Jacqui: 0:12

Greetings listeners. Have you ever looked around and thought God? Why aren't you doing something? Why does injustice keep winning? Why do the wicked prosper while the faithful struggle? If you've asked these questions, you're not alone. That's exactly how the book of Habakkuk begins, but, unlike the other prophets we've been studying, this book isn't a message to the people. This book isn't a message to the people. It's a conversation with God, an honest, sometimes frustrated back and forth. Yes, Habakkuk engages God in conversation. He brought his frustrations to God and God responds. And by the end, we see what it looks like to trust God when nothing makes sense. Well, welcome everyone.

Jacqui: 1:13

I'm your host, Jacqui Adewole, and this is the Bible Basics Podcast, where, weekly, we break down the basics of the Bible into understandable, bite-sized chunks. Last episode, we looked at the message of Jeremiah, a prophet who wept over the sins of his people and carried the weight of God's warning. Today, we're turning to another prophet, one who doesn't come with a sermon, but with a lot of questions. His name is Habakkuk. Habakkuk lived in Judah during a dark and difficult time. The nation was falling apart morally, spiritually and politically. King Josiah, the last good king, had died in battle. After his death, his son, jehoahaz became king, but only for three months. Pharaoh Necho II of Egypt removed him from power, put him in chains and took him to Egypt where he later died. We see that in 2 Kings, 23, 31-34. In his place, necho made Jehoiakim, another of Josiah's sons. The new king Jehoiakim ruled with corruption and cruelty, undoing much of his father's reforms. Meanwhile, babylon was rising, Egypt and the weakened Assyrian empire were losing ground and soon Judah would be caught in the crossfire. Injustice filled the land, violence was normal, people had turned from God and prophets like Habakkuk were left watching it all unfold, very concerned about their nation and wondering God, why are you silent? Why aren't you doing something? So just who was Habakkuk? You'll find he was different from most prophets we've studied.

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We don't get a dramatic call story. There's no background about his family or hometown. What we do get is a personal, honest conversation between him and his God. Unlike other prophets who speak to the people on God's behalf, habakkuk speaks to God about what he sees around him. He doesn't deliver a public message. He asks hard questions and we're invited into that private exchange. There's no indication he's speaking on behalf of the nations, but his questions sound a lot like what others were probably thinking why is sin going unpunished? Why isn't God doing something? What unfolds is a back and forth. Habakkuk brings his frustrations and confusion to God. God responds with truth and vision and by the end Habakkuk moves from protest to praise. His name likely means to embrace or to cling, and some say it may also suggest to wrestle. All three show up in his story. He wrestles with what he sees, he clings to what he knows about God and embraces a deeper faith even when nothing around him changes.

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Let's move on to the content of the book. Habakkuk is short, just three chapters, but it's structured around a powerful conversation between the prophet and God. Chapters one and two are that dialogue. Habakkuk brings his complaints, god responds. Twice the prophet asks why evil and injustice seem to go unchecked. Twice God answers, but not in the way Habakkuk expects. Chapter 3 is a shift. It's no longer about questions, it's about worship. Habakkuk prays, remembers God's past faithfulness and chooses to trust him in the present, even as judgment looms. Let's look at that content a little closer.

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The book opens with a cry that's as relevant today as it was then. Quote how long, lord, must I call for help, but you do not listen, or cry out to you violence, but you do not save. That's chapter 1, verse 2. Habakkuk is watching his own people spiral into injustice and corruption. The law feels powerless, the wicked seem to be winning and God, well, he seems silent. Habakkuk doesn't hold back. He says why aren't you doing something? And God answers, but not in the way Habakkuk was hoping. Quote look at the nations and watch and be utterly amazed, for I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told. That's chapter 1, verse 5. But that sounds hopeful until God reveals what he's doing. I'm raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people. That's chapter 1, verse 6. Wait, babylon. They were violent, arrogant and oppressive, the last people anyone would expect God to use.

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God says in chapter 1, verses 6 to 11, that they're like a predator on the hunt, sweeping through nations, worshiping their own strength and showing no mercy. He'll use them as his instrument of judgment against Judah. That's not the answer Habakkuk wanted. God is doing something, but it raises even more questions. Instead of resolving Habakkuk's concerns, god's answer only deepens them, because the solution sounds worse than the problem. Let's examine them in Habakkuk's second complaint and God's reply to it. Habakkuk can't believe what he just heard. God is going to use Babylon them to use Babylon them. He's not just confused now, he's troubled. So he brings it back to God.

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Quote Lord, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One, you will never die. Why then do you tolerate the treacherous? Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? Those are verses 12 and 13. In other words, god, I have complete faith and trust in you. But how can you use people worse than us to judge us?

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But instead of walking away, Habakkuk leans in. He chooses to wait and listen. Quote I will stand at my watch. I will look to see what he will say to me. That's chapter 2, verse 1. And God answers this time with a vision. Quote write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald may run with it, for the revelation awaits an appointed time. Though it linger, wait for it. It will certainly come and will not delay. That's chapter 2, verses 2 and 3. God is telling Habakkuk I see what's happening, I have a plan. It's on the way, even if it doesn't come as fast as you want, make sure the people see this and will know that it will happen.

