Habakkuk: Habakkuk 1:14-The Human Race is Like Fish in the Sea and Animals Which Creep and Crawl Having No Ruler Over Them

Habakkuk 1:14 You have made men like fish in the sea, like sea creatures that have no ruler. (NIV84)

Habakkuk 1:14 You produced mankind like marine life residing in the ocean, like creepers-crawlers, absolutely no ruler among them. (Pastor’s translation)

The prophet Habakkuk under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit solemnly asserts that the Lord God of Israel produced mankind like marine life residing in the ocean, like creepers-crawlers, who have absolutely no ruler among them.

Therefore, he is comparing mankind to marine life belonging to the ocean and creepers-crawlers.

Both species of animal possess absolutely no ruler among them.

Now, we know that mankind does have rulers.

However, Habakkuk 1:15-17 indicates that the purpose of this comparison here in Habakkuk 1:14 is to emphasize the helplessness, defenseless, disorganization and lack of effective leadership among the various nations of the human race in the Mesopotamian and Mediterranean regions of the world in relation to the Babylonian army.

This interpretation is indicated by the fact Habakkuk 1:15-17 describes the Babylonian army like a fisherman who catches members of the human race like a fisherman at sea.

Habakkuk 1:15 The wicked foe pulls all of them up with hooks, he catches them in his net, he gathers them up in his dragnet; and so he rejoices and is glad. 16 Therefore he sacrifices to his net and burns incense to his dragnet, for by his net he lives in luxury and enjoys the choicest food. 17 Is he to keep on emptying his net, destroying nations without mercy? (NIV84)

So therefore, here in Habakkuk 1:14-17, the prophet Habakkuk is arguing that the various nations of the Mesopotamian and Mediterranean regions of the world including the southern kingdom of Judah are helpless, disorganized, defenseless and without effective leadership in relation to the Babylonian army.

None of these nations would survive an invasion from the Babylonian army who viewed human beings like fish to be caught and eaten or creepers-crawlers to be killed and consumed for food.

Thus, the prophet is complaining to God as to how He could allow such a nation as Babylon to judge the apostate citizenry in his country.

This is why Habakkuk affirms the holiness of God in Habakkuk 1:13 and why he asks as to how God could put up with the treacherous Babylonians.

It is also why he complains that God has not taken action against them while they swallowed up people more righteous than they.

Now, as we noted in our studies of Habakkuk 1:6-11, the Lord through the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 25:9, and 27:6 describes Nebuchadnezzar as His servant because this king and his empire were the Lord’s instrument in judging Judah and Jerusalem.

God used Nebuchadnezzar to discipline the nation of Israel for their disobedience.

Jeremiah 25:1-11 also teaches that the Lord delivered Judah into Nebuchadnezzar’s power because of their idolatry.

Also, a comparison of Leviticus 25:1-12, 26:32-35, 43, Jeremiah 25:11, 29:10 and 2 Chronicles 26:21 indicates that the Lord delivered Judah into Nebuchadnezzar’s power because they failed to respect the Sabbath Day and the sabbatic year in which every seventh year they were to let the land rest.

The apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah would experience the wrath of God through the Babylonian army.

God’s wrath is in fact His righteous indignation towards sin and sinners.

It refers to His legitimate anger towards evil and sin since both are contrary to His holiness or perfect character and nature.

In fact, God’s righteous indignation expresses His holiness, which pertains to the absolute perfection of God’s character.

The fact that the Lord informs Habakkuk in Habakkuk 1:6-11 that He will indeed judge the apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah through the Babylonians is an expression of this righteous indignation and thus a manifestation of His holiness.

So therefore, as we noted in our study of Habakkuk 1:13, as was the case in Habakkuk 1:2-4, Habakkuk 1:12-17 deals with the subject of “theodicy,” which is the attempt to understand the nature and actions of God in the face of evil and suffering.

Theodicy is based on the belief in an orderly universe which is created by a beneficent God and seeks to answer how a benevolent, omnipotent, omniscient God allows suffering and pain in His creation.[1]

In Habakkuk 1:2-4, the prophet Habakkuk complained to God about His failure to judge the unrepentant disobedient citizens of Judah.

Now, in Habakkuk 1:12-17, he complains about God’s choice of the Babylonians to judge his countrymen.

By using a wicked, evil and treacherous people like the Babylonians to discipline the apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah, God was not violating His holy standards.

In other words, He was not compromising Himself because the Babylonians were responsible for their evil, wicked and treacherous behavior and not Him since they of their own volition committed evil, wicked and treacherous acts.

In fact, apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah were evil, wicked and treacherous as pointed out by Habakkuk in Habakkuk 1:2-4.

They were more wicked and evil than the Babylonians because they received greater revelation from God than the Babylonians.

The citizens of Judah were in a covenant relationship with God and not the Babylonians.

The former received great revelation than the Babylonians because the Jews were given the Law personally by God at Mount Sinai and not the Babylonians.

The Jews were given the Old Testament and the beneficiaries of the unconditional promises of the Abrahamic, Palestinian, Davidic and New covenants and not the Babylonians.

The Jews were given the tabernacle and later temple worship and not the Babylonians.

The Jews were the descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and not the Babylonians.

The Messiah would be a Jew and not a Babylonian.

Therefore, the apostate citizenry of Judah was under a great condemnation than the Babylonians because the former received greater revelation and privileges and responsibilities than the latter.

Thus, the citizens of Judah were not more righteous experientially (though they were positionally) than the Babylonians but rather worse because of the revelation, privileges and responsibilities bestowed on them by God and it is also unlikely that other unregenerate pagan nations were any better than Babylon.

Habakkuk is more than likely asserting in Habakkuk 1:13 that the citizens of Judah were more righteous than the Babylonians since Habakkuk 1:12-17 is Habakkuk’s response to God’s declaration in Habakkuk 1:6-11 that He will use the Babylonians to discipline apostate Judah.

So therefore, God was using evil to destroy evil by using the evil, wicked and treacherous Babylonians to judge the apostate citizens of Judah who were also wicked, evil and treacherous nation like the Babylonians.

Thus, God was exercising His wrath or righteous indignation against the apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah by employing the Babylonians as His instrument to discipline them severely or in other words, God uses evil nations to express His righteous indignation against other evil nations.

Specifically, He permits wicked nations to commit evil acts against other wicked and evil nations like themselves while at the same time, not compromising His holy standards since He does commit these acts but permits.

God was not tolerating the wicked, evil and treacherous behavior of the Babylonians or the citizens of Judah for that matter since God dealt with this behavior through cross of His Son Jesus Christ.

At the cross, the Father dealt with the sins of the entire human race and evil which originated with Satan by sending His Son into the world to become a human being in order to experience His wrath on the cross as a substitute for all of sinful humanity.

The Son’s substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross as well as His resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father propitiated the Father’s holiness, reconciled all of sinful humanity to God who is holy, and redeemed all of sinful humanity from the slave marker of sin.

The crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session of Jesus Christ destroyed the works of the devil who is the author of evil and again, these events in the life of Jesus Christ also delivered them from the consequences of their sins, namely spiritual and physical death.

They also delivered them from enslavement to the sin nature, Satan and his cosmic system and condemnation from the Law.

The reason why God was delaying judging the Babylonians is that He wanted to use the Babylonians to discipline His covenant people who were in apostasy.

God was delaying judging His covenant people because He wanted them to repent.

He was also withholding judging Babylon because He wanted them to repent as well because God desires all people to repent by believing in His Son as Savior (cf. John 3:16-18; 1 Tim. 2:4; 2 Pet. 3:9).

[1] Brooks, P., & Neal, D. A. (2016). Theodicy. In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.