Habakkuk 1:1 This is the message that the prophet Habakkuk received in a vision. Habakkuk’s Complaint
2 How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save.
3 Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight.
4 The law has become paralyzed, and there is no justice in the courts. The wicked far outnumber the righteous, so that justice has become perverted.
The Lord’s Reply
5 The Lord replied, “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.
6 I am raising up the Babylonians, a cruel and violent people. They will march across the world and conquer other lands.
7 They are notorious for their cruelty and do whatever they like.
8 Their horses are swifter than cheetahs and fiercer than wolves at dusk. Their charioteers charge from far away. Like eagles, they swoop down to devour their prey.
9 “On they come, all bent on violence. Their hordes advance like a desert wind, sweeping captives ahead of them like sand.
10 They scoff at kings and princes and scorn all their fortresses. They simply pile ramps of earth
against their walls and capture them!
11 They sweep past like the wind and are gone. But they are deeply guilty, for their own strength is their god.”
Poor Habakkuk! As a righteous man surrounded by wicked people, Habakkuk would like deliverance or at least revival so he isn’t plagued by evil doers. Many times, religious leaders are fond of calling themselves “Prophet So-and-So” without the slightest idea what being a prophet actually entails. God doesn’t send prophets when everything is going well but only when things are deteriorating. Part of the energy behind a prophet’s warnings stems from the prophet’s own disgust at the evil he/she surrounding him/her. And being a prophet is anything but an avenue to success and acclaim, for the second you warn others, those same people will turn to attack you and silence you.
2 How long, O Lord, must I call for help? But you do not listen! “Violence is everywhere!” I cry, but you do not come to save.
3 Must I forever see these evil deeds? Why must I watch all this misery? Wherever I look, I see destruction and violence. I am surrounded by people who love to argue and fight.
It’s not that Habakkuk has not been praying but that he feels his prayers have been going nowhere. Why hasn’t God answered in the manner Habakkuk desires? The problem is that Habakkuk is blaming the wrong Guy. God would love to swoop in and change everything; however, Habakkuk’s people have freely chosen to act wickedly, and God will not override anyone’s free will. And each time God has sent prophets to warn these people, those prophets have been killed, stoned, shut up in prison, beaten, or exiled. When Jesus is weeping over Jerusalem, he weeps for the terrible things its inhabitants have done to God’s prophets for centuries as well as for the dreadful persecution the Romans will later mete out.
5 The Lord replied, “Look around at the nations; look and be amazed! For I am doing something in your own day, something you wouldn’t believe even if someone told you about it.
6 I am raising up the Babylonians, a cruel and violent people. They will march across the world and conquer other lands.
At this point, Habakkuk must be waving his hands at the Lord, exclaiming, “No! No! No!” Habakkuk wants his people to repent, not to be annihilated by the Babylonians. But God has no choice. From Moses onwards, God has warned the Israelites of the consequences of idolatry, and yet the Israelites have persisted in chasing after every pagan deity they can find. Actions have consequences, and the Babylonian conquest will form part of those consequences.
Looking at these verses, we might wonder if Habakkuk’s prayers have been worthless, but we would be wrong. God loves Habakkuk and has listened to every word he has said. When the Babylonians invade Judah, many people will be carried back to Babylon, where they will prosper. Habakkuk’s prayers will help deliver the righteous from slaughter.
Perhaps you feel akin to Habakkuk. You find yourself in an onerous situation with no exit. Your only choice is to hang on. Welcome to life as a believer, for we all must endure similar times. But remember that while you are tying a knot in the end of that rope and hanging on, God is holding the other end of the rope. None of your prayers or cries for help are wasted.
One problem we have is that we long for dramatic and immediate deliverances while God wants to use our suffering to perfect us. Romans 5:3-5 tells us, “Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us.”
Are you at the end of your rope? Hold on and remember that God is not through with you. Keep breathing, keep working, and keep hoping. For your hope will not put you to shame and God will pour His love into your heart through the Holy Spirit who has been given to you.
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to trust You for Your perfect solutions, even when we seem to be facing disaster. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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