Habakkuk 2
COMMENTARY:
: 1 I will stand on my watch, and set me on the tower, and will watch to see what he will say to me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved. (8433 “reproved” [towkechah] means rebuke, correction, chastisement, impeachment, or chiding.)
DEVOTION: In chapter one Habakkuk the prophet complained that he didn’t understand what the LORD was doing. He thought HE was doing things all wrong. He didn’t think that the LORD should use the unsaved to judge the saved.
He thought that even though Israel was a nation of sinners they didn’t sin any more than other nations. He even thought they sinned less.
He really didn’t understand the holiness of God. He didn’t understand the degree of sin that was found in Israel. He was confused.
One of his good tracts was found in the fact that he was willing to listen to the LORD. He wanted to understand things from the LORD’S perspective. He knew his thinking was off but just didn’t understand to what degree they were off.
The phrase the “just shall live by faith” was given to help him understand that no matter what was happening around him he was to live his life by trust in the LORD who promised to only do good to HIS people. Everything that happens to those who trust in the LORD is for their good.
Do we understand this fact today?
Our circumstances are different from Habakkuk’s day. Our government is different from the government of Israel. There are people today in other nations that kill those who believe in Christ without caring. They will throw a bomb into a church and think nothing of it. They will strap a bomb around their waist and think they are serving their god.
Could we complain to the LORD about what is happening today? YES!! But we too must take the time to get into the presence of the LORD and wait to hear from HIM. Are you working for the LORD while you are waiting for HIS answers to your questions?
CHALLENGE: Our responsibility is to continue to use our gift until we die or HE gives us other instructions.
: 4 Behold, his soul which is lifted up in not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith. (6662 “just” [tsaddiyd] means righteous, lawful, right, correct, upright, honest, virtuous, innocent or pious.)
DEVOTION: There are two types of people in our world. There are those who are righteous and those who don’t care to be righteous.
There is a group of people who think that they are all it and a piece of cheese as the saying goes. They think they have their act together. They think that they are better than other people. They are good in their own eyes. They walk around with their attitude of superiority over others.
The second group is made up of individuals who are humble and don’t think to highly of themselves. They realize that without the help of the LORD they are on their way to a place called hell for eternity. They give all the credit to the LORD for HIS work in their life. They manifest their faith in their everyday life. They walk by faith. They share their faith with others. In fact, those around them see a difference in their life.
The New Testament quotes this phrase three times. It is used to express the difference between those who are followers of the LORD Jesus Christ and those who are not.
As we look at our life what do we see? Do we see an individual that is trusting in the LORD for their daily provisions? Do we see someone who can face trials with a definite peace that passes all understanding?
God honors those who trust HIM.
CHALLENGE: As we face lives trials we have a confidence that the LORD is right there by our side assisting us along the way. We are not double minded.
: 10 You have consulted shame to your house by cutting off many people, and have sinned against your soul. (3289 “consulted” [ya’ats] means counsel, advice, devise, plan, determine, or to make or work out a plan for.)
DEVOTION: Habakkuk is warning the Babylonians to watch where they get their advice from. Too often they were looking in the wrong direction and the LORD continued to warn them even when they were not listening.
We have the same habits today. Too often we look to others before we go to the LORD or someone who is serving the LORD faithfully to find out what we should do in a given situation.
Habbakkuk is giving the Babyonians advice but they were looking for other source that would give them the advice they wanted to hear rather than what the LORD would want them to do
We fall into the same trap even today. Sometimes we will listen to family who claim to be believers before they will listen to someone who will not give them what they want to hear but not give they what they need to hear.
The Babylonians went in the wrong direction more times then they went in the right direction because they like hearing what they hear form those who are not genuine followers of the LORD.
Too many people claim to serve the LORD when they are really not listening to HIM as often as they think. We like to hear what we want to hear rather than what we need to hear.
CHALLENGE: We need to follow the advice of Habakkuk and find those who will not give us what we want to hear but what the LORD wants us to hear!
: 14 For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. (3519 “ glory” [kabowd] means honor, abundance, riches, splendor, dignity, reputation, reverence, or importance.)
DEVOTION: Our eyesight determines what we see and what we don’t see. If our eyesight is twenty-twenty we have good eyesight. We don’t need glasses. We can drive a car without help.
