1:1 The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw.
Habakkuk’s Complaint
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
3 Why do you make me see iniquity,
and why do you idly look at wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
4 So the law is paralyzed,
and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
so justice goes forth perverted.
The Lord‘s Answer
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
6 For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans,
that bitter and hasty nation,
who march through the breadth of the earth,
to seize dwellings not their own.
7 They are dreaded and fearsome;
their justice and dignity go forth from themselves.
8 Their horses are swifter than leopards,
more fierce than the evening wolves;
their horsemen press proudly on.
Their horsemen come from afar;
they fly like an eagle swift to devour.
9 They all come for violence,
all their faces forward.
They gather captives like sand.
10 At kings they scoff,
and at rulers they laugh.
They laugh at every fortress,
for they pile up earth and take it.
11 Then they sweep by like the wind and go on,
guilty men, whose own might is their god!”
Habakkuk’s Second Complaint
12 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.
13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
14 You make mankind like the fish of the sea,
like crawling things that have no ruler.
15 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.
16 Therefore he sacrifices to his net
and makes offerings to his dragnet;
for by them he lives in luxury,
and his food is rich.
17 Is he then to keep on emptying his net
and mercilessly killing nations forever?
2:1 I will take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and look out to see what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
The Righteous Shall Live by His Faith
2 And the Lord answered me:
“Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 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.
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.
5 “Moreover, wine is a traitor,
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.”
Woe to the Chaldeans
6 Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say,
“Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own—
for how long?—
and loads himself with pledges!”
7 Will not your debtors suddenly arise,
and those awake who will make you tremble?
Then you will be spoil for them.
8 Because you have plundered many nations,
all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you,
for the blood of man and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell in them.
9 “Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house,
to set his nest on high,
to be safe from the reach of harm!
10 You have devised shame for your house
by cutting off many peoples;
you have forfeited your life.
11 For the stone will cry out from the wall,
and the beam from the woodwork respond.
12 “Woe to him who builds a town with blood
and founds a city on iniquity!
13 Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts
that peoples labor merely for fire,
and nations weary themselves for nothing?
14 For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
15 “Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink—
you pour out your wrath and make them drunk,
in order to gaze at their nakedness!
16 You will have your fill of shame instead of glory.
Drink, yourself, and show your uncircumcision!
The cup in the Lord‘s right hand
will come around to you,
and utter shame will come upon your glory!
17 The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you,
as will the destruction of the beasts that terrified them,
for the blood of man and violence to the earth,
to cities and all who dwell in them.
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.” (ESV)
To read a blog Pastor Ben wrote with the background of the book of Habakkuk click here: http://www.churchforhighschoolers.com/blog/habakkuk/
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
It is so foolish to trust in an idol. How ridiculous to think that something I make can have power over me. We don’t make wooden idols that we bow down to anymore…but we still place our hope in things that have no power…like money, or plans, or houses, or cars. None of these things can guarantee a secure future but we try so hard to prepare and trust in our plans. This is not trusting in God. I love how verse 20 ends. “Let all the earth keep silence before him.” I need to stand in awe of God and know that he is in complete control. I need to trust him with my life.
good point Meisha!
This same verse struck me! Love yr comment Meisha!
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This is a super long chapter! This is the one verse that i pulled from it that seemed the most imporntant to me. All this time habakku is complaining to God. And in this single verse God explains that he has a plan for him, and that he wouldnt even belive him if he told him. God is doing this to each of us, he has a great and wonderfull life planned out and he is doing work in it every day. Im so excited to serve God and see what he has planned for me!
Oh yeah! Trustin in His plan one day at a time(: Great comment! :D
it’s two chapters Holden. :)
Oops, that explains why its so long haha
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
This verse contrasts the Babylonians who’s “soul is puffed up”, and the righteous who “live by…faith”.
Three times this verse is quoted in the New Testament (Rom. 1:17, Gal. 3:11, Heb. 10:38-39), showing it’s importance in the main scheme of the Bible.
In Romans 1:16-17 Paul claims that he is unashamed of the gospel (vs. 16), and after that he gives his reason because it is the power of God to save, and then he concludes that Christ’s righteousness may be imparted to all who live by faith.
Honestly, I’ve never liked the word faith. Now a days the word has a weak connotation, as if you were more “crossing-your-fingers” hoping that a dream would come true. Moreover, many say faith is “leaping” blindly without any facts or evidence otherwise. And lastly faith in America has been lowered to a “belief” in a set of facts or rituals. None of this is biblical faith.
And the contrast here in Habakkuk 2:4 gives us a clearer understanding of strong biblical faith. Strong faith, which is really any faith at all is not puffed up, that is self-faith, but strong faith is faith in which the source of our pride and hope is in God. When we are humble and contrite before God and tremble at His Word and fear His name and obey his commandments this is active faith. We no longer have trust in ourselves, but we “live” by faith. The important word here is “live”. Faith in a true sense is an active banking of all one’s hope in something, in this case God’s salvation.
It’s like making an “all in” anti in poker. You sincerely have faith in your hand so you put all your chips into it. But in this case the righteous have faith in God’s hand not their own.
I hope this helps anyone who doesn’t really understand the word faith as I have struggled to understand it in the past :) Beach Night tonight!
Wow!! I never thought so in depth about the meaning of the word! Hahaha thanks spencer! :D
Isn’t it interesting that it is a portion of the verse, a phrase from it not the complete verse. each time it emphasizes on a different aspect of the phrases meaning. I think we focused on the same verse. :)
ESV commentary was very helpful to me, I reiterated some of their insight from some of the notes.
Reminder: Be careful in using a commentary. I am responding to my own comment. When using a commentary to understand history and insight, it is a great tool.
Although, I found myself today using it a lil too much. I focused too much on their interpretation instead of what God wanted to teach me. I did apply it to my life directly, which is good for us to do. Our comments need to be from OUR hearts, otherwise we aren’t allowing God to speak to us personally. We are repeating someone else, and their thoughts God gave them. We do learn from our brothers and sisters! Although, we need to make our comments, our own; for our growth. BTW-You all are doing an awesome job! :)
I didn’t use a commentary
Spencer always has awesome things to say about the scripture of the day. God is good. :D (ha nahum under the boba cup)
Great comment! That did help me understand it : D
Woww Spence! Solid comment. I never thought about it like that :)
So sorry for the confusion Spencer. I referred to myself in my commentary comment.
I’m not sure if it was a commentary I was using. :) I was reading the study notes printed in the ESV study bible, which I always thought was a kind of a commentary.So no worries I was gettin on myself, to be careful, and encouraging students in general. :) See you at Beach Night! Oh and by the way you comment was super awesome!!!
Habakkuk complains to God in prayer that being a just God why is he using a more evil nation to punish a less evil one? God makes it clear that both nations will be judged appropriately for each of their sin.(as we are)
Verse 4 contains a key phrase Habakkuk and we need to focus on.
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
‘but the righteous will live by His faith”
Which summarizes the path of life God sets for His people.
Thank you Lord God for setting a path for us, help us to love it, seek it,
and obey it, in you strength you provide for us in your Word.
I failed to add the key phrase from verse 4
…”But the righteous will live by his faith”
also the last line in my comment was originally meant to read,
..in your strength, you provide for us, in your Word.
B*E*A*C*H***N*I*G*H*T*!!!
13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
We don’t always know what God is doing. We don’t always understand why. But has He ever failed those who love Him and are faithful? No!
God is sending these evil and destroying people to judge the nations and Habakkuk doesn’t understand why. These Babylonians are evil, unrighteous and somehow they have God’s hand helping them destroy those who are more righteous than them. He’s so confused because supposedly God cannot look on evil and yet He is causing this mass destruction from the hands of these horrible people. But little by little, Habakkuk starts to trust in what God is doing. He begins to not to try to understand but just trust that God will take care of Him and that all of the events taking place(however terrible they are) will carry out God’s will.
This needs to be my attitude. The one of complete trust and faith in Him. There have been things in the past where I didn’t understand why they were happening until a while(maybe even years) later and I could see what God did for me in my life through it! There are things happening now that I don’t understand and I probably never will until I can ask the Lord face to face. But it shouldn’t matter, God is in control and can even work through these barbaric warriors to shine His glory! Praise the Lord for His love for me and you and His hand on everything!
God is good all the time!!!!!!
MARANATHA!
GREAT comment!!!! Oh my gosh, I loved the part about “has God ever failed those who love Him and are faithful?” and how we don’t necessarily need to understand. So enlightening!
4 So the law is paralyzed,
and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
so justice goes forth perverted.
