Habakkuk 2:13

The Bible says in Habakkuk 2:13-14, “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?[14] For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” Verse 14 is another great Bible verse that tells us about the wonderful future that the Lord has planned for this world. All the rest of Habakkuk chapter two as well as verse 13 quoted here make an emphasis on how sinful the people had become. Of course, sin has bad consequences to it. Sin will always make life worse and less enjoyable. Sin never works out. That is why it says in verse 13 that “the people shall labour in the very fire, and the people shall weary themselves for very vanity.” It is a hard way in life to go on in sin without turning to the Lord Jesus. Jesus said to Paul on the road to Damascus in Acts 9:5, “I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.” And so that is the story of the human race: sins and the consequences of the sin everywhere we look. But wait, there is coming a new age for this earth: an age of goodness and happiness, and an age when sin will not reign over mankind like it does now.

It says in verse 14, “For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” What is it in this millennial age of Christ that will make such a big difference: the knowledge of the Lord. The knowledge of the Lord will eventually be universal. Instead of just small groups of believers (the remnant) who know Him here and there on the earth, everyone will know Him from the least to the greatest. This knowledge of the Lord refers to knowing Jesus as Savior, and it also refers to the kind of spiritual and Biblical knowledge that comes when believers grow in the Lord through reading and studying the Bible and walking in fellowship with Jesus. What the world really needs is more of Jesus and more of the Bible. They run from the very things that would benefit them, give them happiness, and give them eternal life. But that is what darkness does. The point being made here in Habakkuk 2:14 is that the current circumstance in this world is temporary. Believers can look forward to the permanent circumstance that will become a reality when Jesus returns. Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “The meek shall inherit the earth.”

The Bible says in Habakkuk 2:15-19, “Woe 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![16] Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD's right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.[17] For the violence of Lebanon shall cover thee, and the spoil of beasts, which made them afraid, because of men's blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.[18] What 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?[19] Woe 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.” This group of verses lists several of the sins of the people. The first one has to do with the miss-use of alcoholic beverages. Verse 15 emphasizes the fact that it is such a great sin to give other to drink. Many people would have never started drinking if no one had ever offered them a drink. Notice that there was a devious reason given for one person giving another person an alcoholic drink. It says in verse 15 “that thou mayest look on their nakedness.” People are still handing out alcoholic drinks and drinks with drugs in them for that same purpose: to take advantage of someone when they are incapacitated. They will be punished for their sins. The sins listed in this passage are: drunkenness, nakedness, violence, and false religion. All of these sins are present today also in abundant quantities. That means that the same consequences experienced by the Israelites will be experienced by the whole world, and those consequences are expressed with one word: “Woe.” The reasons that this “woe” must come upon the earth is because of what it says in Habakkuk 2:20, “But the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.” Everyone must give answer to God, and God is holy.

The Bible says in Habakkuk 3:1-2, “A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet upon Shigionoth.[2] O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid: O LORD, revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.” The first thing that Habakkuk said in this prayer was, “O LORD, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid.” If you really understand God’s message, there should be a type of reverential fear of the holy God and His judgment against sin. That is true if you understand yourself and how sinful you are, and that is also true if you understand the people around you and how sinful they are. Add to that, living in a country or a culture where people continue on in spiritual darkness without turning to the Lord in repentance. Because God is holy, judgment must come. That is the message of all of the prophets of the Old Testament. That is also the message of the New Testament. How fortunate we are who know Jesus as Savior. The punishments that should fall on us fell on Jesus at the cross of Calvary. But Habakkuk was “afraid.” He knew that there were spiritual dangers and that there were consequences that must be faced.

In order to avoid the terrible consequences of sin and judgment, Habakkuk also prayed three things, “revive thy work in the midst of the years, in the midst of the years make known; in wrath remember mercy.” We need God to revive us often. To revive in this context means to re-animate. If we are not careful, our spiritual senses can get dull and we can get distracted by our busy lives in this world; and the next thing we know, we are not walking close to the Lord like we once were. When that happens, what do we need: revival. We need an energetic and determined turning of our hearts to the Lord, and we need to pray about this revival because we need the Lord’s help if this revival is to take place. That is why Habakkuk prayed “in the midst of the years make known.” This phrase “make known” refers to the enlightening work of the Holy Spirit. We all need to be awakened and enlightened to our spiritual need to be closer to Jesus and to be focused on Him and Him alone. This work of the heart only God’s Spirit can do. Only the Spirit convicts of sin, and only the Spirit touches the heart to look to Jesus.

