TRV
Study This Verse
Commentary on Habakkuk 1 verses 12–17
The prophet, having received of the Lord that which he was to deliver to the people, now turns to God, and again addresses himself to him for the ease of his own mind under the burden which he saw. And still he is full of complaints. If he look about him, he sees nothing but violence done by Israel; if he look before him, he sees nothing but violence done against Israel; and it is hard to say which is the more melancholy sight. His thoughts of both he pours out before the Lord. It is our duty to be affected both with the iniquities and with the calamities of the church of God and of the times and places wherein we live; but we must take heed lest we grow peevish in our resentments, and carry them too far, so as to entertain any hard thoughts of God, or lose the comfort of our communion with him. The world is bad, and always was so, and will be so; it is out of our power to mend it; but we are sure that God governs the world, and will bring glory to himself out of all, and therefore we must resolve to make the best of it, must be ourselves better, and long for the better world. The prospect of the prevalence of the Chaldeans drives the prophet to his knees, and he takes the liberty to plead with God concerning it. In his plea we may observe,
I. The truths which he lays down, which he resolves to abide by, and with which he endeavours to comfort himself and his friends, under the growing threatening power of the Chaldeans; and they will furnish us with pleasing considerations for our support in the like case.
1.However it be, yet God is the Lord our God, and our Holy One. The victorious Chaldeans impute their power to their idols, but we are taught to tell them that the God of Israel is the true God, the living God, Jer 10:10, Jer 10:11. (1.) He is Jehovah, the fountain of all being, power, and perfection. Our rock is not as theirs. (2.) "He is my God." He speaks in the people's name; every Israelite may say, "He is mine. Though we are thus sore broken, and all this has come upon us, yet have we not forgotten the name of our God, nor quitted our relation to him, yet have we not disowned him, nor hath he disowned us, Psa 44:17. We are an offending people; he is an offended God; yet he is ours, and we will not entertain any hard thoughts of him, nor of his service, for all this." (3.) "He is my Holy One." This intimates that the prophet loved God as a holy God, loved him for the sake of his holiness. "He is mine because he is a Holy One; and therefore he will be my sanctifier and my Saviour, because he is my Holy One. Men are unholy, but my God is holy."
2.Our God is from everlasting. This he pleads with him: Art thou not from everlasting, O Lord my God? It is matter of great and continual comfort to God's people, under the troubles of this present life, that their God is from everlasting. This intimates, (1.) The eternity of his nature; if he is from everlasting, he will be to everlasting, and we must have recourse to this first principle, when things seen, which are temporal, are discouraging, that we have hope and help sufficient in a god that is not seen, that is eternal. "Art thou not from everlasting, and then wilt thou not make bare thy everlasting arm, in pursuance of thy everlasting counsels, to make unto thyself an everlasting name?" (2.) The antiquity of his covenant: "Art thou not from of old, a God in covenant with thy people" (so some understand it), "and hast thou not done great things for them in the days of old, which we have heard with our ears, and which our fathers have told us of; and art thou not the same God still that thou ever wast? Thou art God, and changest not."
3.While the world stands God will have a church in it. Thou art from everlasting, and then we shall not die. The Israel of God shall not be extirpated, nor the name of Israel blotted out, though it may sometimes seem to be very near it; like the apostles (Co2 6:9), chastened, and not killed; chastened sorely, but not delivered over to death, Psa 118:18. See how the prophet infers the perpetuity of the church from the eternity of God; for Christ has said, Because I live, and therefore as long as I live, you shall live also, Joh 14:19. He is the rock on which the church is so firmly built that the gates of hell shall not, cannot, prevail against it. We shall not die.
4.Whatever the enemies of the church may do against her, it is according to the counsel of God, and is designed and directed for wise and holy ends: Thou hast ordained them; thou hast established them. It was God that gave the Chaldeans their power, made them a formidable people, and in his counsel determined what they should do, nor had they any power against his Israel but what was given them from above. He gave them their commission to take the spoil and to take the prey, Isa 10:6. Herein God appears a mighty God, that the power of mighty men is derived from him, depends upon him, and is under his check; he says concerning it, Hitherto shall it come, and no further. Those whom God ordains shall do no more than what God has ordained, which is a great comfort to God's suffering people. Men are God's hand, the rod in his hand, Psa 17:14. And he has ordained them for judgment, and for correction. God's people need correction, and deserve it; they must expect it; they shall have it; when wicked men are let loose against them, it is not for their destruction, that they may be ruined, but for their correction, that they may be reformed; they are not intended for a sword, to cut them off, but for a rod, to drive out the foolishness that is found in their hearts, though they mean not so, neither does their heart think so, Isa 10:7. Note, It is matter of great comfort to us, in reference to the troubles and afflictions of the church, that, whatever mischief men design to them, God designs to bring good out of them, and we are sure that his counsel shall stand.
5.Though the wickedness of the wicked may prosper for a while, yet God is a holy God, and does not approve of that wickedness (Hab 1:13): Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil. The prophet, observing how very vicious and impious the Chaldeans were, and yet what great success they had against God's Israel, found a temptation arising from it to say that it was vain to serve God, and that it was indifferent to him what men were. But he soon suppresses the thought, by having recourse to his first principle, That God is not, that he cannot be, the author or patron of sin; as he cannot do iniquity himself, so he is of purer eyes than to behold it with any allowance or approbation; no, it is that abominable thing which the Lord hates. He sees all the sin that is committed in the world, and it is an offence to him, it is odious in his eyes, and those that commit it are thereby made obnoxious to his justice. There is in the nature of God an antipathy to those dispositions and practices that are contrary to his holy law; and, though an expedient is happily found out for his being reconciled to sinners, yet he never will, nor can, be reconciled to sin. And this principle we must resolve to abide by, though the dispensations of his providence may for a time, and in some instances, seem to be inconsistent with it. Note, God's connivance at sin must never be interpreted into a giving countenance to it; for he is not a God that has pleasure in wickedness, Psa 5:4, Psa 5:5. The iniquity which, it is here said, God does not look upon, may be meant especially of the mischief done to God's people by their persecutors; though God sees cause to permit it, yet he does not approve of it; so it agrees with that of Balaam (Num 23:21), He has not beheld iniquity against Jacob, nor seen, with allowance, perverseness against Israel, which is very comfortable to the people of God, in their afflictions by the rage of men, that they cannot infer God's anger from it; though the instruments of their trouble hate them, it does not therefore follow that God does; nay, he loves them, and it is in love that he corrects them.
II. The grievances he complains of, and finds hard to reconcile with these truths: "Since we are sure that thou art a holy God, why have atheists temptation given them to question whether thou art so or no? Wherefore lookest thou upon the Chaldeans that deal treacherously with thy people, and givest them success in their attempts upon us? Why dost thou suffer thy sworn enemies, who blaspheme thy name, to deal thus cruelly, thus perfidiously, with thy sworn subjects, who desire to fear thy name? What shall we say to this?" This was a temptation to Job (Job 21:7; Job 24:1), to David (Psa 73:2, Psa 73:3), to Jeremiah, Jer 12:1, Jer 12:2. 1. That God permitted sin, and was patient with the sinners. He looked upon them; he saw all their wicked doings and designs, and did not restrain nor punish them, but suffered them to speed in their purposes, to go on and prosper, and to carry all before them. Nay, his looking upon them intimates that he not only gave them no check or rebuke, but that he gave them encouragement and assistance, as if he smiled upon them and favoured them. He held his tongue when they went on in their wicked courses, said nothing against them, gave no orders to stop them. These things thou hast done, and I kept silence. 