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Habakkuk

When Bad Things Happen to God's People


"Look at the nations and watch— and be utterly amazed.
For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told."
Habakkuk. 1:5

I. Introduction
Have you ever encountered this objection to believing in God − "How can you believe in a loving, all-powerful
God when there is so much evil and suffering in this world?"? That's a really good question - one that we can't
(or better not) toss out some flippant answer. We need to have this dilemma worked out in our own minds and
"Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you
have." I Peter 3:15 "Why doesn't God do something about evil?"

In the early 80's, a Rabbi named Harold S. Kushner ran smack-dab into this problem when facing his son's
terminal illness. While struggling through the issue, he wrote the best seller - "When Bad Things Happen to
Good People" Now, I can't say that I've read the book, but my understanding of Rabbi Kushner's answer is
something like: Either God is not really a loving God to allow suffering and evil OR He's not actually all-
powerful otherwise He would eradicate it. In Rabbi's Kushner's mind, you can't have it both ways. He opts for a
loving but limited God who isn't quite capable of controlling the problem. There must be a better answer than
that. Honestly, I won't guarantee that this study will provide a rock-solid answer to the problem. In fact, we
might end up with more questions than when we started. But, just maybe we'll get a better understand of what
are response should be.

Although, this is a very timely topic, it's not a new one. We certainly aren't the first generation to struggle with
the problem of evil. Habakkuk agonized over the very same thing many years ago. Like Obadiah, we don't have
a lot of info as to who this man, Habakkuk was. It's been speculated that he may have been a Levite serving in
the temple.

It seems that we can narrow down the time of his writing a little better than with Obadiah, however. Habakkuk
prophesizes the impending conquest of Judah by the Babylonians in 587 b.c., so the assumption is that he wrote
within a 25 year period before the fall of Jerusalem.

It's likely that Habakkuk was alive during the time of great revival during the reign of Josiah who was king of
Judah prior to the Babylonian conquest.

II Chron. 34:1-7, 29-32

1 Josiah was eight years old when he became king, and he reigned in Jerusalem thirty-one years. 2 He did what
was right in the eyes of the LORD and walked in the ways of his father David, not turning aside to the right or
to the left.
3 In the eighth year of his reign, while he was still young, he began to seek the God of his father David. In his
twelfth year he began to purge Judah and Jerusalem of high places, Asherah poles, carved idols and cast
images. 4 Under his direction the altars of the Baals were torn down; he cut to pieces the incense altars that
were above them, and smashed the Asherah poles, the idols and the images. These he broke to pieces and
scattered over the graves of those who had sacrificed to them. 5 He burned the bones of the priests on their
altars, and so he purged Judah and Jerusalem. 6 In the towns of Manasseh, Ephraim and Simeon, as far as
Naphtali, and in the ruins around them, 7 he tore down the altars and the Asherah poles and crushed the idols to
powder and cut to pieces all the incense altars throughout Israel. Then he went back to Jerusalem.
29 Then the king called together all the elders of Judah and Jerusalem. 30 He went up to the temple of the
LORD with the men of Judah, the people of Jerusalem, the priests and the Levites—all the people from the least
to the greatest. He read in their hearing all the words of the Book of the Covenant, which had been found in the
temple of the LORD. 31 The king stood by his pillar and renewed the covenant in the presence of the LORD -to
follow the LORD and keep his commands, regulations and decrees with all his heart and all his soul, and to
obey the words of the covenant written in this book.
32 Then he had everyone in Jerusalem and Benjamin pledge themselves to it; the people of Jerusalem did this in
accordance with the covenant of God, the God of their fathers.

But, the revival didn't last forever and 22 years later (if my math is correct) King Josiah was killed in battle and
soon Judah returned to her idolatrous ways. The people went back to worshipping idols and the nation sunk,
once again, into terrible corruption. this is the backdrop behind Habakkuk's prophesy.

The Strangeness of God's Ways


Habakkuk's Problem #1
Why Does God Allow Evil in the Land? 1:1-4

Habakkuk looks around him and sees nothing but corruption, injustice, violence, and destruction. And keep in
mind, he's not speaking about one of the surrounding pagan nations, but of those who consider themselves
God's people. He certainly know that these conditions aren't the way things are supposed to be; this isn't the
way God intended for His people to live. And so he cries out to God: "How long? How long will you let this go
unchecked? Why don't you do something?"

