55. Habakkuk 1:12-2:1

In this episode, we explore the powerful and raw dialogue between the prophet Habakkuk and God, as recorded in Habakkuk 1:12 - 2:1. Faced with unsettling answers from God about using the Babylonians for judgment, Habakkuk boldly questions God's justice, character, and plans. Join us as we delve into these tough questions, understand Habakkuk's unshaken faith, and draw lessons on how we can stand firm when God's ways don't make sense. Through this discussion, we learn about the importance of bringing our doubts to God and seeking His perspective in our trials.

00:00 Introduction: Wrestling with Faith and Doubt
00:57 Personal Reflections and Testimonies
01:32 Understanding Habakkuk's Context
04:16 Deep Dive into Habakkuk's Questions
10:21 Exploring Rhetorical Questions in the Bible
18:08 Theological Implications and Personal Stories
27:15 The Breakdown of Habakkuk
28:59 God's Perspective on Righteousness
29:49 The False Assumptions of Habakkuk
34:28 The Figurative Language of Judgment
43:44 Habakkuk's Watchtower of Faith
50:11 The Covenant Reminder
51:31 Closing Prayer and Reflections

Music used in intro: "Hard Answers" by JK Productions

Transcript

Alison: 0:00

Have you ever looked at the world around you and thought, God, this isn't right. Why are you letting this happen? That's exactly where we find Habakkuk in today's passage, Habakkuk 1. 12 2. 1. After hearing God's unsettling response about raising up the Babylonians to bring judgment, the prophet doesn't stay silent. Instead, he pushes back, questioning God's justice, His character, and His plan. It's bold. It's honest. And yet, it's still an act of faith. In today's episode, we'll wrestle with the same tension. What do we do when God's ways don't make sense? How do we stand firm in faith when the answers we receive leave us with more questions? And perhaps most importantly, What can we learn from Habakkuk's decision to bring his doubts before the Lord instead of walking away? So grab your Bible, settle in, and let's journey together through one of the most intense yet relatable conversations between a prophet and his God.

Adam: 0:56

All right. Good morning, Allison. Good

Alison: 0:58

morning, Adam.

Adam: 0:59

How are you doing this?

Alison: 1:01

I've had such a great week. It's been a busy week, but I've seen God move in so many ways this week. Yeah. So

Adam: 1:07

you were just full of like all these awesome testimonies that were like really encouraging, exciting God moving through your family, through your ministry. I mean, it was just, it was, it was a breath of fresh air. Yes. Through our church. Yep.

Alison: 1:18

So, um, but it's, it's good. I think it was gracious of the Lord to, to You know, have let, let me in on a lot of the ways he's moving right now because Habakkuk is kind of a tough, a tough text to study in our free time. Especially

Adam: 1:30

this particular passage. Yes.

Alison: 1:32

Yeah. So, um, Habakkuk is a conversation between God and man. And, um, when I teach the kids in my third grade Sunday school class, and that's what I tell them prayer is, just talking to God. Right? Absolutely. And I have to tell you, your sweet Kinsley, your middle child, is the best prayer. Oh, yes. Yes, she is. I think I've taught third grade for about 22 years now. And I have to tell you, I think she's one of the sweetest. little prayers that I've ever had. I told you, I think earlier this week, I think that's her spiritual gift for sure. But I do have a funny story because in addition to being a great prayer, she is hilarious. Yes. And so she, uh, she gives the prayer now often, um, at the end of our, our class, our time together. On Sundays. And so, um, I said, somebody want to say the closing prayer. And Kinsley raised her hand and she said a super sweet prayer, like always, and lifted up the prayer requests. And, um, at the end of the prayer, my co teacher, she was also impressed. And she was like, Kinsley, that is, that is such a good, that was such a good prayer. And Kinsley looked right at her and she said, well, I am Adam's daughter.

Adam: 2:38

It's so facto that apparently makes her an automatic good prayer. That's funny. What's funny is I pray with my girls every night and, And most nights, I'm not going to say every night. There's some nights I, um, I skip it and I'm too tired and then I regret it. But, uh, every, for the longest time, the other two would pray, you know, you know, random stuff about things that were that's on their hearts and the minds. But Kinsley would say the exact same formulaic prayer every single night. It was like, dear God, uh, thank you for this day. Let us sleep well be with us tomorrow when we eat breakfast. Let this day go by good in your name. Amen. It was like. Okay. Well, you know, you got the breakfast in there, so that's good. But it was like the exact same thing every night, but something switched like about a year ago. And that girl, our prayers are always the longest and you're right. They are the sweetest. She just like, it's, I, as a father, I like just listening to where she's going to go. Like, Because I never know, like what's going to pop into her, yes, well, yeah, every single day. But, uh, you know, it just pops, she'll just say things that I'm like, we hadn't even talked about, you know, somebody being sick. We didn't even talk about him in like, you know, several weeks. It'll, it's like the Lord lays it on her heart and she just goes with it. And she, she is, she's very, I mean, she's a beautiful prayer. I could listen to her do it all the time.

Alison: 3:54

One of the things she said this week, um, that really stuck with me, um, she, we, Another young lady in our class gave a prayer request, which she always remembers the prayer requests. And so she said, God, Ariel told us about, and then she shared the prayer request. And I thought it was such a cool way to approach God. Like she was acknowledging the fact that he already knew that he was inviting her into the conversation. And, you know, in the book of Habakkuk, God has been so gracious in the way that he's dealt with Habakkuk, um, because Habakkuk has asked some really hard questions and said some really difficult things in response to God and God's just showed patience and forbearance with Habakkuk. And so last week we looked at the beginning and we gave some background and we looked at the beginning. And one of the things that we said, um, was that, um, Excuse me, Habakkuk was a prophet of Judah, the southern kingdom of Judah. And I think you had a question this week of how did we know that? Because the text doesn't actually ever say Judah. Yeah, that