2. That his patience was abused, and, because sentence against these evil works and workers was not executed speedily, therefore their hearts were the more fully set in them to do evil. (1.) They were false and deceitful, and there was no credit to be given them, nor any confidence to be put in them. They deal treacherously; under colour of peace and friendship, they prosecute and execute the most mischievous designs, and make no conscience of their word in any thing. (2.) They hated and persecuted men because they were better than themselves, as Cain hated Abel because his own works were evil and his brother's righteous. The wicked devours the man that is more righteous than he, for that very reason, because he shames him; they have an ill will to the image of God, and therefore devour good men, because they bear that image. Though many of the Jews were as bad as the Chaldeans themselves, and worse, yet there were those among them that were much more righteous, and yet were devoured by them. (3.) They made no more of killing men that of catching fish. The prophet complains that, Providence having delivered up the weaker to be prey to the stronger, they were, in effect, made as the fishes of the sea, Hab 1:14. So they had been among themselves, preying upon one another as the greater fishes do upon the less (Hab 1:3), and they were made so to the common enemy. They were as the creeping things, or swimming things (for the word is used for fish, Gen 1:20), that have no ruler over them, either to restrain them from devouring one another or to protect them from being devoured by their enemies. They are given up to the Chaldeans as fish to the fishermen. Those proud oppressors make no conscience of killing them, any more than men do of pulling fish out of the water, so small account do they make of human lives. They make no difficulty of killing them, but do it with as much ease as men catch fish, that make no resistance, but are unguarded and unarmed, and it is rather a pastime than any pains to take them. They make no distinction among them, but all is fish that comes to their net; and they reckon every thing their own that they can lay their hands on. They have various ways of spoiling and destroying, as men have of taking fish. Some they take up with the angle (Hab 1:15), one by one; others they catch in shoals, and by wholesale, in their net, and gather them in their drag, their enclosing net. Such variety of methods have they to destroy those by whom they hope to enrich themselves. (4.) They gloried in what they got, and pleased themselves with it, though it was got dishonestly: Their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous; they prosper in their oppression and fraud; they have a great deal, and it is of the best; their land is good, and they have abundance of it. And therefore, [1.] They have great complacency in themselves, and are very pleasant; they live merrily (Hab 1:15): Therefore they rejoice and are glad, because their wealth is great, and their projects succeed for the increase of it, Job 31:25. Soul, take thy ease, Luk 12:19. [2.] They have a great conceit of themselves, and are great admirers of their own ingenuity and management: They sacrifice to their own net, and burn incense to their own drag; they applaud themselves for having got so much money, though ever so dishonestly. Note, There is a proneness in us to take the glory of our outward prosperity to ourselves, and to say, My might, and the power of my hands, have gotten me this wealth, Deu 8:17. This is idolizing ourselves, sacrificing to the dragnet, because it is our own, which is as absurd a piece of idolatry as sacrificing to Neptune or Dagon. That which makes them adore their net thus is because by it their portion is fat. Those that make a god of their money will make a god of their drag-net, if they can but get money by it.
III. The prophet, in the close, humbly expresses his hope that God will not suffer these destroyers of mankind always to go on and prosper thus, and expostulates with God concerning it (Hab 1:17): "Shall they therefore empty their net? Shall they enrich themselves, and fill their own vessels, with that which they have by violence and oppression taken away from their neighbours? Shall they empty their net of what they have caught, that they may cast it into the sea again, to catch more? And wilt thou suffer them to proceed in this wicked course? Shall they not spare continually to slay the nations? Must the numbers and wealth of nations be sacrificed to their net? As if it were a small thing to rob men of their estates, shall they rob God of his glory? Is not God the king of nations, and will he not assert their injured rights? Is he not jealous for his own honour, and will he not maintain that?" The prophet lodges the matter in God's hand, and leaves it with him, as the psalmist does. Psa 74:22, Arise, O God! Plead thy own cause.
