I will stand upon my watch, and set me upon the {Or, fortress}tower, and will look forth to see what he will speak {Or, by}with me, and what I shall answer concerning my complaint.
And Jehovah answered me, and said, Write the vision, and make it plain upon tablets, that he may run that readeth it.
For the vision is yet for the appointed time, and it {Hebrew: panteth.}hasteth toward the end, and shall not lie: though it tarry, wait for it; because it will surely come, it will not delay.
Behold, his soul is puffed up, it is not {Or, straight}upright in him; but the righteous shall live {Or, in his faithfulness}by his faith.
{Or, And also because his wine…he is a haughty man}Yea, moreover, wine is treacherous, a haughty man, {Or, he shall not abide}that keepeth not at home; who enlargeth his desire as Sheol, and he is as death, and cannot be satisfied, but gathereth unto him all nations, and heapeth unto him all peoples.
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting {Or, riddle}proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and that ladeth himself with pledges!
Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall {Or, exact usury of thee}bite thee, and awake that shall {Or, toss thee to and fro}vex thee, and thou shalt be for booty unto them?
Because thou hast plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples shall plunder thee, because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all that dwell therein.
Woe to him that getteth an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
Thou hast devised shame to thy house, by cutting off many peoples, and hast sinned against thy soul.
For the stone shall cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the timber shall answer it.
Woe to him that buildeth a town with blood, and establisheth a city by iniquity!
Behold, is it not of Jehovah of hosts that the peoples labor for the fire, and the nations weary themselves for vanity?
For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea.
Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, to thee that {Or, pourest}addest thy {Or, fury}venom, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!
Thou art filled with shame, and not glory: drink thou also, and {Or, let thy foreskin be uncovered}be as one uncircumcised; the cup of Jehovah's right hand shall come round unto thee, and foul shame shall be upon thy glory.
For the violence done to Lebanon shall cover thee, and the destruction of the beasts, which made them afraid; because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all that dwell therein.
What profiteth the graven image, that the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image, even the teacher of lies, that he that fashioneth its form trusteth therein, to make dumb idols?
Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise! Shall this teach? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.
But Jehovah is in his holy temple: {Hebrew: be silent before him, all the earth.}let all the earth keep silence before him.
Querverweise zu Habakuk 2,8 Hab 2,8
Thou hast devised shame to thy house, by cutting off many peoples, and hast sinned against thy soul.
O daughter of Babylon, {Or, that art laid waste}that art to be destroyed,Happy shall he be, that rewardeth theeAs thou hast served us.
For the violence done to Lebanon shall cover thee, and the destruction of the beasts, which made them afraid; because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all that dwell therein.
I was wroth with my people, I profaned mine inheritance, and gave them into thy hand: thou didst show them no mercy; upon the aged hast thou very heavily laid thy yoke.
Woe to thee that destroyest, and thou wast not destroyed; and dealest treacherously, and they dealt not treacherously with thee! When thou hast ceased to destroy, thou shalt be destroyed; and when thou hast made an end of dealing treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.
Because ye are glad, because ye rejoice, O ye that plunder my heritage, because ye are wanton as a heifer {Or, at grass}that treadeth out the grain, and neigh as strong horses;
And your spoil shall be gathered as the caterpillar gathereth: as locusts leap shall men leap upon it.
Israel is a {Hebrew: scattered.}hunted sheep; the lions have driven him away: first, the king of Assyria devoured him; and now at last Nebuchadrezzar king of Babylon hath broken his bones.
And all the nations shall serve him, and his son, and his son's son, until the time of his own land come: and then many nations and great kings shall make him their bondman.
Therefore thus saith Jehovah of hosts, the God of Israel: Behold, I will punish the king of Babylon and his land, as I have punished the king of Assyria.
Therefore all they that devour thee shall be devoured; and all thine adversaries, every one of them, shall go into captivity; and they that despoil thee shall be a spoil, and all that prey upon thee will I give for a prey.
The voice of them that flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of Jehovah our God, the vengeance of his temple.
And Chaldea shall be a prey: all that prey upon her shall be satisfied, saith Jehovah.
