Habakkuk
HABAKKUK WAS A MAN WHO SOUGHT ANSWERS.
TROUBLED BY WHAT HE OBSERVED, HE ASKED DIFFICULT QUESTIONS. THE QUESTIONS WERE
NOT MERELY INTELLECTUAL EXERCISES OR BITTER COMPLAINTS. HABAKKUK SAW A DYING
WORLD, AND IT BROKE HIS HEART. WHY IS THERE EVIL IN THE WORLD? WHY DO THE
WICKED SEEM TO BE WINNING? HE BOLDLY AND CONFIDENTLY TOOK HIS COMPLAINTS
DIRECTLY TO GOD. AND GOD ANSWERED......WITH AN AVALANCHE OF PROOF AND
PREDICTION.
See he is puffed
up;
his desires are not upright
--
but the righteous will live by his
faith--
2:4
Footnote: The wicked Babylonians trusted in
themselves and would fall; but the righteous live by their faith and trust in
God. This verse has inspired countless Christians. Paul quotes it in Romans
1:17 and Galatians 3:11. The writer of Hebrews quotes it in 10:38, just before
the famous chapter on faith. And it is helpful to all Christians who must live
through difficult times without seeing signs of hope. Christians must trust
that God is directing all things according to his purposes.
The Sovereign Lord is my
strength;
he makes my feet like the feet of a
deer,
he enables me to go on the
heights.
3:19
Footnote: Habakkuk had asked God why evil
people prosper while the righteous suffer. God's answer: they don't, not in the
long run. Habakkuk saw his own limitations in contrast to God's unlimited
control of all the world's events. God is alive and in control of the world and
its events. We cannot see all that God is doing, and we cannot see all that God
will do. But we can be assured that he is God and will do what is right.
Knowing this can give us confidence and hope in a confusing world.
Keep reading -- 150 days left!
All footnotes taken from the Life Application Study Bible, NIV
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