Adam: 4:51

was something that we didn't even cover. We just kind of talked about it as, as if it were. And, uh, the question was raised, like how, how is it that we come to the conclusion that he's a part of the southern kingdom, um, and, uh, His, his leaning was more towards, like, in the text, does it actually say anything? And, and, quite frankly, it doesn't say anything about him being a prophet of the Southern Kingdom. Um, but, most scholars do regard him to be that because of the context clues that are, are, are in Chapter 1. And mainly being, um, the, the usage of, uh, the Chaldeans or the rising of the Babylonians. And so, we have to assume that this is at least before the Babylonian, uh, exile. Uh, but sometime after the Assyrian, uh, uh, exile of the Northern Kingdom, because there are several instances throughout other of the, uh, uh, minor prophets and major prophets where they'll mention Assyria and they'll mention the, the coming of Assyria, they'll mention, um, uh, specific aspects of Israel itself. And all of those things are absent in Habakkuk. They, he never even mentions or brings up anything to do with the Northern Kingdom or Northern Israel or the previous kingdom, Assyria, that the Chaldeans, um, ultimately are taking over. And so we can say fairly reasonably, uh, with some surety there that he is at least in the Southern Kingdom. It is before the, uh, uh, uh, Chaldeans take over, become the Babylonians. And so, and it's before obviously the exile. So, um, you know, uh, I think we're, we can say fairly certain that he was. Um, at least in the Southern kingdom at minimum.

Alison: 6:26

And so you mentioned that we use context clues in the writing and you know One of the things that I have really realized about Habakkuk and studying this week's section Is that those literary devices? Um, like context clues and even the grammar, um, we're gonna see and things like that. It's it's really been helpful to me in Interpreting, you know what? I think Habakkuk is really getting at and so I want to encourage our readers not to forget that the Bible is God's word, but it's also a piece of literature and we can use those tools that we learned in middle school, like context clues and grammar and things like that to really, um, dig into the word and to understand, um, its meaning. And so, um, Habakkuk was a prophet of Judah, you know, from using context clues and what happened, um, In the very beginning of chapter one, which is what we went over in our last episode. So if you didn't get to listen to it, you can go back, but if you did, and you've slept since then, let me just recap that, um, basically Habakkuk approaches God with questions about how in the world God could ignore And allow the corruption and the injustice that was taking place in Judah. Um, Habakkuk had most likely lived during the time of King Josiah, which was a time of revival. Um, a good time where the people were turning their hearts back to the Lord. But when King Josiah died, so did all of those good things. And Judah was in a really bad place. And God patiently and decisively answered Habakkuk that he wasn't ignoring what was happening in Judah. In fact, he told him he is going to raise up Babylon to bring his people back to himself. And Habor, uh, before Habakkuk could even say anything, God knows that he's very well aware, aware that Habakkuk's not going to believe that God would do that. Why, why is Habakkuk? Gonna have such a hard time believing that the Babylonians are going to come, um, against Judah.

Adam: 8:21

You tell me.

Alison: 8:22

Because they're worse than Judah. Yeah, right. They're the, they're, that was the absolute worst answer that, that Habakkuk could have expected from God, that he's going to take a wicked nation and, and use that more wicked nation. Yeah. To come, um, Discipline Judah. And so, um, the Bible is going to record Habakkuk's exact reaction when God shares the news that he indeed does see the corruption of Judah and he's actually using the worst nation possible, Babylon, um, to react to that. And that's what we're going to look at today.

Adam: 8:57

That's great. What do you think? Do you think we should read this particular passage in whole and then go back and kind of break it down?

Alison: 9:03

Yeah, why don't we read, so I think today we're going to look at Habakkuk chapter one. Verses 12 through 17. And then we're also going to look at chapter two, verse one. So let's save chapter two, verse one, and let's read that whole section. Chapter 12, excuse me, chapter one, versus 12 through 17. Okay.

Adam: 9:19

Uh, let's read, uh, starting verse 12. Are you not from everlasting? Oh Lord, my God, my Holy one, we shall not die. Oh Lord, you have ordained them as judgment and you, Oh rock, have established them for reproof reproof. You who are of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong, why do you idly look at traitors and remain silent when the wicked swallows up the man more righteous than he? You make mankind like a fish of a sea, like crawling things that have no ruler. He brings all them up with a hook. He drags them out with his net. He gathers them into the dragnet, so he rejoices and is glad. Therefore he sacrifices to his nets And makes offerings to his dragnet for by them. He lives in luxury and his rich, his food is rich. Is he then to keep on emptying his nets and mercy, mercilessly killing nations forever? Mercilessly, mercilessly. There you go. That's a good word.

Alison: 10:21

So, um, Habakkuk just starts right off with a question, doesn't he? Yeah, he

Adam: 10:26

does.

Alison: 10:26

And, um, and you know, I told you when we visited shortly before we started taping, man, the commentaries were kind of all over the place. Yeah. On, on this passage, um, on like the tone. of Habakkuk's question. So the question in that very first thing you, you read said, are you not from eternity, Lord, my God, my Holy one, you will not die. So, um, most scholars believe, and I really agree with them that this was a rhetorical question. Um, in other words, it wasn't a question that was meant to be answered and let's not miss the rhetorical answers aren't meant to be questioned. They're there to emphasize a point. So we use these in our language. Um, One rhetorical question that I've heard Lance say to Mackenzie is, Do I look like a bank?

Adam: 11:13

Right? Yeah right.

Alison: 11:14

He comes and asks for something and he's like, do I look like a bank? And um, In other words, he's saying, No, I'm not going to buy whatever you're asking for. You cannot make an

Adam: 11:24

ATM withdrawal right now. Yes.

Alison: 11:26

So, um, It's used here to like, elicit an inarguable reaction. An agreement or rejection. In other words, like, I can't argue with that. Right. Yeah. Um, there's actually other rhetorical questions in the Bible. I can think of one in Genesis. Am I my brother's keeper?

Adam: 11:42

Yeah.

Alison: 11:42

So, right. Isn't it that Cain who asks God when God's like, where's Abel? Where's your brother Abel? Because Cain had killed him. And Cain's like, am I my brother's keeper?

Adam: 11:51

Yeah.

