“Moreover, wine is a traitor,
Habakkuk 2:5
an arrogant man who is never at rest.
His greed is as wide as Sheol;
like death he has never enough.
He gathers for himself all nations
and collects as his own all peoples.”
God continues his response to Habakkuk’s complaint. Even though the Babylonians will punish Israel, that doesn’t mean they will go unpunished themselves. They are described as “never at rest”, using a rare Hebrew word.
Rest Stop
The Hebrew verb נוה (navah) is only found here. It means something like “reach the goal of travel” or “rest (from travels).” I imagine driving for an extended period of time and pulling off into a rest stop along the highway to stretch my legs. Or, for a multi-day trip, pulling into a hotel to sleep for the night before hitting the road again the next morning.
To better understand this word, let’s look at some of the places the noun forms appear.
Pastureland
Various noun forms refer to a rural setting, especially pasture land away from towns, like pastures for shepherds (Jeremiah 33:12, Amos 1:2) or flocks (Isaiah 65:10). God told David, “I took you from the pasture (naveh), from following the sheep, that you should be prince over my people Israel” (2 Samuel 7:8). The prophet Joel warns that the “pastures of the wilderness” (ne’ot midbar) are devoured by fire (Joel 1:19-20) but later they are green (Joel 2:22).
Additionally, it describes a place where wild animals inhabit, like the “haunt (naveh) of jackals” (Isaiah 34:13). The Psalmist is concerned that “the dark places of the land are full of the habitations (ne’ot) of violence (hamas)” (Psalm 74:20). I imagine a dark lair hidden in a cave in the desert or some remote place.
The word is paralleled by human habitation. “For they have devoured Jacob / and laid waste his habitation (naveh)” (Psalm 79:7; see similar wording in Jeremiah 10:25). “You shall know that your tent is at peace, / and you shall inspect your fold (naveh) and miss nothing” (Job 5:24). It could be a metaphorical way of referring to home (or homeland). Alternatively, it could be a logical pairing, like a house and barn.
God’s Dwelling
God is also described as having a naveh. When David fled Jerusalem from his son Absalom, the priests took the Ark of the Covenant to go with him. However, David sent them back, saying, “Carry the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the eyes of the LORD, he will bring me back and let me see both it and his dwelling place (naveh)” (2 Samuel 15:25). This probably referred to the temporary shelter he had erected for the Ark.
After crossing the Red Sea, Moses said God guided the people “to your holy abode (naveh)” (Exodus 15:13). After crossing the Red Sea, they could rest, safely outside Egypt’s long reach. The Bible commonly referrs to as God’s people as his flock. Just a shepherd has a temporary place for his flock to rest as they wander from place to place, so too God provides a fold to hold his flock, Israel.
Jeremiah described how Israel’s enemies devoured them, gloating, “We have not sinned, for they have sinned against the LORD, their habitation (naveh) of righteousness” (Jeremiah 50:7). Jeremiah also sees the restoration of the land, using the same phrase, “habitation of righteousness” (Jeremiah 31:23). The Lord is their resting place.
To Ponder…
Do you ever wish for simpler life? What does it look like to take a break from going all the time and resting?
What does it look like to arrive at God’s naveh?