(Verse 12.) Surely you are from the beginning, O Lord my God, my holy one? And shall we not die? O Lord, you have appointed him for judgment; you have established him as a strong one to correct him. LXX: Are you not from the beginning, O Lord my God, my holy one? And shall we not die? O Lord, you have appointed him for judgment: and he has formed me, so that I may chastise in his discipline. Symmachus more clearly: Are you not from the beginning, O Lord my God, my holy one, so that I would not die? O Lord, you have appointed him for judgment, you have established him for reproof. To the prophet's complaint, saying: How long, O Lord, shall I cry out, and you will not hear? God had answered, saying: Look at the nations and see: and after the preface he had added: Behold, I will raise up the Chaldeans, a bitter and swift nation. With every detail complete, whether about Nebuchadnezzar or the devil in the end, it is stated: Then the spirit will change, and it will pass through, and it will fall, this is the might of his God. When the prophet heard and understood, therefore Nabuchodonosor, against Judam, or the devil against believers, can obtain power to rebuke them, and after the rebuke, he himself is also punished in the end, he responded to the Lord: So, are you, my Lord God, my holy one (he speaks these words with a tone of flattery and repentance), the one who created us from the beginning? Upon whose mercy do we still rely? For I did not know that our adversaries could have so much power, nor did I know that Nabuchodonosor or the devil of this world, and all the powers of the nations, had received power. Therefore, no one of us can resist his might. But as for your mercy, it is all that we live, for we have not been killed by him, and have been led to the works of death. For you, Lord, have placed him to judge, so that he himself may be the enemy and avenger, and through him you may rebuke all who have sinned against you. But because we have once interpreted the Chaldeans about demons, and Nebuchadnezzar about their king the devil, we must briefly describe the devil and his power, so that the prophet may justly say: Lord, you have placed him to judge, and have founded him as a mighty one to rebuke. It is raised up against unbelievers and scorners of the nations of demons, bitter for punishment, and present everywhere. It also walks wherever the width of the earth is, in order to possess men, in whom Christ was supposed to dwell. It is horrible and terrifying, and can hardly be overcome by anyone, and is not broken before it comes to fruition with the magnitude of sins and the weight of its own wickedness. His horses and horsemen are always thirsty for blood, like leopards and wolves; they desire plunder, they pretend to be absent, and when they are not expected, they will quickly come from afar. They will fly like an eagle, which, raising its flight, wants to place its nest among the stars of the sky, and always hastens towards its prey. And in Ezekiel, it is described under the figure of Nebuchadnezzar and the king of Egypt, upon the devil. There is no demon who spares: all will come quickly for plunder: ahead of them is a burning wind: whatever they see, whatever is in their sight, they will desire to burn and destroy. But the most powerful king will be in the midst of captives, and he will take their number as the sand of the sea from his satellites on all sides, and he himself will triumph over kings, and his ridiculous tyrants will be. For by his deceit, he will deceive many saints, and those who seemed to be the most powerful to themselves, and exercise tyranny against demons, and cast them out of possessed bodies, he will subject to his servitude, and consider them a laughingstock. But he, the strongest, with a forced hand and a gathered army of the wicked, will laugh at every fortification and will strive to overthrow whatever may happen to be there. For he will bring together a mound, that is, he will surround with earthworks; and when the earth is heaped up, he will easily capture every fortification. However, after such a great victory, his spirit will change, and his mouth will reach up to the heavens, and he will make himself a god, beginning to blaspheme his Creator. And when he does this, he will fall, and the ruin will show how strong his divinity was, and the imitation of idols under whose images he enslaved people to his worship. Therefore, hearing these things, the prophet understands that such a great and powerful king of this world will gather captivity like the sand of the sea and triumph over kings; and that his tyrants will be ridiculous, and he will laugh at every fortification, and he will construct the first rampart and then capture it; and he will be so arrogant as to dare to resist his Creator and make himself like a god, who previously spoke boldly to the Lord; and he had declared himself, or his people, or those on whose behalf he was speaking, to be just: now he bursts forth in words of flattery and says, 'Are you then my Lord God, my Holy One, from the beginning?' And as we do not die, nor are captured by such a great enemy, it is by your mercy. For you, O Lord, have established him as if a torturer; and you have made him strong, so that no one or very few can resist his strength. Moreover, according to the Septuagint, what is said at the end 'And he formed me, that I may reprove in his discipline' can be referred to the person of prophet, so that the meaning is: I have also been inspired as a prophet, that I may reprove the evildoers and teach the discipline of the Lord. Some people think that the Lord, who was formed by the Father and took on a body, is called that in order to teach people about the doctrine of God the Father. But whether this is in harmony with the context of the previous statements and the consistency of the whole passage, it will be for the judgment of the reader rather than me.