Alison: 11:51

So he wanted to kind of point out that he was not. But, um, They emphasize a point and they're used to persuade an audience. So I think that that's why this was a rhetorical question because he's going, are you not everlasting God? Like you can't deny that you are. And that's the tone that he's opening his argument to God with. Now I actually texted you this week because In my Bible, it says, Are you not from eternity, Lord my God? My Holy One, you will not die. And then I read it in all the other translations, because I usually, when we're studying a passage, I try to read it in all the kind of reliable translations that we have just to get different synonyms and things like that and get a better handle of the text. And like, Adam, half of my translations said, You will not die. And half of my translations said, we will not die. And I'm like, what the

Adam: 12:45

heck? Who is the subject? Let's just clear that up first. Who's the subject that we think in the you will not die? Who do you think he's talking about? Okay. So, so in other words, the question or the statement is that he will not die or we will not die.

Alison: 12:58

Mm hmm.

Adam: 12:58

Okay. And your question was, which one is it? Yeah. So in other

Alison: 13:01

words, is it saying. Are you not from eternity, Lord my God? You won't die. Is he saying that or is he saying, are you not from eternity, Lord my God? I mean, we won't die. So which is it?

Adam: 13:11

So this is, one, it brings up a really good, uh, uh, encouragement that if you don't, um, incorporate multiple versions into your Bible study time, like, I highly encourage it. Cause it'll bring, this is something that you'd look right over. If you didn't happen to notice it in the two, two, um, uh, translation, various translations, um, do you want to give us a clue and what it is or

Alison: 13:32

I, I'm convinced that it's supposed to be you?

Adam: 13:35

Yeah.

Alison: 13:35

Okay. So in other words, it's a rhetorical question and then the answer. Yeah. And, and I can give you an example using Lance's illustration of not being a bank. It would be like Lance looking at McKenzie and saying, do I look like a bank? No, I don't. Yes. Right. And so, okay. Um, I think that's the same thing that Habakkuk is doing there. Are you not everlasting? You're not going to die. And so, um, the reason that it was changed, I had to look into it a little bit, it was actually in the very original manuscripts, the oldest ones they have was you and, um, early on when the Bible was being, um, Like written scribes were, were rewriting it, copying it. Thank you. And when they were copying it, um, they changed that to we.

Adam: 14:18

Yeah.

Alison: 14:19

And some people think it might've happened around the time of Ezra, um, that it got changed. So it'd have been like a little about a hundred years after Habakkuk would have written that. And, um, Most people think that it was changed because they would change things that seemed super irreverent. Mm

Adam: 14:37

hmm.

Alison: 14:38

And thinking it was a mistake. That, you know, everything should be reverent to God. One

Adam: 14:43

example is the name of God that's, that was lost, you know, many years ago because they would never write that down. So we get the capital L O R D in our Bible, but that was, uh, like a sounded out. Version of his name that wasn't his name, you know, or that wasn't given so they wouldn't write the name of God

Alison: 15:01

But so they so in other words they it seemed irreverent to those early scribes to even connect the thought of Dying with God and so they just assumed a backache must have meant we wouldn't die But when we remember that the questions rhetorical, I really think the older texts were right Um, and so one of the reasons I think that they were right is because it's, it's a rhetorical question, right? And so it seems like he's kind of like given the obvious answer there. Um, but also notice in Habakkuk in that like very one verse that Habakkuk uses my three times it's, it's a covenantal language. It's like, you know, you're my God, um, you know, recognizing the covenant that God has with his people. And so inherent in Habakkuk's question is the idea that God, as long as God exists, that the covenant with his people are going to exist. Um, and so in other words, he kind of is saying like, Our fate is dependent on your fate as well, and you can't die. Yeah. So he's kind of setting the stage for where he's going to get to, um, in the face of the other questions. Um, but like Genesis 17, seven through eight, it says, and I will establish my covenant. This is God talking to his people and I will establish my covenant between me and you and your offspring after you throughout their generations for an. Everlasting covenant to be God to you and to your offspring after you. And I will give to you and your offspring after you the land of your sojourning, all of the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession. And I will be their God. And so I think that. And there's like, God's kind of bringing back the covenant that God, or excuse me, Habakkuk is bringing back the covenant that God made with his people to God's mind. He's like, you're everlasting. I mean, it's everlasting. You're our God. You made this everlasting covenant with us. What the heck?

Adam: 16:51

Yeah, so Jonah and Moses both do the same thing. They both, they both come to God and they say, Hey, you need to remember the covenant that you made, made with the Lord. Um, and, and I feel like Habakkuk, I, I agree with you. I fall on the same page as far as you shall not die. Um, uh, especially since in the ancient, Manuscripts that they found at the Dead Sea, specifically there, there was an article that we had read that I had sent you, it talked about that even in these scribes, this Masoretic community that, uh, that, uh, in Qumran where they would, uh, their whole job was ultimately like to live in the wilderness and to copy, uh, uh, the word of God. Even in their writings, they changed it to we shall not die, and they would have a kind of like a commentary, like in the Masoretic, uh, uh, Qumran community, they had like a commentary based off of their scribal, uh, writings, and in every one of their commentaries that they wrote, they Kind of put like a footnote asterisk, like actually you shall not die. So in the word of God, they were like, we shall not die. Cause they did. It seems as if they want to be reverent to who God is. Um, and then in their textual notes, it was kind of like a footnote of, Hey, literal translation, you shall not die. And they didn't want to associate anything to do with, you know, God and death, um, together at all. And so it seems, it seems to be, that's the case.

Alison: 18:08

But Habakkuk is not really concerned about being reverent at the moment, is he? No,

Adam: 18:12

no, no, absolutely not.

