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The Just Shall Live by Faith

I will (A)stand my watch
And set myself on the rampart,
And watch to see what He will say to me,
And what I will answer when I am corrected.

The Just Live by Faith

Then the Lord answered me and said:

(B)“Write the vision
And make it plain on tablets,
That he may run who reads it.
For (C)the vision is yet for an appointed time;
But at the end it will speak, and it will (D)not lie.
Though it tarries, (E)wait for it;
Because it will (F)surely come,
It will not tarry.

“Behold the proud,
His soul is not upright in him;
But the (G)just shall live by his faith.

Woe to the Wicked

“Indeed, because he transgresses by wine,
He is a proud man,
And he does not stay at home.
Because he (H)enlarges his desire as [a]hell,
And he is like death, and cannot be satisfied,
He gathers to himself all nations
And heaps up for himself all peoples.

“Will not all these (I)take up a proverb against him,
And a taunting riddle against him, and say,
‘Woe to him who increases
What is not his—how long?
And to him who loads himself with [b]many pledges’?
Will not [c]your creditors rise up suddenly?
Will they not awaken who oppress you?
And you will become their booty.
(J)Because you have plundered many nations,
All the remnant of the people shall plunder you,
Because of men’s [d]blood
And the violence of the land and the city,
And of all who dwell in it.

“Woe to him who covets evil gain for his house,
That he may (K)set his nest on high,
That he may be delivered from the [e]power of disaster!
10 You give shameful counsel to your house,
Cutting off many peoples,
And sin against your soul.
11 For the stone will cry out from the wall,
And the beam from the timbers will answer it.

12 “Woe to him who builds a town with bloodshed,
Who establishes a city by iniquity!
13 Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts
That the peoples labor [f]to feed the fire,
And nations weary themselves in vain?
14 For the earth will be filled
With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,
As the waters cover the sea.

15 “Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbor,
[g]Pressing him to your (L)bottle,
Even to make him drunk,
That you may look on [h]his nakedness!
16 You are filled with shame instead of glory.
You also—drink!
And [i]be exposed as uncircumcised!
The cup of the Lord’s right hand will be turned against you,
And utter shame will be on your glory.
17 For the violence done to Lebanon will cover you,
And the plunder of beasts which made them afraid,
Because of men’s blood
And the violence of the land and the city,
And of all who dwell in it.

18 “What profit is the image, that its maker should carve it,
The molded image, a teacher of lies,
That the maker of its mold should trust in it,
To make mute idols?
19 Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’
To silent stone, ‘Arise! It shall teach!’
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
Yet in it there is no breath at all.

20 “But(M) the Lord is in His holy temple.
Let all the earth keep silence before Him.”

Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 2:5 Or Sheol
  2. Habakkuk 2:6 Syr., Vg. thick clay
  3. Habakkuk 2:7 Lit. those who bite you
  4. Habakkuk 2:8 Or bloodshed
  5. Habakkuk 2:9 Lit. hand of evil
  6. Habakkuk 2:13 Lit. for what satisfies fire, for what is of no lasting value
  7. Habakkuk 2:15 Lit. Attaching or Joining
  8. Habakkuk 2:15 Lit. their
  9. Habakkuk 2:16 DSS, LXX reel!; Syr., Vg. fall fast asleep!

God Answers the Prophet

I will (A)stand at my guard post
And station myself on the watchtower;
And I will (B)keep watch to see (C)what He will say to me,
And how I may reply [a]when I am reprimanded.
Then the Lord answered me and said,
(D)Write down the vision
And inscribe it clearly on tablets,
So that one who [b]reads it may run.
For the vision is yet for the (E)appointed time;
It [c]hurries toward the goal and it will not [d]fail.
Though it delays, (F)wait for it;
For it will certainly come, it (G)will not delay long.

“Behold, as for the (H)impudent one,
His soul is not right within him;
But the (I)righteous one will live by his [e]faith.
Furthermore, (J)wine betrays an (K)arrogant man,
So that he does not (L)achieve his objective.
He (M)enlarges his appetite like Sheol,
And he is like death, never satisfied.
He also gathers to himself all the nations
And collects to himself all the peoples.

“Will all of these not (N)take up a song of ridicule against him,
Even a saying and insinuations against him
And say, ‘(O)Woe to him who increases what is not his—
For how long—
And makes himself [f]rich with debts!’
Will [g]your creditors not (P)rise up suddenly,
And those who [h]collect from you awaken?
Indeed, you will become plunder for them.
Since you have (Q)looted many nations,
All the rest of the peoples will loot you—
Because of human bloodshed and violence [i]done to the land,
To the town and all its inhabitants.

