Habakkuk's Prayer

A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, according to Shigionoth.

O Lord, (A)I have heard the report of you,
    and (B)your work, O Lord, do I fear.
In the midst of the years (C)revive it;
    in the midst of the years make it known;
    (D)in wrath remember mercy.
God came from (E)Teman,
    (F)and the Holy One from Mount Paran. Selah
His splendor covered the heavens,
    and the earth was full of his praise.
(G)His brightness was like the light;
    rays flashed from his hand;
    and there he veiled his power.
(H)Before him went pestilence,
    and plague followed (I)at his heels.[a]
He stood (J)and measured the earth;
    he looked and shook the nations;
then the (K)eternal mountains (L)were scattered;
    the everlasting hills sank low.
    His were (M)the everlasting ways.
I saw the tents of (N)Cushan in affliction;
    (O)the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.
(P)Was your wrath against the rivers, O Lord?
    Was your anger against the rivers,
    (Q)or your indignation against the sea,
(R)when you rode on your horses,
    (S)on your chariot of salvation?
You stripped the sheath from your bow,
    calling for many arrows.[b] Selah
    (T)You split the earth with rivers.
10 (U)The mountains saw you and writhed;
    the raging waters swept on;
(V)the deep gave forth its voice;
    (W)it lifted its hands on high.
11 (X)The sun and moon stood still in their place
    (Y)at the light of your arrows as they sped,
    at the flash of your glittering spear.
12 (Z)You marched through the earth in fury;
    (AA)you threshed the nations in anger.
13 (AB)You went out for the salvation of your people,
    for the salvation of (AC)your anointed.
(AD)You crushed the head of the house of the wicked,
    laying him bare from thigh to neck.[c] Selah
14 You pierced with his own arrows the heads of his warriors,
    who came like a whirlwind to scatter me,
    rejoicing as if to devour the poor in secret.
15 (AE)You trampled the sea with your horses,
    the surging of mighty waters.

16 (AF)I hear, and (AG)my body trembles;
    my lips quiver at the sound;
(AH)rottenness enters into my bones;
    my legs tremble beneath me.
Yet (AI)I will quietly wait for the day of trouble
    to come upon people who invade us.

Habakkuk Rejoices in the Lord

17 Though the fig tree should not blossom,
    nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
    and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
    and there be no herd in the stalls,
18 (AJ)yet I will rejoice in the Lord;
    (AK)I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
19 God, the Lord, is my strength;
    (AL)he makes my feet like the deer's;
    he makes me (AM)tread on my (AN)high places.

(AO)To the choirmaster: with (AP)stringed[d] instruments.

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Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 3:5 Hebrew feet
  2. Habakkuk 3:9 The meaning of the Hebrew line is uncertain
  3. Habakkuk 3:13 The meaning of the Hebrew line is uncertain
  4. Habakkuk 3:19 Hebrew my stringed

Habakkuk’s Prayer of Faith

A prayer by the prophet Habakkuk, set to music.[a]

Lord, as I listen to what has been said about you,
    I am afraid.
Lord, revive your work throughout all of our lives—
    reveal yourself[b] throughout all of our lives—
when you[c] are angry,
    remember compassion.

God comes from Teman[d]
    the Holy One from Mount Paran.[e]
Interlude
His glory spreads throughout the heavens,
    and praises about him fill the earth.
His radiance is like sunlight;
    beams of light shine[f] from his hand,
        where his strength lays hidden.
Before him pestilence walks,
    and disease follows behind him.[g]

He stood up and shook the land;
    with his stare he startled the nations.
The age-old mountains were shattered,
    and the ancient hilltops bowed down.

His ways are eternal.

I saw the tents of Cushan in distress,
    and the tent curtains of the land of Midian in anguish.
Was the Lord displeased with the rivers?
    Was your anger directed[h] against the watercourses
        or your wrath against the sea?
Indeed, you rode upon your horses,
    upon your chariots of deliverance.
Your bow was exposed,
    and your[i] arrows targeted by command.
Interlude
        You split the earth with rivers.
10 When the mountains looked upon you, they trembled;
    the overflowing water passed by,
the ocean shouted,
    and its waves[j] surged upward.
11 The sun and moon stand still in their orbits;
    at the glint of your arrows they speed along,
        even at the gleam of your flashing spear.
12 You march through the land in righteous[k] indignation;
    you tread down the nations in anger.
13 You marched out to deliver your people,
    to deliver with your anointed.
You struck the head of the house of the wicked;
    you stripped him naked from head to foot.
Interlude

14 With his own lances you pierced the heads of his warriors,
    who came out like a windstorm to scatter us[l]
        their joy is to devour the afflicted who are in hiding.
15 You rode on the sea with your horses,
    even riding[m] the crested waves of mighty waters.

Habakkuk’s Response

16 I heard and I trembled within.
    My lips quivered at the noise.
My legs gave way beneath me,[n]
    and I trembled.

Nevertheless, I await the day of distress
    that will dawn on our invaders.

17 Even though the fig tree does not blossom,
    and there are no grapes on the vines;
even if the olive harvest fails,
    and the fields produce nothing edible;
even if the flock is snatched from the sheepfold,
    and there is no herd in the stalls—
18 as for me, I will rejoice in the Lord.
    I will find my joy in the God who delivers me.
19 The Lord God is my strength—
    he will make my feet like those of a deer,
        equipping me to tread on my mountain heights.

For the choir director:

On my stringed instruments.

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Footnotes

  1. Habakkuk 3:1 Lit. prayer upon Shigionoth
  2. Habakkuk 3:2 The Heb. lacks yourself
  3. Habakkuk 3:2 The Heb. lacks you
  4. Habakkuk 3:3 I.e. an Edomite desert town
  5. Habakkuk 3:3 I.e. in the Sinai desert
  6. Habakkuk 3:4 The Heb. lacks shine
  7. Habakkuk 3:5 Lit. follows at his feet
  8. Habakkuk 3:8 The Heb. lacks directed
  9. Habakkuk 3:9 The Heb. lacks your
  10. Habakkuk 3:10 Lit. hands
  11. Habakkuk 3:12 The Heb. lacks righteous
  12. Habakkuk 3:14 Lit. me
  13. Habakkuk 3:15 The Heb. lacks even riding
  14. Habakkuk 3:16 Lit. Rottenness enters my bones