Twice Habakkuk used the phrase “in the midst of the years.” That is because for many people that is exactly when they need a revival. Perhaps they went through their youth and young adulthood and survived the difficulties of life and served the Lord and made something out of themselves. The temptation for some in middle age is to rest on one’s laurels and to slide away from a former spiritual desire to serve the Lord. What is needed is a revival “in the midst of the years.” And of course, one ingredient that is always necessary if someone is going to turn to the Lord and get closer to Him: mercy. Habakkuk prayed, “in wrath remember mercy.” Thank God that He is merciful. Because of Jesus, we can count on His mercy. As a matter of fact, the mercy of God is the only reason that anyone is allowed to serve Him. It certainly is not because of our own goodness that we walk in fellowship with Him. It is because of His mercy. It says in First John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

The Bible says in Habakkuk 3:3-6, “God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise.[4] And his brightness was as the light; he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power.[5] Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet.[6] He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting.” These verses represent a vision that Habakkuk had of God. There are some important things about God that we are reminded of here. In verse three and the first part of verse four Habakkuk tells us about how God presented Himself to the children of Israel. This is probably a reference to Deuteronomy 33:1-2, “And this is the blessing, wherewith Moses the man of God blessed the children of Israel before his death.[2] And he said, The LORD came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them; he shined forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints: from his right hand went a fiery law for them.” This shining forth of God’s glory that He revealed to the Israelites was one of God’s ways of manifesting Himself to the children of Israel and letting them know Who He was, and letting them k now that was He was there with them in His power and glory to protect them and guide them and provide for them. Remember that everything in the physical world symbolizes some truth in the spiritual world. When you wake in the morning and see a brilliant, beautiful, multi-colored, and shining sunrise, it was probably designed to remind you of the glory and majesty of God. Jesus shines forth for His people every day. Jesus is the Light, and what a beautiful light He gives. It says in Habakkuk 3:3, “His glory covered the heavens.” It says in Habakkuk 3:4, “his brightness was as the light.” A God who has such great resplendent glory also has great power. It says in the last part of Habakkuk 3:4, “he had horns coming out of his hand: and there was the hiding of his power.” Horns in the Bible symbolize the strength of governmental authority. That is why the last human governmental leader, the antichrist, is called the “little horn.” The antichrist is little because of his small beginning, and he is little compared to Christ, but for a short time the antichrist will have some power on this earth. God’s power is not limited. Habakkuk sees God’s power manifested vis-a-vis what happens to the nations of the earth. The nations must answer to God, and if they go on for too many centuries without turning to Him, then His judgment will come. In the history of the world, what happened to the nations and why? What caused the rise and fall of all the nations throughout history? The answer to that is very clear. It says in Habakkuk 3:6, “he beheld, and drove asunder the nations.”

An interesting statement is made about God in the last phrase of Habakkuk 3:6. It says, “his ways are everlasting.” God always has eternity in view. That is one of the ways in which He is much different than we are. Something that is going to happen a million years from now is very important to God, and just as important as what is going to happen today. And some of the things that God is doing today are with an eye on eternity and how they will effect eternity. The infinite being has an infinite plan where every detail is being put into place both for its near-term effect and for its long range result. We do not see the long-range plan, but God does. That is one of the things going on behind the scenes for absolutely every incident in your life and in everyone’s life. That is why it says in Romans 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” When will we see these good things come to pass? I am sure that for some things we will have to wait until we are in heaven for the good result to be revealed to us. It will not always be in this life. Why is that: because Habakkuk told us about God, “his ways are everlasting.” Heaven is going to be wonderful. Finally, everything will be explained to us. It says in First Timothy 5:24-25, “Some men’s sins are open beforehand, going before to judgment; and some men they follow after. Likewise also the good works of some are manifest beforehand; and they that are otherwise cannot be hid.” Some things we are just not going to know until the hereafter, but God knows. God has a plan based upon eternity. Habakkuk said it so well, “his ways are everlasting.”

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