Habakkuk Part 3
Habakkuk 1.17
Will you let them get away with this forever?
Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?
Habakkuk 2.1
I will climb up to my watchtower
and stand at my guardpost.
There I will wait to see what the Lord says and how he will answer my complaint.
The Lord’s Second Reply
2 Then the Lord said to me,
“Write my answer plainly on tablets,
so that a runner can carry the correct message to others.
3 This vision is for a future time.
It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.
If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently,
for it will surely take place.
It will not be delayed.
4 “Look at the proud!
They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked.
But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.
5 Wealth is treacherous,
and the arrogant are never at rest.
They open their mouths as wide as the grave,
and like death, they are never satisfied.
In their greed they have gathered up many nations
and swallowed many peoples.
6 “But soon their captives will taunt them.
They will mock them, saying,
‘What sorrow awaits you thieves!
Now you will get what you deserve!
You’ve become rich by extortion,
but how much longer can this go on?’
7 Suddenly, your debtors will take action.
They will turn on you and take all you have,
while you stand trembling and helpless.
8 Because you have plundered many nations,
now all the survivors will plunder you.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
and filled the towns with violence.
9 “What sorrow awaits you who build big houses
with money gained dishonestly!
You believe your wealth will buy security,
putting your family’s nest beyond the reach of danger.
10 But by the murders you committed,
you have shamed your name and forfeited your lives.
11 The very stones in the walls cry out against you,
and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.
12 “What sorrow awaits you who build cities
with money gained through murder and corruption!
13 Has not the Lord of Heaven’s Armies promised
that the wealth of nations will turn to ashes?
They work so hard,
but all in vain!
14 For as the waters fill the sea,
the earth will be filled with an awareness
of the glory of the Lord.
- House (The Unity of the Twelve) views these verses as crucial in the context of the Twelve.
- Verse 2:14 explains the purpose and end result of all Yahweh’s work in creation. What is sin but the rejection of the knowledge of God– cf. Hos 4:6).…
- Renewal is as inevitable a result of punishment as punishment is of sin. Here the whole message of the Twelve hangs in the balance.
- Judgment is being poured out, the nations fall exhausted, the prophet bows in awe– (Hab 2:20)–, and Yahweh reigns.
- What happens next hangs on the Lord’s command.
Habakkuk 2
15 “What sorrow awaits you who make your neighbors drunk!
You force your cup on them
so you can gloat over their shameful nakedness.
16 But soon it will be your turn to be disgraced.
Come, drink and be exposed!
Drink from the cup of the Lord’s judgment,
and all your glory will be turned to shame.
17 You cut down the forests of Lebanon.
Now you will be cut down.
You destroyed the wild animals,
so now their terror will be yours.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
and filled the towns with violence.
Barker / Bailey:
“The NIV correctly interprets that the city has been built by shedding the blood of innocent victims and by committing grave crimes. For the Hebrew “to destroy a human life is the greatest evil, but the actual shedding of blood in murder imposes a special burden (see Gen 37:18ff.).… The crime of shedding blood could be expiated only with blood, primarily that of the murderer– Gen 9:6; Num 35:31f.… According to the general view, the power released when blood was shed brought about and demanded vengeance.”
“A land on which blood was shed could not be purified through sacrifice but only by shedding the blood of the murderer–Num 35:33.
Thus a city or society built by bloodshed and oppression cannot endure.”
Habakkuk 2
18 “What good is an idol carved by man,
or a cast image that deceives you?
How foolish to trust in your own creation—
a god that can’t even talk!
19 What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols,
‘Wake up and save us!’
To speechless stone images you say,
‘Rise up and teach us!’
Can an idol tell you what to do?
They may be overlaid with gold and silver,
but they are lifeless inside.
20 But the Lord is in his holy Temple.
Let all the earth be silent before him.”
- New American Commentary:
“Those who live on the weak and powerless ultimately collapse under the weight of oppression. This may be the meaning of the Fifth Commandment: “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the LORD your God is giving you” (Exod 20:12). The promise reflects living long in the land and appears to be a promise for a society that values life, especially life as reflected in families and the life of the old or weak. In contrast is the society built without the appreciation of life. That society will fail. Woe to the city, town, or society built on crime and bloodshed!”
- Verse 2:16 builds on the preceding verse. “When the Lord deals with Babylon it is as its sovereign king.… Because Babylon is ‘puffed up’– (2:4), ‘arrogant’– (2:5), ‘restless’– (2:5), and ‘greedy’– (2:5), God decides to reverse the nation’s fortunes.…
- Like Nineveh, Babylon will become a shadow of its former self, thus negating its intense pride.” What Babylon had done to others would be done to them. “Shame,” nakedness, and drinking having played a prominent part in Babylon’s sin, the prophet knew that these elements would play a significant part in Babylon’s punishment.
Habakkuk’s Prayer
Amerding:
“Habakkuk 1–2 appears to emphasize the human agents in the outworking of this pattern; chapter 3 reveals its inward dynamics in the sovereign agency of God, who implements the covenant through whatever earthly means he chooses. Together they form a compelling and tightly meshed testimony to the ways of God in judgment and in grace.”At all points God has proved faithful. Regardless of how bleak the national situation becomes, Habakkuk promises to watch, wait, and hope for the Lord to act (3:16–18).
- Roberts, from Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah:
“The chapter is a unified piece that forms an integral part of the argument of the larger book of Habakkuk. Without it, the book remains a fragment with no resolution of the prophet’s laments, and with no vision for the prophet to record as he has been commanded to do. There is no justification for treating Habakkuk 3 as an independent piece or for denying its traditional attribution to Habakkuk.”
Habakkuk 3.1
This prayer was sung by the prophet Habakkuk:
2 I have heard all about you, Lord.
I am filled with awe by your amazing works.
In this time of our deep need,
help us again as you did in years gone by.
And in your anger,
remember your mercy.
NAC:
“3:2 Of the entire chapter, only this verse takes on the form of a petition for God to do something. The remainder of the prayer describes the greatness of God in the past and expresses the prophet’s quiet confidence in the work of God. The prophet’s petition is threefold: preserve life, provide understanding, and remember mercy.”
Habakkuk 3
3 I see God moving across the deserts from Edom,
the Holy One coming from Mount Paran.
His brilliant splendor fills the heavens,
and the earth is filled with his praise.
4 His coming is as brilliant as the sunrise.
Rays of light flash from his hands,
where his awesome power is hidden.
5 Pestilence marches before him;
plague follows close behind.
6 When he stops, the earth shakes.
When he looks, the nations tremble.
He shatters the everlasting mountains
and levels the eternal hills.
He is the Eternal One!
7 I see the people of Cushan in distress,
and the nation of Midian trembling in terror.
- Verse 3:3 God answered the prayer in verse two with a theophany in the following verses (Hab 3:3–15).
Achtemeier:
“The passage forms the most extensive and elaborate theophany to be found in the Old Testament.”Garland:
“A theophany describes an appearance of God in great power and glory, often looking to the events of the exodus and the giving of the law on Mount Sinai.
See: Exodus 19 for additional look at ‘theophany.’”
Habakkuk 3
8 Was it in anger, Lord, that you struck the rivers
and parted the sea?
Were you displeased with them?
No, you were sending your chariots of salvation!
9 You brandished your bow
and your quiver of arrows.
You split open the earth with flowing rivers.
10 The mountains watched and trembled.
Onward swept the raging waters.
The mighty deep cried out,
lifting its hands in submission.
11 The sun and moon stood still in the sky
as your brilliant arrows flew
and your glittering spear flashed.
12 You marched across the land in anger
and trampled the nations in your fury.
13 You went out to rescue your chosen people,
to save your anointed ones.
You crushed the heads of the wicked
and stripped their bones from head to toe.
14 With his own weapons,
you destroyed the chief of those
who rushed out like a whirlwind,
thinking Israel would be easy prey.
15 You trampled the sea with your horses,
and the mighty waters piled high.
- Barker / Bailey:
“One way of using the perfect tense is the “prophetic perfect” or “perfective of confidence,” a way of describing something so certain that the prophet could speak of it as already accomplished. A modern phrase which captures the essence of the “prophetic perfect” is to say that “it’s money in the bank,” that is, “you can count on it, it’s sure to happen.” This would mean that the events described would occur in the future while emphasizing the certainty of the occurrence.”
Habakkuk 3
16 I trembled inside when I heard this;
my lips quivered with fear.
My legs gave way beneath me,
and I shook in terror.
I will wait quietly for the coming day
when disaster will strike the people who invade us.
17 Even though the fig trees have no blossoms,
and there are no grapes on the vines;
even though the olive crop fails,
and the fields lie empty and barren;
even though the flocks die in the fields,
and the cattle barns are empty,
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord!
I will be joyful in the God of my salvation!
19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength!
He makes me as surefooted as a deer,
able to tread upon the heights.
(For the choir director: This prayer is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)
- Barker and Bailey:
“Habakkuk saw in a past event the work of God. God’s power and majesty were the answers to Habakkuk’s needs. Having seen the awesome God who led his people from the south into the land of promise, Habakkuk saw that God could deal with the sin of Judah and with the arrogance of Babylon.”
“The ultimate answer to such difficult questions always takes the questioner back to God himself. Habakkuk questioned God, but ultimately the prophet came back to the profound answer for all the questions of life—he returned to the theme of the greatness and the majesty of God. “In chapter 3 his doubts have been satisfactorily answered. Here he breaks forth in prayer, praise, and joy. He makes a triumphant expression of undaunted faith.”
Romans 1
16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile.
17 This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
Hebrews 10
36 Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God’s will. Then you will receive all that he has promised.
37 “For in just a little while, the Coming One will come and not delay.
38 And my righteous ones will live by faith.
But I will take no pleasure in anyone who turns away.”
39 But we are not like those who turn away from God to their own destruction. We are the faithful ones, whose souls will be saved.
Hebrews 11
Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see.
2 Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation.
3 By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen.
4 It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith.
5 It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“he disappeared, because God took him.” For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God.
6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
