Habakkuk 3 Commentary
“The just shall live by faith,” the LORD said in chapter 2. Chapter 3 is Habakkuk’s response. “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”
“I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds,” Habakkuk prays. “Repeat them in our day.”
What fame? What are these deeds that the prophet is talking about?
Then the prophet goes down memory lane. There is the Holy One of Israel who revealed Himself at Mount Sinai. Exodus 19 gives us the details of the physical manifestation of the presence of the LORD God. Smoke! Fire! A very loud trumpet blast and a shaking Mount Sinai! The LORD God is lord over His creation. Elements of creation respond when the LORD shows up.
There is more. Mountains stand because the LORD commanded them. Valleys exist when the LORD flattens and collapses the age-old hills.
Plague and pestilence may be a reference to the plagues of Egypt during the great exodus. The LORD delivered Israel with His mighty hand. Is the prophet thinking about another exodus for enslaved Israel? Is it this fame that Habakkuk is referring to?
The LORD split the earth with rivers. Verse 9. The prophet recounts the story of creation. This is praise at a different level! It has nothing to do with music! Statements of the LORD serving as evidence of His Presence in creation! “Sun and moon stood still in the heavens.” They respond when the LORD speaks!
“With his own spear, you pierced his head when his warriors stormed out to scatter us.” Verse 14. The choice of Babylon as a tool to punish evil is deliberate. The LORD can punish without any help from others. Pestilence, plagues, and self-punishment – who knows what the LORD elects to do? The prophet is aware of what the LORD did to Egypt.
It is the function of scripture to remind us of the great deeds of the LORD whenever we face tough times. The end product of our study of the scripture is an elevated view of the glory of the LORD. He increases as we and our perceived enemies reduce. The saint is bowed down in worship while the pagan is crushed into shame, meaninglessness, and insignificance.
But who says the saint cannot pray today? Habakkuk prays for mercy in the day of an attack. “In wrath Remember mercy.”
He leaves the prayer room with a statement of defiance, strength, and courage; his faith is on another level! The LORD is his strength. He makes his feet like the feet of a deer. And he can tread on the heights. Thus ends the chapter and the book of great significance in our day of confusion and endless questions.
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