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Habakkuk Declares His Confidence

16 I listened and my stomach churned;[a]
the sound made my lips quiver.
My frame went limp, as if my bones were decaying,[b]
and I shook as I tried to walk.[c]
I long[d] for the day of distress
to come upon[e] the people who attack us.
17 When[f] the fig tree does not bud,
and there are no grapes on the vines;
when the olive trees do not produce[g]
and the fields yield no crops;[h]
when the sheep disappear[i] from the pen
and there are no cattle in the stalls—
18 I will rejoice because of[j] the Lord;
I will be happy because of the God who delivers me!
19 The Sovereign Lord is my source of strength.[k]
He gives me the agility of a deer;[l]
he enables me to negotiate the rugged terrain.[m]

(This prayer is for the song leader. It is to be accompanied by stringed instruments.)[n]

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Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 3:16 tn Heb “my insides trembled.”
  2. Habakkuk 3:16 tn Heb “decay entered my bones.”
  3. Habakkuk 3:16 tc Heb “beneath me I shook, which….” The Hebrew term אֲשֶׁר (’asher) appears to be a relative pronoun, but a relative pronoun does not fit here. The translation assumes a reading אֲשֻׁרָי (’ashuray, “my steps”) as well as an emendation of the preceding verb to a third plural form.
  4. Habakkuk 3:16 tn The translation assumes that אָנוּחַ (’anuakh) is from the otherwise unattested verb נָוָח (navakh, “sigh”; see HALOT 680 s.v. II נוח; so also NEB). Most take this verb as נוּחַ (nuakh, “to rest”) and translate, “I wait patiently” (cf. NIV).
  5. Habakkuk 3:16 tn Heb “to come up toward.”
  6. Habakkuk 3:17 tn Or “though.”
  7. Habakkuk 3:17 tn Heb “the produce of the olive disappoints.”
  8. Habakkuk 3:17 tn Heb “food.”
  9. Habakkuk 3:17 tn Or “are cut off.”
  10. Habakkuk 3:18 tn Or “in.”
  11. Habakkuk 3:19 tn Or perhaps, “is my wall,” that is, “my protector.”
  12. Habakkuk 3:19 tn Heb “he makes my feet like those of deer.”
  13. Habakkuk 3:19 tn Heb “he makes me walk on my high places.” sn Difficult times are coming, but Habakkuk is confident the Lord will sustain him. Habakkuk will be able to survive, just as the deer negotiates the difficult rugged terrain of the high places without injury.
  14. Habakkuk 3:19 tn Heb “For the leader, on my stringed instruments.”

16 I heard and my heart pounded,
    my lips quivered at the sound;
decay crept into my bones,
    and my legs trembled.(A)
Yet I will wait patiently(B) for the day of calamity
    to come on the nation invading us.
17 Though the fig tree does not bud
    and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
    and the fields produce no food,(C)
though there are no sheep in the pen
    and no cattle in the stalls,(D)
18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord,(E)
    I will be joyful in God my Savior.(F)

19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength;(G)
    he makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
    he enables me to tread on the heights.(H)

For the director of music. On my stringed instruments.

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