“‘Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own.’” (Habakkuk 1:5-6 ESV)
Have you ever had news so bad it “astounded” you? You may have been preparing yourself for what you thought was the worst-case scenario only to find out that the scenario you envisioned was far from the worst. Bad news is always just that—bad—but some news is so hard to hear that it leaves us in disbelief.
Such was the case for Habakkuk. As the Lord begins to respond to Habakkuk’s complaint, it left Habakkuk’s proverbial jaw on the floor. Likely, the prophet was hoping for a response that indicated protection and a restraining of the power-hungry aggression of Babylon, as the Lord had sovereignly intervened to do so countless times before. While the response was utterly unexpected, the reality he knew to be true, and which brought him immense comfort, was undeniably confirmed.
Habakkuk’s trust in the Lord’s providence was not misplaced, but he misunderstood the outworking of that providence. In referring to the invasion of the Babylonians, God says to him, “I am doing a work . . .” In his original complaint, Habakkuk’s contention with God is that he appears idle in the face of injustice. In his mind, it is as if, rather than God standing before Judah in her defense, God idly stands by while his people are ransacked by their enemy. On the contrary, not only is God not idle, but the Babylonian destruction comes directly as a result of his rule.
Habakkuk, no doubt, “[could] not believe” what he heard. The sin with which Judah had become so familiar and comfortable was to be punished by the Lord through the means of Babylon. “That bitter and hasty nation” would bring “destruction and violence” (v. 3), not by way of the idleness of God but by his very decree. In the midst of the immense distress, however, Habakkuk would come to find immense comfort in seeing the horror of the events through the lens of the divine hand by which they would be wrought.
As a brief aside, it is worth mentioning that, without doubt, the weight of what was about to take place did not disappear from his mind. When someone is experiencing extreme grief and anxiety, as Habakkuk was, we must not think that a simple, “This is happening for a reason,” will resolve all his emotional and spiritual distress. Right doctrine is paramount to the Christian life, and we should consider it among the highest priorities, but it can be difficult and take time to align what we see with what we know. True doctrine is a powerful antidote to suffering, but it is not a switch that one simply flips to produce an immediate result of peace and joy.
The reminder of this passage is crucial to us as we live in a corrupt world. As we go to the nations with the gospel, we will meet with resistance from earthly authorities, who are working against the church. Yet even those most hostile to the gospel are ultimately working out God’s divine plan to build and purify his church. As Proverbs 21:1 states, “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the LORD; he turns it wherever he will.” The rulers of Babylon certainly did not perceive that they were being used by Yahweh to carry out his decree (v. 7), but such was nevertheless the case.
The time for Judah’s punishment—carried out by the Lord through the means of Judah’s enemy—was at hand. Habakkuk was told that this would take place “in [his] days.” God’s people cannot perpetually rebel without consequence. Not only would God allow Babylon to “seize dwellings not their own,” but he would bring it about. We can only begin to imagine how greatly Habakkuk’s heart dropped at this news.
However, it is no small comfort to be in the divine hand, for good or for ill. God was not ignoring his people but refining them. Darks days were coming, but the Lord would not be absent in them. Not only that, but the injustice of Babylon would not go unnoticed. As Habakkuk would soon see, their judgment was coming quickly as well, not as a father disciplines his children, but as a king conquers his enemies.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father,
Sin is heinous in your sight, and you cannot abide with it. Sin brings consequences, but even in the most difficult consequences of sin, you are refining your people, preserving a remnant, and building your church. May we gain a greater understanding of our own sinfulness and a greater trust in the goodness of your providence.
For your Son’s sake and in his name, amen.
Prayer Requests:
- Tuesday: Pray for new members joining the Japan team to settle into their new environments well and to build healthy and sustainable routines.
- Wednesday: Pray for the ongoing fundraising and construction work related to the Goroka Project. If you are interested in serving in this ministry opportunity, contact us.
- Thursday: Pray for missionaries engaged in language learning.
- Friday: Pray for missionaries who are discipling new believers who have recently been baptized.
- Saturday: Pray for peace and comfort for missionaries who have recently lost loved ones.
- Sunday: Pray for the Olive Leaf Project and the ongoing flood relief work in Brazil.
- Monday: Pray for missionaries serving with the El Roï university ministry in Togo as they labor among Muslim students.
