The second chapter of Habakkuk starts by telling us that Habakkuk was going to stand at his watchpost, stationed on the tower, waiting for an answer from God.
Could this be a hint as to Habakkuk’s job when he was not being a prophet? Maybe he was a watchman, in a country watchtower or on the walls of Jerusalem. Or maybe he is trying to make a link to Isaiah 62:6-7, where God speaks of watchmen looking out for Jerusalem.
“On your walls, O Jerusalem,
I have set watchmen;
all the day and all the night
they shall never be silent.
You who put the Lord in remembrance,
take no rest,
and give him no rest
until he establishes Jerusalem
and makes it a praise in the earth.”
Isaiah 62:6-7
Whatever the fine detail may mean, the overall meaning is clear: Habakkuk has put his complaint before God, and he will wait for God’s answer.
It sounds as if he is expecting to be reproved.
Jeremiah, another prophet from the same time, had a very similar complaint:
“Righteous are you, O Lord,
when I complain to you;
yet I would plead my case before you.
Why does the way of the wicked prosper?
Why do all who are treacherous thrive?
You plant them, and they take root;
they grow and produce fruit;
you are near in their mouth
and far from their heart.”
Jeremiah 12:1-2
David wrote similar complaints too, and many, if not all, of us will have felt the same. We all see evil people seeming to do well and wonder why.
When God answers Habakkuk, the first instruction is that he must write down the vision. Habakkuk’s private question had become public property – we can still ponder over it today. Thankfully, God’s answer is included as well, but if you expect it to be a simple explanation, think again!
Various people ask this question in the Bible, and God consistently answers: “Wait!”
It will come.
Just wait.
To Habakkuk, God said:
“For still the vision awaits its appointed time;
it hastens to the end—it will not lie.
If it seems slow, wait for it;
it will surely come; it will not delay.”
Habakkuk 2:3
I don’t know about you, but I am not very good at waiting.
We often travel to India, and in the places we visit, many people wear shirts with printed messages in English – although often the wearer will not understand what they so proudly proclaim. Most are empty nonsense, but at times there are surprisingly profound messages. Yesterday we saw this treasure:
“Life is a one-time opportunity.
Use it wisely.”
Fill your life with useful work for God, but don’t fill it with impatience.
By all means, look eagerly for the return of Jesus,[1] but keep living life while you do so. God’s time scales can be much greater than ours – his plans often work in blocks of hundreds or thousands of years.[2] Don’t worry too much about the small snapshot of history that you will see in your lifetime. God is in control and he weaves the paths of history through many, many lifetimes. Yet when judgement comes, it often comes very
swiftly.
God told Habakkuk that the events he had planned would come. In fact, they were hurrying along. We do not know exactly when Habakkuk prophesied, but it was probably still more than 25 years before Babylon would be God’s tool of sudden, violent judgement on Judah, and another fifty years before Babylon herself would be judged.
God is not slow, but he is patient[3] – both with individuals and with nations. He gives us each of us life, commands and boundaries, but then he also gives us free will. His ideal is salvation for all, but it is offered on his terms. Salvation and eternal life are for righteous people – and God wants everyone to be righteous. But each person gets to choose how they respond. It is expressed beautifully to his chosen people, Israel, in
Deuteronomy 30:19-20:
"I call heaven and earth to witness against you today,
that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse.
Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live,
loving the Lord your God,
obeying his voice and holding fast to him,
for he is your life and length of days,
that you may dwell in the land
that the Lord swore to your fathers,
to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
Deuteronomy 30:19-20
The contrasting options are also made clear in the New Testament for all believers:
"For to set the mind on the flesh is death,
but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace."
Romans 8:6
God is giving you time, but don’t let time get away from you.
Noah had to build the ark. It was an enormous boat. He couldn’t have procrastinated until God said that the flood was coming in seven days! The boat had to be built slowly, methodically, piece by piece. Our life is the same. Building habits of godliness is good, but it takes time. Practice godliness every day. Practice refusing evil every day. This is choosing life: setting the mind on the Spirit.
God wants to see us as people who make a long-term choice to serve him: starting from our youth and building - but it is our choice.
When Jesus returns, he will judge our choices.
Notes
[1] 1 Corinthians 1:7; Philippians 3:20; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 2 Timothy 4:8; Titus 2:13; Hebrews 9:27-28
[2] 2 Peter 3:8
[3] 2 Peter 3:9
