“I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the tower, and will watch to see what he will say unto me, and what I shall answer when I am reproved.
And the Lord answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.
For the vision is yet for an appointed time, but at the end it shall speak, and not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not tarry.
Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.
Yea also, because he transgresseth by wine, he is a proud man, neither keepeth at home, who enlargeth his desire as hell, and is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all people:
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!
Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?
Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men’s blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.
Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!
Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul.
For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.
Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!
Behold, is it not of the Lord of hosts that the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity?
For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.” – Habakkuk 2:1-14 (KJV)
1 I will stand at my watch post and station myself on the city wall. I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer he will give to my complaint.[a]
2 Then the Lord answered me. He said:
Record the vision and write it plainly on tablets so that a herald may run with it.
3 Indeed, the vision is waiting for the appointed time. It longs for fulfillment and will not prove false. If it seems slow in coming, wait for it, because it will certainly come and will not be delayed.
4 Look, his soul is puffed up and is not righteous within him[b]—but the righteous one will live by his faith.[c] 5 Indeed, wine[d] betrays that arrogant and restless one, because he is as greedy as the grave, and like death he is never satisfied. He gathers all the nations and collects all the peoples to himself.
6 All these people will make up proverbs and mocking poems against him, won’t they? They will say, “Woe to the one who accumulates what is not his. (How long will this last?) Woe to the one who makes himself rich by foreclosing on collateral.” 7 Won’t your creditors rise up suddenly? Won’t those who cause you to tremble wake up? You will become plunder for them. 8 Because you robbed many countries, all those who are left among the nations will rob you. You have shed human blood and committed violence against the land, the cities, and all the people who live in them.
9 Woe to the person who piles up dishonest income for his household, in order to raise his nest up high, to deliver himself from disaster. 10 By wiping out many nations, you have planned shame for your own house. You have sinned against your own life. 11 So the stones in the walls will cry out, and the wooden rafters will answer, 12 “Woe to the one who builds a town with bloodshed and establishes a town with injustice.”
13 Be sure of this: The Lord of Armies has determined that the things for which the peoples of the world labor are only fuel for the fire, and that the nations tire themselves out with nothing to show for it. 14 So the earth will be as filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters that cover the sea. – Habakkuk 2:1-14 (EHV)
Footnotes:
[a] Habakkuk 2:1 The translation follows the alternate Hebrew reading known as a correction of the scribes. The standard Hebrew text reads what answer to give when I am rebuked, likely because scribes considered Habakkuk to be impudent by demanding an answer from the Lord. The alternate reading is also supported by the Syriac and the parallelism with the preceding line.
[b] Habakkuk 2:4 The antecedent of his and him is uncertain, and there are other difficulties with the Hebrew. The phrase must refer to an ungodly man—in the immediate context, to the Babylonians.
[c] Habakkuk 2:4 The word can also mean faithfulness, but in Romans 1:17 Paul uses the phrase in reference to faith.
[d] Habakkuk 2:5 Hebrew variant wealth