Fall Preaching Series on THE MINOR PROPHETS

God's Mechanic: HABAKKUK

(pronounced Habakkuk, instead of Habakkuk or Habakkuk)

Historical Context

               Habakkuk's prophecy was directed to a world that, through the eyes of God's people, must have seemed on the edge of disaster. Even though the Northern Kingdom was destroyed (exiled) in 722 BC, God's people remained in Judah (the Southern Kingdom), but the Babylonians who defeated both Assyria and Egypt in 612 BC now threatened them.

               The book probably dates from the reign of Judean King Jehoiakim II (609-598 BC).  In its opening chapter the book mirrors the injustice and violence of Jehoiakim's despotic rule which included forced labor, syncretism, idolatry, and persecution of the prophets. Earlier, in 622 BC, good King Josiah of Judah had carried out a thorough political and religious reform of the nation's life. Asserting Judah's independence from a weakened Assyria and enlarging Judah's territory, Josiah ordered all foreign influences to be abolished, did away with strange cults and priests, centralized all worship at Jerusalem, and renewed the Covenant between the people and God (Chronicles 34). Unfortunately, however, Josiah was killed in 609 BC at Megiddo when he tried to hold back an incursion by Egypt. Judah came under Egyptian domination, and Josiah's son Jehoahaz was deported to Egypt after only three months of reigning. The Egyptian appointed vassal Jehoiakim ascended to Judah's throne and totally reversed the reforms of Josiah. It is against this background that Habakkuk cried out, "Oh Lord, how long? "in the opening verse of his book.

Message/Theme/Audience

               We do not know much about Habakkuk personally for he is mentioned nowhere else in the Old Testament.  The book is made up of an extended dialogue between God and the prophet. Unlike most of the other prophetic books, it is not primarily addressed to the people, but rather consist of Habakkuk's prayers.  The musical directions in Habakkuk 3 indicate that it was used in worship by Israel and many scholars maintain that the prophet might have had a priestly role in worship.

            Habakkuk's question to God is, how long will the Lord ignore his repeated prayers and allow evil to surround him on every side in Judah?  No doubt, Habakkuk had expected the Lord to intervene graciously and to send revival like the one in Josiah's day, but God replies that such wrong is being punished by the invasion of the Babylonians. The Babylonians are worse than even the Judeans, however, and Habakkuk cannot understand why God allows an evil nation to act as his agent to punish evil. The prophet waits, as though on a watch tower, to see what God will say to him.

               Habakkuk raises the question, is God in charge of history? And if God is, why do things happen as they do? In dealing with these questions the book speaks as directly to our own times as any other comparable portion of the Word of God.