Understanding Habakkuk might be one of our most important tasks since the coming of the prosperity gospel to the church in the 1950’s. Habakkuk sees God’s people suffering and expects prosperity. He prays over and over and God is seemingly doing nothing about it. So Habakkuk was troubled with the eternal “Why?”

Habakkuk has seen the fall of Assyria. He had been through the contending for power by the Egyptians and Babylonians. Now he knows that God has warned that Babylon might attack Judah if they don’t repent of their wicked behaviour.

Habakkuk records his interactions with God. He asks two major questions. Firstly, why is Judah in such disarray and why is God doing nothing to help them out of it? God answers by saying that the desperately wicked Babylonians will invade and exile them. Secondly, after hearing God’s answer to the first question, Habakkuk wants to know why Babylon feature in his plan when they are actually more wicked that Judah? God answers yet again. Habakkuk comes to a place where he doesn’t understand everything but he does understand God, and he realises that he can fully trust the God he has come to know.

Pic: The Prophet Habakkuk, by Girolamo Romanino, from the Sacrament Chapel of the church of St. John the Evangelist in Brescia, Italy. (1521-4)