Habakkuk has come to the understanding that even when he doesn’t know what God is doing, he can trust Him. Now as Habakkuk’s faith is established in the all-knowing God, he listens as the Heavenly Father shares what will happen to the Chaldeans after they are used for judgment. We saw in yesterday’s verse the Chaldean’s pride and greed and their insatiable desire to add to their conquests. These traits have become their downfall, and so God continues to tell Habakkuk what will happen as a result of their ways. He wrote in Habakkuk chapter two and verse six:
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increases [that which is] not his! how long? and to him that lads himself with thick clay!
Any time God “takes up a parable” or “a taunting proverb” through surrounding nations against anyone, it is not a comfortable position. Although Habakkuk has concluded that God surely would not use the evil Chaldeans for judgment, Habakkuk only made this conclusion because he didn’t have full understanding. God is against the Chaldeans, and His full purposes for them are beyond what Habakkuk knows. The nations who were once downtrodden by the Chaldeans shall be the same ones who set parables and proverbs against them.
God tells Habakkuk the proverb, “Woe to him that increases that which is not his”. Theft by the Chaldeans brings “Woe” from God. Anytime there is a “woe” in one’s life, it means there is great warning of trouble ahead. Although the Chaldeans may think themselves beyond the reach of God, His power is close at hand. He’s watching. He cares, and that which seems to go unpunished is in the forefront of God’s thoughts.
The Chaldeans and those who trust in riches only insulate themselves with that which God through the surrounding nations call “thick clay.” The wealth they have obtained by theft of their neighbors is temporary, and even if it seems like a delay in eradication, judgment is certain to come. Although they believed themselves to be impervious to any outside attack, the Chaldeans are not beyond the reach of God. We all would do well to consider the fate of these Chaldeans as we move among others in the world.
A parable, or an Earthly story; A taunting proverb or a phrase created as a result of behavior are declared as vindication by God through the nations against the Chaldean people. As we consider their plight, what are the behaviors of others to which we are entrusting God? Who has done evil against us to whom we wonder if anyone truly cares? Can we rely upon an all-knowing God who brings retribution in His own timing, or will we continue on our path of non-surrender to which we make ourselves miserable in the process? May the Lord and His ways lead us in our meditation about all these things.
Next time we will continue to look at God’s prophetic word concerning the Chaldeans, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
Ray Hanselman 