Exegesis Habakkuk 2:4

Habakkuk 2:4 is a short verse with great influence. It is important to understand its meaning because it helps shape parts of the New Testament and church history. However, it cannot be understood without first considering the rest of the book of Habakkuk and knowing of the pending doom that Judah was facing from the Chaldeans, or Babylonians. In order to understand the meaning of Habakkuk 2:4 it has to be seen through the questions posed in Habakkuk 1:13. Here the prophet Habakkuk has 2:4 statements and 2 questions[1] they are.

Statement one: Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
Statement two: you cannot tolerate wrong.
Question one: Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?
Question two: Why are you silent while the wicked swallow up those more righteous than themselves?

These statements and questions set up the answer in Habakkuk 2:4. They draw out the confusion that Habakkuk is experiencing. He sees God as a God that demands purity but favors the impure or depraved and uses them to carry out His work. Habakkuk knows that God is pure and cannot look on evil or see evil. He is described as exalted above evil and not being compared with it[2]. Habakkuk also knows that God cannot tolerate wrong. While Habakkuk knows these things they are in contradiction to what he is seeing at the moment.

The Lord is a God of purity; in his temple he called for nothing short of pure gold (Exodus 25:11) and pure sacrifices. Yet, Habakkuk saw that God was using the Chaldeans to carry out his judgment on Judah. Balaam prophesied that there would be “no misfortune in Jacob, no misery observed in Israel” (Numbers 23:21). It is possible that Habakkuk would have known this prophecy and looked back on it, and saw again that God was apparently contradicting himself. Regardless of Habakkuk’s feelings that a pure God cannot use evil, God has done it in the past. In Isaiah 10:5-15 God uses Assyria as his instrument. Habakkuk also felt that since God would not look upon perverseness (v.13) that it was not appropriate for the prophet to look upon perverseness (v.3). He may have also felt that since the law in proverbs says “if a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible.” It would be inappropriate for God to remain silent on the issues of Judah’s oppression at the hands of the Chaldeans. These are the contradictions that Habakkuk is going to struggle with and that lead the Lord to give him an answer in 2:4. He also saw injustice in the idea that since most of Israel had sinned it was then appropriate to punish all of Israel, even the faithful remnant. He saw that there were, in fact, righteous people in Israel, and that it was irreconcilable with the holiness of God[3] to allow this remnant to be destroyed.

Habakkuk erred in his thinking because he felt that he was a competent moral judge his argument is based on being able to claim moral high ground. This seems odd seeing as though Habakkuk lists many unrighteous acts of Judah in Chapter 1 verses 2-4 it is odd for him to claim moral high ground. However, he is comparing Judah to the Chaldeans, which was far worse than Judah but Romans 3:10 uses Psalm 14:1-3 to say “there is none righteous, not even one.” So the prophet Habakkuk must have had the idea that Judah is morally better than Babylon when God sees them both as sinners. He makes the over all mistake of looking at the very present time and not seeking the larger picture within Judah’s history.

The problem is that “God appeared to be doing the opposite of what Habakkuk believed of God[4].” Habakkuk believed that God would not and could not use a country as wicked as the Chaldeans to punish his own people, the remnant of Judah. These are the problems that lay way for the answer that God gives to Habakkuk in 2:4.
God answers Habakkuk saying, “see, he is puffed up; his desires are not upright- but the righteous will live by his faith.” The “he” refers to the Chaldeans in general or to the Chaldeans’ king Nebuchaadnezzar. In his writing entitled “the Antichrist” Arthur Pink applied the description to the Antichrist. The first part of verse is a brief description of what the Chaldeans’ characteristics are. He is “puffed up and does not have upright desires”. Through the second half of the verse it can be determined that because the Chaldeans are not upright, that they have searched for righteousness outside of themselves and will not live. This is the very problem Habakkuk has; God is using the non-upright to punish Judah. God is affirming that, yes, the Chaldeans are not upright and this verse is telling the prophet that even though it may look like the Chaldeans will live they will not because they are not righteous. Israel was described in a similar manner in Deuteronomy 1:43 and in verse 44 they are defeated in war. A similar fate is sure to come to the Chaldeans.

