Habakkuk 1:10

10 They laugh at kings and make fun of rulers. They laugh at all of the cities that have high walls around them. They build dirt ramps against the walls and capture the cities.

Habakkuk 1:10 Meaning and Commentary

Habakkuk 1:10

And they shall scoff at the kings
Or, "he shall" ^F21, Nebuchadnezzar king of the Chaldeans, and the army with him; who would make a jest of kings and their armies that should oppose them, as being not at all a match for them; as the kings of Judah, Jehoiakim and Zedekiah, they carried captive, and all others confederate with them, in whom they trusted, as the king of Egypt particularly; and which is observed to show the vanity of trusting in princes for safety; though it may also include all other kings the Chaldeans fought against, and the kingdoms they invaded and subdued: and the princes shall be a scorn unto them;
the nobles, counsellors, and ministers of state; or leaders and commanders of armies, and general officers, in whom great confidence is often put; but these the king of Babylon and his forces would mock and laugh at, as being nothing in their hands, and who would fall an easy prey to them: they shall deride every strong hold;
in Jerusalem, in the whole land of Judea, and in every other country they invade, or pass through, none being able to stand out against them: for they shall heap dust, and take it;
easily, as it were in sport, only by raising a dust heap, or a heap of dirt; by which is meant a mount raised up to give them a little rise, to throw in their darts or stones, or use their engines and battering rams to more advantage, and to scale the walls, and get possession. There are two other senses mentioned by Kimchi; as that they shall gather a great number of people as dust, and take it; or they shall gather dust to till up the trenches and ditches about the wall, that so they may come at it, and take it.

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FOOTNOTES:

F21 (awhw) "et ipse", Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius, Tarnovius, Grotius, Cocceius.

Habakkuk 1:10 In-Context

8 Their horses are faster than leopards. They are meaner than wolves in the dark. Their horsemen charge straight into battle. They ride in from far away. They come down like an eagle diving for its food.

9 All of them are ready to destroy others. Their huge armies advance like a wind out of the desert. They gather prisoners like sand.

10 They laugh at kings and make fun of rulers. They laugh at all of the cities that have high walls around them. They build dirt ramps against the walls and capture the cities.

11 They sweep past like the wind. Then they go on their way. They are guilty. They worship their own strength."

12 Lord, haven't you existed forever? You are my holy God. So we won't die, will we? Lord, you have appointed the Babylonians to punish your people. My Rock, you have chosen them to judge us.