Continue studying Habakkuk 1:12 across the web’s major study libraries — every link below opens this exact verse, chapter, or book on the destination site.
Read & Compare
BibleGatewayThis verse in more than 200 translations and 70 languages.
Bible.comThe YouVersion reader — hundreds of translations, reading plans, and highlights.
ESV.orgCrossway's official English Standard Version reader.
NET BibleThe NET translation with 60,000+ translators' notes on every rendering decision.
STEP BibleTyndale House's free study tool — original text, vocabulary, and scholarly resources.
BibliaLogos Bible Software's free web reader.
USCCBThe New American Bible (Revised Edition) with the U.S. bishops' study notes.
Commentaries
BibleHub CommentariesDozens of classic commentaries on this verse, gathered on one page.
StudyLightMore than 100 commentary sets — the largest collection on the web.
BibleRefPlain-English commentary on what this verse means, verse by verse.
Enduring WordDavid Guzik's free commentary on this chapter, widely used by Bible teachers.
Bible Study ToolsVerse commentary alongside Greek and Hebrew study aids.
Original Language & Research
- BibleHub InterlinearThe verse word by word — original language, transliteration, and English.
- BibleHub LexiconEvery word's original-language definition and Strong's entry.
Blue Letter BibleDeep-study tools — Strong's numbers, concordance, and word studies.
SefariaThe Hebrew text with Rashi and centuries of Jewish commentary.
Sermons, Hymns & Audio
TrulyRandomVerse is not affiliated with these sites and doesn’t control their content. They’re linked because they’re genuinely useful.
SUMMARY
Habakkuk 1:12 marks a pivotal shift in the prophet's dialogue with God, transitioning from his initial complaint about Judah's internal corruption to a profound wrestling with God's astonishing answer: the raising of the fearsome Chaldeans to execute divine judgment. This verse serves as Habakkuk's foundational affirmation of God's eternal nature, unwavering holiness, and absolute sovereignty, even as he grapples with the perplexing and seemingly contradictory means by which the Almighty will accomplish His purposes. It is a declaration of faith in God's character, providing the theological bedrock for the prophet's subsequent questions and the Lord's ultimate revelation.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Habakkuk 1:12 is rich in literary artistry. The verse opens with a powerful Rhetorical Question ("Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One?"), which functions not as an inquiry but as a forceful affirmation of God's unchanging character and attributes. This serves to remind both the prophet and the reader of the immutable nature of the God with whom Habakkuk is dialoguing. The verse then employs striking Parallelism in the latter half: "thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction." This synonymous parallelism reinforces God's deliberate and dual purpose in using the Chaldeans—both to execute justice and to bring about discipline. The use of distinct divine titles—"LORD" (Yᵉhôvâh), "my God" (ʼĕlôhîym), "mine Holy One" (qâdôwsh), and "mighty God" (tsûwr)—demonstrates a profound Invocation and a comprehensive understanding of God's multifaceted character, appealing to different aspects of His being (covenant name, general deity, moral purity, strength) to ground the prophet's faith and argument. The declaration "we shall not die" also carries an element of Confession and Prophetic Assurance, expressing a deep theological conviction in God's covenant faithfulness despite the immediate threat.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Habakkuk 1:12 serves as a profound theological statement, anchoring the prophet's faith in the unchanging character of God amidst bewildering circumstances. It asserts that God's eternality, holiness, and sovereignty are not diminished by His use of unrighteous agents; rather, these attributes define the very nature of His righteous judgment and redemptive discipline. The verse highlights the tension between God's absolute purity and His willingness to engage with human sin and even use sinful nations for His divine purposes. It underscores the truth that God's ultimate aim for His covenant people, even through severe chastisement, is always correction and preservation, never utter destruction. This foundational trust in God's unwavering nature is essential for navigating periods of divine judgment or perceived injustice, reminding believers that God remains on His throne, actively working His will for His glory and the good of His people.