Alison: 18:14

In, in, in God's name. Strike him down for that. You know, um, he's, he's being patient with his questions. In fact, God knew Habakkuk wasn't going to believe. So, so Habakkuk asked this rhetorical question, like he's going to, and it's interesting that he starts with the rhetorical question, cause it's actually a really good way to start an argument. Rhetorical questions are meant to be persuasive. Like kind of set the stage for like, I'm about to give, state my case. And like, I'm just going to go ahead and tell you, you're not gonna be able to argue with it. Yeah. You just start with this rhetorical question. Start with a strong man. Yeah. Yeah. And so, um, but he goes on to give three questions in the rest of the text that I do think he was looking for an answer for, um, the first one we're going to see in Habakkuk verse or chapter one, verse 13, and he said, your eyes are too pure to look on evil and you cannot tolerate wrongdoing. So why do you tolerate those who are treacherous? Um, he's basically accusing God of doing something that God says he can't do. You can't tolerate. wrongdoing God, and yet you are tolerating wrongdoing. And so, you know, I, I told you, I spent way too much time this week just thinking about these. I guess you can never spend too much time. Yeah, no, absolutely not. The clues got neglected. Let's put it that way. But, um, and so I just, I kept thinking. I want the answer to these questions yet in this section of the text, I'm not going to get the answer to these questions. Right. Cause I want them to like, God, if, if you can't, if you hate wrongdoing, like why do you just let so many bad things happen in this world? Like I want to know too. Right. And here I am about to give, you know, be on this podcast with you and I don't have an answer to that. And so, um, I really thought about. What we can get just from the fact that Habakkuk asked these questions of God. And I realized that Habakkuk's questions were coming from false assumptions about who God is. Each one of his question under his question was a false assumption. Really?

Adam: 20:09

Tell me more about this.

Alison: 20:10

So the first one he says you can't tolerate wrongdoing. So why are you tolerating wrongdoing? Basically, and I looked at that. I looked at that word tolerate and It, it's kind of a, like, I don't love that translation. I think your translation says look.

Adam: 20:25

Yeah. You cannot look at wrong.

Alison: 20:27

You can't look at wrong. So, um, when we think of that in the English language, especially the word tolerate, kind of think like we don't like it, but we're just going to like kind of bear with it or whatever until it's over. You know, tolerate something. Like I tolerate the dentist, you know,

Adam: 20:40

but

Alison: 20:40

in the. original Hebrew in that verse, it really is more like looking out with regard, like really kind of paying close attention to almost paying like care. It kind of insinuates a looking with pleasure even. And so, um, I back kick is saying like, why are you, why are you like looking with regard on wrongdoing and treachery? And here's, I think what, Habakkuk's false assumption was that it was the treachery, the treachery, excuse me, it was the treachery or the wrongdoing that was bringing God any kind of pleasure. God takes pleasure in his people and he adorns the humble with salvation is what Psalm 149 4 says. So you know what God looks on with care? He looks on with care that his people are saved. And so, so much so, that Isaiah 53 10 says that it actually pleased the Lord to crush his son, severely. Because when Jesus was made a guilt offering, the Lord's pleasure was accomplished. Which was the salvation of his people. And that is What is and will always please God it's and it's no matter the cost to him. So God wasn't looking on the treachery With care and with pleasure. He was looking on the salvation of his people so

Adam: 21:55

he's looking on the vehicle of that will bring salvation ultimately like the underlying pending theme of Violence and death is going to be the thing through which will bring salvation to all his people.

Alison: 22:06

Yeah I think, let me, let me give you an example from this week. This has been a hard week for, I told you, it's been a good week for the kids in our, in our student ministry. It's been there. They faced a lot this week. They've had, um, a student lose her dad, a teacher lose her daughter, um, another teacher, um, pass away, like all in this week when we, and, um, I went to the pep rally yesterday and they had like a spring pep rally for basketball and, um, they had a moment of silence. Um, And my, like, the, for the teacher who lost her daughter. So the moment of silence was for the teacher who lost her daughter and her daughter was young. Um, and she died of cancer and, and my heart was so heavy in that moment because I thought, God. And her daughter was a believer. Um. And, and I thought, God, why, why do you let cancer just ravage so many people and so, and this, this young lady, she was actually the twirling sponsor at the school that was having the pep rally that the daughter was. And so I thought, God, she had so much potential to impact. Certainly the young ladies on the twirly line, but the whole school, you know, you could have healed her. That could have been her testimony. Um, why in the world? And, and my heart was so heavy um about it. And then last night, um, I was visiting with one of the students because she said, Why do you think how did how everybody said that Maggie's in heaven, but how do you think they know for sure?

Adam: 23:34

Yeah,

Alison: 23:35

and so I got to share with her like how you can know for sure That you're saved and you know what God wasn't looking on that cancer with pleasure But he is looking on the salvation of those students who are now asking questions. That's what he's looking on with pleasure.

Adam: 23:53

And she's not suffering anymore. She's with him. You know? Um, so even that death becomes a divine mercy, a divine transport back into the presence.

Alison: 24:04

Yeah. I think about when, when Jesus walked the earth, you know, um, in the book of John, Lazarus dies and Jesus said, I'm not going to go yet because I have a better purpose. He let, he could have gone. And saved him while he was still alive. He knew he was very sick, but he said, I'm not going to go. I'm going to let him die. And the people were grieving without hope when they got, when he got there, because he, he visited the family after Lazarus died. And you know, he raised him, but you know what he did before he raised him. He wept, right? It's the shortest verse in the Bible. Jesus wept. So it's not that God ever sees our hurt and thinks, Oh, they're getting what they deserve. He doesn't ever enjoy that. He doesn't ever look on wrongdoing or treachery with pleasure or with regard because he can see the bigger picture. He looks on the salvation of his people with pleasure, and he's willing to bring that no matter the cost. And he demonstrated that by Allowing his son Jesus to die on the cross. There's

Adam: 25:01

one side of this question that he asked that's not particularly, um, up front and it requires you to see things from God's perspective and I think that's part of the back and forth that we're going to get through, you know, with God and him is really trying to reorient the focus of, from Habakkuk's self centric, uh, mindset is everything is woe is me and, and, and woe are the, woe is me in the. In the midst of my own people, and then God's gonna, God's gonna ultimately raise up another people outside of Israel or Judah that will come and, uh, you know, destroy basically these people. Of course, now this response is, well, why would you do that? These guys are even worse. They're worse than the people that I'm complaining about. And meanwhile, it's almost like there's this like back in question where God's going. Yeah, they're all people like yeah, they're all my creation like that's it You're you know, yes, woe is you at this moment, but you want you want me to do something about it? But you're mad when I don't do something and you're mad when I do do something It's because you know Meanwhile, you're not looking at it from God's perspective and that this is his good creation that he desires to see redeemed ultimately Yeah, many ways.

Alison: 26:11

Yeah. So yeah, we definitely have kind of a selfish perspective. So very much. Um,

Adam: 26:17

I also like, uh, in my, uh, in, in, in my translation, it says that, uh, you idly look at traders and that, that word that you talked about, uh, uh, with regards to having regard is the exact same word used twice. So the, you cannot look at wrong. And that word is Nevada look, and you cannot look Or you idly look at traders. So Navat, Navat is, is used there twice. But if you use step Bible, there's an interesting thing that I just, I just noticed, um, in like, I'm, I'm looking at the, uh, ESV translation and step Bible. org, uh, you'll see they highlight. Um, two different color words and what they're showing you are what words are actually, um, like literal translation from the Hebrew specific words and what words are added to help us understand the meaning, you know, so like Hebrew doesn't work exactly like English. It can say one word, but it'll actually kind of mean like a whole phrase. Um, just simply put, and in this, why do you idly look at traders? It actually adds, do you idly like, that's not. The actual word, the word is why look at traders if you were to go word for word, but I like that the author puts in or the translators put in this, this little phrase idly because the implication, the message and meaning is there's like, why are you doing something about? Those guys like never mind. It's almost like Habakkuk's vision shifts from why why aren't you doing something about you know, Judah? That's going spiraling out of control. Then he brings up. Oh, well, there's something worse. He's like, well, why aren't you why are you just sitting here? Why are you just like almost? Almost a picture of like foaming at the mouth at all the wrongdoing that's going on which of course, you know We know is Absolutely, you know, absurd for him to really kind of, uh, admit this, you know, but I think that, uh, it's, it's, it's breaking Habakkuk down. He's going through a period of like breakdown, uh, in order to be rebuilt back up and understand a better perspective from God's eyes. So, uh, God isn't just, Uh, like not doing something. Oh, that's why I was saying this idly. I told you this before. I like that they use that word. I idly because it reminds me of word association, idling, you know, in a vehicle and when you're either on the vehicle, the vehicle's not off, it's just. Still, you know, it's just still until an action is going to take place in which it moves. And so I like that he's, he's basically saying like, why do you idly look at this? Because I think that is really what God is doing. It's he's not, not working. It's on. He is present. He sees this like from God's perspective, really, um, it's just, he has yet to, or it seems as if he is yet to be moving, but of course we're going to discover that. He's not

Alison: 28:59

and the focus of his still activity isn't on the wrongdoing the focus of his activity is the salvation Yeah, that the wrongdoing may bring.

Adam: 29:08

Yeah

Alison: 29:09

and so So that's Habakkuk's first question and wrong assumption. His question was, you can't look at wrongdoing. So why are you looking at wrongdoing? And the, the false assumption is that that was what God was focused on was the wrongdoing. God wasn't. He's focused on what brings him pleasure, what he cares for is the salvation of his people at all costs. And he proved that in Jesus. And then the second question is, why are you silent while one who is wicked swallows up one who is more righteous than himself? And you know what I think the false assumption is in that question? What? That anybody's righteous. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Adam: 29:45

A little bit.

Alison: 29:46

And so the Bible says there is none righteous, not even one. Um, that's Romans 3. 10. So, you know, we're never going to understand God's ways. By measuring or comparing our righteousness, uh, cause God doesn't measure righteousness. He's pretty clear. None of us have it. Um, instead he gave us Jesus to become a righteousness. Second Corinthians 5 21 says he made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us. So that in him, we might become the righteousness of God. So, um. Jesus proves that suffering isn't a measuring stick for righteousness. Yeah. Or the lack thereof.

Adam: 30:23

Right. Boy, we use that all the time. Yeah. We use that all the time as, as a, as a gauge for righteousness. Yeah. And good and bad. Yeah.

Alison: 30:32

So we, we can't look at, we can't think, oh, well, if they had their life more together, you know, they wouldn't be suffering, or we can't look at our situation and think, God, why am I having it so hard? I mean, I'm. I'm doing what's good. I'm trying my best. I'm doing what you ask. Um, because the fact is righteousness. Isn't a measuring stick for suffering. Um, because, and the false assumption there in Habakkuk's, you know, he's like, why, why would you use somebody worse than us to, to, to, you know, discipline us or to judge us. But God doesn't measure that way. Nobody's righteous.

Adam: 31:09

This is not really a question that I, I think, uh, has an answer, but it, it does, I, the way he phrased this to, uh, and remain silent when the wicked swallow up the man more righteous than he, it's not like he said, like, when the wicked Babylons or, or Chaldeans, uh, swallow up, You know, the southern kingdom of Judah, he just says, swallow up the man. So he kind of like removes the nation from it. So we have to input that he's talking about the nation, but I do think it's very interesting that, that he keeps it as a singular, the man more righteous than he, um, of course we always. Always will, uh, have the privilege of being able to look at these through the eyes of Jesus, you know, and we're gonna see, you know, uh, ultimately that we're thankful that God seemingly remained silent while the wicked swallowed up the righteous one, you know, ultimately, but I just think it's interesting. I wonder if it was, I wonder if it was intentional, like, You know, phrasing it like that, as opposed to saying.

Alison: 32:07

I think it was intentional on the Holy Spirit. Well, absolutely. Yeah. That's, that's what I mean. I mean, from a man's

Adam: 32:11

point of view, if he even knew that he was writing.

Alison: 32:14

It that he makes it personal because don't we, when we're hurting, make things personal.

Adam: 32:18

Yeah.

Alison: 32:18

A lot of times. Yeah. Yeah. So, um, the fact that he goes from the nation to me, uh, I think that that is the tendency of, of human nature, um, to, to make things personal, to make our hurts personal.

Adam: 32:33

Yeah. You know, you know what we don't see? We don't, we really don't see a lot from Habakkuk's, uh, point of view as, as how he sees himself. Yeah. You know, it's, it's, he's sort of like a passive in his active conversation. I'm curious to know. Uh, anyways, yeah.