Ever feel like that? Ever look around you and see everything seemingly getting worse and worse - maybe
wondering what kind of world your children or grandchildren will live in - and ask God, "Why don't you do
something?" Why doesn't He do something about people who victimize our children? Why doesn't He save
those people I've been praying for, for years now? Why doesn't He heal our loved ones who are sick?

In many cases, it seems like God is inactive - sometimes it seems as though Thomas Jefferson had it right when
he said that God is like a watchmaker who builds the watch, winds it up and leaves it alone to wind down on it's
own.

Now Habakkuk didn't believe that. He knew that God was keenly involved with His people. He knew that God
would be willing to act - He just didn't know how or when. What do you think Habakkuk had in mind? Don't
you suppose he hoped that God would bring revival like he experienced under Josiah? But, let's see how God
answered him.
God's Answer #1 1:5-11

Wow! I don't think this is what Habakkuk expected at all! You think that God's inactivity is hard to understand,
just wait until He acts!

Habakkuk had it all planned out in his own mind. He thought he knew exactly what his people needed. Maybe a
little discipline, a little spanking - but mostly a good dose of revival. Then they'll turn back to God and
everything will be great. But, that wasn't God's plan.

God's plan was to raise up a ruthless, pagan nation who's ambition was nothing less than seizing for themselves
the entire known world. If Habakkuk knew this, I wonder if he would have even offered the prayer? Can you
imagine how he felt at that moment? We look at these events with the benefit of hindsight, so God's reply might
not seem so shocking to us. But try to imagine this: You've seen the hypocrisy, profiteering, rampant sin, and
heresy within the church in America. for some time, you've been fervently pleading with God to act. You hope
for a sweeping revival to hit the nation. finally, God speaks... and he tells you that He's answering your prayers
by raising up radical Islam to take over the church. These people who use car bombs and swords as their
method of evangelism! That's just how shocking God's revelation to Habakkuk was!

I think it's probably a fairly common experience that God answers our prayers in dramatic but unexpected
ways... sometimes so unexpected that we may not even recognize the answer. I'm real careful about telling God
to do 'whatever it takes.' You never know to what measures he'll go to, to accomplish the task.

John Newton once said that he prayed to experience God more, to know Him in a much deeper way. He
expected some amazing vision (maybe like Isaiah's vision of The Lord in His temple), some awesome blessing.
But, what he got was months of dark depression where God seemed a million miles away, where he felt
completely abandoned by God. That wasn't Newton's plan. But, God led him into the depths of suffering so that
Newton would learn to be totally dependent on Him. When the lesson was learned, only then did God bring him
up and bless him.

When you think about, though, isn't that the way God often works? We're hard headed. We usually don't learn a
lesson or drastically change our ways without some pain or hardship. Ever pray for patience? And what
happens... God encompasses you in a halo and suddenly you have supernatural patience, right? No. He puts
various maddening situations in your path, until you fall into bed exhausted from the trials of the day.
Eventually, we'll find ourselves conditioned to understand the lesson.

Habakkuk's Problem #2
Why Does God Use the Wicked to Punish The More Righteous? 1:12-2:1

So, Habakkuk is trying to understand God's answer. It certainly is a lot to digest. I like the way he starts out his
reply to God. "O LORD, are you not from everlasting? My God, my Holy One, we will not die." He's trying to
take in things that he can't really fathom, so he starts with something that he's fully convinced of. God is eternal.
He exists outside of history. In fact, He created history and certainly is in control of it. God will be around long
after the calamity is past. Whatever happens, you can be sure that God is in control and the ultimate outcome
will be good. Whenever life seems to be coming at us head on, when we feel overwhelmed with whatever is
going on in our lives or in history, it's good to just take a step back and say: "This I know, my God was there
before it started, He'll be there when it's over; He created it."
Another thing that Habakkuk reminds himself of: God is Holy. You can take that to the bank as well. We know
that God is perfect, He is righteous and so, therefore, are his actions.

But, what does he mean by "we will not die."? Doesn't he realize that when the Babylonians show up, it may be
a bloodbath? Did he not hear God say "they all come bent on violence. Their hordes advance like a desert wind
and gather prisoners like sand."? What does he mean "we will not die"?

Basically, he's saying that God is faithful. He understands that God made an everlasting covenant with His
people. The covenant made to Abraham and confirmed to Isaac and then to Jacob. Yes, there would be death
and destruction. Many Jews would die, but Habakkuk was convinced that the Babylonians would by no means
wipe his people off the face of the earth. God is faithful!

That's a good place to start when you're confused by events outside of your control. God is Eternal; He's never
moved by events - He controls them. God is Holy; His actions bring about good results. God is faithful; He
never reneges on a promise; He won't give up on His perfect plan.

