Desire of All Nations: Meaning and 12 Bible Verses

"I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory," says the Lord Almighty.

— Haggai 2:7 (NIV)

People who search bible verses about Desire of All Nations want Scripture on the Hebrew title chemdat kol-haggoyim — the desire of all nations — in Haggai 2:7 — not only a shorter Desire of Nations survey alone. This page is a numbered list of twelve passages with the NIV text and a short note on each. Related lists: Bible verses about Desire of Nations, Bible verses about Jesus, Bible verses about hope, Bible verses about faith, Bible verses about salvation, Bible verses about eternal life, Bible verses about God's love, Bible verses about worship, and Bible verse of the day. Desire of All Nations here means Haggai's "desired by all nations" promise — distinct from Desire of Nations alone.

Quick answer

The phrase "desire of all nations" is a messianic title for the One all nations long for, fulfilled in Jesus. Haggai 2:7 says, "what is desired by all nations will come," and the Lord promises to fill this house with glory. The nations come to that light in Isaiah 60:3, rally to the Root of Jesse in Isaiah 11:10, and Luke 2:32 calls him "a light for revelation to the Gentiles."

Word study (lead theme). In Hebrew, "desire" / "desired" is חֶמְדָּה chemdah (Strong's H2532; Bible Hub H2532) — desire, delight, preciousness. "Nations" is גּוֹי goy (Strong's H1471; Bible Hub H1471) — nation, people. Haggai 2:7 joins them: what is desired by all nations will come. This list tracks that all-nations desire promise, not every nation or desire passage alone.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Haggai 2 presses that the Desire of all nations is Christ, and that God will fill his house with glory (Bible Hub MHC Haggai 2; Blue Letter Bible, Matthew Henry on Haggai 2). (Desire of Nations lives on that page; this list centers chemdat kol-haggoyim.)

12 Bible verses about Desire of All Nations

Haggai 2:7. "I will shake all nations, and what is desired by all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory," says the Lord Almighty. Desired by all nations will come. See Bible verses about Desire of Nations.
Haggai 2:6. "This is what the Lord Almighty says: 'In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.'" Shake the heavens and the earth. See Bible verses about hope.
Haggai 2:9. "'The glory of this present house will be greater than the glory of the former house,' says the Lord Almighty. 'And in this place I will grant peace,' declares the Lord Almighty." Greater glory… peace. See Bible verses about worship.
Malachi 3:1. "I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the Lord Almighty. The Lord… will come to his temple. See Bible verses about Jesus.
Isaiah 60:3. "Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn." Nations will come to your light. See Bible verses about hope.
Isaiah 2:2. "In the last days the mountain of the Lord's temple will be established as the highest of the mountains; it will be exalted above the hills, and all nations will stream to it." All nations will stream to it. See Bible verses about worship.
Isaiah 11:10. "In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to him, and his resting place will be glorious." Nations will rally to him. See Bible verses about Root of Jesse.
Genesis 49:10. "The scepter will not depart from Judah, nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, until he to whom it belongs shall come and the obedience of the nations shall be his." Obedience of the nations. See Bible verses about Jesus.
Psalm 72:11. "May all kings bow down to him and all nations serve him." All nations serve him. See Bible verses about worship.
Psalm 22:27. "All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him." Families of the nations will bow down. See Bible verses about faith.
Luke 2:32. "a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel." Light for revelation to the Gentiles. See Bible verses about salvation.
Revelation 21:24. "The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendor into it." Nations will walk by its light. See Bible verses about eternal life.

How to use these verses

Pick one verse when you need Desire of All Nations — not twelve as a grind. If you need Haggai's title itself, start at Haggai 2:7. If you need the shaking that precedes it, open Haggai 2:6. If you need nations streaming to the Lord's house, open Isaiah 2:2. For the shorter companion title, open Bible verses about Desire of Nations. For a daily verse, open Bible verse of the day.

Questions people ask

What does "desire of all nations" mean?

It is a messianic title for the One all nations long for. Haggai 2:7 says, "what is desired by all nations will come," and the Lord will fill this house with glory. Hebrew chemdah means desire, delight, or preciousness, and goy means nation.

Where is "desire of all nations" in the Bible?

The line is Haggai 2:7, beside the shaking in Haggai 2:6 and the greater glory and peace in Haggai 2:9. Isaiah 60:3, Isaiah 2:2, and Isaiah 11:10 show the nations coming to his light and rallying to him.

Is the desire of all nations Jesus?

Yes. Christians confess Jesus as the One this title names, the desire the nations long for. Malachi 3:1 says the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple. Luke 2:32 calls him "a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel."

Why do translations word it differently?

This page quotes the NIV: "what is desired by all nations will come." The familiar title "desire of all nations" is that same Haggai 2:7 promise, Hebrew chemdat kol-haggoyim. One wording is a title for the One who is desired; the other says what the nations desire will come. Both promise his coming and a house filled with glory.

Sources

Blue Letter Bible lexicons: H2532, H1471 (links above).
Bible Hub Hebrew: H2532, H1471.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary: Haggai 2 (links above).
NIV text for the verses listed.