“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,but the righteous shall live by his faith. Habakkuk 2:4 This is the most famous verse in Habakkuk’s little book. Last time we looked at the word “upright” (yashar). I now want to turn my attention to an even more important word in this verse: faith. Next time we will look at the verse as a whole and how it was interpreted. Firm Faith The word “faith” in our passage is the Hebrew word אֱמוּנָה (emunah). While we may connect it with a thought (faith is something I think), […]

“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,but the righteous shall live by his faith. Habakkuk 2:4 This is the most famous verse in Habakkuk’s little book. We will look at the more well-known, second line next week. Today I want to focus on the first line. What does it mean to be upright? The Hebrew word יָשַׁר (yashar) translates to “upright”. This verb means to be straight, level, or right (i.e. correct). This root and its variety of forms are used over 200 times throughout the Hebrew Bible. While it describes things literally being straight […]

For still the vision awaits its appointed time;it hastens to the end—it will not lie.If it seems slow, wait for it;it will surely come; it will not delay. Habakkuk 2:3 The Lord instructed Habakkuk to write down a vision for others to read and hear it. What will this vision be about? In this verse we see it’s about an “appointed time” and “then end”. This sounds foreboding! What did this mean for Habakkuk and his audience that we can learn from today? An Appointment The word “appointed time” is the Hebrew word מּוֹעֵד (mo’ed). It is a time of […]

And the LORD answered me:“Write the vision;make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. Habakkuk 2:2 The Lord answers Habakkuk’s complaint! God doesn’t just have an answer for Habakkuk. He wants him to write it down and pass it on. This message is for everyone! A Clear Explanation The Lord has a vision for Habakkuk (the word hazon was previously discussed in Habakkuk 1:1) which he wants clearly written down. The phrase “make it plain” is the Hebrew word ba’er. It is only used in two other places, both in Deuteronomy. The book opens by saying […]

I will take my stand at my watchpostand station myself on the tower,and look out to see what he will say to me,and what I will answer concerning my complaint. Habakkuk 2:1 After five months, we are finally done with chapter 1 and starting chapter 2! Habakkuk has delivered his complaint to the Lord, and now he awaits a response. He’s watching his metaphorical mailbox for a reply. This verse contains several mentions of being on the lookout for God’s answer. My literal translation: “Upon my post (מִשְׁמֶ֫רֶת, mishmeret) let me stand, and let me station myself upon a fortification, […]

Therefore he sacrifices to his netand makes offerings to his dragnet;for by them he lives in luxury,and his food is rich. Habakkuk 1:16 Last week we saw how Habakkuk compares people to fish and their Chaldean attackers to fishermen out to catch them. They get rich off the plunder. What does a life of luxury look like in the Bible? A Rich Life I want to focus on the final two lines of verse 16. More literally, it says, “For in them his portion is שָׁמֵן (shamen) and his food is בָּרִיא (ba’ri).” English translations give a good general sense […]

You make mankind like the fish of the sea,like crawling things that have no ruler.He brings all of them up with a hook;he drags them out with his net;he gathers them in his dragnet;so he rejoices and is glad.Therefore he sacrifices to his netand makes offerings to his dragnet;for by them he lives in luxury,and his food is rich.Is he then to keep on emptying his netand mercilessly killing nations forever? Habakkuk 1:14-17 After complaining about the injustice in Israel and being bewildered that God would use an even more evil nation to punish them, Habakkuk turns to an analogy. […]

You who are of purer eyes than to see eviland cannot look at wrong,why do you idly look at traitorsand remain silent when the wicked swallows upthe man more righteous than he? Habakkuk 1:13 Habakkuk is struggling to contemplate how the pure, holy God can tolerate the evils of this world. He first complained about Judah’s wickedness. When the Lord said he’d punish them via the Babylonians, Habakkuk received an even bigger problem: how can God use an even more depraved nation to punish his people? Traitors The prophet asks why God looks at traitors (בּֽוֹגְדִ֔ים, bogedim) and does not […]

You who are of purer eyes than to see eviland cannot look at wrong,why do you idly look at traitorsand remain silent when the wicked swallows upthe man more righteous than he? Habakkuk 1:13 When Habakkuk complained about the injustice and violence around him in Israel, the Lord responded that he was sending the Chaldeans to punish them. This raises a difficult question: Israel certainly had problems, but Babylon was even worse! How can the Holy God who cannot look upon evil use the pagan city of Babylon to punish Israel? Pure God, Pure People A couple of weeks ago […]

Are you not from everlasting,O LORD my God, my Holy One?We shall not die.O LORD, you have ordained them as a judgment,and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof. Habakkuk 1:12 Last week we looked at how Habakkuk described God as “my Holy One”. This week I want to look at the last line of this verse, where he calls God a rock. What does that mean? God as the Rock The Hebrew word for “Rock” in this verse is צוּר (tzur). There are two other synonymous words (sela and eben) commonly also translated as “rock” or “stone”. I […]