Habakkuk 3:8

8 Lord, whether in floods thou art wroth, either in floods is thy strong vengeance, either in the sea is thine indignation? Which shalt ascend on thine horses; and on thy four-horsed carts is salvation. (Lord, art thou angry with the rivers, or is thy indignation against the sea? Thou shalt go upon thy horses; and salvation, or deliverance, is in thy four-horsed carts/and victory is in thy chariots.)

Habakkuk 3:8 Meaning and Commentary

Habakkuk 3:8

Was the Lord displeased against the rivers? [was] thine
anger against the rivers?
&c.] Referring, as is commonly thought, either to the rivers in Egypt turned into blood, which was one of the plagues of that land, ( Exodus 7:20 ) when the resentment of the Lord was not so much against them as against the Egyptians; and as a punishment of them for drowning the infants of the Israelites in them, and in order to obtain the dismissal of his people from that land: or else to the river Jordan, called "rivers", because of the largeness of it, and the abundance of water in it; against which the Lord was not angry, when he divided the waters of it, which was done only to make a passage through it for his people into the land of Canaan, ( Joshua 3:16 Joshua 3:17 ) : [was] thy wrath against the sea, that thou didst ride upon thine
horses [and] thy chariots of salvation?
the Red sea, when a strong east wind was sent, and divided the waters of it, which was no mark of displeasure against that; but for the benefit of the people of Israel, that they might pass through it as on dry land; and for the destruction of Pharaoh and his hosts, who, entering into it with his horses and chariots, were drowned; the Lord coming forth against him, riding on his horses and chariots, the pillar of fire and cloud, by which he defended Israel, and through which he looked, and discomfited the host of the Egyptians, and wrought salvation for his people; see ( Exodus 14:19-28 ) with which compare ( Psalms 114:3 ) . The clouds are the chariots of the Lord, ( Psalms 104:3 ) so angels, who are sometimes signified by horses and chariots, ( Psalms 18:10 ) ( 68:17 ) ( 2 Kings 2:11 ) ( 6:17 ) ( Zechariah 1:8 ) ( 6:1-5 ) and here they may design the angels of Michael, or Christ, ( Revelation 12:7 Revelation 12:8 ) the Christian emperors, Constantine and Theodosius, whom the Lord raised up, and made use of as instruments to demolish Paganism, establish Christianity, and deliver and save his people from their persecutors, who came in like a flood upon them; and who, for their number and force, were comparable to rivers, yea, to the sea; and upon whom the Lord showed some manifest tokens of his wrath and displeasure; so people, tongues, and nations, are compared to many waters, ( Revelation 17:15 ) and monarchs and their armies, ( Isaiah 8:7 Isaiah 8:8 ) and the Targum here interprets the rivers of kings and their armies: and it may be observed that some parts of the Roman empire are signified by the sea, and rivers and fountains of waters, on which the blowing of the second and third trumpets brought desolation; as the antichristian states are described by the same, on which the second and third vials of God's wrath will be poured, when he will indeed be displeased and angry with the rivers and the sea, figuratively understood, ( Revelation 8:8 Revelation 8:10 ) ( Revelation 16:3 Revelation 16:4 ) .

Habakkuk 3:8 In-Context

6 He stood, and meted the earth; he beheld, and unbound folks, and hills of the world were all-broken; the little hills of the world were bowed down, of the ways of his everlastingness. (He shall stand, and shall measure the earth; he shall look, and the nations shall tremble, or shall shake; the mountains of the world shall be altogether broken, and the little hills of the world shall be bowed down, unto his everlasting ways.)

7 For wickedness I saw the tents of Ethiopia, the skins of the land of Midian shall be troubled. (I saw that the tents of Cushan were under wickedness, and that the tent curtains of the lands of Midian were troubled, or trembled.)

8 Lord, whether in floods thou art wroth, either in floods is thy strong vengeance, either in the sea is thine indignation? Which shalt ascend on thine horses; and on thy four-horsed carts is salvation. (Lord, art thou angry with the rivers, or is thy indignation against the sea? Thou shalt go upon thy horses; and salvation, or deliverance, is in thy four-horsed carts/and victory is in thy chariots.)

9 Thou raising shalt raise thy bow, (according to the) oaths to lineages which thou hast spoken; thou shalt part the floods of earth. (Thou shalt raise thy bow, in accordance with the oaths to the tribes which thou hast spoken; thou shalt divide the earth with thy rivers.)

10 Waters saw thee, and hills sorrowed, the gutter of waters passed; deepness gave his voice, highness raised his hands. (The mountains saw thee, and they trembled; the waters from the gutters of the heavens passed by; the depths gave their voices, and raised up their hands into the highness, or on high.)