Habakkuk 1:1-4 NIV

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:2

Verse 2 As I have already reminded you, interpreters think that the Prophet speaks here of future things, as though he had in his view the calamity which he afterwards mentions; but this is too strained a meaning; I therefore doubt not but that the Prophet expostulates here with God for so patiently indulging a reprobate people. For though the Prophets felt a real concern for the safety of the people, there is yet no doubt but that they burned with zeal for the glory of God; and when they saw... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:3

Verse 3 He afterwards adds, How long wilt thou show me iniquity, and make me to see trouble? Here the Prophet briefly relates the cause of his indignation,—that he could not, without great grief, yea, without anguish of mind, behold such evils prevailing among God’s chosen people; for they who apply this to the Chaldeans, do so strainedly, and without any necessity, and they have not observed the reason which I have stated—that the Prophet does not here teach the Jews, but prepares them for a... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:4

Verse 4 The Prophet confirms here what I have already said, and brings an excuse for his zeal; he proves that he was not without reason led to so great a warmth; for he saw that the law of God was trodden as it were under foot; he saw men so hardened in every kind of sin, that all religion and the fear of God had nearly been extinguished. Hence I have already said, that the Prophet was not here impelled by a carnal passion, as it often happens to us, when we defend ourselves from wrongs done to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

§ 1. The inscription of the book. The burden (see note on Nahum 1:1 ). The prophet ( Habakkuk 3:1 ). This title, which is added in the inscriptions only to the names of Haggai and Zechariah, and cursorily to that of Jeremiah (46, 47; 50.), implies that he exercised the practical office of prophet, and was well known; and, as Pusey thinks, Habakkuk appended it hero on account of the form in which his prophecy is cast, as being addressed almost entirely to God or the Chaldeans, not to... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

A prophet's burden. I. THE PROPHET . 1. His name. Habakkuk—"Embracing," which might signify either "one who embraces" or "one who is embraced." Accepting the former sense, Luther notes the suitability of the prophet's name to his office. "He embraces his people (in his prophecy), and takes them to his arms; i.e. he comforts them, and lifts them up as one embraces a poor weeping child or man, to quiet it with the assurance that, if God will, it shall be better soon;" though... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

The title. This introduces us to the writer and his work. Note— I. HIS NAME . Habakkuk i.e. "One who embraces"—a name singularly appropriate in its significance to the man who "rested in the Lord, and waited patiently for him" through the dark days. Luther applied the name to the prophet's regard for his people, "embracing them, taking them to his arms, comforting them, and lifting them up as one embraces a weeping child, to quiet it with the assurance that, if God will, it shall... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1-4

The cry of a good man under the perplexing procedure of God. "The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. O Lord, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thee wilt not save!" etc. Of Habakkuk nothing is known for certainty. The fifth and sixth verses of the first chapter tell us that he prophesied before that series of invasions by the Chaldeans which ended in the destruction of Jerusalem and the captivity of the people—probably between 640... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2

Shall I cry; Septuagint, κέκραξομαι . The Hebrew is taken to imply that the prophet had long been complaining of the moral depravity of Judah, and calling for help against it There is no reference here, as Ewald fancies, to acts of violence committed by the Chaldeans, who, in fact, are announced as coming to chastise the wickedness of the chosen people ( Habakkuk 1:6 ). And thou wilt not hear! The continuance of evil unchecked is an anomaly in the prophet's eye; and, putting himself... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2

The lamentation of a good man. I. OVER THE RELIGIOUS DEGENERACY OF HIS AGE . Not merely for himself, but as the representative of the godly remnant of Judah, Habakkuk expostulates with Jehovah concerning the wickedness of the times in which he lived. The picture he sets before Jehovah is one of deep national corruption, such as existed in the days of Jehoiakim ( Jeremiah 20:8 ; Jeremiah 22:3 , Jeremiah 22:13-17 ). A picture of wickedness. 1 . Great. 2 . ... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2-4

2. The prophet complains to God of the iniquity of his own nation, and its consequence. read more

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:2

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:3

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Habakkuk 1:4

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:1-4

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2

The Pulpit Commentary - Habakkuk 1:2-4

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