Background and Themes of the Book of Habakkuk

Habakkuk wrote his prophecy during a period of deep moral and religious decline in Judah, specifically witnessing the transition into the disastrous reign of JehoiakimBHOTV7 3.2+1. He served as a contemporary of the prophets Jeremiah and Urijah, standing as a messenger of God during a time when the nation faced impending judgment from the ChaldeansBEST July 15, 1889, page 218.1+2.

The Historical and Moral Setting

The prophet lived during a time of extreme social and spiritual crisis characterized by the following conditions:

• Widespread Iniquity: Habakkuk looked upon a scene of violence, strife, and grievances where the wicked devoured those more righteous than themselves Habakkuk 1:13-15SS 202.2+1.

• Legal and Social Collapse: Because of the prevailing corruption, the law was slacked, judgment was perverted, and the wicked compassed about the righteous Habakkuk 1:4PK 385.1.

• Corrupt Leadership: The government of his day was characterized by public wrong, oppression, and covetousness, with King Jehoiakim building magnificent palaces through unpaid forced labor while the people were impoverished Habakkuk 2:9-17BHOTV7 183.1.

• Religious Apostasy: The reformatory work of Josiah had given way to a restoration of idolatry, leading to the complete demoralization of both the laity and the priesthood 2 Chronicles 36:8BHOTV7 183.1.

Habakkuk’s Inquiry and God's Response

Distressed by the surrounding evil, Habakkuk voiced his anxious questions to the Lord, inquiring how long he must cry out against violence without being heard Habakkuk 1:2SS 202.2+1. God answered his loyal child by revealing that He was raising up the Chaldeans—a bitter, hasty, and terrible nation—as a divinely appointed scourge to bring chastisement upon Judah Habakkuk 1:5-11SS 202.2+1.

Prophetic Functions and Style

Habakkuk's work illustrates the unique role of a prophet in several ways:

• Interpreting the Present: The prophet translates the "vernacular of the present" into the "Divine language of the future," showing that there is no gap between current history and future predictionBHOTV7 3.2.

• A Message of Hope: Like the Book of Psalms, every series of warnings or denunciations in Habakkuk’s writing leads to an announcement of a happy prophetic futureBHOTV7 3.2.

• Faith in Trial: Habakkuk is known for his exercise of strong faith, famously stating that "the just shall live by his faith" even when the vision seems to tarry Habakkuk 2:3-4PK 386.2+1.

• Visions of the End: His prophecies of impending judgment upon Judah apply with equal force to the judgments that will fall upon the impenitent world at the second advent of ChristRH July 15, 1915, par. 5.

Significance in Later History

The book played a crucial role in the great advent movement of the 1840sPTUK November 7, 1895, page 710.4. When the expected time of Christ's return passed in 1843, believers found comfort and explanation in Habakkuk 2:2-3 realizing that the vision was for an appointed time and would appear to "tarry" before its final fulfillmentLELJB 297.1+2. Additionally, the command to "write the vision, and make it plain upon tables" served as the scriptural basis for the first prophetic charts used to illustrate the visions of Daniel and the Revelation Habakkuk 2:2GSAM 124.2+1.