The second half of the verse is the key to God’s answer. It has been said that this passage is the “Mt. Everest of the Old Testament[5].” In the instruction, comfort and hope for the remnant of Judah comes directly from God’s mouth. This complex sentence tells believers about faith and righteousness. It is used three times in the New Testament, but since its immediate context is in the book of Habakkuk it must be understood from there.
Habakkuk 2:4b presents the opposite of what the Chaldeans are described as. The Remnant is “the righteous [that] will live by his faith.” To fully understand the meaning of this statement it needs broken down into the basic elements.

“The righteous”
To understand what the meaning of this is it is important to know that to be justified is the concept of righteousness that the Old Testament uses. Righteousness is a strictly legal term. Meaning it is to be applied to the law and the covenant and that it is not a moral term. Everything for Israel hinged on the legal decision of God. A similar sense of legal obligation is used in Exodus 23:7 where the Lord says he will not acquit the wicked. To be righteous means to be right before God or to be justified. According to Nelson’s Bible dictionary righteousness is defined in terms of God. It goes on to say that a righteous action promotes the peace and well being of humans in their relationships to one another[6]. So, the idea of righteousness in Habakkuk refers to just and peaceful living. O. Palmer Robertson summed up the idea by saying, “God’s righteousness or his judicial reign means that in covenant faithfulness to His people He vindicates and saves them[7].” This passage may be dealing with all of Israel but it is most likely dealing with the Righteous Remnant, or to say those who have stayed faithful to God. Whether the statement is dealing with a remnant or all of Israel it is clearly not dealing with the Chaldeans. For they were just described by God as puffed up and not upright, this is another way of saying they were not righteous.

“By his faith” or literally “by his steadfastness”
This is normally translated as the third clause in the sentence but needs to be understood before placing the second clause. Faith is “a belief in or confident attitude toward God, involving commitment to His will for one's life[8].” There are two parts to faith, attitude and commitment. Faith involves believing in God or in the Old Testament is used to mean trusting in God. The second part of faith is a commitment to God’s will. This is steadfastness. Faith is then the idea of humility before God and a readiness to conform to his will[9]. The fundamental idea in scripture is steadfastness and faithfulness[10]. The ideas of faith and steadfastness are inevitable tied together, to have complete faith is to constantly trust in the Lord or be steadfast. The Septuagint substitutes “my [God’s]” for “his” in the clause but most other manuscripts use “his.”

“Will live”
This is where the difficulty comes in. It isn’t clear what this phrase “will live” is attached to. It can be attached to the first clause to mean that by faith a person is justified and shall have life. It can also be attached to the last clause to mean using faith a person who has been justified shall live.
Young’s Literal Translation renders this verse, “and the righteous by his steadfastness lives[11].” Literally then “live” is attached to the second clause of the statement. This will mean, “the phrase explains the way by which the gift of life continues to be received rather than the way by which a sinner is declared righteous.[12]” God is telling Habakkuk that people will live by their steadfast faith or trust and is saying that they do not live because they are justified. This righteousness is outside of the person and is the idea that life is a gift from God. It is the very idea that “The one who trusts God’s grace for his existence every moment shall live[13].” That is to say that the person who has faith in God shall live. In explaining the whole phrase it could be said that justification is by faith and life is received through faith. If the statement is taken this way it means that we have life because of our faith. Further it is our faith, or steadfast trust in God, that makes us righteous. This is the same concept and reasoning found in Genesis 15:6, “Abram believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” Abram in this story believed, another way of saying had faith, in the Lord. Then because of his belief the Lord credited it to him as righteousness, meaning that he was made righteous because of his faith. The bottom line is that we have life by faith. It would seem that the Chaldeans felt that their life came by their works; this is one reason why they are referred to as proud. People who claim to have life by works are proud, and don’t have faith or righteousness thus lack life. This would have been a comforting idea to Habakkuk. John Calvin explained this statement saying, “that faith which strips us of all arrogance, and leads us naked and needy to God, that we may seek salvation from him alone, which would otherwise be far removed from us[14].” This is the way that Paul used this reference in Romans 1:17 where he wrote, “for in it the righteousness of God is revealed through faith for faith; as it is written, "He who through faith is righteous shall live” (RSV). He is simply saying that we are made righteous through faith. Albert Barnes says this of Paul’s reference, “for Paul uses the word not of what he was before the faith, but what be is, when he lives by faith[15].” John Piper summed up this idea by saying, “just people are people of faith and that faith is what secures their life and keeps them safe for eternity[16].”

