This is week two of a four week series titled “Habakkuk: A Prophet for 2025.” View the rest of the series as it’s published by clicking on the Habakkuk 2025 Prophet tag.
Look at the nations and watch, and be utterly amazed.
For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe,
even if you were told.
–Habakkuk 1:5
When I presented Habakkuk to my congregation’s Bible Study, we talked about the violence we have seen in our lifetime that has us questioning where God is. There are both moments of personal trauma– abuse, illness, and death– and communal trauma– the Cold War, 9/11, Covid-19, and the war in Ukraine– that challenge our understanding of how we can affirm a good God in a seemingly bad world. This wrestling with theodicy (literally justifying God) is age-old. While we do not get a clear answer from Habakkuk that fully satisfies our longing, we do learn from the text twofold: 1. Asking questions is faithful, and 2. We need to take a wider and longer worldview.
Background
Depending on how we date him, Habakkuk was either around during the reign of King Mannasseh or King Josiah. King Mannasseh had a long and evil reign from 686 to 642 BCE. He demanded idol worship and even sacrificed his son (2 Kgs. 21, 2 Chr. 33). Then, after Mannasseh died, King Josiah tried his best to bring Judah back to God, but there is only so much you can do when you become king at eight years old! Plus, the external pressures were mounting.
There was chaos in the region. The Assyrian Empire, who had been the largest and most powerful in the region, was declining due to rebellions and poor leadership. At the same time, Egypt was not the ally Judah hoped they would be, and there was a new power on the scene– the Chaldeans, also known as the Babylonians– who were proving to be a force to be reckoned with. Little Judah was caught up in a greater struggle of empires battling for control.
Habakkuk 1:5-2:1 – Expanding Our View
Overwhelmed by the bad news at home and abroad, Habakkuk has lodged his complaint with God. He wants to know what God is going to do in response to the injustice Habakkuk has raised and how soon God is going to do it. Yet instead of throwing down lightning bolts or swallowing up armies, God enters into a dialogue with Habakkuk, and God’s first order of business is telling Habakkuk to adjust his glasses. God says to look a little wider, expand the view, because what God is doing is bigger than Judah.
God has not, in fact, abandoned the people. God is instead already at work in “utterly amazing” ways (1:5). God goes on to describe the Chaldeans/Babylonians in excruciating detail. God knows exactly who they are and what makes them tick. God knows that they are ruthless conquers– scorching the earth, taking captives, and making idols of their own might. God is not naïve, and God has a plan for them.
But this isn’t enough for Habbakkuk. He is horrified with God’s response. How can God have chosen “those” people– the evil idol-worshiping violent foreigners? And so, Habakkuk lodges another complaint, “Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves? (1:13, emphasis added).
Habakkuk has made a bold declaration here. Sure, he has complained about his people and their injustice, but he still has a superiority-complex. Habakkuk says that he cannot believe that God has chosen the Chaldeans, whom Habakkuk judges as even worse. Habakkuk holds that Judah, despite its failures, is still more “righteous” than Babylon.
Yet, God does not ask Habakkuk (or us) to measure degrees of wickedness. God asks him (and us) instead to trust that divine justice is broader than human categories. Scripture consistently and frequently reminds us that judgement belongs to God alone. When we judge others, we risk missing the possibility that God is already at work in unexpected people and places in unexpected ways.
So, following in the footsteps of prophets Isaiah, Ezekiel, Hosea, and Jonah, Habakkuk plants his feet and says he will wait. He may not understand now, but Habakkuk is willing to stick around to find out and keep the conversation going.
Application to 2025
How often do we take something personally, forgetting that the world does not revolve around us? When we put ourselves at the center, it can feel like we are being unfairly targeted, that we are the good guys and the world is just against us. But, God challenges us to zoom out and to see the world from God’s perspective, even with our limited imagination.
When we view the world only in accordance to how it impacts us, we become quick to label “good” versus “bad.” We decide that we have not just the power, but the right to define what justice is and looks like. We become arrogant and aggressive, demanding that others bend to our will and superiority.
In 2025, we need more people who can take the larger view, seeing past ego and false senses of exceptionalism. We need a perspective that challenges easy labels of “right” and “wrong.” Like Habakkuk, we are called to ask questions, even when we may not get the answers we want. Faithfulness is found in the asking and the waiting. And in that waiting, we are stretched to see beyond our narrow interests and into God’s wider vision– a vision that is “utterly amazing” and nearly unbelievable, but one that always bends toward justice and hope.
Reflection Questions
- Is there space in your faith community to ask questions? How are these questions received?
- How does Habakkuk challenge us to expand our view beyond dividing people into good or bad?
- What does waiting for God look like in our lives?
Prayer Practice
Listen to Andrew Tomlin’s rendition of “The Lord Is in His Holy Temple.”
The Lord Is in His Holy Temple – Acapella Church Hymn
Hold space for silence.
Joining with Habakkuk out, we cry, “How long?” How long will the oppressors win? How long will apathy reign? How long will your people twist your words? Draw close to us, Lord. Hear our cries. Weep with us. We trust that you are always near, and we especially need to feel your presence with us today. Amen.