Habakkuk has a lot to say about the city and how everyone is sinning. He is not happy with whats going down, and so he starts complaining to God about it. He says the law is paralyzed which means no one responds to it. It seems like that today, Gods law is out there for us to read, but we still dont read it or respond to it. I have to daily be in Gods word, or else my knowledge of Gods commands will be empty. I can always tell that I am doing more good things when I have been activly in Gods word and praying for days straight, and when the habbit breaks, so does my obedience. I have to continually be in Gods word to know what He wants me to do, or else I wont be living the holy life God commands of us.
Hab 2:18 “What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metal image, a teacher of lies?
Then: God’s prophet, Habakkuk, calls out the uselessness of worshiping created things.
Always: God wants us to worship Him alone and replace our false gods with Him.
Now: it’s time to repent of our idolatry and focus on Christ – it’s the day of grace! Don’t miss it! He is coming back soon!
13 Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts that peoples labor merely for fire, and nations weary themselves for nothing?
14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.
What I got from this is we can always be confident God will always have some purpose to what He does.
His works are never random or for no purpose, but only to better His kingdom.
We aren’t persecuted for nothing, we don’t do missionary work for nothing, it’s so important to remember absolutely everything, even the most awful thing you can think of, has a purpose.
The reason such terrible things happen in the world are a mystery to us until Gods plan is revealed to us in heaven.
If a situation looks like it doesn’t make any sense right now, you can bet in the bigger picture, it plays a beautiful role in Gods plan.
I know I need to be praying about thinking of the big picture more than just the immediate reactions to a situation and think how it will only benefit Gods perfect will.
And I’m SO excited for the knowledge and glory of God to overflow the earth, MARANATHA!!!
great comment Michaela!
“5 “Moreover, wine is a traitor,
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.”
i read,
but anyway wine is a traitor saying that wine is bad but people in the world just want more and more and that is wht happens with greed they see they want something they will either take it or go and spend there money to get it.
Hey!
Check out this blog I wrote on the book of Habbakuk!
http://www.churchforhighschoolers.com/blog/habakkuk/
And don’t miss Beach Night tonight! We are going to talk more about this book!
3 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.
Trusting in God’s plan. God has His timing, we have our own. For me, it’s hard not knowing what to do next and what God is going to do, especially these days, but that’s me not trusting in Him. God is powerful, He uses evil to glorify Him and to do good…how crazy is that? It’s a concept that I don’t think I’ll ever understand but He does because He is just that awesome. I definitely need to trust and have faith as big as a mustard seed, faith that can move mountains, so that God may be glorified even through my patience.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
ROB BIAGI SONG>coughcough. :D Sorry, I just had to.
Maranatha!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
People make idols from worldly things. They talked to rocks, sticks, clouds and other things thinking that the objects would reply. Things were meant to not talk, a tree was made to be a tree and not talk. God is the only God that has a heart and a voice. Only God can be God. We should not have idols before Him.
“O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?” (Habakkuk 1:2)
This verse stood out to me because sometimes, we as Christians are in pure struggle..and we cry out to God, expecting Him to snap His fingers & make everything better. When I was a kid, I would pray for something & then wait…literally..until it happened. Most of the time, it never happened. Or at least not the way I thought it would. We sinful fallen humans believe that we know the best way for our lives to pan out, so we pray for it..but when God sees what our lives will be like, he makes sure that His vision comes true..not ours. Regardless of how many times I ask Him, if God has some other plan for my life, He isn’t going to answer my prayer the way I “want” Him to. In verse 2, we can tell that the writer is not satisfied with God’s answers to prayer! “How long shall I cry for help, and you shall not hear?!”…the truth is, God hears every one of our prayers, He just doesn’t actively answer them the way we expect or want Him to.
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith” (Habakkuk 2:4).
Verse 4 of chapter 2 stood out to me because its a reminder that, its not about us or our appearance, or even our “Christian” appearance. I heard so many testimonies @Revival X saying that the person thought they were a Christian, and they made it appear that they were, but really they were living for themselves. It is so true, & absolutely everywhere! When people ask, we don’t want to sound as if we aren’t Christians..so we create an amazing testimony..etc. etc. etc. We cannot have puffed up souls, because its not about us!! The RIGHTEOUS shall live by his faith. I need to concentrate NOT on myself, but all on Him.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
Love this verse! The Lord is about to shock Habakkuk by telling him that he will use the wicked Chaldeans to judge the people of Israel. God had a plan to judge Israel that seemed wrong to Habakkuk, yet perfectly accomplished the Lord’s will.
We all go through moments where we think we know better than God or think that God is not working fast enough for our liking. Habakkuk is a great reminder that God is working and has everything under control. Job 42:2 is a another great verse, “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.” While I probably will not understand everything that the Lord is orchestrating, I need to rest knowing that God IS working and that his purpose is perfect. He may not always answer my prayers or work things out the way that I think best, but will far exceed my prayers to accomplish his will. May I live everyday trusting in God’s purposes and not my own.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
At the beginning of the chapter, Habakkuk is crying out to God for help, but he feels like the Lord is not responding, and that he doesn’t see the violence and terrible things going on around him. Which is a foolish thing to say, because God can see everything, nothing escapes him, and little does Habakkuk know that God has a plan in store for them, which he figures out in verse 5. He tells Habakkuk he is going to do incredible things that he wouldn’t even believe if he knew. This made me think of my life, and how often i feel like God is not answering my prayers or that he doesn’t see what i think is a problem. But that is such a ridiculous thought! He shows that he ALWAYS has a plan, which is so encouraging because he never forsakes us! This verse was a great reminder that even when we doubt it, God is always in control.
Nice comment, Katie.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
even now that Revival X is over, God is still working that many grow in their walk with Him.even now the Revival Lives on. despite all the suffering happening in the world right now, God is still there watching over us, planning for the day that He will call us back home.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
WOW! What 2 great chapters! I enjoyed this verse because it is a reminder that God is going to do things I won’t think is good, but He has a plan and a purpose. Some things I think would be great, really isn’t. My focus needs to be on God and whatever He calls me to do for His glory. Even if I think it is crazy! :]
Beach Night TONIGHT!!! :]
3 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.
Ok theses two chapters were really hard for me to understand,untill i read someones comment on verse 3. And what i got on verse 3, its about time..how God has one time, and he have another time. Havnt u notice that when we say that we are chritians but we dont follow or wait for God or his plans or his time?we just look at are selfs. So i pray that everyone here and me that we put are faith in God always, do all the stuff that HE wants us to do in his glory, and wait for his timing. Maranatha
Habakkuk 1:13a “You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong,”
I really liked this verse because it pointed out one of God’s attributes that makes Him God: His holiness! Many people like to push aside the fact that the God who created the universe is completely perfect and holy. His eyes cannot look at anything evil. People push this aside because they know that if God is holy and perfect and He cannot be in the presence of sin, they are subject to God wrath because they are sinners! I used the excuse that “God is a loving God and He wouldn’t throw me into Hell because He loves me too much!” before I was a Christian. While it is very true that God loves people, I did not know that God only loves people in that He sent Jesus Christ down to earth to die and rise again so that people could have a second chance. So God is very loving in that aspect. However, God is also completely just and cant let sin go unpunished. Sin cannot be in His presence so He must punish! I need to remember that my God is not only 100% loving, but He is also 100% just and righteous!
awsome comment Mary :D I haven’t actually thought about your comment. it is encouraging and filled with wisdom :D thank you for enlightening me :D
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
I like this verse. The people in Bible times would make things for them to worship. They would let those metal and wooden things be ruler of them and they would worship the things they made instead of the One true God. Now, most people don’t bow down to an image they made, but instead they “worship” their things such as cars, videogames, TV, computer, how they look ect. They spend their time on and think about that kind of stuff instead of God. I need to make sure i am not doing anything like that because it displeases God.
Amen to that!!
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
It is beyond foolish to place trust in an idol like one made of stone or wood. An idol as such will do no good, for it has been shaped by the hands of a man. And how foolish is the man that will form the idol and then go on to trust in it after having made it. He foolishly places trust in his own creation. He wants to live by the very things he has made, rejecting the truth of seeking after the one and only true God and desiring to live for him and worship him! That is the real and solid truth, yet it is rejected by many who choose their own way to live and their own things to worship.
We can easily look at this and see people are stupid if they make an idol of gold or silver or wood or clay, for they are only worshiping the very thing they have made. yet still today, people are all about worshiping what they have done or the things they have made. People pride themselves in the good work they have done and they love to flaunt their talent. However, I don’t want to worship anything that I have made or anything I possess. Even if it may not be bowing down and singing praises, I could still be worshiping an idol if I am valuing it more than I value God. And this is why I need to be careful with where I invest my time. I want to use my time to grow further in the Lord, not chasing after worthless things that seek to distract me be the prize of my life!
