Habakkuk 1:7

7 They are dreaded and feared; from themselves they derive justice and sovereignty.

Habakkuk 1:7 Meaning and Commentary

Habakkuk 1:7

They [are] terrible and dreadful
For the fierceness of their countenances; the number and valour of their troops; the splendour of their armour; the victories they had obtained, and the cruelty they had exercised; the fame of all which spread terror wherever they came:

their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves;
they will not be directed and governed by any laws of God and man, but by their own; they will do according to their will and pleasure, and none will be able to gainsay and resist them; they will hear no reason or argument; their decrees and determinations they make of themselves shall be put into execution, and there will be no opposing their tyrannical measures; they will usurp a power, and take upon them an authority over others of themselves, which all must submit unto; no mercy and pity: no goodness and humanity, are to be expected from such lawless and imperious enemies.

Habakkuk 1:7 In-Context

5 “Look at the nations and observe— be utterly astounded! For I am doing a work in your days that you would never believe even if someone told you.

6 For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans — that ruthless and impetuous nation which marches through the breadth of the earth to seize dwellings not their own.

7 They are dreaded and feared; from themselves they derive justice and sovereignty.

8 Their horses are swifter than leopards, fiercer than wolves of the night. Their horsemen charge ahead, and their cavalry comes from afar. They fly like a vulture, swooping down to devour.

9 All of them come bent on violence; their hordes advance like the east wind; they gather prisoners like sand.