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Then comes a key verse in chapter 2, verse 4, one that echoes all the way into the New Testament the righteous will live by his faith, unquote, while the proud trust in themselves. God says the righteous live by trusting him, even when his ways don't make sense. Then God pronounces five woes. These are poetic judgments against Babylon and those like them. These are found in chapter 2, verses 6 through 19. First, woe to the greedy, those who steal and exploit others for personal gain. Then there's woe to the unjust builders. This is one who uses wealth and power to create a false sense of security through injustice. Then there's woe to the violent oppressor who builds their empire through violence and cruelty. There's woe to the corrupt exploiters. They exploit and humiliate others for personal pleasure or control. And number five, woe to the idol worshipers who trust in man-made idols instead of the living God.

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So now Habakkuk is able to get a clear vision of the situation they face. It's not God being inattentive, it's about the sin in the land. And so this second dialogue section ends with this powerful line the Lord is in his holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before him. That's chapter 2, verse 20. In other words, god sees sin, God knows about the sin, and God is still on the throne All the earth must reverence and worship in humble submission to the living God. Humble submission to the living God. Now, after all the questioning, confusion and waiting, something shifts in chapter three. Habakkuk doesn't get all the answers, but what he does get is a clear understanding of who God is, and that changes everything.

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The final chapter is written as a prayer and it reads like a psalm. It's poetic, powerful and full of praise. Here's a snippet Lord, I have heard of your fame. I stand in awe of your deeds. Lord, repeat them in our day, in our time. Make them known In wrath. Remember mercy. That's chapter 3, verse 2.

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Habakkuk remembers what God has done in the past, his power, his justice, his saving acts, and it gives him confidence that God is still in control now, even though what's coming terrifies him. He says so in verse 16. He chooses to trust God anyway. Then, in one of the most beautiful declarations of faith in all of Scripture, habakkuk says in chapter 3, verse 17 and 18, quote 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. Unquote. No crops, no livestock, no visible signs of hope. Still Habakkuk chooses to rejoice. He finishes with this line from chapter 3, verse 19. The sovereign Lord is my strength. He makes my feet like the feet of a deer. He enables me to tread on the heights Unquote.

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Habakkuk may still not understand everything, but now he knows enough. He knows that faith in God will enable him to endure the hardships to come. Habakkuk doesn't get all the answers, but he gets what he needs a deeper trust in God. I hope this beautiful prayer leads all of us to that place where we can know that, no matter what, god is our strength. Now, how does this book connect to Jesus? Well, let's go back to that key verse in God's second reply to Habakkuk the righteous will live by faith.

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In the New Testament, paul quotes this verse in Romans 1.:1 1.17 and Galatians 3:11 to explain the heart of the gospel how we are made right with God not through our efforts but by trusting in Jesus. It shows up again in Hebrews, chapter 10, verse 38, reminding believers to persevere in faith, especially in the face of suffering. This one line becomes a core truth of the Christian life. We don't live by what we see. We live by trusting in the character and the promises of God. And that's exactly where Habakkuk lands. He knows judgment is coming, but he also trusts that God will redeem his people. He says in chapter 3, verse 13, you come out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. That hope points forward to Jesus. God's ultimate redemption comes through him, not by raising up another earthly kingdom, but by sending his son. As Paul says in Ephesians. Chapter 2, verses 1 through 10, salvation is by grace, through faith. That's what Habakkuk longed for and what we now see fully in Christ. So what can we learn from Habakkuk?

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Habakkuk may be short, but it delivers some of the Bible's most powerful lessons about faith in hard times. At the center of it all is this truth. You should have this in your spirit by now. Come on and say it with me. Chapter 2, verse 4. The righteous will live by his faith. That one verse summarizes God's plan for his people, then and now. Here's what that teaches us.

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First, waiting is part of faith. Habakkuk didn't get quick answers, but he listened, watched and trusted. Second, god sees everything and he'll deal with injustice. Judgment might seem delayed, but God hasn't forgotten. Third, faith means clinging to God even when nothing makes sense. Fourth, god is our strength when we feel weak. When we feel weak and finally, when we find ourselves asking the same questions Habakkuk did why is there so much evil? Where is God in all of this? We can follow his example.

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Habakkuk shifted his focus from the why to the who. The book of Habakkuk invites us to do the same to trust God's character even when we don't understand his timing, and to believe that he is just, faithful and worth clinging to no matter what. So, in conclusion, if this episode helped you to see Habakkuk in a new way, questions, doubts and all, consider sharing it with someone you never know who might need the reminder that faith isn't about having all the answers. It's about trusting the God who does. It's about trusting the God who does. Next time we're turning a corner. We've been looking at prophets who spoke before the exile, but now we'll enter a new chapter the voices who spoke during the exile. No-transcript.