Habakkuk 2

God Answers the Prophet

1I will 1stand on my guard post And station myself on the rampart; And I will 2keep watch to see 3what He will speak to me, And how I may reply 4when I am reproved.2Then the Lord answered me and said, “5Record the vision And inscribe it on tablets, That 6the one who 7reads it may run.3For the vision is yet for the 8appointed time; It 9hastens toward the goal and it will not 10fail. Though it tarries, 11wait for it; For it will certainly come, it 12will not delay.

4“Behold, as for the 13proud one, His soul is not right within him; But the 14righteous will live by his 15faith.5Furthermore, 16wine betrays the 17haughty man, So that he does not 18stay at home. He 19enlarges his appetite like Sheol, And he is like death, never satisfied. He also gathers to himself all nations And collects to himself all peoples.

6“Will not all of these 20take up a taunt-song against him, Even mockery and insinuations against him And say, ‘21Woe to him who increases what is not his-- For how long-- And makes himself 22rich with loans?’7Will not 23your creditors 24rise up suddenly, And those who 25collect from you awaken? Indeed, you will become plunder for them.8Because you have 26looted many nations, All the remainder of the peoples will loot you-- Because of human bloodshed and violence 27done to the land, To the town and all its inhabitants.

9“Woe to him who gets 28evil gain for his house To 29put his nest on high, To be delivered from the hand of calamity!10You have devised a 30shameful thing for your house By cutting off many peoples; So you are 31sinning against yourself.11Surely the 32stone will cry out from the wall, And the rafter will answer it from the 33framework.

12“Woe to him who 34builds a city with bloodshed And founds a town with 35violence!13Is it not indeed from the Lord of hosts That peoples 36toil for fire, And nations grow weary for nothing?14For the earth will be 37filled With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, As the waters cover the sea.

15“Woe to you who make 38your neighbors drink, Who mix in your venom even to make them drunk So as to look on their nakedness!16You will be filled with disgrace rather than honor. Now you yourself 39drink and 40expose your own nakedness. The 41cup in the Lord’s right hand will come around to you, And 42utter disgrace will come upon your glory.17For the 43violence 44done to Lebanon will 45overwhelm you, And the devastation of its beasts 46by which you terrified them, 47Because of human bloodshed and 48violence 49done to the land, To the town and all its inhabitants.

18“What 50profit is the 51idol when its maker has carved it, Or 52an image, a 53teacher of falsehood? For its maker 54trusts in his own handiwork When he fashions speechless idols.19Woe to him who 55says to a piece of wood, ‘56Awake!’ To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’ And that is your teacher? Behold, it is overlaid with 57gold and silver, And there is 58no breath at all inside it.20But the 59Lord is in His holy temple. 60Let all the earth 61be silent before Him.”