Habakkuk: Prophecy For Today

Habakkuk was one of the minor prophets and he received this prophecy that fits the times we are living in as much as it did when it was written.

1 This is the message that the prophet Habakkuk received in a vision.

Habakkuk’s Complaint

2 How long, O Lord, must I call for help?

    But you do not listen!

“Violence is everywhere!” I cry,

    but you do not come to save.

3 Must I forever see these evil deeds?

    Why must I watch all this misery?

Wherever I look,

    I see destruction and violence.

I am surrounded by people

    who love to argue and fight.

4 The law has become paralyzed,

    and there is no justice in the courts.

The wicked far outnumber the righteous,

    so that justice has become perverted. 

We are now living in a perverted and evil time unlike any ever seen before. 

The Lord’s Reply

5 The Lord replied,

“Look around at the nations;
    look and be amazed![a]
For I am doing something in your own day,
    something you wouldn’t believe
    even if someone told you about it.
6 I am raising up the Babylonians,[b]
    a cruel and violent people.
They will march across the world
    and conquer other lands.
7 They are notorious for their cruelty
    and do whatever they like.
8 Their horses are swifter than cheetahs[c]
    and fiercer than wolves at dusk.
Their charioteers charge from far away.
    Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.

9 “On they come, all bent on violence.

    Their hordes advance like a desert wind,

    sweeping captives ahead of them like sand.

10 They scoff at kings and princes

    and scorn all their fortresses.

They simply pile ramps of earth

    against their walls and capture them!

11 They sweep past like the wind

    and are gone.

But they are deeply guilty,

    for their own strength is their god.” 

The Lord's justice will come and rain down on the wicked. You can be sure of it.

Habakkuk’s Second Complaint

12 O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal—
    surely you do not plan to wipe us out?
O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us,
    to punish us for our many sins.
13 But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil.
    Will you wink at their treachery?
Should you be silent while the wicked
    swallow up people more righteous than they?

14 Are we only fish to be caught and killed?
    Are we only sea creatures that have no leader?
15 Must we be strung up on their hooks
    and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate?
16 Then they will worship their nets
    and burn incense in front of them.
“These nets are the gods who have made us rich!”
    they will claim.
17 Will you let them get away with this forever?
    Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?

2 I will climb up to my watchtower
    and stand at my guardpost.
There I will wait to see what the Lord says
    and how he[d] will answer my complaint.

The Lord’s Second Reply

2 Then the Lord said to me,

“Write my answer plainly on tablets,
    so that a runner can carry the correct message to others.
3 This vision is for a future time.
    It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled.
If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently,
    for it will surely take place.
    It will not be delayed.

4 “Look at the proud!
    They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked.
    But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.[e]
5 Wealth[f] is treacherous,
    and the arrogant are never at rest.
They open their mouths as wide as the grave,[g]
    and like death, they are never satisfied.
In their greed they have gathered up many nations
    and swallowed many peoples.

6 “But soon their captives will taunt them.
    They will mock them, saying,
‘What sorrow awaits you thieves!
    Now you will get what you deserve!
You’ve become rich by extortion,
    but how much longer can this go on?’
7 Suddenly, your debtors will take action.
    They will turn on you and take all you have,
    while you stand trembling and helpless.
8 Because you have plundered many nations,
    now all the survivors will plunder you.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
    and filled the towns with violence.

9 “What sorrow awaits you who build big houses
    with money gained dishonestly!
You believe your wealth will buy security,
    putting your family’s nest beyond the reach of danger.
10 But by the murders you committed,
    you have shamed your name and forfeited your lives.
11 The very stones in the walls cry out against you,
    and the beams in the ceilings echo the complaint.

12 “What sorrow awaits you who build cities
    with money gained through murder and corruption!
13 Has not the Lord of Heaven’s Armies promised
    that the wealth of nations will turn to ashes?
They work so hard,
    but all in vain!
14 For as the waters fill the sea,
    the earth will be filled with an awareness
    of the glory of the Lord.

15 “What sorrow awaits you who make your neighbors drunk!
    You force your cup on them
    so you can gloat over their shameful nakedness.
16 But soon it will be your turn to be disgraced.
    Come, drink and be exposed![h]
Drink from the cup of the Lord’s judgment,
    and all your glory will be turned to shame.
17 You cut down the forests of Lebanon.
    Now you will be cut down.
You destroyed the wild animals,
    so now their terror will be yours.
You committed murder throughout the countryside
    and filled the towns with violence.

18 “What good is an idol carved by man,

    or a cast image that deceives you?

How foolish to trust in your own creation—

    a god that can’t even talk!

19 What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols,

    ‘Wake up and save us!’

To speechless stone images you say,

    ‘Rise up and teach us!’

    Can an idol tell you what to do?

They may be overlaid with gold and silver,

    but they are lifeless inside.

20 But the Lord is in his holy Temple.

    Let all the earth be silent before him.”

Habakkuk 1&2 

The Lord is sovereign and in control. He will serve justice.

Rise up, O God, and scatter your enemies.
    Let those who hate God run for their lives.
 Blow them away like smoke.
    Melt them like wax in a fire.
    Let the wicked perish in the presence of God.
 But let the godly rejoice.
    Let them be glad in God’s presence.
    Let them be filled with joy.
 Sing praises to God and to his name!
    Sing loud praises to him who rides the clouds.[a]
His name is the Lord—
    rejoice in his presence!
Psalm 68:1-4

Resource: 
The Book of Habakkuk

All glory and honor to my Lord Jesus Christ,

Sherry

I will be linking up with these parties:
Mommy Moments at Life of Faith- Sun evening
The Art of Home-Making Mondays at Strangers & Pilgrims
Moments of Hope at Lori Schumaker
Soul Survival link up
Tuesday Talk with Sarah E. Frazer
Breakthru Linkup at Breakthrough Homeschooling- Tues eve
Tell Us His Story at Jennifer Dukes Lee- Tues eve
Grace Moments at Journeys in Grace
Thought Provoking Thursdays at 3-D Lessons for Life
Grace and Truth at Above the Waves
Fresh Market Friday Crystal Twaddell
Faith and Friends at Counting My Blessings
The Homemaking Party at Classical Homemaking

Friends Sharing Tea at BTTCG

Tuesday Cuppa Tea at Antiques and Teacups