5 And also, because the wine 'is' treacherous, A man is haughty, and remaineth not at home, Who hath enlarged as sheol his soul, And is as death that is not satisfied, And doth gather unto itself all the nations, And doth assemble unto itself all the peoples,
6 Do not these—all of them—against him a simile taken up, And a moral of acute sayings for him, And say, Wo 'to' him who is multiplying 'what is' not his? Till when also is he multiplying to himself heavy pledges? 7 Do not thy usurers instantly rise up, And those shaking thee awake up, And thou hast been for a spoil to them? 8 Because thou hast spoiled many nations, Spoil thee do all the remnant of the peoples, Because of man's blood, and of violence 'to' the land, 'To' the city, and 'to' all dwelling in it. 9 Wo 'to' him who is gaining evil gain for his house, To set on high his nest, To be delivered from the hand of evil, 10 Thou hast counselled a shameful thing to thy house, To cut off many peoples, and sinful 'is' thy soul. 11 For a stone from the wall doth cry out, And a holdfast from the wood answereth it. 12 Wo 'to' him who is building a city by blood, And establishing a city by iniquity. 13 Lo, is it not from Jehovah of Hosts And peoples are fatigued for fire, And nations for vanity are weary? 14 For full is the earth of the knowledge of the honour of Jehovah, As waters cover 'the bottom of' a sea.
15 Wo 'to' him who is giving drink to his neighbour, Pouring out thy bottle, and also making drunk, In order to look on their nakedness. 16 Thou hast been filled—shame without honour, Drink thou also, and be uncircumcised, Turn round unto thee doth the cup of the right hand of Jehovah, And shameful spewing 'is' on thine honour. 17 For violence 'to' Lebanon doth cover thee, And spoil of beasts doth affright them, Because of man's blood, and of violence 'to' the land, 'To' the city, and 'to' all dwelling in it. 18 What profit hath a graven image given That its former hath graven it? A molten image and teacher of falsehood, That trusted hath the former on his own formation—to make dumb idols? 19 Wo 'to' him who is saying to wood, 'Awake,' 'Stir up,' to a dumb stone, It a teacher! lo, it is overlaid—gold and silver, And there is no spirit in its midst. 20 And Jehovah 'is' in His holy temple, Be silent before Him, all the earth!
Matthew Henry's Commentary on Habakkuk 2:5-20
Commentary on Habakkuk 2:5-14
(Read Habakkuk 2:5-14)
The prophet reads the doom of all proud and oppressive powers that bear hard upon God's people. The lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, are the entangling snares of men; and we find him that led Israel captive, himself led captive by each of these. No more of what we have is to be reckoned ours, than what we come honestly by. Riches are but clay, thick clay; what are gold and silver but white and yellow earth? Those who travel through thick clay, are hindered and dirtied in their journey; so are those who go through the world in the midst of abundance of wealth. And what fools are those that burden themselves with continual care about it; with a great deal of guilt in getting, saving, and spending it, and with a heavy account which they must give another day! They overload themselves with this thick clay, and so sink themselves down into destruction and perdition. See what will be the end hereof; what is gotten by violence from others, others shall take away by violence. Covetousness brings disquiet and uneasiness into a family; he that is greedy of gain troubles his own house; what is worse, it brings the curse of God upon all the affairs of it. There is a lawful gain, which, by the blessing of God, may be a comfort to a house; but what is got by fraud and injustice, will bring poverty and ruin upon a family. Yet that is not the worst; Thou hast sinned against thine own soul, hast endangered it. Those who wrong their neighbours, do much greater wrong to their own souls. If the sinner thinks he has managed his frauds and violence with art and contrivance, the riches and possessions he heaped together will witness against him. There are not greater drudges in the world than those who are slaves to mere wordly pursuits. And what comes of it? They find themselves disappointed of it, and disappointed in it; they will own it is worse than vanity, it is vexation of spirit. By staining and sinking earthly glory, God manifests and magnifies his own glory, and fills the earth with the knowledge of it, as plentifully as waters cover the sea, which are deep, and spread far and wide.
Commentary on Habakkuk 2:15-20
(Read Habakkuk 2:15-20)
A severe woe is pronounced against drunkenness; it is very fearful against all who are guilty of drunkenness at any time, and in any place, from the stately palace to the paltry ale-house. To give one drink who is in want, who is thirsty and poor, or a weary traveller, or ready to perish, is charity; but to give a neighbour drink, that he may expose himself, may disclose secret concerns, or be drawn into a bad bargain, or for any such purpose, this is wickedness. To be guilty of this sin, to take pleasure in it, is to do what we can towards the murder both of soul and body. There is woe to him, and punishment answering to the sin. The folly of worshipping idols is exposed. The Lord is in his holy temple in heaven, where we have access to him in the way he has appointed. May we welcome his salvation, and worship him in his earthly temples, through Christ Jesus, and by the influence of the Holy Spirit.