Habakkuk 2:8

"Because thou hast plundered many nations, all the remnant,of the people shall plunder thee, because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all that dwell therein."

This concludes the first woe and makes it clear that God will double unto the wicked oppressor states the full measure of their reward and retribution in kind for the wickedness they have committed against others.

"All the remnant of the people ..." This does not mean the remaining nations left unplundered by the Babylonians, but the remnant of the people's remaining in the plundered nations after their conquest. Keil said that this explanation is the only one "in harmony with the usage of the language."[22]

"Violence done to the land ..." This is usually understood as a reference, by metonomy, to all the peoples of the world; but there would appear to be in it also a reference to the wanton destruction and misuse of the natural resources as well, a thought apparently demanded by the dramatic figures used to describe the impact of Babylon upon the earth. Jeremiah called them, "the hammer of the whole earth" (Jeremiah 51:7), and "a destroying mountain that destroyeth the whole earth" (Jeremiah 51:25). In his comment on Habakkuk 2:17, where this thought recurs, Hailey wrote that, "The Chaldean held the whole creation of God in contempt, considering it all his to be used for his own selfish ends."[23] "These woes are universal";[24] therefore, it is sinful today to strip the earth of its resources for selfish ends, and the ancient curse still pertains to those who do so.