Having reminded himself of all of that, he still has a problem. He's still perplexed. He in effect says, "Ok God,
I get it... Unrepentant sin brings Your wrath. Judah won't get away with it. You are going to judge us. - But, the
part I don't understand is how you can use the Babylonians as your instrument? I mean - haven't you noticed,
Lord. Those people are a lot worse than we've ever been?" And he's right. They certainly were.

The question is 'how can a holy God use an unholy instrument of judgment?' He says these ruthless people are
like fishermen. They just reach down & scoop up nations like fish in a net. Their brutality is a source of joy for
themselves. They worship their own strength and cruelty as a god! These are the kind of people that you're
going to use, God? Are you really going to allow that to happen... will that continue with your blessings? It was
like during the cold war when we could ask 'How is it that God allowed communism to run rampant in the
world? How could He let those atheists God-haters murder countless thousands of believers?' God, are you on
the throne, or not??

Do you think that Habakkuk is being insolent/disrespectful, here? Is it a case of the lump of clay having the
audacity to question the potter? I don't think so. These are some tough questions. I don't sense any arrogance in
his questions... especially in the light of how he started out this section.

In fact, now in verse 1 of chapt. 2, he says "I've asked my question and now I'm going to stand back and watch
and wait for God's answer" This tells me that he expects an answer. He waits for God to explain. Actually, the
last part of the verse in really interesting. NIV has it: "I will look to see what he will say to me, and what answer
I am to give to this complaint." But some other versions give it a very different twist NASB puts it "And I will
keep watch to see what He will speak to me, And how I may reply when I am reproved."

Do you get what he's saying? It's almost funny. He's saying 'Ok, I'm going to watch and wait for God's answer...
and try to think of my response when He tells me how dumb I am for not trusting Him.' Habakkuk knows that
God has an answer and that "God's ways are much higher than man's ways" Although he can't think for the life
of him what God's answer would be, he trusts that God knows what He's doing.
God's Answer #2 2:2-20

.God says "write it down, book it, it's going to happen... maybe not tomorrow, but it's sure to happen in it's own
time. But, what exactly is going to happen? Yes, the Babylonians are coming. They will ravage Judah. But,
that's not the end of the story. Book it - Babylon won't get away with a thing. Just because God will allow them
to conquer Israel doesn't mean that they are justified in what they do. They too will be judge.. and much more
harshly than is Judah. Habakkuk was right - that Babylon's sins are much worse than those of the Jews - and
they'll be judged accordingly.

No Babylon won't get away with it. And that's just the point - God's judgment of sin is certain - no matter who it
is. There maybe a question of "how" or "when" but there's absolutely no question of "if" judgment will come.
That's the answer that Habakkuk needed to hear. God was still a righteous God. He wasn't going to punish the
Jews and let the Babylonians do whatever they wanted. Sin is sin and the appropriate punishment WILL be
meted out. It doesn't matter who. That's a scary thing to contemplate, but it's also comforting in a strange way.
God's dealing with sin is sure. His justice is perfect. You can count on it, even when it seems like it's not
happening. God guarantees that justice is sure.

The wonderful thing about this passage isn't all of the verses that speak of judgment but did you notice that one
small phrase in verse 4? "the righteous will live by his faith." or as most of us have it memorized: "the just shall
live by faith." It's tucked in there, almost hidden amongst words of judgment. How does a believer live when
life seems to go haywire... when calamity strikes... when the rug is pulled out from under us? Live By Faith!
That can sound really trite. I don't mean 'put on a happy face and act like everything is peachy.' But, remember
where your faith lies. If you can trust God while the sun is shining, He's the same God in the midst of a
downpour. Remember that He is in control, He is holy and righteous, and He is faithful.

The lives of the righteous ones (the ones who are declared righteous by faith in Christ's sacrifice) are
characterized by their trust in God's character. That's the uniqueness of a Christian's life. Even when life is in
turmoil and everything seems to be falling apart - especially then - we live by faith. When we've lost all control,
we put our trust in the One who has all control, the One who is holy and faithful.
Praise The Lord, Anyhow! Chapt. 3

So, here we are - Habakkuk consults the Lord, thinking that his Jewish brothers are getting away with their
great corruption. He consults God to ask 'why doesn't He do something about it?" God answers and says that He
is, in fact, doing something. He's raising up the ruthless Babylonians to punish Judah. So, what doe Habakkuk
do now? What is his attitude now that he knows his country is about to be destroyed and his life and his family
is in danger? He offers a prayer of praise!

