from Biblica1I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint.[1]
The Lord’s answer
2Then the Lord replied: ‘Write down the revelation and make it plain on tablets so that a herald[2] may run with it.3For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it[3] will certainly come and will not delay.4‘See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright – but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness[4] –5indeed, wine betrays him; he is arrogant and never at rest. Because he is as greedy as the grave and like death is never satisfied, he gathers to himself all the nations and takes captive all the peoples.6‘Will not all of them taunt him with ridicule and scorn, saying, ‘ “Woe to him who piles up stolen goods and makes himself wealthy by extortion! How long must this go on?”7Will not your creditors suddenly arise? Will they not wake up and make you tremble? Then you will become their prey.8Because you have plundered many nations, the peoples who are left will plunder you. For you have shed human blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.9‘Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, setting his nest on high to escape the clutches of ruin!10You have plotted the ruin of many peoples, shaming your own house and forfeiting your life.11The stones of the wall will cry out, and the beams of the woodwork will echo it.12‘Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by injustice!13Has not the Lord Almighty determined that the people’s labour is only fuel for the fire, that the nations exhaust themselves for nothing?14For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.15‘Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbours, pouring it from the wineskin till they are drunk, so that he can gaze on their naked bodies!16You will be filled with shame instead of glory. Now it is your turn! Drink and let your nakedness be exposed[5]! The cup from the Lord’s right hand is coming round to you, and disgrace will cover your glory.17The violence you have done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and your destruction of animals will terrify you. For you have shed human blood; you have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.18‘Of what value is an idol carved by a craftsman? Or an image that teaches lies? For the one who makes it trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak.19Woe to him who says to wood, “Come to life!” Or to lifeless stone, “Wake up!” Can it give guidance? It is covered with gold and silver; there is no breath in it.’20The Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth be silent before him.
Habbakuk 2
English Standard Version
from Crossway1I will take my stand at my watchpost and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint. (Ps 85:8; Isa 21:8; Jer 6:17; Eze 33:2)
The Righteous Shall Live by His Faith
2And the Lord answered me: “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so he may run who reads it. (Isa 8:1; Isa 30:8; Re 1:19)3For still the vision awaits its appointed time; it hastens to the end—it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay. (Isa 8:17; Eze 7:5; Da 10:14; Zep 3:8; Heb 10:37; 2Pe 3:9)4“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith.[1] (Joh 3:36; Ro 1:17; Ga 3:11; Heb 10:38)5“Moreover, wine[2] is a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest.[3] His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death he has never enough. He gathers for himself all nations and collects as his own all peoples.” (Pr 27:20; Isa 21:2; Jer 27:7; Da 2:37; Hab 1:6; Hab 1:13)
Woe to the Chaldeans
6Shall not all these take up their taunt against him, with scoffing and riddles for him, and say, “Woe to him who heaps up what is not his own— for how long?— and loads himself with pledges!” (Nu 23:7; Isa 5:8; Eze 18:7; Mic 2:4; Hab 1:6; Hab 2:19; Zec 1:12)7Will not your debtors suddenly arise, and those awake who will make you tremble? Then you will be spoil for them. (Isa 21:5)8Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder you, for the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. (Isa 33:1; Hab 2:17)9“Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm! (Nu 24:21; Isa 14:13; Jer 49:16; Hab 2:6)10You have devised shame for your house by cutting off many peoples; you have forfeited your life. (Hab 1:17)11For the stone will cry out from the wall, and the beam from the woodwork respond. (Lu 19:40)12“Woe to him who builds a town with blood and founds a city on iniquity! (Mic 3:10; Hab 2:6)13Behold, is it not from the Lord of hosts that peoples labor merely for fire, and nations weary themselves for nothing? (Jer 51:58)14For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea. (Ps 72:19; Isa 11:9)15“Woe to him who makes his neighbors drink— you pour out your wrath and make them drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! (Ge 9:22; Jer 51:7; La 4:21; Hab 2:5; Hab 2:6)16You will have your fill of shame instead of glory. Drink, yourself, and show your uncircumcision! The cup in the Lord’s right hand will come around to you, and utter shame will come upon your glory! (Jer 25:15; Jer 25:26; Na 3:5; Na 3:6)17The violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, as will the destruction of the beasts that terrified them, for the blood of man and violence to the earth, to cities and all who dwell in them. (Isa 14:8; Jer 22:23; Hab 2:8)18“What profit is an idol when its maker has shaped it, a metal image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation when he makes speechless idols! (Ps 115:5; Isa 44:10; Jer 10:8; Jer 10:14; Zec 10:2; 1Co 12:2)19Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake; to a silent stone, Arise! Can this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in it. (1Ki 18:26; Ps 135:17; Jer 10:14; Hab 2:6; Hab 2:9; Hab 2:12; Hab 2:15)20But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him.” (Ps 11:4; Mic 1:2; Zep 1:7; Zec 2:13)