If the first clause is placed with the second clause the idea that by faith a person who has been justified shall live. While this is not the idea that the literal translation gives it is the order and idea given in most other translations. Although this is not the idea they are meant to convey. The only support for these translations comes from the book of Hebrews in the New Testament. The author says “For yet a little while, and the coming one shall come and shall not tarry; but my righteous one shall live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him,” in Hebrews 10:37 & 38. He is implying here that justification comes then faith comes and then a life will come. While this is not as strongly supported as the other it’s does find support in the Bible so it cannot be completely discredited.

Either way the verse is order it has been used several times in the New Testament and was a “rallying cry of the Protestant Reformation in the 16th century[17].” It is also important to realize that “the same principle that as applicable in the realm of national deliverance is applicable in the area of spiritual deliverance (Salvation)[18].” Andrew Murray sums this part of the verse up by saying, “that the righteous shall live by faith: the whole life of the righteous, from moment to moment, shall be by faith[19].”

Taking the meaning of the parts and combining them gives the idea that the Chaldeans though they lived by a faith, lived by a faith in their own strength. Their faith in strength made them up upright and proud. This is in contrast to the Remnants faith that was placed humbly in God. Jonathan Edwards summed the verse up this way, he said, “he [the Remnant] shall live by his faith on God's righteousness and grace, and not his own goodness and excellency[20].” While the Lord tells Habakkuk that the faith that the Remnant has will result in life and righteousness. The passage implies that since the Chaldeans lead lives that were upright and proud they were not righteous thus would not live. To Habakkuk and his audience this would have been a pleasing thought in another wise troubling situation. They were essentially being told though the Chaldeans will capture you they would not wipe you out because you are righteous and by faith live. The Righteous Remnant was faithful to God and his chosen people thus God would not fully destroy them.

Habakkuk 2:4 is a highly complex statement that depends on the meaning and order of just a few words. It’s meaning is influential and important, though it is a small easy to miss passage in the Minor Prophets its influence and meaning has helped shape the modern church. The implications it has for ministry are profound yet simple. The verse informs believers how they live. It lays out two important elements of the Christian faith and relates them directly to each other. Since it was used as a centerpiece of the Protestant Reformation its implications have already become clear, it is not by works that our life is given. These implications are still as strong and as important today as they were to Martin Luther in the 1500’s.

Footnotes:
[1] Broadman and Homan Publisher Vol 20, Kenneth L. Barker, Waylon Bailey.
[2] Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.
[3] Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament: New Updated Edition, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Hendrickson Publishers, Inc.
[4] Broadman and Homan Publisher Vol 20, Kenneth L. Barker, Waylon Bailey. 314
[5] J. Vernon Mcgee
[6] (from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
[7] William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, O. Palmer Robertson, The books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah. Grand Rapids, Michigan.
[8] from Nelson's Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Copyright (c)1986, Thomas Nelson Publishers
[9] The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1962 by Moody Press
[10] The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright (c) 1988
[11] Young’s Literal Translation. Spelling of stedfastness has been changed to the English form steadfastness and lives has been changed to the modern English form using the word lives. The original sentence reads “Lo, a presumptuous one! Not upright is his soul within him, And the righteous by his stedfastness liveth.”
[12] William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, O. Palmer Robertson, The books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah. Grand Rapids, Michigan.
[13] William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, O. Palmer Robertson, The books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah. Grand Rapids, Michigan.
[14] John Calvin “Commentary on Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai” Grand Rapids, MI: Christian Classics Ethereal Library, 1999-11-24, v1.01, URL 1999-11-24 http://www.ccel.org/c/calvin/comment3/comm_vol29/htm/iii.iii.v.htm
[15] Barnes' Notes, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1997 by Biblesoft. Commentary on Habakkuk 2:4
[16] http://www.soundofgrace.com/piper82/103182m.htm
[17] New American Standard Bible Copyright 1995, by The Lockman Foundation. pg 1317.
[18] New Life, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.) The Life Of Faith
[19] New Life, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database Copyright © 2003 Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved.) The Life Of Faith
[20] Religious Affections, PC Study Bible formatted electronic database. Copyright © 2003 by Biblesoft, Inc. All rights reserved Part III - Showing what are the Distinguising Signs of truly Gracious and Holy Affections