English Standard Version
Habakkuk 1:10
10At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it.
Habakkuk 1:10 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And they shall scoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.
- New International Version (NIV)They mock kings and scoff at rulers. They laugh at all fortified cities; by building earthen ramps they capture them.
- New King James Version (NKJV)They scoff at kings, And princes are scorned by them. They deride every stronghold, For they heap up earthen mounds and seize it.
- New Living Translation (NLT)They scoff at kings and princes and scorn all their fortresses. They simply pile ramps of earth against their walls and capture them!
Context of Habakkuk 1:10
8Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour. 9They all come for violence, all their faces forward. They gather captives like sand. At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it. 11Then they sweep by like the wind and go on, guilty men, whose own might is their god!" 12Are you not from everlasting, O Lord my God, my Holy One? We shall not die. O Lord, you have ordained them as a judgment, and you, O Rock, have established them for reproof.
Read all of Habakkuk 1Habakkuk 1:10 word by word
וְהוּא֙ בַּמְּלָכִ֣ים יִתְקַלָּ֔ס וְרֹזְנִ֖ים מִשְׂחָ֣ק ל֑וֹ ה֚וּא לְכָל־מִבְצָ֣ר יִשְׂחָ֔ק וַיִּצְבֹּ֥ר עָפָ֖ר וַֽיִּלְכְּדָֽהּ׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And they shall scoffקָלַסqâlas · to mockH7046
- at the kingsמֶ֫לֶךְmelek · kingH4428
- and the princesרָזַןrâzan · to ruleH7336
- shall be a scornמִשְׂחַקmiώchâq · laughingH4890
- unto them: they shall derideשָׂחַקώâchaq · to laughH7832
- every strong holdמִבְצָרmibtsâr mibtsârâh · fortificationH4013
- for they shall heapצָבַרtsâbar · to heapH6651
- dustעָפָר‛âphâr · dustH6083
- and takeלָכַדlâkad · to captureH3920
Cross-references for Habakkuk 1:10
- 2 Kings 24:12and Jehoiachin the king of Judah gave himself up to the king of Babylon, himself and his mother and his servants and his officials and his palace officials. The king of Babylon took him prisoner in the eighth year of his reign
- 2 Kings 25:6Then they captured the king and brought him up to the king of Babylon at Riblah, and they passed sentence on him.
- 2 Chronicles 36:6Against him came up Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon and bound him in chains to take him to Babylon.
- Isaiah 14:16Those who see you will stare at you and ponder over you: 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble, who shook kingdoms,
- Jeremiah 32:24Behold, the siege mounds have come up to the city to take it, and because of sword and famine and pestilence the city is given into the hands of the Chaldeans who are fighting against it. What you spoke has come to pass, and behold, you see it.
- Jeremiah 33:4For thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, concerning the houses of this city and the houses of the kings of Judah that were torn down to make a defense against the siege mounds and against the sword:
- Jeremiah 52:4And in the ninth year of his reign, in the tenth month, on the tenth day of the month, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon came with all his army against Jerusalem, and laid siege to it. And they built siegeworks all around it.
Commentaries on Habakkuk 1:10
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 10They shall scoff at the kings - No power shall be able to stand before them. It will be only as pastime to them to take the strongest places. They will have no need to build formidable ramparts: by sweeping the dust together they shall make mounts sufficient to pass over the walls and take the city.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 10And they - literally, “he,” the word stands emphatically, he, alone against all the kings of the earth Shall scoff at the kings - and all their might taking them away or setting them up at his pleasure and caprice, subduing them as though in sport And princes - literally, grave and majestic Shall be a scorn unto them - i. e. him. Compare Job 41:29. So Nebuchadnezzar bound Jehoiakim 2 Chronicles 36:6; Daniel 1:2 “in fetters to carry him to Babylon;” then…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 10In the ancient Near East, armies often attacked cities by piling up earth to make ramps against city walls. This battle method is described in several places in the Bible (for example, 2 Kings 19:32; Nahum 2:1).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1010. scoff at ... kings--as unable to resist them. they shall heap dust, and take it--"they shall heap" earth mounds outside, and so "take every stronghold" (compare 2Sa 20:15; 2Ki 19:32) [Grotius].Read the comment
Topics related to Habakkuk 1:10
In the dictionaries
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
English Standard Version — © 2001 Crossway Bibles
Commentaries