14 I have heard a message from the Lord;
    an envoy was sent to the nations to say,
“Assemble yourselves to attack it!
    Rise up for battle!”

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After affliction and harsh labor,
    Judah has gone into exile.(A)
She dwells among the nations;
    she finds no resting place.(B)
All who pursue her have overtaken her(C)
    in the midst of her distress.

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24 I will bring the most wicked of nations
    to take possession of their houses.
I will put an end to the pride of the mighty,
    and their sanctuaries(A) will be desecrated.(B)

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therefore I will stretch out my hand(A) against you and give you as plunder(B) to the nations. I will wipe you out from among the nations and exterminate you from the countries. I will destroy(C) you, and you will know that I am the Lord.(D)’”

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27 Therefore, Your Majesty, be pleased to accept my advice: Renounce your sins by doing what is right, and your wickedness by being kind to the oppressed.(A) It may be that then your prosperity(B) will continue.(C)

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The Lord’s Answer

“Look at the nations and watch—
    and be utterly amazed.(A)
For I am going to do something in your days
    that you would not believe,
    even if you were told.(B)
I am raising up the Babylonians,[a](C)
    that ruthless and impetuous people,
who sweep across the whole earth(D)
    to seize dwellings not their own.(E)
They are a feared and dreaded people;(F)
    they are a law to themselves
    and promote their own honor.
Their horses are swifter(G) than leopards,
    fiercer than wolves(H) at dusk.
Their cavalry gallops headlong;
    their horsemen come from afar.
They fly like an eagle swooping to devour;
    they all come intent on violence.
Their hordes[b] advance like a desert wind
    and gather prisoners(I) like sand.

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Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 1:6 Or Chaldeans
  2. Habakkuk 1:9 The meaning of the Hebrew for this word is uncertain.

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