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Chaldeans Used to Punish Judah

The ¹^aoracle (a burdensome message—a pronouncement from God) which Habakkuk the prophet saw.

2 O LORD, ^ahow long will I call for helpAnd You will not hear?I cry out to You, “Violence!”Yet You do ^bnot save.3 Why do You ^amake me see iniquity,And cause me to look on wickedness?For ^bdestruction and violence are before me;^cStrife continues and contention arises.4 Therefore, the ^alaw is ineffective and ignoredAnd justice is never upheld,For the wicked ^bsurround the righteous;Therefore, justice becomes ^cperverted.

5 The LORD replied, “^aLook among the nations! See!Be astonished! ^bWonder!For I am doing ^csomething in your days—You would not believe it if you were told. Acts 13:40, 416 “For behold, I am ^araising up the ¹Chaldeans who rule in ²Babylon,That fierce and impetuous nationWho march throughout the earthTo ^btake possession of dwelling places that do not belong to them. 2+@Kin 24:27 “The Chaldeans are dreaded and ^afeared;Their ^bjustice and authority originate with themselves and are defined only by their decree.8 “Their ^ahorses are swifter than leopardsAnd keener than hungry ^bwolves in the evening,Their horsemen come galloping,Their horsemen come from far away;They fly like an ^ceagle swooping down to devour.9 “They all come for violence;Their horde of ^afaces moves eagerly forward,They gather prisoners like sand.10 “They ^amake fun of kingsAnd rulers are a laughing matter to them.They ^bridicule every strongholdAnd ^cheap up rubble for earth mounds and capture it.11 “Then they will sweep by like the ^awind and pass on.But they will be held ^bguilty,They and all men whose own ^cpower and strength is their god.”

12 Are You not from ^aeverlasting,O LORD, my God, My Holy One?We will not die.O LORD, You have ^bappointed the Chaldeans who rule in Babylon to execute Your judgment,And You, ^cO Rock, have established them to correct and chastise. Deut 32:413 Your eyes are too ^apure to approve evil,And You cannot look favorably on wickedness.Why then do You ^blook favorablyOn those who act ^ctreacherously?Why are you ^dsilent when the wicked (Chaldean oppressors) ^edestroyThose more righteous than they?14 Why do You make men like the fish of the sea,Like reptiles and creeping things that have no ruler and are helpless against their enemies?15 The Chaldeans ^abring all of them up with a hook,And ^bdrag them away with a net,And gather them together in their fishing net;So they rejoice and are glad.16 Therefore, they offer sacrifices to their netAnd burn incense to their fishing net;Because through ^athese things their catch is large and they live luxuriously,And their food is plentiful.17 Will they continue to empty their ^anetAnd mercilessly go on ^bdestroying nations without sparing?

Chaldeans Used to Punish Judah

The ^apronouncement which Habakkuk the prophet saw:

2 ^aHow long, LORD, have I called for help,And You do not hear?I cry out to You, “Violence!”Yet You do ^bnot save.3 Why do You make me ^asee disaster,And make me look at destitution?Yes, ^bdevastation and violence are before me;^cStrife exists and contention arises.4 Therefore the ^aLaw ¹is ignored,And justice ²is never upheld.For the wicked ^bsurround the righteous;Therefore justice comes out ^cconfused.

5 “^aLook among the nations! Watch!Be horrified! ^bBe frightened speechless!For I am accomplishing ^ca work in your days—You would not believe it even if ¹you were told!6 “For behold, I am ^araising up the Chaldeans,That ¹grim and impetuous peopleWho march ²throughout the earth,To ^btake possession of dwelling places that are not theirs.7 “They are terrifying and ^afeared;Their ^bjustice and ¹authority ²originate with themselves.8 “Their ^ahorses are faster than leopards,And quicker than ^bwolves in the evening.Their ¹horsemen charge along,Their ²horsemen come from afar;They fly like an ^ceagle ³swooping down to devour.9 “All of them come for violence.¹Their horde of ^afaces moves forward.They gather captives like sand.10 “They ^amake fun of kings,And dignitaries are an object of laughter to them.They ^blaugh at every fortress,Then ^cheap up dirt and ¹capture it.11 “Then they fly along like the ^awind and pass on.But they will be held ^bguilty,They whose ^cstrength is their god.”

12 Are You not from ^atime everlasting,LORD, my God, my Holy One?We will not die.You, LORD, have ^bappointed them to deliver judgment;And You, O ^cRock, have destined them to punish.13 Your eyes are too ^apure to look at evil,And You cannot look at harm favorably.Why do You ^blook favorablyAt those who deal ^ctreacherously?Why are You ^dsilent when the wicked ^eswallow upThose more righteous than they?14 Why have You made people like the fish of the sea,Like crawling things that have no ruler over them?15 The Chaldeans ^abring all of them up with a hook,^bDrag them away with their net,And gather them together in their fishing net.Therefore they rejoice and are joyful.16 Therefore they offer a sacrifice to their netAnd ¹burn incense to their fishing net,Because through ^athese things their ²catch is ³large,And their food is ⁴plentiful.17 Will they therefore empty their ^anet,And continually ^bslay nations without sparing?