"20 The word of the Lord came a second time to Haggai on the twenty-fourth day of the month, 21 “Speak to Zerubbabel, governor of Judah, saying, I am about to shake the heavens and the earth, 22 and to overthrow the throne of kingdoms. I am about to destroy the strength of the kingdoms of the nations, and overthrow the chariots and their riders. And the horses and their riders shall go down, every one by the sword of his brother. 23 On that day, declares the Lord of hosts, I will take you, O Zerubbabel my servant, the son of Shealtiel, declares the Lord, and make you like a[c] signet ring, for I have chosen you, declares the Lord of hosts.”
Haggai 2:20-23
The final prophecy of Haggai was given on the same day as the third. The point of the prophet's words seems to be this: the people were looking all around them, seeing the powers arrayed against them (see the appropriate passages in Ezra), and they were trembling and tempted to lose heart once more, because of these outward pressures that were besetting them. And God said to them, 'Leave them to me, I will shake the heavens and the earth'. The words are apocalyptic in tone, but we need not doubt that this is their first meaning, and that they were an assurance to a frightened people that God was in control. 'Cease from man', cries the prophet, 'and look above you; look to God, He is sovereign and will break these powers.' Such was the promise to the trembling exiles. But more: with that promise, and in it, there was also the assurance that the glorious messianic 'succession' - that which runs through all Israel's history from the beginning right up to Bethlehem - would be preserved and secured by the divine power. This is the point of the reference to Zerubbabel in 21 and 23, for at this point in the ongoing history of redemption he represented the messianic hope. This is an important consideration for an adequate understanding of the overall message of the prophet in the context of the whole Old Testament revelation, and we shall continue to think about it in tomorrow's Note.