Praise God For Who He Is 3:2

He starts his prayer saying that he knows who God is and what He's done in the past. He stands in awe just
thinking about how God has moved in history for His people. So, do it again , Lord. You're the same as you
were in those days so, do an amazing work in our time just as you've done in the past. He then adds, "in wrath,
remember mercy."

This short verse is all he says in the way of petition. That's pretty amazing, really. Knowing what's coming for
him, his family, and his nation, I could think of plenty of things to ask God for. Yet, that's it- 1 out of 19 verses
is petition. And the petition is, in essence, "Lord, be who you are." Even when he's asking for something,
Habakkuk's prayer is God-focused. That's a sign of a great prayer!

Praise God For What He's Done 3:3-15

Now he switches gears. He conjures up sweeping imagery to paint a picture to describe God's glory. It's
imagery... it's poetry, so it's veiled but it's about God's wondrous actions in the Exodus. That was the defining
moment for the Jews. Even today when Jewish people rehearse God's goodness to their people, they look back
at the Exodus.

That's a good lesson for us. When we go through trials, as individuals or as a community, we should remind
ourselves and each other what God has done for us in the past... how He saved us, how He's delivered us in
times of distress, how He's met our needs in the past when we've been under pressure. For instance, I recall a
time a lot of years ago when I was pretty broke and an unexpected car repair bill came up. I had no idea how I'd
pay for it, but if I didn't have my car, I wouldn't be able to go to work. Well, just as unexpected as the repair
bill, was a check in the mail... I'd overpaid on an insurance policy several months earlier. The refund came just
the right time and was within a few dollars of being the exact amount that I needed to fix the car. God is good!
And I need to remember that the next time I wonder how I'll come up with the resources that I need.

Habakkuk's prayer of praise serves to remind himself that God has always been faithful throughout history. He's
never failed His people. He's always faithful and we can stand back amidst any problem that we face and say
without any doubt that He will be faithful now, as always. This situation is no exception.
Faith In The Midst Of Fear 3:16-19

I'm glad that Habakkuk didn't leave verse 16 out. I'm glad that he shows himself to be quite human. He
understands that God is in control and that He is faithful. He knows he's in good hands, but yet he admits that
he's scared. His heart was pounding, his lips quivered, his knees were knocking. He was scared. Who wouldn't
be? And yet he says "I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us." Fear and
patience seem to be polar opposites. I remember times when I was scared and I suppose I could come up with a
few times when I've been patient, but I don't know if they've ever occurred together. He's able to put the onus on
the Lord. It will all come full-circle when Babylon is in turn judged. And he's confident that God's got that
detail under control.

Verses 17 & 18 shows the depth of Habakkuk's faith. He says no matter how bad his circumstances could get,
even if all the food sources dry up and he had no idea what he could eat, his view of his Lord would not change.
He'd "praise God, Anyhow!"

Because It's God that gives him strength; It's God who causes him to stand sure-footed and confident no matter
how slippery the terrain; it's God that lifts him up.
The Reckoning
Words by Andrew Peterson
Music by Andrew Peterson and Andrew Osenga

I can see the storm descending on the hill tonight


Tall trees are bending to your will tonight
Let the mighty bow down
At the thundering sound of your voice
I can hear the howling wind and feel the rain tonight
Every drop a prophet in your name tonight
And the words that they sing
They are washing me clean, but
How long until this curtain is lifted?
How long is this the song that we sing?
How long until the reckoning?
And I know you hear the cries of every soul tonight
You see the teardrops as they roll tonight
Down the faces of saints
Who grow weary and faint in your fields
And the wicked roam the cities and the streets tonight
But when the God of love and thunder speaks tonight
I believe You will come
Your justice be done, but
How long until this curtain is lifted?
How long is this the song that we sing?
How long until the reckoning?
You are holiness and grace
You are fury and rest
You are anger and love
You curse and you bless
You are mighty and weak
You are silence and song
You are plain as the day,
But you have hidden your face—
For how long? How long?
And I am standing in the silence of the reckoning
The storm is past and rest is beckoning
Mighty God, how I fear you
How I long to be near you, O Lord
How long until this curtain is lifted?
How long is this the song that we sing?
How long until the reckoning?
And I know that I don’t know what I’m asking
But I long to look you full in the face
I am ready for the reckoning

to hear this song online go to: http://shar.es/m41Gi


(be sure to type carefully - it's case sensitive)

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