1:11 Then they sweep by like the wind and go on,
guilty men, whose own might is their god!”
This verse is talking about the Babylonians and how they became so successful in their battles, that they trusted compltelely in their effective military status as protection. They did not trust in the Lord or even in a god (as chapter 2:18-19 shows how completely worthless idols are as well). They relied completely on themselves because they were powerful and did not think that they needed anything else. Little did they know that the God of the Universe was against them! This just goes to show that we cannot put our trust in earthly things or even in ourselves. When we put our trust in ourselves, we are taking matters into our own hands and saying to God that we can do it on our own. I know I am definitely convicted of worrying, and it is a complete waste of time! God is the only one who I should have our trust in. He has a plan, and even when I might not understand it, I know that He is faithful and I can fully rely on Him and not worry or try to take it into my own hands.
2:3 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.
Here God is replying to Habakkuk reassuring Him that this “vision” will come about at the perfect time. Just like everything in life, God has a perfect will and a perfect time for it all. I know I can trust that everything will work out accoriding to God’s perfect will all to bring Him the most glory. Whenever I become impatient or don’t understand why God is or isn’t doing something, I can fall back on the truth that my God, the Creator of the Universe, has it all under control. There is no need to worry when I have the all-powerful God on my side!
great comment Summer!
chapter 2 v. 9
Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!
These verses to me, meant poor you who built your security and wealth upon yourselves, by abusing others. what really got me was the security part. it just reminded me that it shouldnt be us depending on ourselves for that security. only God can bring us that. We should be putting our faith and trust in God that He will be the ones pulling us through, not by our own ways. God can raise up whomever he chooses and bring down those likewise. Really we have no security in the world except for our faith and trust in God and his plan for our lives.
3 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.
This verse encourages me to KEEP STANDING!!! Just like we talked about all year long as PB-squared taught us through I Peter.
What this morning’s Quiet Time leaves me with is a total sense of gratitude. I am left realizing how NONE of us desrve anything more than death and eternal punishment, isolation, and suffering apart from the One we pierced.
The concept of entitlement disgusts me as I see it played out before me on a national level and down to an individual level. But I wonder if it disgusts me as I consider how I, MYSELF, often float about, puffed up, acting as though I am owed something, from happiness to a paycheck.
I don’t deserve ANYthing good. And yet He LAVISHES me CONSTANTLY. Even in seasons of suffering, it is His GOODNESS He is extending me, as He purposes to grow me so that I will be more like Him and see God for Who He is, and see sin the way HE sees it. So that I wouldn’t touch it with a 10-foot pole.
This morning I ask God to grow my perspective, expand my range of vision, and open me up so that I might have HIS telescope perspective instead of my microscope perspective.
God IS good all the time. And ALL THE TIME, God is GOOD.
That is so true Stacy! We don’t deserve anything yet God poured out His lavish love and goodness on us. It’s so great to keep this perspective when situations/circumstances go wrong. Sometimes I can get shaken by it but I have to realize that I am not entitled for everything to work out, I deserve hell yet God is good enough to bless me with so many things.
wonderful comment! can’t wait to see you Saturday :DD
Great perspective, Stacy, thank you!!
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
Right before this verse Habakkuk was talking about how people make these idols that aren’t even alive and they can’t breathe. This reminds me of how today I can make things of this world my idols when they are NOTHING compared to God!! God is holy, sovereign, just, perfect, and all-powerful! No one else on earth is like God and they definitely did not create me and do not decide what my life is going to be like. At revival, I noticed that I was definitely slacking and that I was done with all of the things that I as putting as a priority before my God!! I wasn’t waking up everyday thinking about what I can do to bring glory to the Lord! At Revival I decided that from now on, God is going to be the start of my day and that he would be in mind all day! Praying that I will always place my God as #1 because He will provide me with everything else I need!
MARANATHA :D
LAUREN! I GOT YO BACK! ACCOUNTABILIBUDDIES! :) <3
1:12 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 is complaining because he sees so much sin and wickedness and doesn’t see how God can be patient with it. He also is confused and upset with the fact that God is using a very wicked nation (Chaldea/Babylon) to judge a less wicked nation (Israel). But in the midst of his complaining, Habakkuk recognizes that the Lord is sovereign and in control. He sees that the Lord has ordained Chaldea as one to judge Israel, and how God is using them to accomplish His purposes. We learn from this verse that God uses evil for good. He uses a wicked nation to justly deal out punishment on a less wicked nation. In my life I need to work on trusting in the Lord’s plan even when I don’t understand, like Habakkuk. I need to trust that God knows what He is doing, because He totally does! Even when their is evil going on all around me, I need to still cry out to my Holy and Righteous Lord, just as Habakkuk does.
2:19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
Here we see truly how foolish idols are! Who would say to a wooden thing “awake” or to a stone “arise”? What we don’t realize is that we do this everyday to our own idols. We don’t worship stones or wooden images, but we do worship things like school, grades, popularity, girls/guys, and especially ourselves. We say to our bodies “Give me pleasure” or to grades and school “you are very important to me”. In a sense, we call things like popularity to “arise” and to “awake”. But this verse says that there is no breath in idols at all. They give no life because they have no life. But guess what does have life? God does! And we need to turn to Him and not to idols! We must seek Him, for He alone gives live and true joy! I need to be forsaking the idols in my life, and calling upon the Name of the Lord instead! I am so foolish and so stupid when I call on anything but the Lord!
Awesome comment Cameron! Everything you said is so true, and it is so easy to get caught up in other things and depend on them for joy rather than calling out to God in times of trouble!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
God is the only true god! Christ is the one and only God and to worship an idle that has no life and that is only a statue is so dumb! Christ offers himself as salvation at a cost of accepting him personally and living your life for Him! Who wouldn’t take that over worshipping a fake idle of wood? I need to make sure that CHrist is truly my only God and that I don’t worship things in my life or pay more attention to things in my life more than i do about Christ.
Nice Comment Tiffany
3 Why do you make me see iniquity,
and why do you idly look at wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
Here’s my comment…Habakkak wrongfully accuses God of letting sin go unpunished and not being just. He makes this assumption based on the fact that God’s patience in saving up His wrath for an appointed time is actually Him tolerating sin instead of punishing it. I could relate to Habakkuk’s wrong thinking here. Sometimes I get frustrated when I see such sin and wickedness in the world going on and on without punishment. BUT…I must remember that God has allowed His common grace to reign right now and that His patience in destroying the wicked now will not last forever. Even if the wicked are not punished until Judgement Day, God is just and He will punish all wrong done against Him and His people. I am reminded of the truth of God’s justice this morning and thanking Him for it!
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
I think this verse is cool because it’s saying that what use is an idol if it cannot speak or teach, when God is with us and He can do those. We cannot build up idols, and no I don’t mean Asherah poles or Baal statues, but I mean stuff like sports, preforming arts, a girlfriend, a boyfriend, someone or something that we put before our Abba! We should keep HIM on a pedestal, not our earthly treasures that will not be brought to the eternal life (or death) with us. (:
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
God is the only living breathing God. Everything that is made an idol before God is meaningless! God is the only person that we can have a legit faith in. He actually responds to our cries for help and he watches over all that we do. No idol could ever do anything except take us away from God. My prayer today is that I willnot make anything an idol before God, but instead be constantly thinking about what God has done for me and what he commands me to do.
13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evail and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he?
5 Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.
I definitely had this question a few years ago. I’m sure God is in pain up in heaven looking down at this world where so many people have not recognized Him as their Father, but He loved us enough to let us make our own choices (original sin). Now I know he planned this world and He know what’s going to happen, but we don’t know, so we just need to live our lives for Him everyday, because he saved us from a horrible fate. Basically, He knows what He’s doing, and He always has a plan that we just don’t see.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This verse really stood out to me because so many times I wonder why God is putting me through a situation. God has a plan for everything. We as humans may not know but we need to trust Him for He knows what He is doing. Even sometimes when God puts you through a tough situation you become closer to Him in many ways. He might of felt that you were drifting from Him. I know that has happened to me. HE told me that I really do need Him in my life. He is what my life should be revolving around. I am sooo excited and glad that God has an amazing plan for me, I may not think that sometimes but He sees the life picture and He knows what’s best.
So encouraging girl! I’m praying for you <3
like we always said at revival God is good!… he said that he will take care of our needs in his love letter to us.