The Bible instructs us many places to look at life from a spiritual perspective. We are to have not only physical eyes but spiritual eyes. We need to see the LORD at work in our world.
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” is how the Bible starts. Our worldview has to start with the creation of the world by the LORD. Once we see this fact then we can look at things differently from many in our world.
Those who don’t have spiritual eyes only see atoms and molecules. They don’t see that humans have a soul that has to answer to a Creator. They think that once they die that is it. There is no life after death.
The Bible gives us a different perspective. It states that after we die it is appointed for us to meet the LORD for judgment regarding what we have done in this life.
The eyes of those without Christ will finally be opened to the fact that there is a spiritual side to life and they missed it while they were alive. Their eyes will be opened to the fact that the heavens declare the “glory of the LORD.”
CHALLENGE: Do you see HIS glory all around you today?
: 20 But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him. (2013 “silence” [hacah] means hush, hold peace, hold tongue, or be still.)
DEVOTION: This is a chapter of WOES. These are warnings to the people of God to straighten out their lives before judgment come. Habakkuk is standing watch over the nation to see what the LORD is going to do. The LORD gives him these messages of WOE.
In these messages of WOE the LORD gives a statement to those who are trying to follow the LORD: the just shall live by faith [Roman 1: 17; Gal. 3: 11; Heb. 10:38]. These are the upright ones in the nation. They are the ones who will stand in silence before the LORD and wait for HIM to act.
One of the disciplines of the faith is to be still and know that the LORD is in control. The LORD is in the temple in heaven. HE is omnipresent and yet is said to be in the temple. Worship is another discipline of the faith. We are to be still so that we can listen to the LORD. Habakkuk had to learn and the children of Israel had to learn that nothing that happens is out of the LORD’S control.
Habakkuk was watching the children of Israel get farther and farther from the LORD. He gave these woes to them to get their attention. The LORD wants our attention on a daily basis.
We can’t find this spot unless we hold our peace and listen to the LORD talking to us out of the stillness. We are the upright ones of our generation. The judgment of the LORD is going to begin at the house of the LORD. We are not perfect. We are still sinners saved by grace. Too often we think we have arrived but we are a long way for arrival. Are we listening to the LORD or are we talking too much?
Be sure to have a quiet time with the LORD each day to hear what HE has to say to us. HE is still speaking through HIS word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit in our lives.)
CHALLENGE: There are times when we have to get into the presence of the LORD through prayer and fasting. There needs to be a place we can go to be alone with the LORD and hear HIS still small voice.
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Read the visionverse 2
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Answered prayerverses 1, 2
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Holy Templeverse 20
Silence before the LORDverse 20
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Write the visionverse 2
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal)verses 2, 13, 14, 16, 20
LORD of hostsverse 13
Knowledge of the LORDverse 14
Glory of the LORDverse 14
LORD’S right handverse 16
LORD in holy templeverse 20
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead – God/man, Messiah)
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
All nationsverse 5
All peoplesverse 5
Lebanon -violence ofverse 17
Woe to him that says of wood – teach meverse 19
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Lieverse 3
Soul lifted upverse 4
Not uprightverse 4
Transgresses by wineverse 5
Proudverse 5
Not keeping at homeverse 5
Enlarges desireverse 5
Not satisfiedverse 5
Parable against himverse 6
Taunting proverb against himverse 6
Stealingverse 6
Spoiling many nationsverse 8
Bloodverses 8, 12, 17
Violenceverses 8, 17
Covetverse 9
Evil covetousness verse 9
Power of evilverse 9
Shameverses 10, 16
Sinnedverse 10
Build a town by bloodverse 12
Iniquityverse 12
Vanityverse 13
Cause a neighbor to be drunkverse 15
Look on nakednessverses 15, 16
Let your foreskin be uncoveredverse 16
Graven imageverse 18
Molten imageverse 18
Teacher of liesverse 18
Trust in false godsverse 18
Speak to dumb word to teach youverse 19
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Watchverse 1
Answerverse 1, 2
Reprovedverse 1
Waitverse 3
Uprightverse 4
Just shall live by faithverse 4
Satisfiedverse 5
Knowledge of the LORDverse 14
Silence before the LORDverse 20
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Write the visionverse 2
Vision for appointed timeverse 3
Church (New Testament people of God)
Last Things (Future Events)
Hellverse 5
Deathverse 5
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