"How long, Lord,"?!

Hab 1:2-5 NIV “O Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save? Why do you make me see wrongdoing and look at trouble? Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. So the law becomes slack and justice never prevails. The wicked surround the righteous— therefore judgment comes forth perverted. Look at the nations, and see! Be astonished! Be astounded! For a work is being done in your days that you would not believe if you were told.”

Statistics/Findings

- Habakkuk, from a Hebrew root meaning to “embrace,” denoting a “favorite” (namely, of God) and a “struggler” (for his country’s good).

- He begins with a lament expressed in the form of parallelism in which the prophet has already been calling and crying out to the Lord for divine intervention into the sinful situation of Judahite society. In his appeal to the Lord for help he cries out against “violence!” but the Lord has not responded to him (cf. Job 19:7). Even though the prophet cries out for rescue, the God of salvation refuses to save. Relief from the violence does not seem to be forthcoming.

- Habakkuk (Hab 1:5, 6, &c.) speaks of the Chaldeans as about to invade Judah, but not as having actually done so.

-The position of the book immediately after Nahum is appropriate; as Nahum treated of the judgments of the Lord on Assyria, for its violence against Israel, so Habakkuk, those inflicted by, and on, the Chaldeans for the same reason.

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Transition:

Pt. 1: It's ok to question the Lord in Prayer

2 O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?

A. In Prayer: Prayer is an act of communication with God

“O Lord” - That’s a prayer

Sometimes all we have is an O LORD prayer in us!

When life has taken the breath out of you, all you can say is O LORD!

Bernie Mac us to say O LORD when he didn’t have anything else to say

“O Lord” - Its me standing in the need of prayer, not my mother, not my sister, it’s me O Lord standing in the need of prayer

B. Just not is existence

how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? Or cry to you “Violence!” and you will not save?

Matt 27:46 “And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?””

Luke 22:42 ““Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me; yet, not my will but yours be done.””

Jesus in his humanity calls out to the Theos and ask a question through divinity

“One evening as Napoleon Bonaparte was returning to France from an expedition to Egypt, a group of his officers began discussing the existence of God. Thoroughly caught up in the atheistic spirit of the times, the officers were unanimous in their denial of God’s existence. Finally, someone suggested they ask Napoleon, who was standing alone on the deck of their vessel. On hearing the question, “Is there a God?” he raised his hand and pointed to the starry sky, and simply asked, “Gentlemen, who made all that?”

The Speaker’s Quote Book

Pt.2: Acknowledge your reality

(The Prophet’s Complaint) 3 Why do you make me see wrongdoing and look at trouble?Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise. 4 So the law becomes slack and justice never prevails. The wicked surround the righteous—therefore judgment comes forth perverted.

“see wrongdoing” “look at trouble” “violence are before me”

“contention arise” “law becomes slack” “justice never prevails” “wicked

surround the righteous” judgement comes forth perverted”

“It underscores the need for divine intervention, repentance, and redemption. Every one of these terms characterizes not only Habakkuk’s milieu but also our present climate at the beginning of the twenty-first century AD. Global jihad and terrorism, mass murder, slavery and human trafficking, racial and economic oppression, political unrest and upheaval, spiritual deception, moral insanity, and social disintegration describe some of the major news headlines of our times. In many ways it seems as though the world is spinning out of control. People often wonder what will happen next.”

you move towards acknowledging there’s something going on and I may or may

not need help.

- God knows the reality you acknowledge

- The road to becoming a better you is acknowledgement.

- When you acknowledge your milieu - (personal social environment) live

occurence, condition, position or situation, you allow God you move into

position because you’re ultimately acknowledging

Him and His will.

Synonyms of these state of affairs Habakkuk expressed are what we currently face at the beginning of the 21st century: terrorism, mass shootings, human

trafficking, Supreme Courts decision on affirmative action within Higher Ed,

racial and economic oppression, political unrest and upheaval, spiritual deception, moral

insanity, and social disintegration describe some of the major news headlines of our times.

Pt. 3: Prepare for a Divine Answer

The Lord answers the Prophet’s question’s, prayer, and complaint in verses 5-11.

With his work!!

The Lord answers him with three imperatives: “Look,” “observe,” and “be

astounded.”

This indicates cares about the concerns of the prophet.