(Part 1)

JBTM Paul D. Wegner
109
cute? Imagine Habakkuk telling an all-loving and all-merciful God to remember his own
character. He can’t be anything other than merciful, for that is part of his very nature. But
what is amazing here is that Habakkuk does not ask God to take away his wrath. That is
what I would want. Habakkuk seems to understand that God is a righteous judge who at
some point has to punish the wicked, but who also can spare those Israelites not deserving
this punishment. This is a lesson worth learning—that even in the midst of judgment God
can protect us.
The next thirteen verses describe an all-powerful God coming both to judge and to
rescue his people. In vv. 3–7 God is pictured as a valiant warrior and in vv. 8–15 he destroys
all his enemies. Used here are terms and images from the Exodus from Egypt, a time when
an entire generation died in the wilderness, yet God spared those of his people who trusted
him. But the most important part of this whole chapter is vv. 16–19. Let’s look at verse 16.
Poor Habakkuk. He knows that the Babylonians are coming, but all he could do was
wait and tremble. And this very fear helps him to realize that God would take care of him.
It is at this point that he takes the next step and chose to trust his God—that is all he could
do. Look at vv. 17–19:
Though the fig tree does not bud
and there is no fruit on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
Do you see what Habakkuk is saying? Even though there is famine. . . Even though there is
no reason for him to hope, no human reason for him to trust in his God. . .
yet I will triumph in Yahweh;
I will rejoice in the God of my salvation!
Yahweh my Lord is my strength;
He makes my feet like those of a deer
and enables me to walk on mountain heights!
Habakkuk is a changed person. He began with an arrogant attitude, but now he trusts in
God no matter what. What made the difference?
1. Habakkuk now knows that God cares about him. The minute he stopped complaining
and started listening to God’s response, Habakkuk knew that God cared about what
he had to say.
2. As Habakkuk listened to God, he found he needed to adjust his thinking. Although
he knew a lot about who God is, he found that he was not looking at the world
around him in quite the same way that God does. He learned that God does in fact