Reading: Habakkuk 1-3, Psalm 133

Once upon a time I was a department manager in a big retail store, and I thought I was better at everything than everyone, because I worked harder than them. Very early on in this career, I had two fellow department managers who spent inordinate amounts of time goofing off, pulling pranks on each other, and generally not doing things that I then felt obligated to do. It took a long time, but eventually I went to the store manager and asked, “Why do you let this go on?!” And you know what? I don’t even remember what he said. All I remember is how long it took for me to take my complaint up to the next level, rather than trying to fix the situation myself.

Hakakkuk is a prophet who takes his complaints to the next level. It is not like the other prophetic books, which are made up of public proclamations. Habakkuk is a prophet having a conversation with God about matters of justice, and a psalm he writes in response to God’s answers. Since there are no kings mentioned, we don’t know exactly when Hakakkuk lived, though it had to be during the ascendant years of Assyria, before their fall to the Babylonians. Since Habakkuk is not publicly testifying, it is my belief that he lived through the reign of Manasseh and Amon, and perhaps made his book of prophecy public during the young days of king Josiah. This puts him in the same period of silence from God that Nahum experienced, and puts his complaints in perspective as one who has seen a great deal of evil done.

The book opens with a complaint. Habakkuk sees evil being done, he cries out to the God of Israel, but nothing happens. His complaint can be seen as the one Nahum dealt with in his book. Is God going to do anything in a world where the wicked surround the righteous; so justice goes forth perverted? God responds to Habakkuk’s complaint by telling him that he will be carrying out judgment on these wicked people by means of the Chaldeans, who occupied Babylon and were the dominant people there at the time. Babylon was run by a few different groups through the centuries, so it is easier to just call them Babylonians. Anyway, that isn’t God’s point here. This was not the answer Habakkuk expected, and no wonder. God describes the Chaldeans as a bitter and hasty nation, who seize dwellings not their own, who come for violence, and as guilt men, whose own might is their god.” These are God’s instruments of judgment? Habakkuk can’t just accept this.

He makes a second complaint. After confirming that he believes God has the right to do whatever he thinks best, Habakkuk asks why do you idly look at traitors, and remain silent when the wicked swallows up a man more righteous than he? He wonders why the Babylonians, who are at least as bad as the Assyrians, will live in luxury, eating rich foods. Will Babylon run amok, mercilessly killing nations forever? Habakkuk then sets himself to hear how God will respond.

God makes quite a response. First, he tells Habakkuk to write this down, because it is not for right now. It is a vision for the future, and it will happen, even if it takes a long time. He acknowledges that Babylon is wicked, associated with greed, arrogance, and death. Babylon will dominate all the nations for a time. But God gives Habakkuk another message, inside his condemnation of Babylon: the righteous will live by faith. God is telling Habakkuk that yes, it appears that evil and wicked men are triumphant, but not to come to trust in the things those men represent. Continue to trust in the God of Israel and his promises. Live by faith.

Then God lays into the Chaldeans. And I think maybe these words were meant for the Assyrians and the people of Israel too. They read much like the social accusations of Amos and Micah, declaring doom for those who overload people with debt, who get others drunk to despoil or mock them. Worked into this declaration of coming judgment is a warning not to trust in idols or personal strength, for a time is coming when the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God as the waters cover the sea. God reminds Habakkuk that while idols will be destroyed, he is in his holy temple, let all the earth keep silence before him.

Then Habakkuk writes a psalm. Some scholars have said this is not original, because it is so different in form from the first two chapters of the book. My opinion is that this is nonsense, and that the psalm is pretty obviously a response to God telling Habakkuk that the righteous will live by faith. The first 15 verses are a vision of God as a warrior, going out and destroying his enemies and saving his people. It has all kinds of associations of God’s power with nature, calling back to his role as the source and creator of everything. But then something changes in verse 16. Habakkuk now knows that God’s means of judgment will often be other wicked people, and that it will be on a far future day that he completely destroys evil. So he commits himself to quietly wait for the day of trouble. He goes to say that even if the fig tree should not blossom, nor fruit be on the trees…yet I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

Habakkuk began his book with a complaint, and not an invalid one. God responded, acknowledging Habakkuk was right from his limited perspective, but that God has a bigger plan in mind, and to trust him. Habakkuk now does so. Even if it appears wickedness is unpunished, and Habakkuk does not get to live the pleasant life he might want, he will trust that God knows what he is doing, and find his joy in that.