Habakkuk1

Habakkuk laments the pervasive violence and injustice in Judah, questioning God's apparent inaction. The Lord responds by revealing He will raise up the Chaldeans, a fierce and swift nation, to execute judgment. The prophet then expresses his perplexity, questioning how a holy God can use an even more wicked nation to punish His people, and why He tolerates their treachery.
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Title and Habakkuk's First Complaint

1
The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. ​
2
O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! ​
3
Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. ​
4
Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth. ​

God's Answer: The Rise of the Chaldeans

5
Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you. ​
6
For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not theirs. ​
7
They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. ​
8
Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. ​
9
They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand. ​
10
And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.
11
Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god. ​

Habakkuk's Second Lament

12
Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction. ​
13
Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? ​
14
And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them?
15
They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. ​
16
Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. ​
17
Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations? ​

Study Notes for Habakkuk 1

Verse 1

The term 'burden' (Heb. *massa'*) often denotes a heavy prophetic oracle, usually concerning judgment. Habakkuk’s primary concern is reconciling God’s sovereignty with the suffering he observes.

Verse 2

This verse establishes the book’s format: a dialogue between the prophet and God. Habakkuk cries out concerning internal violence (*hamas*) and the apparent lack of divine intervention within Judah.

Verse 3

The prophet is witnessing widespread social breakdown, where oppression and injustice are rampant among the people of God.

Verse 4

The 'law is slacked' means the covenant instruction (*Torah*) is ineffective, and the judicial system is corrupted. The wicked are able to manipulate the courts, perverting justice.

Verse 5

God promises a shocking and unbelievable intervention. This passage emphasizes divine surprise; God’s action will be so swift and devastating that even the announcement will not secure belief (quoted in Acts 13:41).

Verse 6

The Chaldeans (Babylonians) were rapidly rising under Nebuchadnezzar. God identifies this powerful, 'bitter' (cruel), and 'hasty' nation as the instrument of His judgment against Judah.

Verse 7

The Chaldeans are a law unto themselves; their 'judgment and dignity' proceed from their own will and power, acknowledging no external divine or moral authority.

Verse 8

This vivid imagery emphasizes the swiftness, ferocity, and wide reach of the Babylonian military, particularly their cavalry, which attacks like the fastest predators.

Verse 9

Their faces 'sup up as the east wind' refers to the terrifying, destructive, and irresistible force of their advance, likened to a devastating desert windstorm.

Verse 11

This verse foreshadows Babylon's ultimate sin: attributing their military success to their own power or false gods. This pride is the very thing that will set them up for future divine judgment.

Verse 12

Habakkuk affirms God's eternal nature and holiness. He reasons that since God is everlasting, Israel ('we') must survive; therefore, the Chaldeans must be instruments of temporary discipline ('correction'), not final destruction.

Verse 13

This is the core theological crisis: How can a Holy God, who cannot tolerate evil, use a nation (Babylon) far more wicked than the nation (Judah) being punished? The prophet struggles with God’s method of justice.

Verse 15

The prophet uses the analogy of fishing to describe the ruthless efficiency of the Chaldeans, who treat nations like helpless creatures caught indiscriminately in a military net.

Verse 16

The Babylonians worship their own power and success ('sacrifice unto their net'), demonstrating extreme arrogance and self-sufficiency, echoing the pride mentioned in verse 11.

Verse 17

Habakkuk concludes his second complaint by asking if God will permit this unchecked destruction and idolatry to continue indefinitely simply because the Chaldeans are militarily successful.

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