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
we dont really have much wooden things anymore except for furniture. but we sure do have other thing that could take the place of an idol.(t.v, celebs, internet..ect.)…he told us that our number ONE thing our life has to be him. so make God number one in your life. trust me its alot better than anything else in this world.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This verse is awesome! God is letting him know that he has a plan in his future. Jememiah 29:11 says, For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.” Both of theses verses help comfort me because if we ever worry or try to do things our self, God always has control. Even though trusting God is hard for me, having the comfort that God has control of my life is a pretty special thing.
Great comment girl :)
1:5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
2:4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.
Ok so I thought these two verses kinda go together. What I really got out of them was that I need to trust the Lord. When we say we are “Christians” we are saying that we have repented of our sins and put our FAITH in Christ, now what does that faith mean? Obviously we have to trust that Jesus’s work on the cross can save us, which when you really think about it, is a very complicated idea that we will never fully comprehend. But, I think that our faith in God should go beyond just faith in salvation. I need to have faith in everything that the Bible says God is doing…things like Romans 8:28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose….as well as other things. I pray that God would increse my faith and that I would have a stronger trust on His power in my life.
i read.
what these 2 chapters are saying is that no matter what happens, bad or good, we need to put all our trust and faith in the Lord, if we are worried, dont worry because God will take care of it. Always Trust In The Lord. Like what Paster Ben said in his Blog about this chapter: chp.3:17-18-Trust in God no matter what the circumstances. God is Good all the time, and all the time God is Good!
2 And the Lord answered me:
“Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 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.
this is a Great Verse because God does i have a vision for us. we sometimes forget about the vision.
Very true Lucas! He is always in control of our lives, and we need to stop doubting his wisdom and worrying and just keep our trust in him!
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
I know for me, I can tend to want to take hold of my own life, take hold of my own future, not trusting that God has a perfect plan already laid out for me. Sometimes I ask Him “Lord, what is your plan for _____?” or “What is does your plan for me entail?” And I never really feel like I “know” what my plan is. This verse makes it super clear that He is doing a work in our lives whether we see it or not, and when things aren’t going the way WE planned them to go, that might just be the greatest thing that could happen to us. God knows far better than we do and I know I need to put my trust in Him to guide me in the exact path I need to take. Just like in Jeremiah 29:11 (“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”)
Maranatha!
Great Comment Nicole!! We definately need to give our full trust and faith to God when it comes to our future!!! :)
This morning, these two chapters really helped me learn about the importance of faith and trusting in God! At the begining of the first chapter, Habakkuk is perplexed about why God is letting this nation continue in sin and letting them disregard the law He has placed in front of all nations! Then when God answers him, He shows Habakkuk that He has a plan!!! Now, this is something very encouraging to think about because we know that God always has a plan and a reason for the way He works in our lives. However, this only confuses Habakkuk more. He wonders how a God who is too perfect to look upon sin can call upon a nation even worse in its sin than Judah to punish them! What Habakkuk learns is that he needs to trust in God and have faith in His plans, no matter what! While there have been times in my life where God has done something that I wasn’t okay with, looking back I can see the positive effect it ended up having and that I should have just trusted Him instead of worrying about it because that is just an insult to Him!
My prayer is that God will teach me how to always trust in Him and have faith because worrying about things and feeling stressed is not okay! It dosn’t solve anything and is not something that pleases God! I pray that I will always remeber that you have a plan for my life, and loving me as much as You do, You will always work things out for the better!
Wow Shossa! Your comments are always so inspiring. Keep up the awesome posts guurl! :)
thaaanks:)
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
God hears everything! It is just a matter of time before he responds. Its also a matter if his answer is a yes or a no. God has said no to me before and maybe thats not what i want at the moment, but its Gods will for my life.
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
These two verses remind of Pastor Mikes sermon at revival 09. You are either on Satan’s team or God’s team. We cannot serve more than one God! Pastor Mike said the definition of an idol is something you love more than God and anything you wont give up for Him. In this chapter, they talk about idols and how there is not breath in it. Idols cannot teach you anything. But God on the other hand, he alone an save and he alone can do miracles, he alone can create a world as beautiful as this. i could go on for hours but God is so amazing and he deserves our whole heart!!!
Awesome comment Allie! Its so true God is the only thin in our life that actually teaches us, unlike other idols!
Again, reading the blog that Pastor Ben wrote on this helped a lot!!!
Habakuk 1:5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.”
Even though God is talking to Habakuk here, we can still aply it to our lives. When things are going on in our life or we get upset about something, we dont often look around us and see how amazing God is, but we look at the things going wrong in our own lives which is so selfish! We cant even see what God is doing in our hearts and it is amazing!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
When I think of an idol, I think of a statue. Now many idols are status such as buda, and statues of mary, ect. But if you ask people who arent christians what their idol is, most would say I dont have one. This is false. Everyone has an idol, most just dont realize it because they dont necessarily “worship” or “bow down” to it. An idol doesnt have to be an object shaped like a person, it just has to be something you put before God. Some things many people have as their idol is shopping, people, dating, computer things, then list goes on. People dont realize these things because they seem so little. But they are putting it before God, and their life revolves around it (they cant live without it). Therefore, it is a huge deal. Even if we are christians we cant have anything else on our shelf. -Pastor Bobby. God is a jelous God and wants our whole heart to do everything for Him! Lets all make sure nothing is on our shelf but God, that way their will be no distractions when it comes to doing everything in our lives for His glory!!! :) MARANATHA!!!!
Great post Emily!!!
5 “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told!
This verse is really cool because it is God saying that He has a plan, and we lowly humans will not be able to comprehend what he is going to do, for it is so great. It is awesome to know that He has a “master plan” and that He knows the beginning and end, so we can just trust in Him to guide us through our lives!
Nice use of “lowly” :)
Habakkuk 1:2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
1:5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
Just looking at the first part of Habakkuk’s complaint and God’s response provides great proof of how awesome our God is! Habakkuk is worrying like crazy, essentially freaking out because everything seems to be going wrong and it doesn’t seem like God is present. He has lost all trust in the Lord. Little does he know, but realizes when God responds to him, that God is there the whole time and doing a work in his life! God even says that Habakkuk wouldn’t believe it even if he was told! That is such a great example of how God works in our lives he when it seems like he is absent and everything seems to be going wrong. I want to make sure that I am not worrying or stressing out in hard times, but rather keeping my full trust in the Lord, knowing that He is always in control of my life and knows what he is doing! Like Pastor Ben said in his blog, the key is to not just be joyful and say that God is good when my life is good, but even when my life is crummy!
Amen Jackson. Its easy to praise God when things are good and then question Him when the warm feelings start to go away. I need to stop complaining because God is good all the time.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This verse shows how although we may pray for things and notice all the wrong-doers, just because we don’t see changes occurring in them doesn’t mean the LORD isn’t at work. He is always at work all over our Earth. He is saving people, and leading them out of the darkness into His glorious light. But without the on going commitment from those he is working through, they will appear as though they haven’t met the LORD. We must always make sure we do everything we do for God and with his intentions in mind and at heart.
Does God use evil to do good?
Judah is saturated with injustice, and Habakkuk prays to God to bring justice to this group of evil people.
God’s response?
God sends the Babylonians, a seemingly more violent and destructive nation than Judah itself.
Even though he might seem that God uses evil to do good, he does not. God is an omniscient being who is constantly working behind the scenes to get work done.
Let’s take a look at Joseph. God allowed Joseph to get betrayed by his brothers, sold as a slave, and punished for a crime he did not even commit. All these things might seem evil, but, that was man’s intention. Man intended it to be evil, God intended it to be good. For if those seemingly horrible events did not occur, thousands of people would have starved to death.
God has a plan and purpose for your life. It might seem that everything is going bad, but God is in control. He knows what he is doing.
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature an complete, mot lacking anything.
-James 1:2-4
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
I like these verses because so many times we will put game systems, TV, and the computer infront of reading God’s word which are considered idols and God tells us that we should have NO false idols before Him and if we do that is sinning. Reality is that game systems will get you nowhere in life, but if we fill our minds with God’s word he will help us throughout the day and we will be comforted by His word.
Ya, I have definitely had trouble letting game systems become idols in my life. And not only do they get us nowhere, they snatch away the joy and peace that is in God. It’s so true Alec that spending time with God is so much more worth it.
13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
I remember when I first read this book and I was blown away with what Habbukak wrote because I was feeling the same things about our country. This verse stood out ot me because of God’s purity. I remember last week Pastor Mike was talking about how pure our eyes are. If we got something stuck in it, our eyes react and tear up and we know that somethings wrong even if it’s just a tiny eyelash. God can’t even stand to look at sin, wrongdoing and is too pure to behold evil.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.”
