In Habakkuk 1:1–11, the prophet Habakkuk lamented the evil ways of his people and asked God what he was going to do about their sin and injustice. God answered by disclosing his plans to send the even more evil Babylonians to execute justice.

“Picture Habakkuk there, listening with increasing horror at what God had just told him. I imagine there was a rather long silence between verses 1:11 and 1:12, as Habakkuk digested what God had said to him and let the shock sink in.”¹

Christopher J. H. Wright

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Habakkuk’s Response—Acceptance and Trust

I find it amazing (and comforting) that Habakkuk’s first response is an affirmation of trust and acceptance of God’s confounding ways.

LORD, are you not from everlasting?
My God, my Holy One, you will never die.
You, LORD, have appointed them to execute judgment;
you, my Rock, have ordained them to punish. (1:12)

First Habakkuk addresses God as LORD.³ This is literally YHWH in Hebrew, but we pronounce it as “Yahweh” (and the Jews say “Jehovah”). Jean Wilund says it “speaks to God’s covenant love for His people. This is the name God used for himself to remind His people that He wants to be in relationship with them.”⁴

God also said to Moses, “I am the LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself fully known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, where they resided as foreigners. (Ex 6:2–4)

Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness." (Ex 34:5–6)

Next Habakkuk gets personal. Habakkuk calls God my Elohim—”My supreme and sovereign God—the all-sufficient and uncreated Creator. Nothing exists outside His control. He has no needs.”⁵ He is everlasting so will never die.

Do you not know? Have you not heard? The LORD [YHWH] is the everlasting God [Elohim], the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. (Isa 40:28)

Not only is Habakkuk speaking to his personal “covenant-keeping supreme Creator God, ruler over all” (Yahweh Elohim), he’s talking to “my Holy One.” This means God is separate, apart, and sacred. Holy (qadosh) “first and foremost describes the very essence of God. His holiness is unrivaled, awe-inspiring, morally flawless and eternally constant. This holiness radiates moral perfection and utter set-apartness, demanding reverence from all creation.”⁶

Who among the gods is like you, LORD? Who is like you—majestic in holiness awesome in glory, working wonders? (Ex 15:11)

Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory. (Isa 6:3)

Finally Habakkuk addresses “my Rock“—cliff or high protector. According to Bible Hub, this “portrays God as immovable strength, covenantal refuge, righteous Judge, prophetic cornerstone, and life-giving Savior…each [reference] reinforcing that ultimate security rests not in the stone itself, but in the living LORD, who is the rock.”⁷ Moses used this same title for God and the apostle Paul revealed that Jesus also is the rock:

He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he. (Deut 32:4)

For their rock is not like our Rock, as even our enemies concede. (Deut 32:31)

They drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (1 Cor 10:4)

Thus, Habakkuk affirms God’s character. As his personal, loving, supreme, holy, and saving God, Habakkuk can trust his means of executing justice.⁸

For all the years I’ve studied God’s name, Yahweh, I only this time made the connection to his love thanks to author, Jean Wilund. God wanted to be in covenant relationship with us because he loves us. He established Abraham’s covenant centuries ago so that I (and so many others) could know his love.

Who is God to you? Which of his attributes bolsters your trust in his ability to execute justice?

Habakkuk’s Repeat Question—Why?

But questions pop up again. Habakkuk wants to know why God’s using something more evil to bring justice? I don’t think Habakkuk is doubting God or demanding God answer him, but rather imploring God to explain because it doesn’t jibe with the character of God he just affirmed:

Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
you cannot tolerate wrongdoing.
Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?
Why are you silent while the wicked
swallow up those more righteous than themselves? (1:13)

I can hear Habakkuk: “It’s bad enough that you make me look at the injustice of my countrymen (Hab 1:3). So why are you tolerating Babylon’s evil? Why are you using them to punish your people? And why don’t you say something when those who are more evil destroy those who are better than they are? This isn’t like you!”

