Habakkuk
Habakkuk 1:5
This verse brought great comfort to me during a pretty rough patch I was going through about 2 years ago…”Look around you Habakkuk, replied the Lord, among the nations and see! And be astonished! Astounded! For I am putting into effect a work in your days such that you would not believe it if it were told to you.” Habakkuk 1: 5
It came to mind while I was having coffee with a friend, so I decided to go back and read the context…the book of Habakkuk is pretty short – 3 chapters, to be exact, and it’s pretty awesome!
It’s a dialogue between God and the prophet, Habakkuk. Habakkuk is concerned and crying out to God because the Judean leaders are oppressing the poor and committing violent, destructive crimes. Habakkuk prays, “O Lord, how long shall I cry for help and You will not hear? Or cry out to You of violence and You will not save?” H 1:2
The Lord answers: V5 – “Look around you, Habakkuk, replied the Lord, among the nations and see! And be astonished! Astounded! For I am putting into effect a work in your days such that you would not believe it if it were told to you.”
God goes on to reveal that His plan is to fix the situation by sending the Chaldeans, who were known for, well, here is a description – “..terrible and dreadful, their justice and dignity proceed only from themselves. Their horses are also swifter than leopards and are fiercer than the evening wolves, and their horsemen spread themselves and press on proudly …they come for violence; their faces turn eagerly forward and they gather prisoners together like sand.” 1: 7-9
So, the Lord says to Habakkuk, “I am going to fix this by sending these horribly violent people to invade and take over the Judeans.” Habakkuk is perplexed, troubled, and wonders how this can be a better thing, but the Lord replies again.
God’s reply is that His children will live by faith, they will have the confidence that the Chaldeans will be judged and that God’s people will prevail in righteousness and justice. This will happen when the Lord returns and shakes the nations. This is described in chapter 3 - Habakkuk’s prayer back to the Lord, but it is more of a psalm at the end, that indicates his remaining faith and confidence in God’s promises.
He asks that God would revive His works, make Himself known, and in His wrath to remember love, pity and mercy! Isn’t this what we long for today? A breakthrough? A revelation of God’s power and mercy? This is what our intercession is today! This is the role of a forerunner! To remain confident in God’s love even while things are falling apart, to be able to explain God’s justice and the goodness of His judgments to those who are confused, to intercede on behalf of the lost and God’s children.
This is such a perfect explanation of the justice and mercy that is coming with the Lord. I love this! “You marched through the land in indignation; You trampled and threshed the nations in anger. You went forth and have come for the salvation of Your people, for the deliverance and victory of Your anointed people; You smote the head of the house of the wicked, laying bare the foundation even to the neck. Selah.” Habakkuk 3:12-13
And so, as Habakkuk understands the shaking and judgment that will afflict his people, he remains faithful, and praises God: “Though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, though the product of the olive fails and the fields yield not food, though the flock is cut off from the fold and there are no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the victorious God of my salvation! The Lord God is my Strength, my personal bravery, and my invincible army; He makes my feet like hinds’ feet and will make me to walk, not to stand in terror, but to walk and make spiritual progress upon my high places of trouble, suffering or responsibility!” Habakkuk 3:17-19
This verse brought great comfort to me during a pretty rough patch I was going through about 2 years ago…”Look around you Habakkuk, replied the Lord, among the nations and see! And be astonished! Astounded! For I am putting into effect a work in your days such that you would not believe it if it were told to you.” Habakkuk 1: 5
It came to mind while I was having coffee with a friend, so I decided to go back and read the context…the book of Habakkuk is pretty short – 3 chapters, to be exact, and it’s pretty awesome!
It’s a dialogue between God and the prophet, Habakkuk. Habakkuk is concerned and crying out to God because the Judean leaders are oppressing the poor and committing violent, destructive crimes. Habakkuk prays, “O Lord, how long shall I cry for help and You will not hear? Or cry out to You of violence and You will not save?” H 1:2
The Lord answers: V5 – “Look around you, Habakkuk, replied the Lord, among the nations and see! And be astonished! Astounded! For I am putting into effect a work in your days such that you would not believe it if it were told to you.”
God goes on to reveal that His plan is to fix the situation by sending the Chaldeans, who were known for, well, here is a description – “..terrible and dreadful, their justice and dignity proceed only from themselves. Their horses are also swifter than leopards and are fiercer than the evening wolves, and their horsemen spread themselves and press on proudly …they come for violence; their faces turn eagerly forward and they gather prisoners together like sand.” 1: 7-9
So, the Lord says to Habakkuk, “I am going to fix this by sending these horribly violent people to invade and take over the Judeans.” Habakkuk is perplexed, troubled, and wonders how this can be a better thing, but the Lord replies again.
God’s reply is that His children will live by faith, they will have the confidence that the Chaldeans will be judged and that God’s people will prevail in righteousness and justice. This will happen when the Lord returns and shakes the nations. This is described in chapter 3 - Habakkuk’s prayer back to the Lord, but it is more of a psalm at the end, that indicates his remaining faith and confidence in God’s promises.
He asks that God would revive His works, make Himself known, and in His wrath to remember love, pity and mercy! Isn’t this what we long for today? A breakthrough? A revelation of God’s power and mercy? This is what our intercession is today! This is the role of a forerunner! To remain confident in God’s love even while things are falling apart, to be able to explain God’s justice and the goodness of His judgments to those who are confused, to intercede on behalf of the lost and God’s children.
This is such a perfect explanation of the justice and mercy that is coming with the Lord. I love this! “You marched through the land in indignation; You trampled and threshed the nations in anger. You went forth and have come for the salvation of Your people, for the deliverance and victory of Your anointed people; You smote the head of the house of the wicked, laying bare the foundation even to the neck. Selah.” Habakkuk 3:12-13
And so, as Habakkuk understands the shaking and judgment that will afflict his people, he remains faithful, and praises God: “Though the fig tree does not blossom and there is no fruit on the vines, though the product of the olive fails and the fields yield not food, though the flock is cut off from the fold and there are no cattle in the stalls, Yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will exult in the victorious God of my salvation! The Lord God is my Strength, my personal bravery, and my invincible army; He makes my feet like hinds’ feet and will make me to walk, not to stand in terror, but to walk and make spiritual progress upon my high places of trouble, suffering or responsibility!” Habakkuk 3:17-19
posted by KariBryant @ 8:54 PM
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