Habakkuk 2:1-9

1 I will ¹take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and ²look out to see ³what 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:⁴"Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it.

3 For still ⁵the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end--it will not lie. If it seems slow, ⁶wait for it; ⁷it will surely come; it will not delay.

4 "Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but ⁸the righteous shall live by his faith.^[a]

5 "Moreover, wine^[b] is ⁹a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest.^[c] His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death ¹⁰he has never enough. ¹¹He gathers for himself all nations and collects as his own all peoples."

Woe to the Chaldeans

6 Shall not all these ¹²take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say, ¹³"Woe to him ¹⁴who heaps up what is not his own-- for ¹⁵how long?-- and ¹⁶loads himself with pledges!"

7 ¹⁷Will not your debtors suddenly arise, and those awake who will make you tremble? Then you will be spoil for them.

8 ¹⁸Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you, ¹⁹for the blood of man and ²⁰violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them.

9 ²¹"Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, ²²to ²³set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!

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Habakkuk 2:1-9 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO HABAKKUK 2

This chapter contains an answer from the Lord to the expostulations, pleadings, and reasonings of the prophet, in the name of the people. The preparation of the prophet to receive this answer is described, Hab 2:1 then follows the answer itself, in which he is bid to write and make plain the vision he had, that it might be easily read, Hab 2:2 and a promise is made, that vision should still be continued to the appointed time, at which time the Messiah would come; and this the righteous man, in opposition to the vain and proud man, is encouraged to live in the faith of, Hab 2:3,4 and then the destruction of the enemies of the people of God is threatened for their pride, ambition, covetousness, oppression, and murder, Hab 2:5-12 which would be unavoidable, Hab 2:13 and issue in the spread of the knowledge of the glory of God in the world, Hab 2:14 and also the ruin of other enemies is threatened, for drawing men into apostasy, and for their violence and idolatry, Hab 2:15-19 upon which would follow an universal silence in the earth, Hab 2:20.

Taken from John Gill's Exposition of the Bible

Cross References 23

1. Isaiah 21:8
2. Jeremiah 6:17; Ezekiel 33:2
3. Psalms 85:8
4. Isaiah 8:1; Isaiah 30:8; [Revelation 1:19]
5. [Daniel 10:14]; See Ezekiel 7:5-7
6. Zephaniah 3:8; See Isaiah 8:17
7. Cited Hebrews 10:37; [2 Peter 3:9]
8. Cited Romans 1:17; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:38; [John 3:36]
9. Habakkuk 1:13; Isaiah 21:2
10. [Proverbs 27:20]
11. Jeremiah 27:7; [Habakkuk 1:6; Daniel 2:37, 38]
12. Micah 2:4; See Numbers 23:7
13. ver. 19; Isaiah 5:8
14. [Habakkuk 1:6]
15. See Zechariah 1:12
16. [Ezekiel 18:7]
17. See Isaiah 21:5-9
18. [Isaiah 33:1]
19. ver. 17
20. [Isaiah 33:1]
21. [See ver. 6 above]
22. [Isaiah 14:13]
23. Jeremiah 49:16; [Numbers 24:21]

Footnotes 3

[a]. Or faithfulness
[b]. Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scroll wealth
[c]. The meaning of the Hebrew of these two lines is uncertain

The English Standard Version is published with the permission of Good News Publishers.