Habakkuk 1:6

Habakkuk 1:6 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the breadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not theirs.
• New International Version (NIV)I am raising up the Babylonians, that ruthless and impetuous people, who sweep across the whole earth to seize dwellings not their own.
• English Standard Version (ESV)For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own.
• New King James Version (NKJV)For indeed I am raising up the Chaldeans, A bitter and hasty nation Which marches through the breadth of the earth, To possess dwelling places that are not theirs.

Context of Habakkuk 1:6

4Therefore, the law is ineffective and ignored And justice is never upheld, For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore, justice becomes perverted. 5[The Lord replied,] “Look among the nations! See! Be astonished! Wonder! For I am doing something in your days— You would not believe it if you were told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans [who rule in Babylon], That fierce and impetuous nation Who march throughout the earth To take possession of dwelling places that do not belong to them. 7The Chaldeans are dreaded and feared; Their justice and authority originate with themselves and are defined only by their decree. 8Their horses are swifter than leopards And keener than [hungry] wolves in the evening, Their horsemen come galloping, Their horsemen come from far away; They fly like an eagle swooping down to devour.

Habakkuk 1:6 word by word

כִּֽי־הִנְנִ֤י מֵקִים֙ אֶת־הַכַּשְׂדִּ֔ים הַגּ֖וֹי הַמַּ֣ר וְהַנִּמְהָ֑ר הַֽהוֹלֵךְ֙ לְמֶרְחֲבֵי־אֶ֔רֶץ לָרֶ֖שֶׁת מִשְׁכָּנ֥וֹת לֹּא־לֽוֹ׃Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• For, lo, I raise upקוּםqûm · to arise: raiseH6965
• the Chaldeansכַּשְׂדִּיםkaώdîy kaώdîymâh · ChaldeaH3778
• bitterמַרmar mârâh · bitterH4751
• and hastyמָהַרmâhar · to hastenH4116
• nationגּוֹיgôy gôy · nationH1471
• which shall marchהָלַךְhâlak · to go: walkH1980
• through the breadthמֶרְחָבmerchâb · broadH4800
• of the landאֶ֫רֶץ'erets · land: country/planetH776
• to possessיָרַשׁyârash yârêsh · to possess: takeH3423
• the dwellingplacesמִשְׁכָּןmishkân · tabernacleH4908

Cross-references for Habakkuk 1:6

• Deuteronomy 28:49“The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, [as swift] as the eagle swoops down [to attack], a nation whose language you will not understand,
• 2 Kings 24:2The Lord sent marauding bands of Chaldeans, Arameans (Syrians), Moabites, and Ammonites against Jehoiakim. And He sent them against Judah to destroy it, in accordance with the word of the Lord which He spoke through His servants the prophets.
• 2 Chronicles 36:6Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came up against him and bound him with bronze [chains] to take him to Babylon.
• Isaiah 23:13Now look at the land of the Chaldeans (Babylonia)—this is the people which was not; the Assyrians allocated Tyre for desert creatures—they set up their siege towers, they stripped its palaces, they made it a ruin.
• Isaiah 39:6‘Listen carefully, the days are coming when everything that is in your house and everything that your predecessors have stored up until this day will be carried to Babylon; nothing will be left,’ says the Lord.
• Jeremiah 1:15For, behold, I will call all the tribes of the kingdoms of the north,” says the Lord; “and they will come and each one will set his throne at the entrance of the gates of Jerusalem, and against all its surrounding walls, and against all the cities of Judah [as My judicial act, the consequence of Judah’s deliberate disobedience].
• Jeremiah 4:6Raise a banner toward Zion [to mark the way for those seeking safety inside Jerusalem’s walls]! Seek refuge, do not stand [immobile], For I am bringing evil from the north (the army of Babylon), And great destruction.
• Jeremiah 5:15Behold, I am bringing a nation against you from far away, O house of Israel,” says the Lord. “It is a mighty and enduring nation, It is an ancient nation, A nation whose language you do not know, Whose words you do not comprehend.
• Jeremiah 6:22Thus says the Lord, “Behold, a people is coming from the north country, And a great nation shall be stirred up and put into action from the remote parts of the earth.
• Jeremiah 21:4‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, “Behold, I will turn back and dull the edge of the weapons of war that are in your hands, [those] with which you fight against the king of Babylon and the Chaldeans who are besieging you outside the walls; and I will bring them into the center of this city (Jerusalem).
• Jeremiah 25:9behold (hear this), I will send for all the families of the north,’ says the Lord, ‘and I will send for Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, My servant [to enact My plan], and I will bring them against this land and against its inhabitants and against all these surrounding nations; and I will utterly destroy them and make them a horror and a hissing [that is, an object of warning and ridicule] and an everlasting desolation.

Commentaries on Habakkuk 1:6

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 6That bitter and hasty nation - Cruel and oppressive in their disposition; and prompt and speedy in their assaults and conquests.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 6For lo - So God announces a future, in which His Hand shall be greatly visible, whether more or less distant. In His sight it is present. I raise up - God uses the free will and evil passions of people or devils to His own ends; and so He is said to “raise up” those whom He allows to be stirred up against His people, since the events which His Providence permits, favor their designs, and it rests with Him to withhold them. They lift themselves up for some…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 5-11God's answer to Habakkuk's question is surprising. God would send a violent group (the Babylonians) to address the violence in Judah. The Babylonian army, well-trained and experienced in battle, was unstoppable.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 66. I raise up--not referring to God's having brought the Chaldeans from their original seats to Babylonia (see on Is 23:13), for they had already been upwards of twenty years (since Nabopolassar's era) in political power there; but to His being about now to raise them up as the instruments of God's "work" of judgment on the Jews (2Ch 36:6). The Hebrew is future, "I will raise up." bitter--that is, cruel (Jr 50:42; compare Jud 18:25, Margin; 2Sa 17:8)…Read the comment

Topics related to Habakkuk 1:6

• Babylon
• Chaldea
• Israel, Prophecies Concerning
• Prophecy

In the dictionaries

• Bitter
• Possess
• Pure
• Scoff
• Wrong
• Bible, the
• Bitter; Bitterness
• Habakkuk
• Jehoiakim
• Tyre

Commentaries on Habakkuk 1

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Rashi on Tanakh
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings