Thursday October 27, 2022

Hello friends, I pray you all are doing well...most are probably looking forward to the weekend. Yesterday I finished up a month long series on conflict and communication.  It was a fun series to teach...I'm now praying about what I will do next on Wednesday evenings (after one of our elders does November). Today we are going to continue our look at Habakkuk. On Monday I posted the entire first chapter; starting today, we will look at some of the themes in Habakkuk Ch. 1.
Habakkuk 1: 1-4
1. The prophecy that Habakkuk the prophet received. 2 How long, Lord, must I call for help,
but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not save? 3 Why do you          make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are      before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. 4 Therefore the law is paralyzed, and                justice  never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.
According to some, Habakkuk might have lived under King Josiah-the 16th king of Judah that instituted some religious reforms. He was considered a "Godly" king, as opposed to most the those who were before or came after him. This was a time of great revival for the nation of Israel. It is believed that Habakkuk wrote this after Josiah had died. While Israel had experienced a great resurgence during the reign of Josiah, Israel soon slipped back to her old ways. As Habakkuk saw the people he cared for turning away from the Lord, he became upset. The first 4 verses of Ch. 1 are expressing this sentiment. 
When I read these passages, I can sense the frustration of Habakkuk. In my own life, the idea of injustice has always been difficult for me to understand/deal with. I understand why there is injustice in this world, but it has always been something that has bothered me a great deal. When I say "injustice" I am not referring to the modern version of the word that has more to do with victimhood...rather, I'm speaking of the classic definition or view of injustice, where there is no recompense for wrong, where people suffer under the hand of tyranny or cruelty. 
Well, Habakkuk sees this going on all around him and makes his case known to the Lord. Of course, the Lord knows much better than you and I what is going on. It is difficult to understand that when things around us seem like they are falling apart. 
Next, we will examine the Lord's answer to Habakkuk. Stay Tuned!