Bible 101: Lesson 33

Habakkuk

This Old Testament book contains the verse that reoriented Martin Luther’s thinking about the role of faith in salvation and contributed to the Protestant Reformation. Paul used the same verse (Hab. 2:4) to introduce the principle of justification by faith rather than works in Rom. 1:17. The commentary on Habakkuk is the most well preserved Old Testament commentary in the Dead Sea Scrolls, and has contributed much to our understanding of the use of quotes from the Old Testament in the New. So this small book has had a disproportionate influence on the development of theology. Interesting, in light of the fact that it is the 33rd book of the Bible.

We don’t know much about the prophet himself, but the book seems to have been written shortly before 605 B.C. when the Babylonians became the superpower of the ancient world. Habakkuk is struggling with understanding God’s justice. He saw all kinds of moral wrongs around him going on without seeming consequence, so he asked God about it. God first gave an answer that bothered him, so he asked again. At that point, God challenged him to wait and trust that everything would become clear over time. Habakkuk accepted this answer and concluded that, given God’s holiness and the requirement of faith (or trust) from us, his questions had been unjustified.

Messianic prophecies in Habakkuk

Earth filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord
OT References: Hab. 2:14
NT Fulfillment: Rev. 21:23-26