God is the mastermind of all his creation, of everything we know. And even when we may think there is so much to this world, there is still so much we don’t know. How great then is the knowledge of our Lord, who sees, knows, and understands everything. If we were to truly know the work he is doing in certain lives, we would not believe it because it is too amazing :) This gives me strength to always trust in him when I am tempted to worry about the future. God has a master plan, he is the ultimate designer of our lives. So even when I want to question or doubt something, I pray to God to take away my silly worry and let him guide me. I am so thankful for the Lord’s infinite wisdom!
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.
the righteous shall live by faith. that is an intense verse. even though they couldn’t see God, the people in the old testament trusted God and had faith. they trusted that God would send a sun to die for there sins and come back to life. living by faith can be hard because you have no scientifical proof that this thing actually exists. you have to trust with all your heart that God is real. there is lots of little pieces of evidence that shows he is real and the power that he has but we can never actually see him. it is like knowing that a plane is going down so you have to trust in the parachute that it will work. your betting your life on what you trust in. i need to work on noticing God more by the works that he does and giving him all glory for those things.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
I really like this verse because it shows that God is so beyond what we can even understand. Even as we see destrustion and disaster around us, God is there doing incredible works. Our life could be falling to pieces yet God uses it for the best. So why do we question God? What gives us even a reason to doubt Him? He created the world and everything in it, so naturally He has it all in His hands.
Everything he does He works for the best, which is why we need to trust Him. Being a Christian means trusting him with our whole heart and sometimes it’s hard to do, especailly when a situation seems umbearable. God himself says he wont tempt us beyond what we can bear. So why do we underestimate Him? even if He told us the things He was doing in each of our lives we wouldn’t understand. People try to understand God and the way he works, but it’s pointless. God has everything under control and we don’t even realize it. It is Gods job to take care of the world and our lives and he does it with complete perfection.I like this verse because it shows our human natue so perfectly. God Himself tells us things and sometimes we just dont completely believe Him. This verse encourages me to trust the Lord even more because I know he has a greater plan than I will never fully understand. But because of trust, God takes that worry and anxiety away.
Habakkuk 2:19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
We all waste most of our times on idols such as friends, sports, or maybe tv and video games. The truth of the matter is, while these things may offer up temporary satisfaction or escape from bordom, they cannot save you from God’s wrath. Instead of wasting time on these unimportant things, I need to spend more time in God’s word and more time around Christian friends than non-christian friends. What we decide to surround ourselves with ultimatly changes us to be like them. If we are the center of godly things, then we will desire to be more godly in our daily lives.
that is so inspiring allen :D
Great Post Allen. I am glad you are able to realize that T.V.and video games are a colossal waste of time.
5 Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.
This is perhaps one of the most awesome verses in the entire Bible. Habakkuk was highly discouraged that the righteous were being persecuted, and that the sinners were prospering and doing well. But here God is reminding HIm that He has power over all these things, and that He is orchestrating a revival among the nations that is greater than anyone could ever imagine!
Ephesians 3:20 — “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think…”
God’s power to save is truly awe-inspiring. He can take hearts that are completely against Him (as indeed all men’s are) and make them alive in Christ and able to serve Him. And He can do this on a greater scale than we can even imagine! This is the kind of thing we need to be praying for! I need to be praying daily for this kind of regeneration, especially next year at Laguna Hills and all the other high school campuses!
WOW! i love how relate-able this is! SO many of us, including me, have in the past blamed God for all the bad. We say He isn’t helping us, the good people, and how come the sinners are enjoying life? But this helps me to remember that suffering for Christ should be a joy for us. Also what we do in this life will only be paid later, all the bad deeds one has done will be punished if they haven’t repented and put all faith and love in Christ. We should be happy that God has given us breath, this world, our families. We should always praise Him, because He is holy and good.
I agree, Ritika. It’s important for us to maintain a proper view of God.
very true :D even God works on the little things in life so that eventually they become big things. In Him, all things are due in time. awsome comment :D
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
God has plans that we don’t understand or are confused by. Just like Habakkuk was confused because of God’s decision to use a wicked nation to judge His chosen people we get confused when God exposes things to us that seem contradictory to His loving and just character. Like when we hear about a Christian doctrine that makes God look evil or unjust. Or when we feel far from Him. God assures Habakkuk though that the Chaldeans, although being used to judge His chosen people, will be punished for their excessive sin (ch2. v.6-v.19). As frustrating and confusing as life can get I need to remember God’s sovereignty in every situation. His justice might not be obvious in the here and now, but I know that it will be very obvious when He judges the nations!
hello!!!
i read…
++God hears everything! It is just a matter of time before he responds++
/we may pray and ask God for something, but He may not always respond right after. sometimes it takes time or even more than one time to pray for God to respond to it. and if we ask for something that we dont need but we may think we do, God wont give it to us. the only things He will provide ae the things that we need! not things like a new ipod. so remember to pray more than once because sometimes it can take God a while to respond but He is listening always:)
~~~~BEACH NIGHT TONIGHT
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
I liked what Cameron had to say about this. Saying to something to an idol like video games “give me pleasure” is just like telling a stone to “arise”. Life belongs only to God; I will not find it in idols. I hate it when I find so much pleasure in idols like video games that they start becoming all that I think about during the day. They become an addiction where more and more is needed. And instead of being satisfied, I usually end up in a grumpy mood, frustrated and yelling at others, and become totally distracted from the true peace and joy that is in God. Idols can become so addicting. For me, video games and the like are probably the most tempting so I have decided to take a break from them for a little while here after Revival because they so easily snatch away my focus on God and dissipate my joy. LORD, you are the only one who has life and true joy; please help me to never put a worthless idol above you ever again.
I ubderstand habbakuk’s complaints but i dont understand God’s answer? like what does he say to them habbakuk when all these people are being hurt and habbakuk is questioning god. He needs to put his faith in god no matter how bad ur situation may look like! Put your faith in God and everything will turn out for the way god planned it to be which is our ultimate goal to live for Him!!!
2 And the Lord answered me:
“Write the vision;
make it plain on tablets,
so he may run who reads it.
3 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.
The Lord made it clear that destruction would come to wipe away all the unclean throughout the nations. People were no longer holy and righteous in God’s eyes and He wanted to restore the land to its former righteousness. The Lord finalized that Habakkuk’s vision would come true at the right time. We need to take this into account in our own lives because the Lord is coming to clear this earth of all the unclean and take His follower’s in Christ home with Him to Heaven. We must prepare for the Lord’s coming and repent for our sins so that on judgment day we may face Him with clean hands. We should also be spreading God’s truth so that others may be daughters and sons of Christ and be sent to Heaven instead of the fiery depths of Hell.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This is so true, we have nothing to complain about! Just look around and see what he has done for us! This is also a great verse for non-believers cause we wouldn’t believe anything in the Bible if you didn’t believe it is true!
1:13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
This is such a common reason for a disbelief in God, because people don’t understand that there needs to be evil right now. They want a happy sunshine place where everyone is always happy and kind, but this is obviously not the case. Habakkuk sees this as well, and he wonders (as many people do) why God is just “idly look[ing] at traitors.” God answers him with two points.
2:4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.
For many atheists and agnostics, “proof” of God is the only thing they will accept to believe in a God. Therefore, when evil comes they see this as a lack of proof of God, and therefore they don’t believe. God sees this and realizes that these people aren’t upright inside. But we as Christians acknowledge evil and that we don’t know exactly what role it’s playing. Instead of grasping for evidence, the righteous are expected to live by faith in God, knowing that He exists despite the pain and evil.
2:14 For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
God also tells Habakkuk that, although there is going to be tribulation, it will have a happy ending. The entire earth will be one day filled with “the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,” and this pain Israel is going through is just another way God is working toward that goal. I need to realize through every trial that one day every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord, and that whatever pain i am going through is necessary to help refine me and make that happen.
Maranatha!! Please come soon, Lord!
12 …O Lord, you have ordained them as a judgment,
and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof.
Sometimes it can be difficult to fathom why God allows evil and misfortune to take place. But if I trust in God’s sovereignty and holiness, I will, as verse 4 states, “live by his faith.” These chapters remind me of one of Pastor Mike’s messages on Romans 8, where he talked about God using all things to conform us to Christ. Even in the midst of trials I need to turn to God and trust that He makes no mistakes–that “all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom. 8:28). If God chastens me, it is because I deserve chastening and because he desires me to repent and and to stay on a path of righteousness. I pray that God will give me future grace in my trials and help me view every tough moment in life as a forging fire that He will use to shape me and make my faith stronger.