“Woe to him who makes (R)evil profit for his household,
To (S)put his nest on high,
To be saved from the hand of catastrophe!
10 You have planned a (T)shameful thing for your house
By bringing many peoples to an end;
So you are (U)sinning against yourself.
11 For the (V)stone will cry out from the wall,
And the rafter will answer it from the [j]framework.

12 “Woe to him who (W)builds a city with bloodshed,
And founds a town with [k]violence!
13 Is it not indeed from the Lord of armies
That peoples (X)labor merely for fire,
And nations become weary for nothing?
14 For the earth will be (Y)filled
With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,
As the waters cover the sea.

15 “Woe to him who makes his neighbor drink;
[l]To you who mix in your venom even to make your neighbors drunk,
So as to look at their genitalia!
16 You will be filled with disgrace rather than honor.
(Z)Drink, you yourself, and [m]expose your own foreskin!
The (AA)cup in the Lords right hand will come around to you,
And (AB)utter disgrace will come upon your glory.
17 For the (AC)violence [n]done to Lebanon will [o]overwhelm you,
And the devastation of its animals [p]by which you terrified them,
(AD)Because of human bloodshed and (AE)violence [q]done to the land,
To the town and all its inhabitants.

18 “What (AF)benefit is a carved image when its maker has carved it,
Or a cast metal image, a (AG)teacher of falsehood?
For its maker (AH)trusts in his own handiwork
When he fashions speechless idols.
19 Woe to him who (AI)says to a piece of wood, ‘(AJ)Awake!’
To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’
That is your teacher?
Behold, it is overlaid with (AK)gold and silver,
Yet there is (AL)no breath at all inside it.
20 But the (AM)Lord is in His holy temple.
[r]Let all the earth (AN)be silent before Him.”

Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 2:1 Lit upon my reprimand
  2. Habakkuk 2:2 Or is to proclaim; or reads it may read it fluently
  3. Habakkuk 2:3 Lit pants
  4. Habakkuk 2:3 Or lie
  5. Habakkuk 2:4 Or faithfulness
  6. Habakkuk 2:6 Lit heavy
  7. Habakkuk 2:7 Lit those who bite you
  8. Habakkuk 2:7 Lit violently shake you
  9. Habakkuk 2:8 Lit of the land
  10. Habakkuk 2:11 Lit wood
  11. Habakkuk 2:12 Lit injustice
  12. Habakkuk 2:15 Another reading is From the cup of your venom
  13. Habakkuk 2:16 Lit show yourself uncircumcised; DSS and ancient versions stagger
  14. Habakkuk 2:17 Lit of Lebanon
  15. Habakkuk 2:17 Lit cover
  16. Habakkuk 2:17 Lit which shattered them
  17. Habakkuk 2:17 Lit of the land
  18. Habakkuk 2:20 Lit Hush before Him, all the earth

God Answers the Prophet

I will stand at my guard post
And station myself on the tower;
And I will keep watch to see what He will say to me,
And what answer I will give [as His spokesman] when I am reproved.

Then the Lord answered me and said,
“Write the vision
And engrave it plainly on [clay] tablets
So that the one who reads it will run.

“For the vision is yet for the appointed [future] time
It hurries toward the goal [of fulfillment]; it will not fail.
Even though it delays, wait [patiently] for it,
Because it will certainly come; it will not delay.(A)


“Look at the proud one,
His soul is not right within him,
But the righteous will live by his faith [in the true God].(B)

“Moreover, wine is treacherous and betrays the arrogant man,
So that he does not stay at home.
His appetite is large like Sheol,
And he is like death, never satisfied.
He gathers to himself all nations
And collects to himself all peoples [as if he owned them].


“Will all these [victims of his greed] not take up a taunting song against him,
And in mocking derision against him
Say, ‘[a]Woe (judgment is coming) to him who increases that which is not his—
How long [will he possess it]?
And [woe to him who] makes himself wealthy with loans.’

“Will your creditors not rise up suddenly,
And those who collect from you awaken?
Then you will become plunder for them.

“Because you [king of Babylon] have looted many nations,
All peoples who are left will loot you—
Because of human bloodshed and for the violence done to the land,
To the city and all its inhabitants.


“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who obtains wicked gain for his house [and thinks by so doing]
To set his nest on high,
That he may be rescued from the hand of evil.
10 
“You have devised a shameful thing for your house
By cutting off and putting an end to many peoples;
So you are sinning against your own life and forfeiting it.
11 
“For the stone will cry out from the wall [to accuse you—built in sin!]
And the rafter will answer it out of the woodwork.

