Habakkuk Chapter 1

• Habakkuk 1:1  The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. 

When a heavy concern is laid upon the innermost being of any child of God both before the coming of Jesus the first time and after when they become a child of God by receiving Jesus into their lives. That heavy concern is what we call a burden. We can get a burden for someone that is not saved, for someone in danger, or a burden for a nation. Most burdens we take to the Lord and pray. Most of them come from the Lord as the Holy Spirit draws us into prayer. Some are given so that we can physically do something, warn someone or just intercede fervently in prayer.

I've had many in my lifetime. Sometimes I've had them when I didn't know who or what they were for. I was just led to fervent prayer until the burden went away. It's like carrying a heavy load on our backs and we are not relieved until we lay it down and stop carrying it.

Habakkuk's burden was for the coming judgment upon Judah. They were about to be taken captive by the Chaldeans, a people from the southern part of Babylon ruled by King Nebuchadnezzar.

Habakkuk's Complaint

• Habakkuk 1:2  O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! 
• 3  Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. 
• 4  Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth. 

I feel like that when I am praying for my nation, the United States. Sometimes it seems as if nothing good happens and things go from bad to worse. What an awful mistake the supreme court make back in 1963. That started a downhill of sin that has gotten worse. We overcame the awful sin of slavery, we overcame a lot of things that were mistakes. We were still a God fearing nation as a whole but then one woman with the help of the ACLU sued to have prayer and bible reading removed from public schools. Now in 2025 things have gotten so bad that evil is called good and good is called evil.

• Isaiah 5:20  Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! 

The Lord's Answer

• Habakkuk 1:5  Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you.
• 6  For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not theirs. 
• 7  They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. 

This was God's answer to the burden of Habakkuk. Judgment was coming swiftly upon the nation of Judah like that same judgment came against the northern kingdom of Israel years before by the Assyrians. Babylon which included the Chaldeans had already taking over other nations including the Assyrians and now because of the sins of Judah in departing from God to serve idols and other false gods as the northern kingdom of Israel did; they too were about to face judgment in the form of Babylonian captivity.

• Habakkuk 1:8  Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. 
• 9  They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand. 
• 10  And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it. 
• 11  Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god. 

Their cruelty and power is mighty and they give credit to their false gods for their power not knowing that they will only have power as long as God's hand of protection is removed from the countries they take captive. They are fierce and confident in their own power and very violent.
They bred horses to become fierce and powerful. Wolves can see in the dark and be very fast and cruel. These horses were more powerful than the wolves.

Satan has limited power and can only do what is allowed by God which is why we need to be safe in the care of God and not be outside of His presence doing our own thing. We need God everywhere, every day. When God's hand of protection is removed from a nation because of their sin against God or against His people, Satan can come in and do whatever he chooses. It is true that bad things do happen to those that trust in God but He is there in our midst comforting, blessing and getting us through them.

Judah was forsaken at that time in history but God was with those that stayed faithful to Him. Daniel and his friends were safe because of being faithful to God when they were taken captive to Babylon. Babylon is later taken captive by the Medes and Persian Empire. We see all this foretold in the book of Daniel.

Verse 11 above may be speaking of King Nebuchadnezzar when he went insane for seven years and ate grass as the beasts because of his pride and sin. He was restored his kingdom and acknowledged the God of Israel in the end which may be why the verse states, that his mind had changed.

Daniel chapter 4 discribes this time in history. Nebuchadnezzar went through periods of evil and then repentance. His first repentance was when he had a dream and no one could interpret the dream except Daniel a prophet of God. Later he set up an image of himself forcing all to bow down to it or be thrown in a furnace. He then repented of that when an angel delivered the 3 Hebrews from the fire. Later he got exalted in himself thinking he was a great king building a great and powerful kingdom. Then Daniel prophesied that he would be removed from his throne for 7 years. The king then went insane for 7 years. All this is told in the first 4 chapters of Daniel.

Habakkuk's Second Complaint

• Habakkuk 1:12  Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction. 

God allowed all this evil to come upon Jugah, not to destroy them forever but to correct and cause bring them to repentance. It took 70 years.

• Habakkuk 1:13  Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? 

God sometimes will allow a nation that is more wicked than the ones they bring captive because of the sin of a nation that should have known better. Judah and the northern kingdom of Israel knew better. They had the prophets, the law given by Moses, and many warnings before God finally removed His hand of protection and allowed them to be taken into captivity. They were warned many times over and over by the prophets. They had gotten so bad as to pass their children into the fire in worship to idols. They would persecute the prophets and those that warned them of God's coming judgment, preferring to hear the false prophets that prophesied good things.

The nations that have known who God is and have known about Jesus Christ and His salvation would come under greater judgment if they turn away from God than the nations that are evil and didn't have a history of knowing who God is. They will be judged too as we see from reading history but the nations that have known God and forsake Him and His word, will face more severe judgment at least until they return to God.

This is why there is to be a future time of Jacob's trouble, or tribulation. It is not to punish the church but to bring Israel back to God after they rejected the savior that was sent to them whom their ancestors rejected and crucified. This was supposed to happen in order that Christ was made a final sacrifice for the sins of the world. Still they rejected Him and had Him crucified so that is why they have suffered so much evil until this day. In 1948 they got their nation back but they still are surrounded by enemies.

They will be delivered when they recognize their sin and turn to Jesus for salvation. Individual Jews have received Christ but as a nation, Israel has not yet turned to Jesus. This is why the great tribulation is coming that will be worse than all the tribulation before the last one. As of 2025 in July, the great tribulation is yet future. Will it come to pass, hasn't it already happened? Not yet. Israel had to be back in their own land. This happened in 1948 as I said before. They become a great nation but I was told that 90 percent of them are atheists and reject God even the Torah that the rabbis believe in. There are still some that believe in the Torah and also some that have come to Jesus for salvation.

• Habakkuk 1:14  And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? 
• 15  They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. 
• 16  Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. 
• 17  Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations? 

They power of the Chaldeans or Babylonians was so great until God brought them to an end that it is compared to fishermen that gather fish into nets. They continued to conquer other nations too until the Medes and Persian Empire took over the Babylonian Empire. Then the Greek Empire which is also called the Macedonian Empire came against the Medes and Persian Empire. The Greek Empire was headed up by Alexander the Great. When he died it was divided up between his four generals. After that the Roman Empire came to conquer the Greeks. After the Roman Empire crumbled, the nations of Europe became different countries which exist today. All this is prophesied in the book of Daniel. DC

I have a study on Daniel at https://oldpathlighthouse.com/daniel.htm

Habakkuk Chapter 2