New English Translation
Haggai 2:13
13Then Haggai asked, “If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body comes in contact with one of these items, will it become unclean?” The priests answered, “It will be unclean.”
Haggai 2:13 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.
- New International Version (NIV)Then Haggai said, “If a person defiled by contact with a dead body touches one of these things, does it become defiled?” “Yes,” the priests replied, “it becomes defiled.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then Haggai said, "If someone who is unclean by contact with a dead body touches any of these, does it become unclean?" The priests answered and said, "It does become unclean."
- New King James Version (NKJV)And Haggai said, “If one who is unclean because of a dead body touches any of these, will it be unclean?” So the priests answered and said, “It shall be unclean.”
Context of Haggai 2:13
11“The Lord who rules over all says, ‘Ask the priests about the law. 12If someone carries holy meat in a fold of his garment and that fold touches bread, a boiled dish, wine, olive oil, or any other food, will that item become holy?’” The priests answered, “It will not.” Then Haggai asked, “If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body comes in contact with one of these items, will it become unclean?” The priests answered, “It will be unclean.” 14Then Haggai responded, “‘The people of this nation are unclean in my sight,’ says the Lord. ‘And so is all their effort; everything they offer is also unclean. 15Now therefore reflect carefully on the recent past, before one stone was laid on another in the Lord’s temple.
Read all of Haggai 2Haggai 2:13 word by word
וַיֹּ֣אמֶר חַגַּ֔י אִם־יִגַּ֧ע טְמֵא־נֶ֛פֶשׁ בְּכָל־אֵ֖לֶּה הֲיִטְמָ֑א וַיַּעֲנ֧וּ הַכֹּהֲנִ֛ים וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ יִטְמָֽא׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Then saidאָמַר'âmar · to sayH559
- Haggaiחַגַּיchaggay · HaggaiH2292
- uncleanטָמֵאţâmê' · uncleanH2931
- by a dead bodyנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: deadH5315
- touchנָגַעnâga‛ · to touchH5060
- any of these, shall it be uncleanטָמֵאţâmê' · to defileH2930
- And the priestsכֹּהֵןkôhên · priestH3548
- answeredעָנָה‛ânâh · to answerH6030
Cross-references for Haggai 2:13
- Numbers 5:2“Command the Israelites to expel from the camp every leper, everyone who has a discharge, and whoever becomes defiled by a corpse.
- Numbers 9:6It happened that some men who were ceremonially defiled by the dead body of a man could not keep the Passover on that day, so they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day.
- Numbers 19:11“‘Whoever touches the corpse of any person will be ceremonially unclean seven days.
Commentaries on Haggai 2:13
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 11-14Verses 11-14 Ask now the priests concerning the law - The priests answer rightly, that, by the law, insulated unholiness spread further than insulated holiness. The flesh of the sacrifice hallowed whatever it should touch, but not further; but the human being, who was defiled by touching a dead body, defiled all he might touch Numbers 19:22. Haggai does not apply the first part; namely, that the worship on the altar which they reared, while they neglected…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 10-19Verses 10-19 Many spoiled this good work, by going about it with unholy hearts and hands, and were likely to gain no advantage by it. The sum of these two rules of the law is, that sin is more easily learned from others than holiness. The impurity of their hearts and lives shall make the work of their hands, and all their offerings, unclean before God. The case is the same with us. When employed in any good work, we should watch over ourselves, lest we…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 13Ceremonial uncleanness spreads more easily than ceremonial purity. Anyone touching a dead body became defiled and thus unclean. Anything touched by an unclean person also becomes impure (see Numbers 19:11–13, 22). Haggai discusses this in Haggai 2:14.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1313. On the other hand, a legally "unclean" person imparts his uncleanness to any thing, whereas a legally holy thing cannot confer its sanctity on an "unclean" person (Nu 19:11, 13, 22). Legal sanctity is not so readily communicated as legal impurity. So the paths to sin are manifold: the paths to holiness one, and that one of difficult access [Grotius]. One drop of filth will defile a vase of water: many drops of water will not purity a vase of filth…Read the comment
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Haggai 2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New English Translation — © 1996-2016 Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C.
Commentaries