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Habakkuk 1:12 offers profound solace and a challenging call to faith for believers navigating a world that often seems chaotic, unjust, or beyond divine control. In moments of personal suffering, national crisis, or global upheaval, this verse reminds us that God is not absent, nor is He surprised by evil. He is "from everlasting," eternally sovereign, and "mine Holy One," utterly pure and just. We are called to anchor our trust in His unchanging character, even when His methods appear perplexing or His timing seems delayed. Just as Habakkuk wrestled with God's use of the Chaldeans, we too may question why God permits certain evils or uses unexpected means to accomplish His purposes. This verse encourages us to remember that God's ultimate aim for His people is always correction and purification, not destruction. It invites us to maintain a posture of faith, acknowledging His sovereignty over all things, knowing that His judgments are always just and His discipline is always redemptive, working all things for our ultimate good and His glory.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
How can a holy God use an unholy nation like Babylon for His purposes?
Answer: Habakkuk 1:12 directly addresses this profound theological dilemma. The prophet acknowledges God's holiness ("mine Holy One") and then immediately affirms that God "hast ordained them for judgment; and... hast established them for correction." This indicates that God, in His absolute sovereignty, can and does use any instrument, even those that are morally corrupt, to achieve His righteous and redemptive purposes. The unholiness of the instrument does not negate the holiness of the One wielding it. God's use of Babylon was not an endorsement of their wickedness but a demonstration of His power to bring about justice and discipline, even through the actions of those who do not acknowledge Him. This is a recurring theme in Scripture, seen in God's use of Assyria in Isaiah 10:5-7 or Cyrus the Persian in Isaiah 45:1-7. God remains holy and just, even when He employs unholy means to achieve His holy ends.
What does "we shall not die" mean in the context of Judah facing destruction and exile?
Answer: The declaration "we shall not die" expresses Habakkuk's profound faith in God's covenant faithfulness and His ultimate purpose for Israel. While Judah would indeed suffer immense loss, experience the destruction of Jerusalem, and endure a period of exile in Babylon, God's intention was not their complete annihilation but their discipline and purification. The phrase signifies that God would preserve a remnant, ensuring the continuity of His covenant people and the fulfillment of His promises, including the eventual coming of the Messiah. This is a recurring theme in the Old Testament, where judgment is often followed by a promise of restoration and the survival of a faithful remnant (e.g., Jeremiah 30:11). The "death" being averted is not necessarily individual physical death, but the complete end of the nation and its covenant relationship with God.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Habakkuk 1:12, with its profound affirmation of God as the "everlasting," "Holy One," who sovereignly ordains judgment and correction, finds its ultimate fulfillment in the person and work of Jesus Christ. As the eternal Son of God, Jesus perfectly embodies the "Holy One," being without sin and fully set apart unto God (Hebrews 7:26). He is "from everlasting," pre-existent with the Father before all creation (John 1:1-3). The judgment and correction that God ordained for Judah, and indeed for all humanity, were ultimately borne by Christ on the cross. He became the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29), enduring the full wrath and judgment of God against sin, thereby making a way for humanity to "not die" spiritually but to receive eternal life (John 3:16). Through His atoning sacrifice, Christ established the means for true correction and reconciliation with God, transforming judgment into grace for those who believe (Romans 5:8-10). Thus, the divine purposes of judgment and correction, so perplexing to Habakkuk, are perfectly executed and ultimately revealed as redemptive in the cross of Christ, ensuring the preservation not just of a physical nation, but of a spiritual people, the Church, purchased by His blood (Ephesians 1:7).