Please follow along in your Bible as we read Habakkuk together as a church. We also encourage you to take notes and ask questions. If you’re not part of a small group, this is a great opportunity to join one.

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When facing a mess-up world, the believer is confronted with

I. The time after Christ’s birth – Mess-Up World

Read all verses together

• A. Luke 2:7 – Jesus born in Bethlehem
• B. Luke 2:22 – Traveled to Jerusalem to fulfill requirements of the Law
• C. Luke 2:39 – Return to Nazareth – timing of this trip and the purpose is unclear
• D. Matthew 2:1-2 – Wise men arrive in Jerusalem
• E. Matthew 2:8 – Wise men sent to Bethlehem
• F. Matthew 2:9 – Star led to the house where Jesus lived – Bethlehem or Nazareth??
• G. Matthew 2:13 – God tells Joseph to evacuate his family to Egypt
• H. Matthew 2:16 – Herod has all male children two and under in Bethlehem murdered
• I. Matthew 2:19-20 – God tells Joseph it is safe to return to Israel/they start to head back to Bethlehem but change direction and return to Nazareth
• J. Matthew 2:23 They arrive back in Nazareth

God never promises us an

II. Introduction to Habakkuk

• A. Overview

• B. Author: Habakkuk
  
  1. He was the last of the six Minor Prophets that ministered to Judah
  2. His ministry was just before the Babylonian Captivity, making him a contemporary of Jeremiah (last major prophet), Nahum, and Zephaniah
  3. Habakkuk literally means “embracer,” or one who takes another to heart
  4. He was a prophet and most likely was part of a Levitical choir as suggested by the musical notations 3:1 and at the end of the book

• C. Historical Context: Just before the Babylonian Captivity
  

  1. The Northern Kingdom has been taken captive by Assyria, and Babylon now threatens the Southern Kingdom (Judah) as the emerging world power

  2. The reforms of Josiah have been forgotten, and there is dark apostasy in the land (1:2-4)

     2 O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save? 3 Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. 4 So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted. —Habakkuk 1:2-4

  3. The last three Kings (Jehoiakim, Jehoiachin, Zedekiah) were all evil rulers

  4. The people were “exceedingly unfaithful” (II Chronicles 36:14-15)
     

     14 All the officers of the priests and the people likewise were exceedingly unfaithful, following all the abominations of the nations. And they polluted the house of the LORD that he had made holy in Jerusalem. 15 The LORD, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. —II Chronicles 36:14-15
     

III. What can we expect to learn?

1. God does not overlook sin, and it will not triumph!
2. God can handle our frustration and welcomes us into a conversation with Him.
3. The righteous must live by faith in a messed-up world.