Habakkuk 3

A Prayer of Habakkuk

1 This is a prayer of the prophet Habakkuk:t

2 O LORD, I have heard of what you have done,
and I am filled with awe.
Now do again in our times
the great deeds you used to do.
Be merciful, even when you are angry.
3 God is coming again from Edom;
the holy God is coming from the hills of Paran.
His splendor covers the heavens,
and the earth is full of his praise.
4 He comes with the brightness of lightning;
light flashes from his hand,
there where his power is hidden.
5 He sends disease before him
and commands death to follow him.
6 When he stops, the earth shakes;
at his glance the nations tremble.
The eternal mountains are shattered;
the everlasting hills sink down,
the hills where he walked in ancient times.
7 I saw the people of Cushan afraid
and the people of Midian tremble.
8 Was it the rivers that made you angry, LORD?
Was it the sea that made you furious?
You rode upon the clouds;
the storm cloud was your chariot,
as you brought victory to your people.
9 You got ready to use your bow,
ready to shoot your arrows.t
Your lightning split open the earth.
10 When the mountains saw you, they trembled;
water poured down from the skies.
The waters under the earth roared,
and their waves rose high.
11 At the flash of your speeding arrows
and the gleam of your shining spear,
the sun and the moon stood still.
12 You marched across the earth in anger;
in fury you trampled the nations.
13 You went out to save your people,
to save your chosen king.
You struck down the leader of the wicked
and completely destroyed his followers.t
14 Your arrows pierced the commander of his army
when it came like a storm to scatter us,
gloating like those who secretly oppress the poor.t
15 You trampled the sea with your horses,
and the mighty waters foamed.
16 I hear all this, and I tremble;
my lips quiver with fear.
My body goes limp,
and my feet stumblet beneath me.
I will quietly wait for the time to come
when God will punish those who attack us.
17 Even though the fig trees have no fruit
and no grapes grow on the vines,
even though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no grain,
even though the sheep all die
and the cattle stalls are empty,
18 I will still be joyful and glad,
because the LORD God is my savior.
19 The Sovereign LORD gives me strength.
He makes me sure-footed as a deer
and keeps me safe on the mountains.

Habakkuk 3

1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, set to Shigionoth.

2 O Jehovah, I have heard the report of thee, and am afraid: O Jehovah, revive thy work in the midst of the years; In the midst of the years make it known; In wrath remember mercy.

3 God came from Teman, And the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, And the earth was full of his praise.

4 And his brightness was as the light; He had rays coming forth from his hand; And there was the hiding of his power.

5 Before him went the pestilence, And fiery bolts went forth at his feet.

6 He stood, and measured the earth; He beheld, and drove asunder the nations; And the eternal mountains were scattered; The everlasting hills did bow; His goings were as of old.

7 I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; The curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.

8 Was Jehovah displeased with the rivers? Was thine anger against the rivers, Or thy wrath against the sea, That thou didst ride upon thy horses, Upon thy chariots of salvation?

9 Thy bow was made quite bare; The oaths to the tribes were a sure word. Selah. Thou didst cleave the earth with rivers.

10 The mountains saw thee, and were afraid; The tempest of waters passed by; The deep uttered its voice, And lifted up its hands on high.

11 The sun and moon stood still in their habitation, At the light of thine arrows as they went, At the shining of thy glittering spear.

12 Thou didst march though the land in indignation; Thou didst thresh the nations in anger.

13 Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people, For the salvation of thine anointed; Thou woundest the head out of the house of the wicked man, Laying bare the foundation even unto the neck. Selah.

14 Thou didst pierce with his own staves the head of his warriors: They came as a whirlwind to scatter me; Their rejoicing was as to devour the poor secretly.

15 Thou didst tread the sea with thy horses, The heap of mighty waters.

16 I heard, and my body trembled, My lips quivered at the voice; Rottenness entereth into my bones, and I tremble in my place; Because I must wait quietly for the day of trouble, For the coming up of the people that invadeth us.

17 For though the fig-tree shall not flourish, Neither shall fruit be in the vines; The labor of the olive shall fail, And the fields shall yield no food; The flock shall be cut off from the fold, And there shall be no herd in the stalls:

18 Yet I will rejoice in Jehovah, I will joy in the God of my salvation.

19 Jehovah, the Lord, is my strength; And he maketh my feet like hinds’ feet, And will make me to walk upon my high places.