These chapters seemed pretty interesting but I kinda got confused haha so I can’t wait for beach night tonight!
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
This verse stuck out to me because in the previous verses, it was talking about idols. It talked about people making idols of wood, stone or gold and telling them “arise” because they believed they had power. But with God, He truly does have power but we shouldn’t be telling the Lord to “arise” or “awake” becuase he does have life. Like Cameron commented on before me, the idols of this world that people make have no life but people expect to recieve life from them. But God, He does have life and is the only that can actually give life. I praise God for the life He has given me and for the fact that he has just given me life. I also pray that I would always remember that God gave me His son’s life on the cross so the least I could do is give up my life for Him. To God be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Philippians 1:21 “For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain.”
Habakkuk 2:13 Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts
that peoples labor merely for fire,
and nations weary themselves for nothing?
So in this book, the prophet Habakkuk asks God questions and he answers him. Its almost like reading someone’s IM like; question, answer, question, answer ect. Habakkuk asks the Lord questions like: Why do you allow bad things to happen? Why aren’t you answering my prayers right away? Why are you using a more wicked nation (Babylonians) to punish a less wicked nation? And God answers these questions, telling him that He will punish all of the wicked at the appropriate time. The Lord tells Habakkuk that the Babylonians who are going to conquer them are condemned for their greed and pride in their conquest of other nations. God makes it clear that the Babylonians will be held accountable for their actions. They rely on treasures that they created with their own hands, and are prideful in their accomplishments. These people labor for what will ultimately be destroyed. They are considered to be a “very wicked” people in the eyes of God’s people. However, no sin is worse than another. We are all filthy in the eyes of the Lord. Both God’s people and the Babylonians would be punished for their sins accordingly. God is sovereign and his justices are so far beyond our comprehension! He will not only punish the Babylonians, but also Judah because he is a fair God that punishes ALL sin.
God uses some wicked nations to punish other wicked nations, but ultimately God will judge ALL the nations. The Babylonians were guilty of many sins, but God makes it clear that one thing he hates above all else is that they have idols and place things over him. They labor for the things of this earth that will just all pass away in the end. Their lives are solely about themselves, and they store up for themselves treasures on the earth. The Lord hates this, and wants us today to learn from their mistakes and not make the same poor judgement. If we are claiming to be Christians, our lives need to totally reflect what our faith is. We cannot be claiming to be “all about God” if we aren’t sold out for him! The Babylonians labored for the things of the world that could just burn and were ultimately on the path to destruction. We need to make sure that we are not making for ourselves idols out of the things of the world. To be truly sold out for God is to have him as the #1 priority in your life that you hold more important over all other things. And my application prayer today is that I will be “sold out 4 God!” And not put anything else in my mind over Him.
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
Idols come in so many different forms. Money, people, power, anything you value over God is an idol. We need to be storing our treasures up in Heaven. When you really put it in perspective, its so silly. God created us, He is our Father. We created money, and yet we idol after it? What can idols do for you? They can only bring you joy in this life, which is just the blink of an eye compared to eternity.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.”
Even though a lot of awful things are going on, God is still doing a marvelous work. Every time I read the news I am amazed at how many terrible things are happening. Almost every article reads something like “152 dead in plane crash” and sometimes it just seems like there is nothing good left in the earth. But even though the earth could end at any time, until Jesus comes God is still doing awesome things in people’s lives and he still has a perfect plan.
thats so true callie!
Habakkuk 1:1-4 talks about how the Lord not providing help in times of violence and trouble. As a Christian i find that peoples number one reason for not believing in God is because they say “How can a loving God watch the ones he claims his children suffer” Well there is a simple explanation for that question. By recognizing suffering you are stating that you realize both good and evil in the world. And if you believe that there is evil you have to agree that there is only evil because there is a standard of good. If your teacher gives you a ninety on a test and another person a hundred it is obvious that there is a standard for both good and evil. Where do we get this standard? God, of course! I believe God uses suffering to test us. I believe every Christian can say that they went through a hard time but ended up closer to God because of it.
(2:20) Although the earth is full of sin God reigns. All things are under his control and in his power!
See you all at beach night tonight!
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
An idol is anything that we love more than God. It is something we are putting our trust in over God. We seek idols because we think they will bring us satisfaction. This is a lie! Whether they be actual things like cars or houses, sports, relationships, money, in the end they all will leave us empty. When we seek these things over God we believe the lies of the Devil.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
I love this chapter! The Lord is telling Habakkuk His plans that seem crazy to him, but they are definitely not! He has plans for different nations and people and they are plans to prosper us and give us a future! God has plans for us that are so great that we can’t even begin to comprehend how awesome they will be! But in order for those plans to happen, we have to let God take control and put ALL of our trust in Him, not just 50%. God said, “For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.” and that is amazing! He is going to do things and do miracles to bring Him the glory and all we have to do is listen for Him and obey!
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
I also loved this verse! I always wondered how someone can make an idol and worship it, knowing that it is fake. It seems so weird to me to think about putting faith and trust in something that is not even alive. But sadly, people were worshiping false gods and idols instead of worshiping our one and only God! And it is still like that today. People may not be creating wooden, gold, or silver idols, but they are putting things above God and making those things their idols. Whatever might seem important to someone right now will mean absolutely nothing when the Lord comes back and so it is pointless to have our eyes focused on anything but God and it is pointless to strive after worldly things. Lord, please help me to always be focused on You even when temptation might try to get in the way. Maranatha!
12 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.
This is the mindset I need to have. When things go wrong, and I’m confused about the situation that seems to go wrong, I need to trust in God completely. More specifically, I need to know that He is in control no matter what. He ordains evrything that goes on in my life, and everything has a purpose. Even when people mistreat me like what is going on here, I need to have full trust in God and not on myself because God has waaaayyy more power than me and will He take vengence on them.
8 Because you have plundered many nations,
all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you,
God will remain just. you can’t go on sinning and expect to avoid punnishment. It’s so amazing that Jesus was willing to take all of the punnishment we deserve for us on the cross so that we can avoid eternal death.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
So many times I find myself asking; why is God doing this? What good can come from this? But God always has a bigger and better plan for all of us and we need to put all of our trust in Him, because He is all powerful!
Another verse that stood out to me was:
You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
A lot of people believe that they are going to heaven because during their lifetime they havn’t done anything “that bad”. Compared to murderers, sexual offenders, and idolaters someone who sometimes disobeys their parents and tells little white lies may not seem that bad. But the truth of it is compared to God’s holiness no one, not even one, is deserving of heaven. God cannot be in the presence of sinners, therefore none of us should be able to spend eternity with Him, but since He is such a good and loving God Jesus Christ was crucified so that we don’t have to face the punishment we deserve. Praise the Lord!…and of course…MARANATHA!
SO GLAD YOUR ON HERE! praying for a quick recovery! :) love you
I enjoyed reading this chapter. Some verses stood out to me. Like verse 5 “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told
God does good works all the time. Even if they are big or small. One example would be Revival X. All those people were saved and that is a big thing. We should be thankful that we have a God that cares for us and loves us. God is doing awsome things everyday and we should be thankful and acknowledge that. He will do amazing things tell the day Jesus will come back and we should be thankful.
1:5
This verse reminded me that God works in ways that we can’t imagine. He is all powerful and all knowing and has a plan for every person in their life. In my life I don’t always realize why God is doing something, but after it happens God makes it clear it was part of his plan for me. Excited for beach nnight!!
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
I love this verse because God is telling Habakkuk he has a great plan for him just like he has a plan for all of us!
5 Behold, I am against you,
declares the Lord of hosts,
and will lift up your skirts over your face;
and I will make nations look at your nakedness
and kingdoms at your shame.
That is a pretty intense verse. This one stood out to me because it is showing that despite all the bad things that are happening to the people at this time, God has a plan and he is going to go by it. He loves them still, while punishing them with war and strife and pain, that is part of his plan for them. I think that it is encouraging to know that even if something bad happens, God is planning something wonderful for us. (:
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
3 Why do you make me see iniquity,
and why do you idly look at wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
4 So the law is paralyzed,
and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
so justice goes forth perverted.
This is saying that if you cry out to God and you dont get an answer right away, that doesnt mean that ur request isnt going to happen. What people have to understand is that your answer will always come, even if God shows it in a unasuall way. All we can do is have patience.
14 For the earth will be filled
with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
as the waters cover the sea.
