The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 2:7
That shall bite thee. As thou hast cruelly treated others, so shall they, like fierce vipers ( Jeremiah 8:17 ), bite thee. Henderson, Delitzsch, Keil, and others see in the word a double entendre connected with the meaning of "lending on interest," so the "biting" would signify "exacting a debt with usury." Such a term for usury is not unknown to classical antiquity; thus (quoted by Henderson) Aristoph; 'Nub.,' 12— δακόμενος υπὸ τὴς δαπάνης καὶ τῆς φάτνης καὶ τῶν χρεῶν ... read more
The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 2:6-8
National wrongs ending in national woes. No. 1. "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?" etc. In these verses, up to the nineteenth inclusive, the prophet denounces upon the Chaldeans and Babylonians... read more