Passage

Habakkuk 1

Book: Habakkuk · NASB95

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV (ASV)

"1. The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. 2. O Jehovah, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear? I cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save. 3. Why dost thou show me iniquity, and look upon perverseness? for destruction and violence are before me; and there is strife, and contention riseth up. 4. Therefore the law is slacked, and justice doth never go forth; for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore justice goeth forth perverted. 5. Behold ye among the nations, and look, and wonder marvellously; for I am working a work in your days, which ye will not believe though it be told you. 6. For, lo, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, that march through the breadth of the earth, to possess dwelling-places that are not theirs. 7. They are terrible and dreadful; their judgment and their dignity proceed from themselves. 8. Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves; and their horsemen press proudly on: yea, their horsemen come from far; they fly as an eagle that hasteth to devour. 9. They come all of them for violence; the set of their faces is forwards; and they gather captives as the sand. 10. Yea, he scoffeth at kings, and princes are a derision unto him; he derideth every stronghold; for he heapeth up dust, and taketh it. 11. Then shall he sweep by as a wind, and shall pass over, and be guilty, even he whose might is his god. 12. Art not thou from everlasting, O Jehovah my God, my Holy One? we shall not die. O Jehovah, thou hast ordained him for judgment; and thou, O Rock, hast established him for correction. 13. Thou that art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and that canst not look on perverseness, wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy peace when the wicked swalloweth up the man that is more righteous than he; 14. and makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? 15. He taketh up all of them with the angle, he catcheth them in his net, and gathereth them in his drag: therefore he rejoiceth and is glad. 16. Therefore he sacrificeth unto his net, and burneth incense unto his drag; because by them his portion is fat, and his food plenteous. 17. Shall he therefore empty his net, and spare not to slay the nations continually?" (Habakkuk 1:1-17, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. The revelation which Habakkuk the prophet saw. 2. Yahweh, how long will I cry, and you will not hear? I cry out to you “Violence!” and will you not save? 3. Why do you show me iniquity, and look at perversity? For destruction and violence are before me. There is strife, and contention rises up. 4. Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails; for the wicked surround the righteous; therefore justice comes out perverted. 5. “Look among the nations, watch, and wonder marvelously; for I am working a work in your days, which you will not believe though it is told you. 6. For, behold, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, that march through the width of the earth, to possess dwelling places that are not theirs. 7. They are feared and dreaded. Their judgment and their dignity proceed from themselves. 8. Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves. Their horsemen press proudly on. Yes, their horsemen come from afar. They fly as an eagle that hurries to devour. 9. All of them come for violence. Their hordes face the desert. He gathers prisoners like sand. 10. Yes, he scoffs at kings, and princes are a derision to him. He laughs at every stronghold, for he builds up an earthen ramp, and takes it. 11. Then he sweeps by like the wind, and goes on. He is indeed guilty, whose strength is his god.” 12. Aren’t you from everlasting, Yahweh my God, my Holy One? We will not die. Yahweh, you have appointed him for judgment. You, Rock, have established him to punish. 13. You who have purer eyes than to see evil, and who cannot look on perversity, why do you tolerate those who deal treacherously, and keep silent when the wicked swallows up the man who is more righteous than he, 14. and make men like the fish of the sea, like the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? 15. He takes up all of them with the hook. He catches them in his net, and gathers them in his dragnet. Therefore he rejoices and is glad. 16. Therefore he sacrifices to his net, and burns incense to his dragnet, because by them his life is luxurious, and his food is good. 17. Will he therefore continually empty his net, and kill the nations without mercy?" (Habakkuk 1:1-17, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. The burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see. 2. O LORD, how long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save! 3. Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention. 4. Therefore the law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth. ^{wrong: or, wrested} 5. Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you. 6. 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. ^{breadth: Heb. breadths} 7. They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves. ^{their judgment: or, from them shall proceed the judgment of these, and the captivity of these} 8. Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat. ^{fierce: Heb. sharp} 9. They shall come all for violence: their faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand. ^{their: or, the supping up of their faces, etc: or, their faces shall look (Heb. the opposition of their faces) toward the east} 10. 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. 11. Then shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god. 12. Art thou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for correction. ^{mighty: Heb. rock. established: Heb. founded} 13. Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he? ^{iniquity: or, grievance} 14. And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the creeping things, that have no ruler over them? ^{creeping: or, moving} 15. They take up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their drag: therefore they rejoice and are glad. ^{drag: or, flue net} 16. Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous. ^{plenteous: or, dainty: Heb. fat} 17. Shall they therefore empty their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?" (Habakkuk 1:1-17, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. The burden that Habakkuk the prophet hath seen: 2. Till when, O Jehovah, have I cried, And Thou dost not hear? I cry unto Thee, 'Violence,' and Thou dost not save. 3. Why dost Thou shew me iniquity, And perversity dost cause to behold? And spoiling and violence [are] before me, And there is strife, and contention doth lift [itself] up, 4. Therefore doth law cease, And judgment doth not go forth for ever, For the wicked is compassing the righteous, Therefore wrong judgment goeth forth. 5. Look ye on nations, and behold and marvel greatly. For a work He is working in your days, Ye do not believe though it is declared. 6. For, lo, I am raising up the Chaldeans, The bitter and hasty nation, That is going to the broad places of earth, To occupy tabernacles not its own. 7. Terrible and fearful it [is], From itself its judgment and its excellency go forth. 8. Swifter than leopards have been its horses, And sharper than evening wolves, And increased have its horsemen, Even its horsemen from afar come in, They fly as an eagle, hasting to consume. 9. Wholly for violence it doth come in, Their faces swallowing up the east wind, And it doth gather as the sand a captivity. 10. And at kings it doth scoff, And princes [are] a laughter to it, At every fenced place it doth laugh, And it heapeth up dust, and captureth it. 11. Then passed on hath the spirit, Yea, he doth transgress, And doth ascribe this his power to his god. 12. Art not Thou of old, O Jehovah, my God, my Holy One? We do not die, O Jehovah, For judgment Thou hast appointed it, And, O Rock, for reproof Thou hast founded it. 13. Purer of eyes than to behold evil, To look on perverseness Thou art not able, Why dost Thou behold the treacherous? Thou keepest silent when the wicked Doth swallow the more righteous than he, 14. And Thou makest man as fishes of the sea, As a creeping thing, none ruling over him. 15. Each of them with a hook he hath brought up, He doth catch it in his net, and gathereth it in his drag, Therefore he doth joy and rejoice. 16. Therefore he doth sacrifice to his net, And doth make perfume to his drag, For by them [is] his portion fertile, and his food fat. 17. Doth he therefore empty his net, And continually to slay nations spare not?" (Habakkuk 1:1-17, YLT)

Setting

Speaker: TBD
Audience: TBD
Location: TBD
Time period: TBD

Theological reading

Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

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Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.