Habakkuk 1:15

15 He shall lift up all in the hook; he drew it in his great net, and gathered into his net; on this thing he shall be glad, and make joy withoutforth. (For they lift up all the people by their hooks; they gather them into their great nets, and draw them along in their nets; and then they be happy, and rejoice, over this.)

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 Thine eyes be clean, see thou not evil, and thou shalt not be able to behold to wickedness. Why beholdest thou not on men doing wickedly, and thou art still, while the unpious man devoureth a more just man than himself? (Thine eyes be pure, thou seest no evil, and thou art not able to look upon wickedness. But why beholdest thou not upon those doing wickedly, and thou art silent, while the wicked devour those who be more just, or more righteous, than themselves?)
14 And thou shalt make men as fishes of the sea, and as a creeping thing not having a prince. (And shalt thou make people like the fish of the sea, and like the creeping things that do not have a leader?/And why makest thou people like the fish of the sea, and like the creeping things that do not have a leader?)
15 He shall lift up all in the hook; he drew it in his great net, and gathered into his net; on this thing he shall be glad, and make joy withoutforth. (For they lift up all the people by their hooks; they gather them into their great nets, and draw them along in their nets; and then they be happy, and rejoice, over this.)
16 Therefore he shall offer to his great net, and shall make sacrifice to his net; for in them his part is made fat, and his meat is chosen. (And they even make offerings to their great nets, and make sacrifices to their nets; for by them their portions be made fat, and their meats be chosen and tasty.)
17 Therefore for this thing he spreadeth abroad his great net, and evermore he ceaseth not for to slay folks. (And so for this they spread abroad their great nets, and they never cease to slaughter the nations.)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.