Alison: 32:49

I think we're going to, he's going to reveal a little bit more about himself maybe in the third chapter. Yeah. Yeah. We're going to see some of his character, um, come out. Well, but you know, I don't know, I think we can, we can assume that he's pretty bold. Yeah. He's definitely bold. He approaches God's throne with boldness and a lot of brashness even.

Adam: 33:07

Which I think we talked about this last time. I think that's. A talent or an aspect of our spiritual walk that that is often overlooked, um, we, we almost do what, what the scribes did. We almost don't want to say the icky stuff about God or to God because we're afraid of like maybe the repercussions. Meanwhile, like, Mac is just laying it out there. Yeah. I mean, even if his theology isn't correct, you know, he, he almost risks that at times, you know. Yes. Uh, but.

Alison: 33:36

But here's the cool thing. We're going to see God correct

Adam: 33:37

it. Yeah. Yeah.

Alison: 33:38

And so when, when you bring your real self, your genuine questions, um, your honesty to God, you give him the opportunity to grow you, right? Yeah. Yep. And, and we're going to see that in Habakkuk. We're going to see like huge growth. Yeah. That's great. In Habakkuk. Um, but it. Not in this section though. But it's because I think he made himself vulnerable. Right. Yeah. Um, and he, he was real. Um, and we talked a little bit about that last week that we, we ought to use this as a prescription that God invites us to be real with him and, um, enroll with other believers. You know, we don't have to put on the Sunday best, um, You know, and come to church. Church should be a place for the broken. Right.

Adam: 34:22

Um, I, I want to bring up real quick the language that I use there for the wicked swallows up. Um, this in an ancient Israelite or ancient Hebrew mindset would have called to mind, um, The, the great exodus narrative, because, uh, there's going to be a ton of, uh, parallels that are about to come up in this, uh, to the idea of the exodus narrative, because that term swallowed up is going to be utilized, uh, to, um, describe the action of God through utilizing the, the sea of reeds, the red sea, um, in, uh, Pharaoh and his armies who are you. You know, coming after and trying to detain or kill, uh, the Hebrew people. And so, um, when we hear the term swallowed up, we may not call that to mind. But, uh, if you were an ancient Israelite in Hebrew, you would immediately associate that with the acts of God in the midst of the wickedness of Pharaoh and his, and his army, uh, in the Sea of Reeds, which is another thing that, uh, Uh, when tied to another book within that collection of 12, the minor prophets, uh, Jonah, cause he's swallowed up by the fish and, and you're going to watch how, and then God, and, uh, God will be described. And I think it's Ezekiel as, um, ultimately Babylon will be like the great sea monster that will swallow up the Israelite people, um, and be transported like Jonah, uh, through death ultimately, um, in order that, uh, a remnant will be saved, um, that God will utilize to, uh, bring in the Messiah.

Alison: 35:49

Yeah. So, um, so, and he kind of leads into in verses 14 through 16, he like paints this picture, right? He uses this figurative language to build up to his last question. And so like his first, his first two questions are right there in verse 13. He's pretty quick. And he makes the false assumption that it's the wrongdoing that God would ever take pleasure in. It's never that. It's the salvation of his people no matter the cost. And he proved that in Jesus. And then he makes the false assumption that, um, God's being unfair because he's using someone less righteous to judge the more righteous. But the truth is, no one's righteous. God loves, like you pointed out, All of his creation. Um, and then he, so he builds up this figurative language to make his la or state his last question and the figurative language kind of leads us to believe that there is no way God's people, their name. There's no way that it's going to be everlasting because it's going to be impossible to stand up against the Babylonians. He, he said, it's going to be impossible. Like it's impossible for fish to resist getting drug in a net that entangles them. The Babylonians know it, all the nations who the Babylonians oppose know it. We all know that it's going to be impossible to stand up against the Babylonians. And so then he says, will they therefore mean the Babylonians? Will the Babylonians just keep Emptying their nets and slaughtering nations without sparing like in other words Are they just gonna go ahead and without sparing like us to us included? Yeah, God, you're just gonna let them come and slaughter us and Here is what the false assumption is that Habakkuk is working from in that question that God's limited by the possible Habakkuk painted a pause impossible picture But God isn't limited by the possible. In fact, the truth is, uh, we can see in Matthew 19, 26, that Jesus said, With man, this is impossible. But with God's, with God, all things are possible. And you know, God proved that time and time again, because the Bible's, Full of stories where God's people are pressed with their backs against the wall and God does the impossible. Like, um, literally when they face the red sea, right? And the Egyptians are closing in behind them and this raging sea is in front of them. And it seems like an impossible situation and God splits the sea and they walk across on dry land. And so I think the fact that. Habakkuk paints this picture of like, God, that Babylonians, like, it's impossible. It's impossible to stand up against them. Like they are going to slaughter us that we're not even going to be spared. There's no way. But Habakkuk forgot that God isn't limited by the possible.

Adam: 38:33

Yeah.

Alison: 38:34

And, and sometimes I think when we're in difficult situations, when we're Pressed on every side and troubles just pressing in on us. It's hard to see.

Adam: 38:42

Yeah.

Alison: 38:43

That because we can't imagine a possible solution, doesn't mean that God's not at work.'cause God is not limited by the possible.

Adam: 38:49

Do you think that his intentions are, um, to spur God into action? Or do you think he truly believes that? Um, that he believes these questions that he's asking.

Alison: 39:00

I think that's a really good question. I think both. Yeah. In a way. In other words, like, I think that, I think the cool thing about these questions, although they're hard questions, and they're questions that we even have a hard time seeing an answer to, by asking them, he senses the conflict. In other words, he knows, like, these, this can't be right because. You have to be who you say you are.

Adam: 39:28

Yeah.

Alison: 39:29

So like, how can this be? So like, there's this, there's this inherent belief that God still is who he says he is under Habakkuk's questions. And so I think that he very much is asking them because. He wants an answer or he, or he either wants God to prove him wrong or change his mind. It's gotta be one of those two.

Adam: 39:52

So do you think that by doing, by asking these questions, he's slowly being pressed into a more mature understanding of his original question? To which his original or his original, um, complaint, which was sparred against, uh, Judah itself.

Alison: 40:09

I don't know. Tell me your thoughts.