Habbakuk 2
King James Version
1I 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.2And the LORD answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it.3For 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.4Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.5Yea 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:6Shall 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!7Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?8Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men' blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.9Woe 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!10Thou hast consulted shame to thy house by cutting off many people, and hast sinned against thy soul.11For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.12Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and stablisheth a city by iniquity!13Behold, 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?14For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.15Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him , and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!16Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD' right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.17For the violence of Lebanon shall cover thee, and the spoil of beasts, which made them afraid, because of men' blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.18What profiteth the graven image that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, and a teacher of lies, that the maker of his work trusteth therein, to make dumb idols?19Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.20But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.
Habbakuk 2
New International Reader’s Version
from Biblica1I will go up to the lookout tower. I’ll station myself on the city wall. I’ll wait to see how the LORD will reply to me. Then I’ll try to figure out how his reply answers what I’ve complained about.
The Lord replies to Habakkuk
2The LORD replies, ‘Write down the message I am giving you. Write it clearly on the tablets you use. Then a messenger can read it and run to announce it.3The message I give you waits for the time I have appointed. It speaks about what is going to happen. And all of it will come true. It might take a while. But wait for it. You can be sure it will come. It will happen when I want it to.4‘The Babylonians are very proud. What they want is not good. ‘But the person who is godly will live by his faithfulness.5‘Wine makes the Babylonians do foolish things. They are proud. They never rest. Like the grave, they are always hungry for more. Like death, they are never satisfied. They gather all the nations to themselves. They take all those people away as prisoners.6‘Won’t those people laugh at the Babylonians? Won’t they make fun of them? They will say to them, ‘ “How terrible it will be for you who pile up stolen goods! You get rich by cheating others. How long will this go on?”7Those you owe money to will suddenly rise up. They will wake up and make you tremble with fear. Then they will take away everything you have.8You have robbed many nations. So the nations that are left will rob you. You have spilled human blood. You have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.9‘How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They build their kingdom with money that they gained by cheating others. They have tried to make the kingdom as secure as possible. After all, they did not want to be destroyed.10They have planned to wipe out many nations. But they have brought shame on their own kingdom. So they must pay with their own lives.11The stones in the walls of their homes will cry out. And the wooden beams will echo that cry.12‘How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They build cities by spilling the blood of others. They establish towns by doing what is wrong.13I am the LORD who rules over all. Human effort is no better than wood that feeds a fire. So the nations wear themselves out for nothing.14The oceans are full of water. In the same way, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of my glory.15‘How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They give drinks to their neighbours. They pour the drinks from wineskins until their neighbours are drunk. They want to look at their naked bodies.16But the Babylonians will be filled with shame instead of glory. So now it is their turn to drink and be stripped of their clothes. The cup of anger in my powerful right hand is going to punish them. They will be covered with shame instead of glory.17The harm they have done to Lebanon will bring them down. Because they have killed so many animals, animals will terrify them. They have spilled human blood. They have destroyed lands and cities and everyone in them.18‘If someone carves a statue of a god, what is it worth? What value is there in a god that teaches lies? The one who trusts in this kind of god worships his own creation. He makes statues of gods that can’t speak.19How terrible it will be for the Babylonians! They say to a wooden god, “Come to life!” They say to a stone god, “Wake up!” Can those gods give advice? They are covered with gold and silver. They can’t even breathe.’20The LORD is in his holy temple. Let the whole earth be silent in front of him.