AH! What an awesome verse! It stood out to me, because finally, like the oceans wide and far, everyone will know the Lord and His glory! I am praying for better interpretation of scripture, because sometimes, it really is hard to understand. I want to be able to know God better through His word, but I need to understand it! Praying for knowledge, and more strength in my relationship with Him! :)
MARANATHA!!!! :D
4 “Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him,
but the righteous shall live by his faith.
This is a great verse. The righteous will live by faith. They don’t just have a moment of faith, and then live their lives. They live by it. It defines them. People who are truly saved will spend the rest of their lives living by the will of GOD. They will do what he wants.
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
Habakkuk is complaining to God about why the law is being violated and how God can just let it keep going. But God responds in this verse by telling Habakkuk like wake up Habakkuk Im always at work and I have amazing things planned and in my own timing they will be revealed to you. This is a great reminder and motivater to christians to have perserverance on the Lord when nothing seems to be happening when you are trying to share the gospel with others but we have to remember that God is always at work and he is working on their heart. We can just share God’s word and show people what being a christian is all about but it is God that works on their hearts and we just have to be in prayer that people will let God speak to them. This is a great verse for those who go evanilising because although it might seem like some people shut you out you never know if God might grab hold of their heart and they realize hey maybe il check out that church and they can eventually repent of their sins and put their faith in God so this verse was a greta motivater for me to keep talking to people and always know that God is with us and always at work
It is surprising that God would choose to use a more evil nation to punish Israel. It’s completely understandable that Habakkuk was astonished at God’s revealed plan. As Pastor Ben pointed out tonight, God does astonishing and unexpected things in life. The question is whether we’re going to trust Him, knowing that He’s always right and good, or not. Thank you God for this great reminder that we don’t always understand your ways, but we know that your will is perfect all of the time, regardless.
In small groups tonight we talked about how whatever God does doesn’t necesarilly work out for the world’s standards of “good,” but he builds us up through trials and makes us more like CHrist. I need to start having that kind of mindset–that my trials in life have a greater reason than I can even imagine! Godhas a soverign plan that I don’t know naything about, so all I can do is trust him!
Love the Scripture on the back of your lettermans jacket. Way to represent Christ at DHHS.
5 “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told.
Everything around us that we see, God has made. It says, “look…see….wonder and be astounded.” God has made soooo many great things and people. He also makes things happen, sometimes good, sometimes bad. A lot of times, when it is a bad thing that happens, most people tend to complain or cry out to God asking “why would you let this happen if you’re really the loving God some people say you are?” However, as we learned tonight at the beach, God is in control, and everything He does is right and goes along with His plan. Even if you think that He is being unfair, He isn’t. He knows exactly what He’s doing and everything that happens, He wants you to praise Him for it, even if we wanted Him to pick “A, B, or C” ~Katie Slusher :) He might pick box “F”! We just have to trust Him no matter what and know that everything will work out according to what’s best for our lives. And like Pastor Ben said, even if we don’t see any good now, we will once we get to heaven.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~God is good, ALL the time; ALL the time, God is good!~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
..For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
What i like so much about this part of verse five in chapter one is the comforting reasurrance of Gods response to Habakkuk.God legitamatley has a plan for each person who chooses to follow Him. God is omniscient..He is all knowing and I can definatley say that I am relieved to know that my God knows everything..the depths of my heart and my thoughts, what will happen to me today and tomorrow…where i will go after i die, who ill spend my life with, etc. God knows everything and there is no point in even trying to plan my future detail to detail because it will work out how God wants it to work out if you work hard and follow His commandments and let Him take over!Pastor John spoke last night about the goodness of the cross and how its shocking that we lose our ‘awe’ of the cross after such little time…its so true. Jesus Christ was murdered for us…God created the heavens and the earth…God is everlasting, He is the King and the Creator and the ruler over the heavens and the earth. Why does that not shock some of us anymore? I needed to hear that sermon because i find that im not as grateful for Gods plan for my life as i was when i first became saved. God predestined those of us to be saved and He is doing a work in our lives! Praise God for that:) wooo!
Maranatha!
12 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.
God is everlasting and always by our side. He is always there for us every second of every day. We should always lean on God, He is our rock and foundation, He is our refuge and shield. These two chapters have reminded me of all the time God has been there for me and has been my rock and shield. I need to follow after God’s ways and be there for Him when He needs me even if I am not at my best. A few words that sum these verses up are…… GOD IS IN CONTROL!
If I had read this passage without first hearing Pastor Ben talk about it at beach night, I would have been really confused. Pastor Ben did a really good job explaining how God was sending the Babylonians to judge the People. At first Habakkuk doesn’t agree with God, but by the end of the book he is praising God for his righteous judgments and he realizes that even when things look bad for him, GOD IS STILL GOOD!
4 So the law is paralyzed, and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted.
Sounds a little bit like the state of America today (or at least right around here). The law is practically meaningless to most people. The majority is concerned only with their own desires and plans, whatever those might be. Reminds me of Micah 7:2-4. A land devoid of godly people, rampant with evil and sin. But what an awesome response both Micah and Habakkuk have.
2:1 I will take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and look out to see what he will say to me,
Micah, as we learned a little while ago, waited patiently for God. What does Habakkuk do? The exact same thing! He cries out to the LORD, asking Him to act. Now Habakkuk may not have understood or liked what God said He was going to do, but he was going to the right place. Habakkuk was seeing the land of God’s people totally submerged in sin and he couldn’t just sit by and watch, so he went straight to God. His trust was in the LORD.
Now, God is probably not going to physically or mentally speak to me in a vision or something today. But that doesn’t mean that He doesn’t have anything to say to me. He has loads to say, and it’s all written down right here in this Book! Like Habakkuk, I want to be reliant on and confident in God (more specifically, Jesus Christ), trusting Him through prayer and meditation on His Word. And I want to be doing that ALL the time, whether life is chaotic, confusing, harsh, or great. LORD, whatever my outer circumstances may be, please fix my mind on the truth that You are good all the time. It is only by Your grace that I can realize that. I pray that You would keep the fire of revival burning in all of our hearts and keep working in each and every one of us to continue running for You!
I learned from reading these chapters that the Lord will respond to our prayers in our time of need! He is faithful! Though it may not be the answer we want or in the same timing we planned, God is in control!!
Maranatha
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
when reading this you might think what idiots for worshipping an idol but this is what we do every time we choose t.v. or hanging out with ungodly friends over gods word or fellowship. just think about this the next time your about to choose something over god. what is better the creator or the creation? THE CREATOR!!
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
i love how this chapter ends after it is talking about all this bad stuff here on earth it ends with pretty much saying what ever is wrong in your life does not matter because a perfect god is sitting on his throne and nothing is going to happen unless he wills it to happen.
I loved the small group convensation on this book and well of course Pastor Bens message on this book. I do see how it is easy to say that God is good all the time and all the time God is good when we are having the best day of our life or a good day. But, on those days when we are having a not so hot day we tend to slip away from saying Gid is good. Meisha reminded us that things my seem bad like hurricanes and earthquakes, but God is working through them. I remeber at Revival X that on the last day somebody has drowned and it was like a wake up call to everybody. That right there showed us that our life can end at any moment and we need to know where we are going. That whole week was God working his magic through everyone. God brought us there for a reason and I truly believe that.
During small groups Meisha went over when you are having a bad day we should turn to God and his work for help. Second seeking a Christian friend to talk to and mayb give you a verse to look at. Prayer is a powerful thing and sometime we might seek out a friend first that God. He will answer our prayer and tug on our heart. When we read the bible we see his answers and the wonderful things he has promised and fullfilled. Jesus deserves to be praise on high. Let’s keep the revival going.
I read…
This chapter talks about people bowing down to idols and God being angry because of it. As Pastor Bobby frequently says, this still happens today; not in the literal sense of people bowing down to statues, but prioritizing things and possessions over Him. We need to be careful that we are not setting things higher than God, and if we are let us examine ourselves and DESTROY this desire for something else. Sometimes in my Christian walk I am tempted to prioritize things other than Christ. I pray that I would stay strong and keep these things out of my life!
15 “Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink—
you pour out your wrath and make them drunk,
in order to gaze at their nakedness!
This verse just sounds a lot like highschool to me
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This is such a good promise to have to look forward to!! God is doing works in our lives that we wouldnt believe even if he told us, like that is just mind blowing!
Hey… I read Earlier but forgot to post
I didn’t really understand what to say until after beach night. I like how these chapters really show how we need to have faith in GOD. This whole book Habakkuk is trying to figure out what GOD is doing. When he finds that what GOD is doing is unusual he is confused and asks many questions as of why would you let them take over. But in the end he realizes that GOD has a plan and even if it doesn’t make sense to us it is good and right.
