Habakkuk 1:15

"He taketh up all of them with the angle, he catches them in his net, and gathereth them in his drag; therefore he rejoiceth and is glad."

The successful mopping up of whole populations by the ruthless invader is metaphorically described. Since Habakkuk was NOT describing what he had already seen in the past, but was uttering a prophecy of what would appear in the future, it was essential that metaphor be employed. The use of such language establishes it as having been written before the events prophesied.