📖 Habakkuk — Chapter 1 (KJV)
Read the complete King James Version chapter below, then explore the passage sections, check what you remember, and keep your private study notes.
Scripture source: Project Gutenberg KJV, ebook 10.
Habakkuk 1:1 RThe burden which Habakkuk the prophet did see.
Habakkuk 1:2 O LORD, Rhow long shall I cry, and thou wilt not hear! even cry out unto thee of violence, and thou wilt not save!
Habakkuk 1:3 Why dost thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? for spoiling and violence are before me: and there are that raise up strife and contention.
Habakkuk 1:4 Therefore Rthe law is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the wicked doth compass about the righteous; therefore Twrong judgment proceedeth.
Habakkuk 1:5 Behold Rye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for I will work a work in your days which ye will not believe, though it be told you.
Habakkuk 1:6 For, lo, RI raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, which shall march through the Tbreadth of the land, to possess the dwellingplaces that are not theirs.
Habakkuk 1:7 They are terrible and dreadful: RTtheir judgment and their dignity shall proceed of themselves.
Habakkuk 1:8 Their Rhorses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more Tfierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.
Habakkuk 1:9 They shall come all Rfor violence: Ttheir faces shall sup up as the east wind, and they shall gather the captivity as the sand.
Habakkuk 1:10 And they shall Rscoff at the kings, and the princes shall be a scorn unto them: they shall deride every strong hold; for they shall heap dust, and take it.
Habakkuk 1:11 Then Rshall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and offend, imputing this his power unto his god.
Habakkuk 1:12 Art Rthou not from everlasting, O LORD my God, mine Holy One? we shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for judgment; and, O Tmighty God, thou hast Testablished them for correction.
Habakkuk 1:13 Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on Tiniquity: Rwherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he?
Habakkuk 1:14 And makest men as the fishes of the sea, as the Tcreeping things, that have no ruler over them?
Habakkuk 1:15 They Rtake up all of them with the angle, they catch them in their net, and gather them in their Tdrag: therefore they rejoice and are glad.
Habakkuk 1:16 Therefore Rthey sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat Tplenteous.
Habakkuk 1:17 Shall they therefore empty their net, Rand not spare continually to slay the nations?
📚 Study This Chapter
📖 What We’re Reading
Habakkuk 1:1–4 — The prophet cries over violence and failed judgment
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
Habakkuk asks how long his cry will remain unanswered. Iniquity, strife, and the wicked surrounding the righteous lead to slackened law and wrong judgment.
Key Truth: Bring injustice honestly before the Lord.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “The ____ which Habakkuk the prophet did see.” (Habakkuk 1:1)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:1 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “Why ____ thou shew me iniquity, and cause me to behold grievance? …” (Habakkuk 1:3)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:3 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “Therefore the ____ is slacked, and judgment doth never go forth: for the …” (Habakkuk 1:4)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:4 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Habakkuk 1:5–11 — The Lord announces the coming Chaldeans
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The answer describes a work the hearers will struggle to believe. A swift, violent nation seizes dwellings and captives, scorns rulers and strongholds, and credits its power to its god.
Key Truth: Do not confuse effective conquest with righteous conduct.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “____ ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvelously: for …” (Habakkuk 1:5)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:5 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “Their ____ also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce …” (Habakkuk 1:8)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:8 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “____ shall his mind change, and he shall pass over, and …” (Habakkuk 1:11)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:11 (KJV).
📖 What We’re Reading
Habakkuk 1:12–17 — Habakkuk questions unchecked predatory power
🌱 What These Verses Teach Us
The prophet appeals to the everlasting Holy One while asking why the treacherous devour those more righteous. Fishing imagery pictures nations taken in nets and conquerors worshiping the tools of their gain.
Key Truth: Keep questioning injustice in reverent conversation with God.
Check What You Remember
1. Complete the KJV wording: “… shall not die. O LORD, thou hast ordained them for ____ ; and, O mighty God, thou hast established them for …” (Habakkuk 1:12)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:12 (KJV).
2. Complete the KJV wording: “They ____ up all of them with the angle, they catch them …” (Habakkuk 1:15)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:15 (KJV).
3. Complete the KJV wording: “Shall they therefore ____ their net, and not spare continually to slay the nations?” (Habakkuk 1:17)
Find it in Habakkuk 1:17 (KJV).
Related Scripture (KJV)
Psalms 10:1 — The psalm also begins with a question about the Lord’s apparent distance in trouble.
This related passage is selected for its connection with this chapter. It is separate from the chapter text.
Reflect and Apply
What injustice should you bring honestly into prayer without excusing it?
Advanced Questions and Answers
Study this chapter’s wording, patterns, contrasts, and meaning in greater depth.
1. Which account best distinguishes Habakkuk 1:1–4 (The prophet cries over violence and failed judgment) from the other movements of this chapter?
2. Which account best distinguishes Habakkuk 1:5–11 (The Lord announces the coming Chaldeans) from the other movements of this chapter?
3. Which account best distinguishes Habakkuk 1:12–17 (Habakkuk questions unchecked predatory power) from the other movements of this chapter?
4. What prompts the prophet's first complaint?
5. What tension does the prophet bring before God's holiness?
Notes
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