חבקוק 1

1 המשא אשר חזה חבקוק הנביא

[I am] Habakkuk, a prophet. This is the [message that Yahweh] gave to me in a vision.

2 עד אנה יהוה שועתי ולא תשמע אזעק אליך חמס ולא תושיע

[I said, ] “Yahweh, how long must I continue to call [to you] for help before you respond? I cry out to you [for help], saying that [people are acting] violently [everywhere], but you do not rescue us!

3 למה תראני און ועמל תביט ושד וחמס לנגדי ויהי ריב ומדון ישא

(Must I/I do not want to) continue seeing people doing what is unjust [RHQ]. Why do you not punish people who are doing what is wrong [RHQ]? I see people destroying things and [acting] violently. There is fighting and quarreling [everywhere].

4 על כן תפוג תורה ולא יצא לנצח משפט כי רשע מכתיר את הצדיק על כן יצא משפט מעקל

No one obeys laws [PRS], and judges [PRS] never do what is fair/just. Wicked people always defeat righteous people [in the courts], with the result that matters are never decided fairly/justly.”

5 ראו בגוים והביטו והתמהו תמהו כי פעל פעל בימיכם לא תאמינו כי יספר

[Yahweh replied to me, ] “[I know that what you say is true, but] look around at [what is happening in] the other nations; [if you look, ] you will be amazed, because I am doing something during this time that you would not believe [would happen], even if someone told you about it.

6 כי הנני מקים את הכשדים הגוי המר והנמהר ההולך למרחבי ארץ לרשת משכנות לא לו

The soldiers of Babylonia are fierce/cruel and swift. And now I am causing them [to become very powerful]; they will march across the world and conquer [many] other countries.

7 אים ונורא הוא ממנו משפטו ושאתו יצא

They are people whom [others] fear very much [DOU], and they do whatever they want to, paying no attention to the laws of other countries.

8 וקלו מנמרים סוסיו וחדו מזאבי ערב ופשו פרשיו ופרשיו מרחוק יבאו--יעפו כנשר חש לאכול

The horses [that pull their chariots] go faster than leopards, and they are fiercer than wolves are in the evening. The horses on which the soldiers ride gallop swiftly; the soldiers riding them come from distant places. They are like [SIM] eagles that swoop down to [snatch and] kill small animals.

9 כלה לחמס יבוא מגמת פניהם קדימה ויאסף כחול שבי

As they ride along, [they are] determined to act violently. They advance like [SIM] a wind from the desert, gathering prisoners that are as [numerous as grains of] sand.

10 והוא במלכים יתקלס ורזנים משחק לו הוא לכל מבצר ישחק ויצבר עפר וילכדה

They make fun of kings and princes [of other countries], and they ridicule all the cities that have high walls around them. They pile dirt [outside those walls] [in order to climb up] and capture those cities.

11 אז חלף רוח ויעבר ואשם זו כחו לאלהו

They rush past like the wind, and then they go [to attack other cities]. But they are very guilty, because [they think that] their own power is their god.”

12 הלוא אתה מקדם יהוה אלהי קדשי--לא נמות יהוה למשפט שמתו וצור להוכיח יסדתו

[Then I said, ] “Yahweh, you have certainly [RHQ] always/forever been God. You are my Holy One; you will not die. So [why] have you appointed those men [from Babylonia] to judge and get rid of [us]? You are like [MET] a huge rock [under which we are protected/safe], so why have you sent them to punish us?

13 טהור עינים מראות רע והביט אל עמל לא תוכל למה תביט בוגדים--תחריש בבלע רשע צדיק ממנו

You [SYN] are pure, and you cannot endure looking at what is evil, [so why] are you ignoring men who are treacherous? Why do you do nothing [to punish] those wicked men [from Babylonia] who destroy people who are more righteous than they [are]?

14 ותעשה אדם כדגי הים--כרמש לא משל בו

[Do you consider that] we are like fish in the sea, or like other creatures in the sea, that have no ruler?

15 כלה בחכה העלה--יגרהו בחרמו ויאספהו במכמרתו על כן ישמח ויגיל

[The soldiers of Babylonia think that we are fish] [RHQ] for them to pull out of the sea with hooks or to catch in their nets, while they rejoice and celebrate.

16 על כן יזבח לחרמו ויקטר למכמרתו כי בהמה שמן חלקו ומאכלו בראה

If they catch us, they will [worship] their weapons [MET] with which they captured us, and offer sacrifices to them and burn incense in front of them! [They will say] ‘Those weapons have enabled us to become rich and be able to eat expensive food.’

17 העל כן יריק חרמו ותמיד להרג גוים לא יחמול

[Will you allow] them to continue [to conquer people] [MET] forever? [Will you allow] them to destroy people of other nations without their being merciful [to anyone]?”