Haggai 1:5-11

5I, the Almighty Lord, tell you this: Think carefully about what is happening to you.

6You plant seeds but not many plants grow to give you food. You never have enough to eat. You drink, but you are still thirsty. You have clothes to wear, but they do not keep you warm. When you receive money for your work, you soon need to spend it. Then you have no money left.

7The Almighty Lord also says this: Think about how you live your lives.

8Now go up to the hills to get wood to build my temple again. If you do that, I will be happy. You will worship me there as you should do.

9You thought that you would get a lot of food from the crops that grow in your fields. But only a few plants grew. When you brought your food home, it quickly disappeared. I blew it away! Why do you think all this happened? It happened because my temple is still a heap of stones. At the same time, you all work hard to build your own houses. I, the Almighty Lord, am telling you this!

10That is why there has been no rain on your fields. That is why your plants do not grow well.

11I have stopped the rain, so that your fields and the hills have become dry. Your crops will not grow. There will be no grapes to make wine. You will not have olives to make oil. Nothing will grow in the ground. Your animals will not become fat. People and animals will all hurt. For all your work, you will get nothing.’