Adam: 40:10

I don't, I don't know. I'm just, I was just trying to think through this because his original complaint is about, you know, there's, I mean, there's violence, there's wickedness, there's, there's the stuff that's happening, um, in his country. It's he's watching it spiral out of control. And, you know, he, he uses that word again, like, are you gonna, are you just idly sitting by and then God's responses. Don't worry, I'll take care of this. I'm raising up the Chaldeans to do this. And now his second response is the Chaldeans. What you're going to just allow these people to go on and continue on. Uh, I guess I don't really know because of where we're kind of stopping obviously, uh, today in today's passage, but I guess as a reader, as, as we move into that next section, uh, you know, moving forward, my questions would be like. Uh, you know, what is it that God is trying to do? And what is it that Habakkuk is coming to, hopefully, discover? Because that's what we are supposed to be doing as, as a reader, is discovering, um, these deep, intricate theological understandings of who God is and what He's doing in times of hard. Because it is a very relatable passage, even though we're not afraid of A Babylon coming in and, you know, exiling us. So, uh, I guess, I don't know. I guess my question is really more of a reminder that, um, to, to, even though we're segmenting out these podcast episodes to continue to look at this line of thought, you know, as a whole, you know, between his two complaints now and really. I think it's interesting. He doesn't even mention, you know, anything about his original complaint in this next complaint. Like, it's more about Babylon. Like, what do you mean Babylon? They're terrible, you know? Uh, and so I wonder if that's, if that's going to be a part of that progressive revelation of who God is. Uh, by, you know, almost trapping him. Yeah, it's kind

Alison: 41:51

of like he goes to God with a skinned knee and now he's got a broken leg and he's talking about his skinned knee. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, no, I get it. But I will, I will tell you that, um, I know that there's going to be maturity on that and I think you use that, um, you use that kind of Term in the beginning of your question, like, do you think he's growing in spiritual maturity? Absolutely, and here's how I know that because he ran to God with his questions and that means that he's seeking God You know

Adam: 42:17

what just hit me? Yeah So if that's the case and Habakkuk is sort of representative of the southern kingdom of Judah as a whole at that point then If him discussing the possibility of Babylonians coming in and actually overtaking them is growing him into maturity than Babylon, actually coming in and taking over will grow the people into maturity.

Alison: 42:37

Yeah.

Adam: 42:38

Yeah. Interesting.

Alison: 42:39

And we're going to see that, um, throughout history, I mean, Do you know the greatest revivals have occurred during the greatest times of persecution in the church? Um, and I don't even mean just recorded in the Bible, I mean throughout history. Um, when there's persecution, often it's answered with revival among God's people, probably for that reason. What is that

Adam: 42:58

saying, like the greatest light is in, uh, is contained in the darkest of night or something?

Alison: 43:04

Yeah. Well, I think there's a, there's like a really famous quote and I'm totally going to quote it wrong. Something that Martin Luther King said about like, like never, or darkness can never drive out darkness. I can do that.

Adam: 43:13

That's John. Yeah.

Alison: 43:14

Um, and so, um,

Adam: 43:16

darkness couldn't even comprehend it. Yeah.

Alison: 43:18

Yeah. But, uh. Yeah, so let's let's read because I think this goes right along with what you're saying about like, where is Habakkuk's heart? Where is his spiritual maturity? Where is his walk with the Lord? Like, are these questions and these doubts hurting his relationship? Are they affecting his belief?

Adam: 43:34

Yeah

Alison: 43:34

And those are those are questions that we ought to answer because if we're inviting if we're saying we should we should be like Habakkuk We should bring our questions to God like so does he benefit from it? Yeah, let's see what he does next it says in verse One of chapter two, I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the lookout tower. I will watch to see what he will say to me and what I should reply about my complaint. So, you know, under, under these questions that he gives us in this. There's this unshaken foundation of faith, um, cause Abakek believes that God is who he says he is. And you know how I know that? Cause he trusts God to give him some answers and, um, and he actually, he actually, Acts exactly like God says he's gonna act. He doesn't believe God's plan, right? Cuz he, Habakkuk, he tells Habakkuk, God tells Habakkuk, he's like, even if I tell you, you're not gonna believe it. Yeah. Um, then Habakkuk's like, I know you're gonna answer me. I know you're gonna answer me. And that's a foundation of faith. Um, and And here's the difference between a believer and a non believer. When a non believer sins, or when they have trouble, or when they have questions, they often run away from the Lord. Yeah. And look for their answers somewhere else. But when believers are faced with those things, they run to the Lord. Yeah. And, um, and God grows them in those seasons. It's

Adam: 44:55

sort of a weird statement because On one hand, he does believe that the Lord's gonna answer. He is gonna wait and mm-hmm. Wait patiently for that. But on the other hand, the, the very position that he's placed himself in is also questioning whether God's gonna actually follow through with it or not, because he puts him on the watchtower. Mm-hmm . Well, there's no other reason to be on a watchtower than to be watching whether or not an enemy is coming, you know? Yeah. And so I think that by Habakkuk sitting here watching on the watchtower on this tower, he's, he's waiting. for God's response. He knows God's going to respond, but it's almost like a test of like, are you going to bring these people up now? Like, are, are you going to bring these people like you're saying? Like, you know, he's almost taking a militaristic, you know, you

Alison: 45:35

think he's on the watchtower, not just waiting for God, but waiting for the Babylonians. I

Adam: 45:38

think it's both. Yeah. I think one, I think he's expecting God to answer. And I don't know how we're supposed to read whether he's expectantly watching God fulfill the promise that he's already made about raising up the Chaldeans or if he's testing. Um, whether God will in his response choose to continue that or not. So

Alison: 45:57

I think that Habakkuk in his heart wanted God to say, you're just kidding. Yeah, exactly. Of course, of course, if God, you know, were to say to us. You're going to face the worst thing you've ever faced. Um, we're going to see, and they're actually, you know, we think about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego and they, they kind of were like,

Adam: 46:20

yeah,

Alison: 46:21

told like, you're going to go into the fiery furnace, right? Unless you deny our faith basically. And they're like, God can save us. But even if God doesn't save us, we love him. Yeah, absolutely. And so, um,

Adam: 46:36

who knows?

