Habakkuk 2:1-20

     The chapter opens with Habakkuk waiting on the Lord’s reply (Hab 2:1). God answers him with a command to “Record the vision and inscribe it on tablets, that the one who reads it may run” (Hab 2:2). This could be understood to mean that the vision is sure, and the one who reads it will know to run for safety when he sees it coming to pass. Or, it could be translated, “Write down this vision; clearly inscribe it on tablets so one may easily read it” (CSB). Both renderings are possible, though I favor the first. God assures Habakkuk that the vision will certainly come to pass at God’s appointed time and that he should wait for it (Hab 2:3). The Lord then describes the Babylonian, saying, “Behold, as for the proud one, his soul is not right within him; but the righteous will live by his faith” (Hab 2:4a). Here we have a contrast of characters. The proud Babylonians did not live by faith in God, but by selfish ambition and might, and they would be judged by Him for their arrogance and abuses. In contrast, the righteous Israelites who were living in Judah would humble themselves and seek the Lord and “live by his faith” (Hab 2:4b). Other translations read, “the person of integrity will live because of his faithfulness” (Hab 2:4b NET), and “the righteous person will live by his faithfulness” (Hab 2:4. NIV). New testament writers cite this verse three times, each with a different emphasis (Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; Heb 10:38). Paul cites it in Romans 1:17 to emphasize the righteousness that comes from God on the basis of faith. He cites it again in Galatians 3:11 to emphasize the life that comes from faith in God. And the writer to the Hebrews cites the verse in Hebrews 10:38 to emphasize the faithfulness of the believer that God rewards. Though spiritual life is in view in the NT, it refers to physical life in the book of Habakkuk. The idea is that the righteous will continue to be faithful to God and He will not kill them in the Babylonian invasion, but will let them live. Some of the righteous who went into captivity included Daniel, Hananiah, Azariah, Mishael and Ezekiel. These faithful men served as models of righteousness for Israelites living outside the land. Referring to the Babylonians, God reveals they were given over to alcohol and violence, and, like death and the grave, seemed only to consume and never be satisfied, gathering more and more people and possessions to themselves (Hab 2:5). But these defeated peoples will one day take up a taunt-song against the Babylonians (Hab 2:6b). Habakkuk 2:6-20 presents five woes against the Chaldeans. Here, God reveals to Habakkuk the reasons why He will bring judgment on the Babylonians: 1) they greedily looted nations (Hab 2:6-8), 2) sought to secure themselves with their stolen wealth (Hab 2:9-11), 3) built their city with bloodshed (Hab 2:12-14), 4) exploited others sexually and with violence (Hab 2:15-17), and, 5) worshipped idols (Hab 2:18-19; cf. Deu 32:17; 1 Cor 10:20). The first four woes describe Chaldean acts against other people, whereas the last woe is against God. Though Babylon would seem unstoppable for a time, God would bring them into judgment, for “the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him” (Hab 2:20). The Babylonians in Habakkuk’s time were behaving similarly to ancient Babylon, which emphasized self-reliance over trust in the Lord. God judged ancient Babylon by confusing their languages and scattering them over the earth (Gen 11:1-9), and He destroyed the Neo-Babylonians in 539 B.C. by means of the Medes and Persians (Dan 5:1-31). The values and practices of self-reliance and self-exaltation continue worldwide and will be centralized again in the future city of Babylon, which will be destroyed at the Second coming of Jesus.