Habakkuk 1
1
1This is the message that the prophet Habakkuk received in a vision.
Habakkuk’s Complaint
2How 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.
3Must 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.
4The 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
5The Lord replied,
“Look around at the nations;
look and be amazed!#1:5 Greek version reads Look, you mockers; / look and be amazed and die. Compare Acts 13:41.
For I am doing something in your own day,
something you wouldn’t believe
even if someone told you about it.
6I am raising up the Babylonians,#1:6 Or Chaldeans.
a cruel and violent people.
They will march across the world
and conquer other lands.
7They are notorious for their cruelty
and do whatever they like.
8Their horses are swifter than cheetahs#1:8 Or leopards.
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.
10They scoff at kings and princes
and scorn all their fortresses.
They simply pile ramps of earth
against their walls and capture them!
11They sweep past like the wind
and are gone.
But they are deeply guilty,
for their own strength is their god.”
Habakkuk’s Second Complaint
12O Lord my God, my Holy One, you who are eternal—
surely you do not plan to wipe us out?
O Lord, our Rock, you have sent these Babylonians to correct us,
to punish us for our many sins.
13But you are pure and cannot stand the sight of evil.
Will you wink at their treachery?
Should you be silent while the wicked
swallow up people more righteous than they?
14Are we only fish to be caught and killed?
Are we only sea creatures that have no leader?
15Must we be strung up on their hooks
and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate?
16Then they will worship their nets
and burn incense in front of them.
“These nets are the gods who have made us rich!”
they will claim.
17Will you let them get away with this forever?
Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests?
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Habakkuk 1: NLT
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Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright 1996, 2004, 2007, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
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Habakkuk 1
1
1This is the message Habakkuk the prophet received.
Habakkuk Complains
2Lord, how long must I ask for help
and you ignore me?
I cry out to you about violence,
but you do not save us!
3Why do you make me see wrong things
and make me look at trouble?
People are destroying things and hurting others in front of me;
they are arguing and fighting.
4So the teachings are weak,
and justice never comes.
Evil people gain while good people lose;
the judges no longer make fair decisions.
The Lord Answers
5“Look at the nations!
Watch them and be amazed and shocked.
I will do something in your lifetime
that you won’t believe even when you are told about it.
6I will use the Babylonians,
those cruel and wild people
who march across the earth
and take lands that don’t belong to them.
7They scare and frighten people.
They do what they want to do
and are good only to themselves.
8Their horses are faster than leopards
and quicker than wolves at sunset.
Their horse soldiers attack quickly;
they come from places far away.
They attack quickly, like an eagle swooping down for food.
9They all come to fight.
Nothing can stop them.
Their prisoners are as many as the grains of sand.
10They laugh at kings
and make fun of rulers.
They laugh at all the strong, walled cities
and build dirt piles to the top of the walls to capture them.
11Then they leave like the wind and move on.
They are guilty of worshiping their own strength.”
Habakkuk Complains Again
12Lord, you live forever,
my God, my holy God.
We will not die.
Lord, you have chosen the Babylonians to punish people;
our Rock, you picked them to punish.
13Your eyes are too good to look at evil;
you cannot stand to see those who do wrong.
So how can you put up with those evil people?
How can you be quiet when the wicked swallow up people who are better than they are?
14You treat people like fish in the sea,
like sea animals without a leader.
15The enemy brings them in with hooks.
He catches them in his net
and drags them in his fishnet.
So he rejoices and sings for joy.
16The enemy offers sacrifices to his net
and burns incense to worship it,
because it lets him live like the rich
and enjoy the best food.
17Will he keep on taking riches with his net?
Will he go on destroying people without showing mercy?
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