at Jerusalem, Governor Zerubbabel and High Priest Joshua the son of Jehozadak and the rest of the Israelites needed to exercise extraordinary faith in God, especially as the official ban of the Persian Empire was still in effect upon rebuilding Jehovah’s house of worship. Besides that, the builders needed to fight off discouragement because the humble beginning of the work appeared like nothing when compared with the former glorious temple built by King Solomon. They needed to have Jehovah’s outlook to encourage them onward. So Jehovah used his prophet Haggai to reveal what the divine outlook was, in these words: “‘Greater will the glory of this later house become than that of the former,’ Jehovah of armies has said. ‘And in this place I shall give peace,’ is the utterance of Jehovah of armies.”​—Haggai 2:9.

24. In Haggai’s day, what was the “later house” and what was the “former” one, and how did the glory of the one become greater than that of the other?

²⁴ Back there in Haggai’s time, more than 2,490 years ago, a new and second temple at Jerusalem needed to be constructed. It would be the “later house,” whereas the destroyed Solomon’s temple was the “former” temple. Both those houses were “the typical representations of the things in the heavens.” (Hebrews 9:23) According to Jehovah’s assurance in Haggai 2:9, the glory of the temple built under the supervision of Governor Zerubbabel and High Priest Joshua at Jerusalem was to be greater than that of King Solomon’s temple. How did this come to be true? For one thing, it continued in use longer, from 515 B.C.E. to 70 C.E., or for 584 years, whereas Solomon’s temple stood for 420 years. So the “later house” lasted till Messiah’s coming, and he himself taught there. Furthermore, in the year 17 B.C.E. King Herod the Great of the Roman Province of Judea began the gradual rebuilding of Zerubbabel’s temple, expending much money upon it and making it have a magnificence that rivaled that of Solomon’s temple. But what would count more with God is appreciation of His house by worshipers.

25. What did the greater glory of the “later house” mean in the way of worshipers at the temple?

²⁵ Doubtless, then, more worshipers flocked to Jehovah’s rebuilt house of worship at Jerusalem than in the case of Solomon’s temple. Especially so over a longer period of time. Also, since the temple was rebuilt more than ninety years after the dispersion of the Jews to many parts of the earth as exiles and fugitives, the worshipers came from more widespread parts of the earth than in the case of the former temple. On the day of Pentecost of 33 C.E. there were natural Jews and proselytes there at Herod’s temple in Jerusalem from Parthia, Media, Elam, Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, Pontus, the province of Asia, Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, Libya, which is toward Cyrene, Rome, Crete, Arabia, as well as from Judea. (Acts 2:1-11) In this way the later house had a greater religious patronage and hence a greater glory, in the typical fulfillment of the prophecy.