We began
last Sunday afternoon a brief series through the book of Habakkuk, one of the
so-called “Minor Prophets.”
The title in
Habakkuk 1:1 provides our basic orientation to this little book: “The burden
which Habakkuk the prophet did see” (cf. Nahum 1:1).
Who was
the prophet Habakkuk?
We have almost no biographical information about this prophet, other than his
name, within this book. The name Habakkuk appears nowhere else in the
Scriptures.
He must have
been a man well known and respected, however, in his day. He does not need to
explain who he is. He must also have been a man of humility, who did not feel
compelled to call attention to himself. He is like John the Baptist, pointing
away from himself and toward the Lord (John 3:30).
What does
the name Habakkuk mean? Even the meaning of his name is
unclear. Some have suggested it comes from the name of a plant. Others suggest
it comes from a Hebrew verb which means “to embrace” or “to ardently embrace.”
This word appears in 2 Kings 4:16 when Elisha tells the Shunammite woman, “thou
shalt embrace a son.” Some have suggested that the spiritual significance of
the name was that Habakkuk would be one who would cling to God in the midst of
troubles and calamity. To turn that around, maybe it referred to the fact that
the prophet felt as though the living God had embraced him, as the Shunammite
did her son.
What is
the historical setting for the book? No specific names of the kings of Israel or Judah are
mentioned for us to be able to pinpoint the date, but in 1:6 he prophesied of
the LORD raising up the Chaldeans. From this most have construed that Habakkuk
was writing in the last days of Judah before it fell to the Babylonians. This
means Habakkuk would have been a contemporary of Jeremiah. Some have suggested
that was ministering during the days of Josiah, the last great hope for Judah,
and had seen the death of Josiah in battle and the undoing of all his reforms
under his successor Jehoiakim. So, he was living in the last days of his
nation. He saw the doom that was ahead and was naturally filled with dread and
questions about the disturbing things that were about to come.
What is
the structure of the book? The first two chapters are something like a lament and a theological
reflection on the coming collapse of the nation. The last chapter is a prayer
of the prophet (see 3:1).
How was
Habakkuk used in the New Testament? This book was known, read, and used by the apostles. The
most often cited passage from this book in the NT is Habakkuk 2:4 which ends,
“but the just shall live by his faith.” The apostle Paul appealed three times
to this verse in his writings (Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; Hebrews 10:38).
What is
Habakkuk about? In
the opening chapter, Habakkuk offers a lament, “O LORD, how long shall I cry,
and thou wilt not hear!” (1:2a; cf. Psalm 13:1-2). He then proceeds, however,
to acknowledge the greatness of God: “Art not thou from everlasting, O LORD my
God, mine Holy One?” (1:12a). Thus, he notes the eternality of God, who is from
everlasting to everlasting, as well as his holiness. Perhaps these two
statements sum up the book’s theme. In the midst of national doom and personal
distress, the prophet discovers the greatness of his God.
Grace and
peace, Pastor Jeff Riddle
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