Habakkuk 1:15

15 The Babylonians pull them all up with fishhooks, drag them away in nets, and gather them in dragnets. So they rejoice and are happy.

Habakkuk 1:15 Meaning and Commentary

Habakkuk 1:15

They take up all of them with the angle
The prophet continues the metaphor of fishing, and observes the different ways of taking fish; which is to be applied to the case he is speaking of: as fishermen take all they can with their angles, so "they" or "he", for it is in the singular number, Nebuchadnezzar and his army, take up all out of the sea of the world; are ambitious of getting all kingdoms and nations of the world under their power and dominion; particularly all Judea, and all the inhabitants of it, good and bad, without any distinction; for all were fish which came to their net: this may design the artful and alluring methods they first made use of to get the people into their hands, by making covenants with them, and drawing them into making of presents, and paying of tribute:

they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag;
with the angle the fisherman catches fish one by one, but with the net great numbers; and what he misses by throwing the net, he gets by using the drag; all which may be expressive of the ways and methods used by the king of Babylon and his army, both in the times of Jeconiah, and of Zedekiah; under the former he used the net, and carried off large numbers, and with them the royal family and great substance, but left many behind; under the latter he came and swept away all, drained the land of its riches and its inhabitants:

therefore they rejoice and are glad;
as fishermen do when they have good sport; so these people rejoiced in their own success, and in the calamities of their neighbours.

Habakkuk 1:15 In-Context

13 Your eyes are too pure to look at evil. You can't watch wickedness. Why do you keep watching treacherous people? Why are you silent when wicked people swallow those who are more righteous than they are?
14 You make all people like the fish in the sea, like schools of sea life that have no ruler.
15 The Babylonians pull them all up with fishhooks, drag them away in nets, and gather them in dragnets. So they rejoice and are happy.
16 That is why they sacrifice to their nets and burn incense to their dragnets. They are rich and well fed because of them.
17 Will they keep on emptying their nets and always kill nations without mercy?
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