12 
“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who builds a city with bloodshed
And establishes a town by violence!
13 
“Is it not indeed from the Lord of hosts
That peoples labor [only] for the fire [that will destroy their work],
And nations grow weary for nothing [that is, things which have no lasting value]?
14 
“But [the time is coming when] the earth shall be filled
With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord,
As the waters cover the sea.(C)

15 
“Woe (judgment is coming) to you who make your neighbors drink,
Who mix in your venom to make them drunk
So that you may look at their nakedness!
16 
“You will be filled with disgrace instead of honor.
Now drink and expose your own nakedness!
The cup [of wrath] in the Lord’s right hand will come around to you [O destroyer],
And utter disgrace will be on your own glory.(D)
17 
“For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you;
The destruction of the animals will terrify you
On account of human bloodshed and the violence done to the land,
To the city and all its inhabitants.

18 
“What profit is the carved image when its maker has formed it?
It is only a cast image, and a teacher of lies.
For its maker trusts in his own creation [as his god]
When he makes speechless idols.
19 
“Woe (judgment is coming) to him who says to the wooden image, ‘Awake!’
And to the speechless stone, ‘Arise!’
And that is your teacher?
Look, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
And there is no breath at all inside it.
20 
“But the Lord is in His holy temple.
Let all the earth hush and be silent before Him.”(E)

Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 2:6 The taunting song of the five woes pronounced against Babylon begins in v 6 and concludes at the end of the chapter.

I will stand at my watch(A)
    and station myself on the ramparts;(B)
I will look to see what he will say(C) to me,
    and what answer I am to give to this complaint.[a](D)

The Lord’s Answer

Then the Lord replied:

“Write(E) down the revelation
    and make it plain on tablets
    so that a herald[b] may run with it.
For the revelation awaits an appointed time;(F)
    it speaks of the end(G)
    and will not prove false.
Though it linger, wait(H) for it;
    it[c] will certainly come
    and will not delay.(I)

“See, the enemy is puffed up;
    his desires are not upright—
    but the righteous person(J) will live by his faithfulness[d](K)
indeed, wine(L) betrays him;
    he is arrogant(M) and never at rest.
Because he is as greedy as the grave
    and like death is never satisfied,(N)
he gathers to himself all the nations
    and takes captive(O) all the peoples.

“Will not all of them taunt(P) him with ridicule and scorn, saying,

“‘Woe to him who piles up stolen goods
    and makes himself wealthy by extortion!(Q)
    How long must this go on?’
Will not your creditors suddenly arise?
    Will they not wake up and make you tremble?
    Then you will become their prey.(R)
Because you have plundered many nations,
    the peoples who are left will plunder you.(S)
For you have shed human blood;(T)
    you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.(U)

“Woe to him who builds(V) his house by unjust gain,(W)
    setting his nest(X) on high
    to escape the clutches of ruin!
10 You have plotted the ruin(Y) of many peoples,
    shaming(Z) your own house and forfeiting your life.
11 The stones(AA) of the wall will cry out,
    and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.

12 “Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed(AB)
    and establishes a town by injustice!
13 Has not the Lord Almighty determined
    that the people’s labor is only fuel for the fire,(AC)
    that the nations exhaust themselves for nothing?(AD)
14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory(AE) of the Lord
    as the waters cover the sea.(AF)

15 “Woe to him who gives drink(AG) to his neighbors,
    pouring it from the wineskin till they are drunk,
    so that he can gaze on their naked bodies!
16 You will be filled with shame(AH) instead of glory.(AI)
    Now it is your turn! Drink(AJ) and let your nakedness be exposed[e]!(AK)
The cup(AL) from the Lord’s right hand is coming around to you,
    and disgrace will cover your glory.
17 The violence(AM) you have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you,
    and your destruction of animals will terrify you.(AN)
For you have shed human blood;(AO)
    you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.

18 “Of what value(AP) is an idol(AQ) carved by a craftsman?
    Or an image(AR) that teaches lies?
For the one who makes it trusts in his own creation;
    he makes idols that cannot speak.(AS)
19 Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Come to life!’
    Or to lifeless stone, ‘Wake up!’(AT)
Can it give guidance?
    It is covered with gold and silver;(AU)
    there is no breath in it.”(AV)

20 The Lord is in his holy temple;(AW)
    let all the earth be silent(AX) before him.

Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 2:1 Or and what to answer when I am rebuked
  2. Habakkuk 2:2 Or so that whoever reads it
  3. Habakkuk 2:3 Or Though he linger, wait for him; / he
  4. Habakkuk 2:4 Or faith
  5. Habakkuk 2:16 Masoretic Text; Dead Sea Scrolls, Aquila, Vulgate and Syriac (see also Septuagint) and stagger

I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.

And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.

For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.

Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people:

Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!

Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?

Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.

Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!

10 Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul.

11 For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.

12 Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!

13 Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity?

14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.

15 Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!

16 Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the Lord's right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.

17 For the violence of Lebanon shall cover thee, and the spoil of beasts, which made them afraid, because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.

18 What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols?

19 Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

20 But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.