Grace Bible Church Gillette, Wyoming

1. (12) Now that Habakkuk understands that God is disciplining His people through the Chaldeans, he struggles with reconciling God’s holiness with His endorsement of a people of iniquity.

2. Habakkuk begins with a rhetorical question that affirms God’s attributes. He uses the name “LORD” (Yhvh or Yahveh) which is His covenant keeping name (Ge 15:18; 26:28; Ex 34:27; Le 26:45).

3. The LORD is “from everlasting” (qedem - ancient times), being self-existent, but has been faithfully involved in Israel’s history from ancient times (cf. miqedem - Neh 12:46; Ps 74:12; 77:11; Is 45:21; 46:10; Mic 5:2).

4. He is Habakkuk the prophet’s “God” (elohim) who is also his “Holy One” (qadōsh - sacred, holy cf. Ps 71:22; Pr 30:3; Is 6:3 cf. Christ Ps 16:10; Ac 13:35; Lk 4:34; Jn 6:69). These names and attributes have implications for Habakkuk.

5. The first implication of God’s attributes was assuring. Even though Judah (“we”) was about to be disciplined, they “will not die” or be destroyed. God will not forsake His covenant with His people (Je 31:35-40; 33:23-26 cf. Ro 11:1-2). Habakkuk understood that clearly.

6. So even though the Chaldeans were divinely appointed to “judge” and “correct” Judah, the LORD was still their “Rock” (tsur), their immovable and unchangeable refuge (Dt 32:4, 15, 18, 37; Ps 18:2, 31, 46; 31:2, 3; 62:2, 6, 7; 78: 35).

7. (13) Habakkuk’s second implication of God’s attributes was perplexing. Since God was the “Holy One,” how could He look with favor upon the wicked Chaldeans?

8. The famous statement concerning God’s holiness and purity that God is too pure to look upon evil came from the mouth of Habakkuk. In Habakkuk’s first complaint he asked why God made him look upon sin (Hab 1:3). Now Habakkuk was asking how could God look upon sin.

9. Today, many question how God can be too pure to look upon evil and yet allow evil to exist in the world. The idea of the expression “look upon” (raah - see or look) means to approve or tolerate evil. God does not tolerate sin in the sense that He winks at it, ignores it, or lets it pass. He may allow sin for a time if it accomplishes His purposes, but all sin will be punished at some point in time. In the case of believers, the punishment for their sin was met in Christ’s atonement. If God did not have some sense in which He allows sin in the world, all men would not be allowed in the world but would be immediately cast into hell.

10. The first phrase was explained by the second, namely that God cannot look with favor upon the wicked. However, this was the very idea that perplexed Habakkuk. How could his holy God look with favor upon the treacherous Chaldeans? Especially when Judah was more righteous than the Chaldeans?

11. There are some underlying assumptions that Habakkuk had, to which Paul dealt with in the book of Romans. 1) There is none righteous (Ro 3:10), 2) No one will be justified by the works of the Law (Ro 3:20), 3) All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Ro 3:23), 4) Everyone is accountable to God, therefore every mouth is stopped (Ro 3:19). Since these indictments were universal, God was not immoral to use the sinful Chaldeans to discipline sinful Judah.

12. Nevertheless, Habakkuk’s earlier statement was right. Judah would be disciplined but Judah would not be destroyed.

13. Why was God silent, in the sense of not intervening, when the wicked swallowed up God’s people? Nowhere is it recorded that Judah repented from their sins and turned back to the Lord. But even if they had, they had pushed God’s tolerance of their sin too far. God was not silent; He was speaking loud and clear with the discipline of the Chaldeans.

B. God’s employment of a people of injustice (Hab 1:14–15)

1. (14) Habakkuk asked why the men, in particular Judah, became like fish in the sea that were easy to catch. He asks why they had become like creeping things, which scatter in every direction (“without a ruler”) and are easily trampled underfoot.

2. (15) They Chaldeans were the predators and Judah was the easy prey without protection. Judah could be caught with baited hooks. Once caught their resistance was futile. The lot of them could be drug in like drawing in fishing nets. All the while, the Chaldeans were proud fishermen joyous over their easy and defenseless catch.

3. Habakkuk could not understand how God could employ such people of ruthless injustice. He could not understand why God has done this to them and how this can be God’s plan.

4. Again, Paul answers in Romans. God is the Potter and man is the clay. The clay cannot question God’s doings because the Potter has the right to do as He pleases (Ro 9:19-21). Whatever God pleases will be accomplished and will be right. This applies to everything including salvation (Ro 9:22-23) as well as divine discipline.

C. God’s exertion of a people of idolatry (Hab 1:16–17)

1. (16) Furthermore, Habakkuk questioned how God could use a group of people whose worship is pagan and foreign from the true God. God Himself stated that the Chaldeans trusted in their own strength.

2. They “sacrificed” and “burned incense” to their nets, which meant they trusted in their own instruments, exploits, strength, and will. They worshipped themselves.

3. It seemed to be paying off for them with their “large” catches and “plentiful” food.

4. (17) Habakkuk could not tolerate their injustice, their ungodly gain, their haughty spirit. He wondered if God would ever bring their rise to power to an end. Would their nets ever be empty? Would the continual slaying of nations go on?

5. God had already answered Habakkuk in Hab 1:11, “But they will be held guilty, They whose strength is their god.” Nevertheless, Habakkuk did not seem content with the mere principles of the knowledge of God. He wanted the solutions that seemed plausible to him.

6. It is in the book of Habakkuk that we ourselves can piece together difficult concepts and difficult passages in Scripture.

7. We can piece together how the world may appear to be out of control with injustice and violence growing in power. Yet God is the One in control and He is accomplishing His will even if it is being done through evil men and nations. In the end “all things are working together for good” for believers (Ro 8:28).

8. We can also piece together the meaning of such verses as Is 45:7, “The One forming light and creating darkness, Causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the LORD who does all these, ” Lam 3:37-38, “Who is there who speaks and it comes to pass, Unless the Lord has commanded it? Is it not from the mouth of the Most High That both good and ill go forth?,” Amos 3:6, “If a trumpet is blown in a city will not the people tremble? If a calamity occurs in a city has not the LORD done it.” In all of these things God has not sinned nor caused evil where evil had not been. Rather, at times, God allows sin and evil to carry out their consequences, which will bring about God’s discipline and punishment. In the end, each sinner and each nation will have its turn. But only those who have trusted in Christ for salvation are ultimately delivered from eternal punishment.

D. Habakkuk watches for an answer (Hab 2:1)

1. Habakkuk will wait upon the Lord for His answer, which more than likely will be a reproof.

2. Habakkuk was not insolent, but was not putting things together from God’s point of view.

3. In God’s graciousness, He would answer Habakkuk. In God’s graciousness, Habakkuk would eventually see things from God’s perspective.

Grace Bible Church · 4000 E. Collins Rd · PO Box #3762 · Gillette, WY · (307) 686-1516