CYA
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
This verse is a reminder of what we talked about in small groups tonight, that God has a plan for us and we should always trust that plan no matter if we understand it or not. Also, I need to work on giving all of my worry to God because it is a sin. Anxiety cannot be an option in my life because that would mean that I am not trusting and knowing that God will deliver me through the trial, so I pray that God would lift my thoughts to Him in tough times so I can give it all to Him and praise Him for His work instead of thinking about the future.
“Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house,
to set his nest on high,
to be safe from the reach of harm!
Just because God was using the Chaldeans to punish Israel does not mean he was condoning or even excusing the behavior of the Chaldeans. God is just and he always acts fairly. Especially if we keep in mind that everyone deserves hell. Therefore if God wants to use the Chaldeans to punish Israel there should be no objections. Even though God is using the Chaldean as an instrument he still is going to punish them for the wicked deeds and how they treated the Israelite. Babylonia was a civilization built upon the destruction of other civilizations. Basically any nation or person who uses violence to achieve wealth and happiness is destined for failure. Especially if this life on earth is temporary and the next life is eternal . What profit is for man to gain the whole world if he forfeits his own soul. Choose wisely and seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things shall be added to you. I don’t pursue riches at all costs like the Chaldeans. Rather I need to trust in God to provide for me by concentrating on serving Him. God is my Heavenly Father and he knows what I need.
I liked listening to pastor Ben’s talk before small groups. He talked about when we are going through times of trouble to not just go into our rooms and have a pity party, we need to pray to God. We will all go through trials but we need to praise God and trust Hm through it all because everything happens for a reason even if we cant understand why something is happening we just need to trust God. When we go through trials we need to pray to God, like Habakkuk did in verse 2, and ask God to give us Christ’s hupomone so we can persevere every trial we face. GOD WORKS FOR THE GOOD OF THOSE WHO LOVE HIM!!!!!!!!!!!!!
2 O Lord, how long shall I cry for help,
and you will not hear?
Or cry to you “Violence!”
and you will not save?
3 Why do you make me see iniquity,
and why do you idly look at wrong?
Destruction and violence are before me;
strife and contention arise.
4 So the law is paralyzed,
and justice never goes forth.
For the wicked surround the righteous;
so justice goes forth perverted.
The Lord‘s Answer
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
Man, these verses have such an incredible meaning. years ago, i really struggled with understanding the meaning of pain, of heartache. i didnt know why so many bad things were going on in my life and i couldnt make sense of it all. pain seemed to be pounding into my heart and into my life, and i became so stubborn. it was then that i began to look closer and into the book james with verses like 1:2-4, and into romans 8:18, and 28. i began to see just how much God could be using this pain for good… for a better purpose than what i could so. one analogy i really love about the meaning of pain is how a veterinarian might hold down an injured dog, so that he can perform immediate care upon the dog. the dog however, feels like he is in more pain while held down by this doctor, when in reality, the vet is holding the dog down, yes, maybe even in pain, so that he can provide medical care to the dog (a better purpose). the same happens in our own lives… we look at our lives in the moment of pain and struggle and ask God, “WHY?” when we really need to look to God and praise His name, because the pain we face may help us grow into the person God is shaping us to be and through his better purpose, we can seek God and truly say, God is good, all the time. ALL THE TIME.
2:1 I will take my stand at my watchpost
and station myself on the tower,
and look out to see what he will say to me,
and what I will answer concerning my complaint.
I like this verse because it really creates an image of him waiting. And he isn’t just sitting there passively, waiting for God’s answer. He is “standing”, “stationed”, and “looking”. This implies that he is patiently on the lookout for the slightest sign of God’s reply, and I need to take this stance in my own life. Even though God isn’t talking to me like to Habakkuk, the Bible is God talking to me. Every day when I read I need to be attentive, and if I catch myself merely reading the passage, not able to recall any of it, I need to reread it with the intent of extracting the wisdom.
3 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.
Wow! Okay so I know this is talking about something totally different, but this verse just reminds me of the New Testament verses that say the Lord is coming back SOON! I can honestly say I am more excited to see Jesus than for anything else, no matter what plays out in my life. I love the last two lines “if it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.” I am waiting for the day that day when Jesus comes to take his people from the Earth… and at times it feels like this is taking a really long time! But I can have faith because I know that God’s promises are true and that he always keeps them; he is also merciful and compassionate and withholding his judgment for the time-being so that more people can be saved. I still say with total fervency, MARANATHA, come Lord!!!!!
5 “Look among the nations, and see;
wonder and be astounded.
For I am doing a work in your days
that you would not believe if told.
God is so powerful and almighty. He knows everything and has plans for everything. Things will work out even when we may think that God isn’t going to answer our prayers. However, God always answers our prayers if it is glorifying to God. But sometimes his timing isn’t what we want and we have to wait for him to work in our lives. We need to be having complete faith in the Lord and wait patiently.
13 You who are of purer eyes than to see evil
and cannot look at wrong,
why do you idly look at traitors
and remain silent when the wicked swallows up
the man more righteous than he?
I can completely relate to this verse! I have seen so many people who are close to me be swallowed up in the world. And all the while I know that God is in control and I have to wonder why He isn’t saving them. It’s hard when you see loved ones walking straight to hell. But in the passage, Habakkuk keeps him faith and trust in God and knows that the Lord’s plans are the greatest! This passage really encouraged me to stay strong in God and trust in His plan!
Great comment Jenna! It is definitely sad when people we love walk away from the Lord! But let’s make sure we don’t stop standing for him! Great to see you here on SOTD! Keep it up!
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
These verses stood out to me so much! In our sinful world, people worship false gods. But God says in these verses these things do not breathe, they don’t speak, they don’t walk! They aren’t living things… even covered with gold or silver they are still FALSE gods. But our TRUE God, the One who is real… He is the one we bow down to and worship! I like that it says “let all the earth keep silence before him” because it really shows the power of our true God! The whole earth bows to Him, yet there are people out there bowing down to wooden statues. I can’t wait until we are taken to Heaven so we can worship God RIGHT THERE!!! MARANATHA!!
18 “What profit is an idol
when its maker has shaped it,
a metal image, a teacher of lies?
For its maker trusts in his own creation
when he makes speechless idols!
So I chose this verse so I could bring up the issue of idols. Idols are not always statues made of bamboo in the shape of some old asian dude with a big stomach and like 7 arms. Idols can be things that you make more important than God. I know, I know, this is mind blowing stuff, but the second part of the verse talks about the idol’s maker. The inventor of the TV didnt make it thinking about how its going to be an idol and its going to take focus away from God. WE make it our idol. So what does that say about us? The more we make our own idols, the less focused were gonna be on what REALLY matters. So ask yourself, is it worth it? Is watching TV or playing video games gonna create a stronger relationship with the LORD Almighty? I’m not saying dont have fun because its a sin, cause its not. But if you make something your idol, you are not going to profit from it. God isnt going to award you for how many hours you put into your new Level 100 character. Just a thought.
God is right! MARANATHA!!
So I after reading this I gotta say I enjoy this minor prophet the best out of them all. There’s alot here so I’m just going to focus on a promis and encouragement God gives us in verse 2:3. (wasn’t able to cu and paste it)
Bu this talks about the Final Day that is and I mean is soon to come (maranatha!!!!!!) And God is saying tht it won’t b delayed and He has a specific time and plan for it. We read about specific things that r going to happen in revelations. We just need to live our lives ready to go or die at any time. And one thing that made me think hard about is something Pastor Bobby said last Sunday about wat if, u brought the last person needed to Christ and the rapture happens right then? How trippy would tht be?!
Great comment Josh! See you tomorrow!
Habakkuk 1&2
2:14 14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.
The Chaldeans where proud and oppressed the people of Israel. The Lord is going to show His faithfulness and power by saving His people Israel from the Chaldeans. God used Israel’s oppression to bring nation wide glory to His name. Many times in my own life has God used an adverse situation to magnify His Glory to others. Sometimes we are so worried about how the situation is affecting our lives that we miss out on what God has intended for good. Not necessarily our good either. We can be so self focused that we miss what God is trying to do in someone else’s life. Habakkuk didn’t understand why God was allowing Israel to suffer or for what purpose their oppression would serve. Habakkuk learned how to Trust in God’s perfect and right will. It’s amazing how after a situation has passed God allows us to see His intended purpose and will that bring glory and honor to the Lord. Water is used to describe the penetrating affect of God’s glory when He uses adverse situations to show others His mighty power, honor and glory. Expect that every difficulty will be used to magnify the glory of the Lord. God is good all the time.
Isaiah 11:9 9 They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.