Habakkuk 1

1 The burden that Habakkuk the prophet has seen:

The burden that Habakkuk the prophet saw.

2 Until when, O YHWH, have I cried, And You do not hear? I cry to You, “Violence!” And You do not save.

How long, O Lord, shall I cry out, and you will not heed? Shall I shout to you while suffering violence, and you will not save?

3 Why do You show me iniquity, And cause [me] to behold perversity? And spoiling and violence [are] before me, And there is strife, and contention lifts [itself] up,

Why have you revealed to me iniquity and hardship, to see plunder and injustice opposite me? And there has been judgment, but the opposition is more powerful.

4 Therefore law ceases, And judgment does not go forth forever, For the wicked is surrounding the righteous, Therefore wrong judgment goes forth.

Because of this, the law has been torn apart, and judgment does not persevere to its conclusion. For the impious prevail against the just. Because of this, a perverse judgment is issued.

5 “Look on nations, and behold and marvel greatly. For a work He is working in your days, You do not believe though it is declared.

Gaze among the nations, and see. Admire, and be astounded. For a work has been done in your days, which no one will believe when it is told.

6 For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, The bitter and hasty nation, That is going to the broad places of earth, To occupy dwelling places not his own.

For behold, I will raise up the Chaldeans, a bitter and swift people, marching across the width of the earth, to possess tabernacles not their own.

7 He [is] terrible and fearful, His judgment and his excellence go forth from him.

It is dreadful and terrible. From themselves, judgment and their burden will issue.

8 His horses have been swifter than leopards, And sharper than evening wolves, And his horsemen have increased, Even his horsemen from afar come in, They fly as an eagle, hastening to consume.

Their horses are more nimble than leopards and swifter than wolves in the evening; their horsemen will spread out. And then their horsemen will approach from far away; they will fly like the eagle, hurrying to devour.

9 All for violence—he comes in, Their faces swallowing up the east wind, And he gathers a captivity as the sand.

They will all approach towards the prey; their face is like a burning wind. And they will gather captives together like sand.

10 And he scoffs at kings, And princes [are] a laughter to him, He laughs at every fortification, And he heaps up dust, and captures it.

And concerning kings, he will triumph, and sovereign rulers will be his laughingstock, and he will laugh over every fortress, and he will transport a rampart and seize it.

11 Then the spirit has passed on, Indeed, he transgresses, And [ascribes] this—his power—to his god.”

Then his spirit will be altered, and he will cross over and fall. Such is his strength from his god.

12 Are You not of old, O YHWH, my God, my Holy One? We do not die, O YHWH, You have appointed him for judgment, And, O Rock, You have founded him for reproof.

Have you not existed from the beginning, Lord my God, my holy one, and so we shall not die? Lord, you have stationed him for judgment, and you have established that his strength will be swept away.

13 Purer of eyes than to behold evil, You are not able to look on perverseness, Why do You behold the treacherous? You keep silent when the wicked Swallow the more righteous than he,

Your eyes are pure, you do not behold evil, and you cannot look towards iniquity. Why do you look upon the agents of iniquity, and remain silent, while the impious is devouring one who is more just than himself?

14 And You make man as fishes of the sea, As a creeping thing [with] none ruling over him.

And you will make men like the fish of the sea and like the creeping things that have no ruler.

15 He has brought up each of them with a hook, He catches it in his net, and gathers it in his dragnet, Therefore he delights and rejoices.

He lifted up everything with his hook. He drew them in with his dragnet, and gathered them into his netting. Over this, he will rejoice and exult.

16 Therefore he sacrifices to his net, And makes incense to his dragnet, For by them [is] his portion fertile, and his food fat.

For this reason, he will offer victims to his dragnet, and he will sacrifice to his netting. For through them, his portion has been made fat, and his meals elite.

17 Does he therefore empty his net, And continually not spare to slay nations?

Because of this, therefore, he expands his dragnet and will not be lenient in continually putting to death the peoples.