Thus saith Jehovah of hosts: The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together; and all that took them captive hold them fast; they refuse to let them go.
A sword is upon their horses, and upon their chariots, and upon all the mingled people that are in the midst of her; and they shall become as women: a sword is upon her treasures, and they shall be robbed.
Their Redeemer is strong; Jehovah of hosts is his name: he will thoroughly plead their cause, that he may give rest to the earth, and disquiet the inhabitants of Babylon.
O thou that dwellest upon many waters, abundant in treasures, thine end is come, the measure of thy {Or, dishonest gain}covetousness.
Babylon is suddenly fallen and destroyed: wail for her; take balm for her pain, if so be she may be healed.
And I will {Hebrew: visit upon.}execute judgment upon Bel in Babylon, and I will bring forth out of his mouth that which he hath swallowed up; and the nations shall not flow any more unto him: yea, the wall of Babylon shall fall.
And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, saith Jehovah.
Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers shall come unto her from the north, saith Jehovah.
Nebuchadrezzar the king of Babylon hath devoured {Another reading is, us.}me, he hath crushed {Another reading is, us.}me, he hath made {Another reading is, us.}me an empty vessel, he hath, like a monster, swallowed {Another reading is, us.}me up, he hath filled his maw with my delicacies; he hath cast {Another reading is, us.}me out.
For Jehovah layeth Babylon waste, and destroyeth out of her the great voice; and their waves roar like many waters; the noise of their voice is uttered:
{Hebrew: My wrong and my flesh.}The violence done to me and to my flesh be upon Babylon, shall the {Hebrew: inhabitress.}inhabitant of Zion say; and, My blood be upon the inhabitants of Chaldea, shall Jerusalem say.
for the destroyer is come upon her, even upon Babylon, and her mighty men are taken, their bows are broken in pieces; for Jehovah is a God of recompenses, he will surely requite.
And now many nations are assembled against thee, that say, Let her be defiled, and let our eye {Or, gaze upon}see our desire upon Zion.
But they know not the thoughts of Jehovah, neither understand they his counsel; for he hath gathered them as the sheaves to the threshing-floor.
Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion; for I will make thy horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass; and thou shalt beat in pieces many peoples: and I will devote their gain unto {[Chapter 4:14 in Hebrew.]}Jehovah, and their substance unto the Lord of the whole earth.
For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: {Or, After the glory, he hath &c.}After glory hath he sent me unto the nations which plundered you; for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.
And I am very sore displeased with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, and they {Or, helped for evil}helped forward the affliction.
For, behold, I will shake my hand over them, and they shall be a spoil to those that served them; and ye shall know that Jehovah of hosts hath sent me.
For thus saith Jehovah of hosts: {Or, After the glory, he hath &c.}After glory hath he sent me unto the nations which plundered you; for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.
Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling unto all the peoples round about, and {Or, against}upon Judah also {Or, shall it fall to be}shall it be in the siege against Jerusalem.
And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all the peoples; all that burden themselves with it shall be sore wounded; and all the nations of the earth shall be gathered together against it.
In that day, saith Jehovah, I will smite every horse with terror, and his rider with madness; and I will open mine eyes upon the house of Judah, and will smite every horse of the peoples with blindness.
And this shall be the plague wherewith Jehovah will smite all the peoples that have warred against Jerusalem: their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their sockets, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.
and they cried with a great voice, saying, How long, O Master, the holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye saints, and ye apostles, and ye prophets; for God hath judged your judgment on her.
And {Greek: one.}a strong angel took up a stone as it were a great millstone and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with a mighty fall shall Babylon, the great city, be cast down, and shall be found no more at all.
And the voice of harpers and minstrels and flute-players and trumpeters shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, {Some ancient authorities omit of whatsoever craft.}of whatsoever craft, shall be found any more at all in thee; and the voice of a mill shall be heard no more at all in thee;
and the light of a lamp shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all in thee: for thy merchants were the princes of the earth; for with thy sorcery were all the nations deceived.
And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all that have been slain upon the earth.