I get it. After all, the psalmist tells us:

For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness; with you, evil people are not welcome. The arrogant cannot stand in your presence. You hate all who do wrong; you destroy those who tell lies. The bloodthirsty and deceitful you, LORD, detest. (Ps 5:4–6)

And even though Habakkuk admitted that his own people obstructed justice and oppressed the righteous (see Hab 1:2–4), the Babylonians were far worse. Habakkuk rated their sin like we also tend to do. We sometimes think, “At least I’m not as bad as they are. This leader may be corrupt, but he’s not as corrupt as the other guy.” In recognizing the extreme faults of another, we minimize or excuse faults of those we identify with. In reality:

The LORD looks down from heaven on all mankind to see if there are any who understand, any who seek God. All have turned away, all have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one. (Ps 14:2–3, Rom 3:10–12)

The apostle Paul challenges me, “You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge another, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. Now we know that God’s judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere human being, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God’s judgment?” (Rom 2:1–3).

How might you minimize sin because someone else’s is worse? If so, what might you miscalculate about God at work in your circumstances?

Babylon’s Treachery—Worship of Power

Are we only fish to be caught and killed? 
Are we only sea creatures that have no leader?
Must we be strung up on their hooks and caught in their nets while they rejoice and celebrate?
Then they will worship their nets and burn incense in front of them.
“These nets are the gods who have made us rich!” they will claim.
Will you let them get away with this forever?
    Will they succeed forever in their heartless conquests? (1:14–17 NLT)

The Babylonians were especially cruel. Jean Wilund explains, “Fishing was a major industry in Babylon. Artwork found on ancient Near Eastern walls shows conquering rulers and deities dragging prisoners off in nets like fish. They drove fishhooks through the lower lips of their prisoners and marched them to Babylon by ropes strung through the eyehooks.”⁹ But primarily, “Babylon worshiped their strength, success, and the treasures they plundered from those they crushed. They made sacrifices and offerings to the tools of their trade, as if these cruel instruments had divinely decreed their success.”¹⁰

Habakkuk’s observation and complaint is still valid today. The wicked get rich and enjoy luxuries at the expense of those they conquer and destroy. Nations continue to worship their military power. We too wonder if they will get away with it forever.

JoAnn Hummel offers counsel:

Habakkuk misunderstands the actions of God’s justice because the agents of God’s judgment are wicked. However, judgment on Judah doesn’t mean approval of Babylon. Habakkuk does not receive tidy answers to his questions, but instead he receives a clearer view of God.¹¹

JoAnn Hummel

I am comforted by this reminder that God may choose to use an ungodly person for his purposes, but this doesn’t mean he endorses their deceit, manipulation, lying, and corruption. Habakkuk’s conversation with God and his journey toward understanding is not over. Babylon will not triumph forever as we will see. Stay tuned.

How has your struggle led to a clearer view of God?

PRAYER

Lord, I know that you are sovereign, good, and holy in all your ways. You cannot do evil. You are just and merciful. Your love and grace abound. Your wisdom is unfailing. You see the end from the beginning and cause all things to conspire together for the good of your children. I can trust you, but I don’t trust my ability to properly understand or interpret everything I see. Please give me a clearer view of you.¹²

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1. Christopher J. H. Wright, Hearing the Message of Habakkuk, p. 28 ↩︎
2. Some Bible translations use a later source text and translate this as “we” referring to Habakkuk and his people. Both interpretations can be right. ↩︎
3. In most translations, YHWH is written in all caps as LORD. ↩︎
4. Jean Wilund, Embracing Joy, pg 44. ↩︎
5. Wilund, pg 88. ↩︎
6. https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6918.htm ↩︎
7. https://biblehub.com/hebrew/6697.htm ↩︎
8. Judgment in Hebrew is mishpat and is the same word as justice. ↩︎
9. Wilund, pg 105–106. ↩︎
10. Wilund, pg 105. ↩︎
11. From JoAnn Hummel’s message, September 22, 2026, TMBS, Bent Tree Bible Fellowship, Carrollton, TX. ↩︎
12. Adapted from Wilund, pg 102. ↩︎