Alison: 46:37

And so I think that, um, Habakkuk is going to be faced with one of those moments where he's like, I'd very much like you to change the situation, but. Even if you don't, I know you're going to show your face somehow. I know you're going to reveal yourself to me somehow. Um, I'm still going to trust you. I'm still going to watch for you. So I think he was in a way kind of watching for both, hoping that, that something would change, but trusting that God was. Or is who he says he is, no matter what.

Adam: 47:08

I wonder if there's also another connection to, um, Isaiah's, um, Watchtower, uh, passage when it's talking about, um, uh, Migdal Eater. The Migdal Eater in Isaiah when it talks about, um, being born, um, Keeping watch over the flock. I can't remember what it is. I have to somebody who's listening. Look this up and then correct and correct me. Let me know what you think. But it's talking about. Ultimately, it's the prophecy that we're going to see that Jesus is born in the in the little town of Bethlehem. Um, and, uh, you know, this is where they get the tower of the flock, um, shepherds and Luke. Um, yeah. When it talks about, uh, they're in this specific area, the Migdal Eater, the tower that watches over the flock of the shepherds at night, right outside of, of, of, uh, the Temple Mountain, the Bethlehem, and anyways, okay, forget everything I just said, this is what happens when I start to speak. That's okay. In my brain, in my brain. So

Alison: 48:01

watchtowers are used a lot, um, in God's Word, and so you're right, that it's, it's not, um, unreasonable that you would question what theme that might be, um, um, Implying here in the book of Habakkuk. Um, and I think they were used when they, when it was expected, right. Expectant that something was going to happen. And so, and, um, if you're wondering if there's. Shadows of Jesus throughout this week of Habakkuk, of course, I wonder, I wonder, yeah, of course there are, and we're next week going to see just an undeniable Christ connection in the next section of Habakkuk. Um, so, you know, we're not, so today we, we gave you a lot of Habakkuk's questions. Um, so his first set of questions were, you know, about a skinned knee. These questions are worse, you know, you've got a broken leg if we want to use that comparison, but, um, and so these are hard questions. But God's going to answer him and we're going to see that next week. But today what we can learn from them is it's okay to question God, but sometimes. What we know and what we see of God is in the whole picture, right? And so in each of these questions Habakkuk wasn't wrong for bringing them before the Lord. That's exactly where he should have brought them It's just that it wasn't that God was wrong It was really that there were some false assumptions to each of Habakkuk's questions

Adam: 49:24

So our prayer needs to be that God will both Answer our questions, but really reveal where where the faults are in the questions Yeah Where the pitfalls are

Alison: 49:34

and you know, you can't fault Habakkuk because that was his perspective

Adam: 49:38

mm hmm,

Alison: 49:39

and so that's why we need to bring those questions to the Lord because He can give us his perspective

Adam: 49:45

Think about how dangerous, dangerous of a situation that Habakkuk really is in because his first complaint, like I said, was the violence that was coming from within the fortified walls there. Yeah. And now he's standing at the fortified walls looking for a greater violence that is coming. Yeah. Yeah. Interesting.

Alison: 49:58

Absolutely. So, well, okay. So last week we gave everybody, you gave everybody a challenge. So I thought we'd get it in today. You just need to give us the answer now. Oh, good job. Way to remember that. Yeah. Yeah. So your challenge was, what was the wink? to Abraham in Habakkuk 1. And you gave us, you gave us a little like a little parameter there. I think you said it was like

Adam: 50:18

verse nine on or something like that.

Alison: 50:21

So now you're going to give us the answer. So there were

Adam: 50:22

multiple, multiple little links. Chaldeans, Ur of the Chaldeans, Abraham, you're keeping Abraham in mind. And, um, I told you it goes back to a covenant that was made to Abraham and Abraham's Uh, if you go back and read that covenant, um, there's a couple of times that, that God will reinforce that covenant and, uh, it says that he will ultimately make of his descendants a great nation and that, um, they will fill the earth and ultimately salvation will be brought through them. Well, in the middle of this complaint, he says in verse nine, uh, they all come for violence and all their faces forward. They gather up like captives or they gather captives like sand. And that one little phrase, like sand, if you've already got Abraham in mind, it's just this little wink from the author, from the divine author of, you know, I have not forgotten about the descendants that will grow like sands numbered, like sands of the earth, you know, ultimately like, and that's there. Covenant. Yeah. All part of that covenant from Abraham. Yeah. So just one little phrase, the sands.

Alison: 51:20

And we can see that the theme of the covenant follows, it continues to go in there and God remained loyal to his covenant. Yeah. Um, all right. Well, I think we can close it. I'll close us in a word of prayer. Great dear Jesus Thank you so much for inviting us to approach your throne with boldness Um, and thank you that We get to see these questions kind of from a, it's easy for us to look into Habakkuk situation and really just kind of study the questions and your answers because we're not in that particular situation where we're facing the Babylonian nation coming But we do face struggles We do face trials and the questions that Habakkuk have are questions that we also might have like God How could you? Look at wrongdoing when you can't look at wrongdoing, um, God, help us to understand that, that that's not true. That you never look on wrongdoing with pleasure, but you, you look at the salvation of your people with pleasure in a matter of the cost. And you proved that in Jesus and God, I just pray that we would remember that. None are righteous. God, you don't measure us by your righteousness, and thank goodness you don't. Instead, you clothe us with Jesus's righteousness, who suffered on our behalf. The most righteous suffered the greatest, and so help us not ever to use our righteousness as a measuring stick for the suffering we should or shouldn't endure. Enter Jesus, I just pray that, um, You would help us to remember that, um, nothing is impossible with you, God. That if situations just seem absolutely without hope that God, you are a God of the impossible, that's That's not even an, there's, there's nothing limited about you and we just thank you for that God. And so I pray that you would give us these perspectives that are easy to look into Habakkuk's situation and determine, but that we can apply to our own life. And I thank you that you've invited us into Habakkuk's conversation, but you also invite us into our own honest conversations with you. In Jesus name. Amen.

Adam: 53:21

Amen. You've been learning from Kinsley. Amen. Amen.