Habakkuk 3, Habakkuk's Lament

Habakkuk finishes his prophecy with a lament song of stubborn worship and persistence. The psalm echoes Psalm 77, Psalm 18 and the Creation and Flood narratives.

Habakkuk 3:1-2, "Your deeds"

A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth.

LORD, I have heard of your fame;

 I stand in awe of your deeds, O LORD. 

Renew them in our day,

 in our time make them known; 

in wrath remember mercy.

Habakkuk begins his praise by declaring his awe for YHWH actions and plans. He asks that YHWH once again renew His action among His people, and within legitimate wrath, asks the YHWH include mercy.

Habakkuk 3:3-5, "Your deeds"

God came from Teman,

 the Holy One from Mount Paran.

Selah

 His glory covered the heavens 

and his praise filled the earth. 

His splendor was like the sunrise; 

rays flashed from his hand, 

where his power was hidden. 

Plague went before him; 

pestilence followed his steps. 

Habakkuk looks back to the ancient appearance of YHWH at Sinai and quotes a line from the psalm of Moses in Deuteronomy 32, echoing verse 2. (There, Seir is a synonym for Edom, as is Teman.) 

Armerding (pp. 525-6) argues that the Hebrew word kaor, translated "sunrise" by the NIV, simply means "bright light" and that the context of this passage evokes the lightning and thunder of God's appearance at Mount Sinai (eg. Exodus 19:16-19.)

Habakkuk 3: 6-7, Nations tremble

He stood, and shook the earth; 

he looked, and made the nations tremble. 

The ancient mountains crumbled 

and the age-old hills collapsed. 

His ways are eternal. 

I saw the tents of Cushan in distress, 

the dwellings of Midian in anguish. 

When God acts, the nations tremble. God can cause earthquakes which collapse the mountains and hills. The nations around Israel, such as Cush/Cushan in Egypt and Midian (south of Israel) are upset and fear God.

Habakkuk 3:8-12, Conqueror of seas

Were you angry with the rivers, O LORD? 

Was your wrath against the streams? 

Did you rage against the sea 

when you rode with your horses

 and your victorious chariots? 

In Genesis 1:6-10, God divided the waters on Days 2 and 3; in Genesis 7:11-12, YHWH overwhelmed the earth with the flood; in Exodus 14:21-28, He split the sea and gave Israel victory over Egypt. Throughout ancient history, Israel has recognized YHWH as God over the chaotic seas and waters. Habakkuk brings all this to mind as he praises God's power over the streams, rivers and seas.

Habakkuk 3:9-12, Divine warrior splits the earth

You uncovered your bow, 

you called for many arrows. 

Selah

You split the earth with rivers;  

the mountains saw you and writhed. 

Torrents of water swept by; 

the deep roared and lifted its waves on high. 

Sun and moon stood still in the heavens

 at the glint of your flying arrows, 

at the lightning of your flashing spear. 

In wrath you strode through the earth 

and in anger you threshed the nations.

Habakkuk looks back to God's power during the Exodus, controlling the sea. As a mighty warrior, God is portrayed calling for arrows to fill His quizzer. Earthquakes and floods are easily within His power. Verses 10-12, echo Psalm 77:16-19.

Habakkuk 3:13-15, Deliver Your people

You came out to deliver your people, 

to save your anointed  one. 

You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness, 

you stripped him from head to foot. 

Selah

With his own spear you pierced his head 

when his warriors stormed out to scatter us, 

gloating as though about to devour the wretched who were in hiding.

You trampled the sea with your horses, 

churning the great waters. 

In those ancient days, God came to save His people (his "anointed" nation.) He crushed their enemies. Once again, Habakkuk recalls God's power over the sea.

Habakkuk 3:16, Patiently waiting

 I heard and my heart pounded,

 my lips quivered at the sound;

 decay crept into my bones, 

and my legs trembled. 

Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity

 to come on the nation invading us.   

Habakkuk recalls those ancient times and so vows to wait patiently (but painfully) for God to come to His people.

Habakkuk 3:17-19, Even if...

Though the fig tree does not bud 

and there are no grapes on the vines, 

though the olive crop fails 

and the fields produce no food, 

though there are no sheep in the pen

 and no cattle in the stalls, 

yet I will rejoice in the LORD, 

I will be joyful in God my Savior. 

The Sovereign LORD is my strength; 

he makes my feet like the  feet of a deer, 

he enables me to go on the heights. 

For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.     
    
Habakkuk's final (and famous) declaration is one of commitment, regardless of the future. Even if the prosperity does not return, still, even then, he will rejoice in God. It is on the sovereign YHWH that Habakkuk relies. The last verse echoes Psalm 18:32-33.

Some Random Thoughts

The existence of Evil, indeed the triumph of Evil, was a problem that plagued the Old Testament writers. The ancient book of Job directly addresses that problem, but the conflict also appears throughout many of the psalm. It is a theme of Habakkuk. 

One can read this book as a sequel to the book of Job. The only answers Habakkuk has are that (1) God is in charge and (2) Habakkuk will stubbornly trust and wait.

Long ago, in a discussion on belief and faith, a young woman said to me, "At times my faith is simply desperation." Habakkuk would understand that woman's remark. Habakkuk has no choice but to commit, in sorrow and anguish, to waiting for God to act in His own timing.

Waiting is hard.

First published July 26, 2025; updated July 26, 2025