New King James Version
Habakkuk 2:12
12“Woe to him who builds a town with bloodshed, Who establishes a city by iniquity!
Habakkuk 2:12 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!
- New International Version (NIV)“Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by injustice!
- English Standard Version (ESV)"Woe to him who builds a town with blood and founds a city on iniquity!
- New Living Translation (NLT)“What sorrow awaits you who build cities with money gained through murder and corruption!
Context of Habakkuk 2:12
10You give shameful counsel to your house, Cutting off many peoples, And sin against your soul. 11For the stone will cry out from the wall, And the beam from the timbers will answer it. “Woe to him who builds a town with bloodshed, Who establishes a city by iniquity! 13Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts That the peoples labor to feed the fire, And nations weary themselves in vain? 14For the earth will be filled With the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, As the waters cover the sea.
Read all of Habakkuk 2Habakkuk 2:12 word by word
ה֛וֹי בֹּנֶ֥ה עִ֖יר בְּדָמִ֑ים וְכוֹנֵ֥ן קִרְיָ֖ה בְּעַוְלָֽה׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
Cross-references for Habakkuk 2:12
- Genesis 4:11So now you are cursed from the earth, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.
- Joshua 6:26Then Joshua charged them at that time, saying, “Cursed be the man before the Lord who rises up and builds this city Jericho; he shall lay its foundation with his firstborn, and with his youngest he shall set up its gates.”
- 1 Kings 16:34In his days Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation with Abiram his firstborn, and with his youngest son Segub he set up its gates, according to the word of the Lord, which He had spoken through Joshua the son of Nun.
- Jeremiah 22:13“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness And his chambers by injustice, Who uses his neighbor’s service without wages And gives him nothing for his work,
- Ezekiel 24:9‘Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Woe to the bloody city! I too will make the pyre great.
- Daniel 4:27Therefore, O king, let my advice be acceptable to you; break off your sins by being righteous, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the poor. Perhaps there may be a lengthening of your prosperity.”
- Micah 3:10Who build up Zion with bloodshed And Jerusalem with iniquity:
- Nahum 3:1Woe to the bloody city! It is all full of lies and robbery. Its victim never departs.
- John 11:47Then the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered a council and said, “What shall we do? For this Man works many signs.
- Revelation 17:6I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with great amazement.
- Habakkuk 2:8Because you have plundered many nations, All the remnant of the people shall plunder you, Because of men’s blood And the violence of the land and the city, And of all who dwell in it.
Commentaries on Habakkuk 2:12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 12Wo to him that buildeth a town with blood - At the expense of much slaughter. This is the answer of the beam to the stone. And these things will refer to the vast fortunes gained, and the buildings erected, by means of the slave-trade; where, to a considerate and humane mind, the walls appear as if composed of the bones of negroes, and cemented by their blood! But the towns or houses established by this iniquity soon come to ruin; and the fortunes made…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 12Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and establisheth a city by iniquity! - Nebuchadnezzar “encircled the inner city with three walls and the outer city also with three, all of burnt brick. And having fortified the city with wondrous works, and adorned the gates like temples, he built another palace near the palace of his fathers, surpassing it in height and its great magnificence.” He seemed to strengthen the city, and to establish it by outward…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 5-14Verses 5-14 The prophet reads the doom of all proud and oppressive powers that bear hard upon God's people. The lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, are the entangling snares of men; and we find him that led Israel captive, himself led captive by each of these. No more of what we have is to be reckoned ours, than what we come honestly by. Riches are but clay, thick clay; what are gold and silver but white and yellow earth? Those…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 12-14In the third taunt song, the Babylonians face condemnation for their murder and corruption, which they used to gain wealth and build their cities. God will turn their apparent gain into a total loss. Earth will be filled: Unlike violence and stolen wealth, the awareness of the Lord's glory will spread as widely as water in the ocean (Isaiah 11:9).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 1212. buildeth a town with blood--namely, Babylon rebuilt and enlarged by blood-bought spoils (compare Da 4:30).Read the comment
Topics related to Habakkuk 2:12
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Habakkuk 2
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries