Won’t all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases that which is not his, and who enriches himself by extortion! How long?’ Won’t your debtors rise up suddenly, and wake up those who make you tremble, and you will be their victim? Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples will plunder you, because of men’s blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all who dwell in it.
Show the surrounding paragraph
Habakkuk 2:6-8 sits inside this longer paragraph.
Yahweh answered me, “Write the vision, and make it plain on tablets, that he who runs may read it. For the vision is yet for the appointed time, and it hurries toward the end, and won’t prove false. Though it takes time, wait for it; because it will surely come. It won’t delay. Behold, his soul is puffed up. It is not upright in him, but the righteous will live by his faith. Yes, moreover, wine is treacherous. An arrogant man who doesn’t stay at home, who enlarges his desire as Sheol, and he is like death, and can’t be satisfied, but gathers to himself all nations, and heaps to himself all peoples. Won’t all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases that which is not his, and who enriches himself by extortion! How long?’ Won’t your debtors rise up suddenly, and wake up those who make you tremble, and you will be their victim? Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples will plunder you, because of men’s blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all who dwell in it. Woe to him who gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil! You have devised shame to your house, by cutting off many peoples, and have sinned against your soul. For the stone will cry out of the wall, and the beam out of the woodwork will answer it. Woe to him who builds a town with blood, and establishes a city by iniquity! Behold, isn’t it of Yahweh of Armies that the peoples labor for the fire, and the nations weary themselves for vanity? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of Yahweh’s glory, as the waters cover the sea.
Parallel Translations
-
Won’t all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases that which is not his, and who enriches himself by extortion! How long?’
Won’t your debtors rise up suddenly, and wake up those who make you tremble, and you will be their victim?
Because you have plundered many nations, all the remnant of the peoples will plunder you, because of men’s blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all who dwell in it.
-
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!
Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?
Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee; because of men’s blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein.
Show all 3 translations
-
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting riddle against him, and say: 'Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and that ladeth himself with many pledges!'
Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall exact interest of thee, and awake that shall violently shake thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?
Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the peoples shall spoil thee; because of men's blood, and for the violence done to the land, to the city and to all that dwell therein.
Cross-references (66)
- Isaiah 33:1 (v8) Woe to you who destroy, but you weren’t destroyed, and who betray, but nobody betrayed you! When you have finished destroying, you will be…
- Proverbs 29:1 (v7) He who is often rebuked and stiffens his neck will be destroyed suddenly, with no remedy.
- Habakkuk 2:17 (v8) For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of the animals, which made them afraid; because of men’s blood,…
- Numbers 23:7 (v6) He took up his parable, and said, “From Aram has Balak brought me, the king of Moab from the mountains of the East. Come, curse Jacob for…
- Job 20:15-29 (v6) He has swallowed down riches, and he will vomit them up again. God will cast them out of his belly. He will suck cobra venom. The viper’s…
Show all 65 cross-references
- Isaiah 14:4-19 (v6) that you will take up this parable against the king of Babylon, and say, “How the oppressor has ceased! The golden city has ceased!” Yahweh…
- Jeremiah 27:7 (v8) All the nations will serve him, his son, and his son’s son, until the time of his own land comes. Then many nations and great kings will…
- Jeremiah 29:22 (v6) A curse will be taken up about them by all the captives of Judah who are in Babylon, saying, ‘Yahweh make you like Zedekiah and like Ahab,…
- Jeremiah 50:13 (v6) Because of Yahweh’s wrath she won’t be inhabited, but she will be wholly desolate. Everyone who goes by Babylon will be astonished, and…
- Micah 2:4 (v6) In that day they will take up a parable against you, and lament with a doleful lamentation, saying, ‘We are utterly ruined! My people’s…
- Jeremiah 51:34-35 (vv6, 8) “Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babylon has devoured me. He has crushed me. He has made me an empty vessel. He has, like a monster, swallowed…
- Numbers 23:18 (v6) He took up his parable, and said, “Rise up, Balak, and hear! Listen to me, you son of Zippor.
- Job 22:6-10 (v6) For you have taken pledges from your brother for nothing, and stripped the naked of their clothing. You haven’t given water to the weary to…
- Psalms 94:3 (v6) Yahweh, how long will the wicked, how long will the wicked triumph?
- Psalms 137:8 (v8) Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction, he will be happy who repays you, as you have done to us.
- Proverbs 22:16 (v6) Whoever oppresses the poor for his own increase and whoever gives to the rich, both come to poverty.
- Ecclesiastes 10:8 (v7) He who digs a pit may fall into it; and whoever breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.
- Isaiah 13:1-5 (v7) The burden of Babylon, which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw. Set up a banner on the bare mountain! Lift up your voice to them! Wave your hand,…
- Isaiah 13:16-18 (v7) Their infants also will be dashed in pieces before their eyes. Their houses will be ransacked, and their wives raped. Behold, I will stir…
- Isaiah 21:2-9 (v7) A grievous vision is declared to me. The treacherous man deals treacherously, and the destroyer destroys. Go up, Elam; attack! I have…
- Isaiah 33:4 (v8) Your plunder will be gathered as the caterpillar gathers. Men will leap on it as locusts leap.
- Isaiah 41:25 (v7) “I have raised up one from the north, and he has come, from the rising of the sun, one who calls on my name, and he shall come on rulers as…
- Isaiah 44:20 (v6) He feeds on ashes. A deceived heart has turned him aside; and he can’t deliver his soul, nor say, “Isn’t there a lie in my right hand?”
- Isaiah 45:1-3 (v7) Yahweh says to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have held, to subdue nations before him, and strip kings of their armor; to open…
- Isaiah 46:11 (v7) I call a ravenous bird from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country. Yes, I have spoken. I will also bring it to pass. I have…
- Isaiah 47:6 (v8) I was angry with my people. I profaned my inheritance and gave them into your hand. You showed them no mercy. You laid a very heavy yoke on…
- Isaiah 47:11 (v7) Therefore disaster will come on you. You won’t know when it dawns. Mischief will fall on you. You won’t be able to put it away. Desolation…
- Isaiah 48:14-15 (v7) “Assemble yourselves, all of you, and hear! Who among them has declared these things? He whom Yahweh loves will do what he likes to…
- Isaiah 55:2 (v6) Why do you spend money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which doesn’t satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat that…
- Jeremiah 8:17 (v7) “For, behold, I will send serpents, adders among you, which will not be charmed; and they will bite you,” says Yahweh.
- Jeremiah 30:16 (v8) Therefore all those who devour you will be devoured. All your adversaries, everyone of them, will go into captivity. Those who plunder you…
- Jeremiah 50:10-11 (v8) Chaldea will be a prey. All who prey on her will be satisfied,” says Yahweh. “Because you are glad, because you rejoice, O you who plunder…
- Jeremiah 50:17-18 (v8) “Israel is a hunted sheep. The lions have driven him away. First, the king of Assyria devoured him, and now at last Nebuchadnezzar king of…
- Jeremiah 50:21-32 (v7) “Go up against the land of Merathaim, even against it, and against the inhabitants of Pekod. Kill and utterly destroy after them,” says…
- Jeremiah 50:28 (v8) Listen to those who flee and escape out of the land of Babylon, to declare in Zion the vengeance of Yahweh our God, the vengeance of his…
- Jeremiah 50:33-34 (v8) Yahweh of Armies says: “The children of Israel and the children of Judah are oppressed together. All who took them captive hold them fast.…
- Jeremiah 50:37 (v8) A sword is on their horses, on their chariots, and on all the mixed people who are in the middle of her; and they will become as women. A…
- Jeremiah 51:8 (v8) Babylon has suddenly fallen and been destroyed! Wail for her! Take balm for her pain. Perhaps she may be healed.
- Jeremiah 51:11 (v7) “Make the arrows sharp! Hold the shields firmly! Yahweh has stirred up the spirit of the kings of the Medes, because his purpose is against…
- Jeremiah 51:13 (v8) You who dwell on many waters, abundant in treasures, your end has come, the measure of your covetousness.
- Jeremiah 51:24 (v8) “I will render to Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight,” says Yahweh.
- Jeremiah 51:27-28 (v7) “Set up a standard in the land! Blow the trumpet among the nations! Prepare the nations against her! Call together against her the kingdoms…
- Jeremiah 51:44 (v8) I will execute judgment on Bel in Babylon, and I will bring out of his mouth that which he has swallowed up. The nations will not flow any…
- Jeremiah 51:48 (v8) Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, will sing for joy over Babylon; for the destroyers will come to her from the…
- Jeremiah 51:55-56 (v8) For Yahweh lays Babylon waste, and destroys out of her the great voice! Their waves roar like many waters. The noise of their voice is…
- Jeremiah 51:57 (v7) I will make her princes, her wise men, her governors, her deputies, and her mighty men drunk. They will sleep a perpetual sleep, and not…
- Ezekiel 32:21 (v6) The strong among the mighty will speak to him out of the middle of Sheol with those who help him. They have gone down. The uncircumcised…
- Daniel 5:25-31 (v7) “This is the writing that was inscribed: ‘MENE, MENE, TEKEL, UPHARSIN.’ “This is the interpretation of the thing: MENE: God has counted…
- Micah 4:11-13 (v8) Now many nations have assembled against you, that say, “Let her be defiled, and let our eye gloat over Zion.” But they don’t know the…
- Nahum 1:9-10 (v7) What do you plot against Yahweh? He will make a full end. Affliction won’t rise up the second time. For entangled like thorns, and drunken…
- Habakkuk 1:9-10 (v6) All of them come for violence. Their hordes face the desert. He gathers prisoners like sand. Yes, he scoffs at kings, and princes are a…
- Habakkuk 1:15 (v6) He takes up all of them with the hook. He catches them in his net, and gathers them in his dragnet. Therefore he rejoices and is glad.
- Habakkuk 2:10 (v8) You have devised shame to your house, by cutting off many peoples, and have sinned against your soul.
- Habakkuk 2:13 (v6) Behold, isn’t it of Yahweh of Armies that the peoples labor for the fire, and the nations weary themselves for vanity?
- Zechariah 1:15 (v8) I am very angry with the nations that are at ease; for I was but a little displeased, but they added to the calamity.”
- Zechariah 2:8-9 (v8) For Yahweh of Armies says: ‘For honor he has sent me to the nations which plundered you; for he who touches you touches the apple of his…
- Zechariah 12:2-4 (v8) “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of reeling to all the surrounding peoples, and it will also be on Judah in the siege against…
- Zechariah 14:12 (v8) This will be the plague with which Yahweh will strike all the peoples who have fought against Jerusalem: their flesh will consume away…
- Luke 12:20 (v6) “But God said to him, ‘You foolish one, tonight your soul is required of you. The things which you have prepared—whose will they be?’
- 1 Corinthians 7:29-31 (v6) But I say this, brothers: the time is short, that from now on, both those who have wives may be as though they had none; and those who…
- 1 Thessalonians 5:3 (v7) For when they are saying, “Peace and safety,” then sudden destruction will come on them, like birth pains on a pregnant woman. Then they…
- James 5:1-4 (v6) Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming on you. Your riches are corrupted and your garments are moth-eaten.…
- 1 Peter 4:7 (v6) But the end of all things is near. Therefore be of sound mind, self-controlled, and sober in prayer.
- Revelation 6:10 (v8) They cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, Master, the holy and true, until you judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the…
- Revelation 18:20-24 (v8) “Rejoice over her, O heaven, you saints, apostles, and prophets; for God has judged your judgment on her.” A mighty angel took up a stone…
65 distinct cross-references across this passage (66 total citations).
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this passage (19 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
Private notes
Saved on this device only — never synced or sent anywhere.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Now at length the Prophet denounces punishment on the…
Now at length the Prophet denounces punishment on the Babylonian king and the Chaldeans; for the Lord would render them a sport to all. But some think that a punishment is also expressed in the preceding verse, such as awaits violent robbers, who devour the whole world. But I, on the contrary, think that the Prophet spoke before of proud cruelty, and simply showed what a destructive evil it is, being an insatiable cupidity; and now, as I have stated, he comes to its punishment; and he says first, that all the people who had been collected as it were into a heap, would take up a parable or a taunt, in order to scoff at the king of Babylon. When therefore the Chaldeans should possess the empire of almost the whole world, and subject to their power all their neighboring nations, all these would at length take up against them parables and taunts; and what would be said everywhere would be this—Woe to him who increases and enriches himself by things not his own. How long? that is, Is this to be perpetual? All then who thus increase themselves heap on themselves thick clay, by which they shall at last be overthrown.
With regard to the words, משל, meshil is a short saying or a pithy sentence, and worthy to be remembered, as we have noticed elsewhere. Some render it parable. As to the word מליצה, melitse, it probably signifies a scoff or a taunt, by which any one is reproved; for it comes from לוף, luts, which means to laugh at one or to deride him. It is indeed true, that the Hebrews call a rhetorician or an interpreter מליף, melits; and hence some render מליצה, melitse, interpretation; but it is not suitable to this passage; for the Prophet speaks here of taunts that would be cast against the king of Babylon. For as he had as with an open mouth swallowed up all, so also all would eagerly prick him with their goads, and disdainfully deride him. The word he afterwards adds חידות, chidut, is to be read, I have no doubt, in the genitive case. I therefore do not approve of adding a copulative, as many do, and read thus—“a taunt and an enigma.” This word comes from the verb חוד, chud, which is to speak enigmatically; hence חידות, chidut, are enigmas, or metaphors, or obscure sentences; and we know that when we wish to touch a man to the quick, there is more sharpness when we use an obscure word, which contains a metaphor or ambiguity, or something of this kind. It is not therefore without reason that the Prophet calls taunts, enigmas, חידות, chidut, that is, obscure words, which bite or prick men sharply, as it were with goads. Hence in all scoffs a figurative language ought to be used; and except the expression be ambiguous or alliterative, or, in short, contain such metaphors as it is not necessary to recite here, there would be in it no beauty, no aptness. When therefore men wish to form biting taunts, they obscure what might be plainly said by some indirect metaphor; and this is the reason why the Prophet speaks here of a taunt that is enigmatical, for it is on that account more severe.
Read full note →
And he shall say. There is a change of number in this verb, but it does not obscure the sense. The particle הוי may be rendered “woe”; or it may be an exclamation, as when one is attracted by some particular sight, caca or sus; and so it is taken often by the Hebrews, and the context seems to favor this meaning, for “woe” would be frigid. When the Prophets pronounce a curse on the wicked, it is no doubt a dreadful threat; but what is found here is a taunt, by which the whole world would deride those haughty tyrants who thought that they ought to have been worshipped as gods. He! they say, where is he who multiplies himself by what belongs to another? and then, How long is this to be? even such accumulate on themselves thick clay; that is, they sink themselves in deep caverns, and heap on themselves mountains, by which they become overwhelmed. We now understand the meaning of the Prophet’s words.
What seems here to be the singing of triumph before the victory is no matter of wonder; for our faith, as it is well known, depends not on the judgement of the flesh, nor regards what is openly evident; but it is a vision of hidden things, as it is called in Hebrews 11:1, and the substance of things not seen. As then the firmness of faith is the same, though what it apprehends is remote, and as faith ceases not to see things hidden,—for through the mirror of God’s word it ascends above heaven and earth, and penetrates into the spiritual kingdom of God,—as faith, then, possesses a view so distant, it is not to be wondered that the Prophet here boldly triumphs over the Babylonians, and now prescribes a derisive song for all nations, that the proud, who had previously with so much cruelty exalted themselves, might be scoffed at and derided.
But were any to ask, whether it be right to assail even the wicked with scoffs and railleries, the question is unsuitable here; for the Prophet does not here refer to what is lawful for the faithful to do, but speaks only of what is commonly done by men: and we know that it is almost natural to men, that when those whom they had feared and dared not to blame as long as they were in power, are overthrown, they break forth against them not only with many complaints and accusations, but also with wanton rudeness. As, then, it usually happens, that all triumph over fallen tyrants, and throw forth their taunts, and all seek in this way to bite, the Prophet describes this regular course of things. It is not, however, to be doubted, but that he composed this song according to the nature of the case, when he says, that they were men who multiplied their own by what belonged to others; that is, that they gathered the wealth of others. It is indeed true, that many things are commonly spread abroad, for which there is no reason nor justice; but as some principles of equity and justice remain in the hearts of men, the consent of all nations is as it were the voice of nature, or the testimony of that equity which is engraven on the hearts of men, and which they can never obliterate. Such is the reason for this saying; for Habakkuk, by introducing the people as the speakers, propounded, as it were, the common law of nature, in which all agree; and that is,—that whosoever enriches himself by another’s wealth, shall at length fall, and that when one accumulates great riches, these will become like a heap to cover and overwhelm him. And if any one of us will consult his own mind, he will find that this is engraven on his very nature.
How, then, does it happen, that many should yet labor to get for themselves the wealth of others, and strive for nothing else through their whole life, but to spoil others that they may enrich themselves? It hence appears that men’s minds are deprived of reason by sottishness, whenever they thus addict themselves to unjust gain, or when they give themselves loose reins to commit frauds, robberies, and plunders. And thus we perceive that the Prophet had not without reason represented all the proud and the cruel as drunken.
Then follow the words, עד-מתי, od-mati, how long? This also is the dictate of nature; that is, that an end will some time be to unjust plunders, though God may not immediately check plunderers and wicked men, who proceed and effect their purposes by force and slaughters, and frauds and evil-doings. In the mean time the Prophet also intimates, that tyrants and their cruelty cannot be endured without great weariness and sorrow; for indignity on account of evil deeds kindles within the breasts of all, so that they become wearied when they see that wicked men are not soon restrained. Hence almost the whole world sound forth these words, How long, how long? When any one disturbs the whole world by his ambition and avarice, or everywhere commits plunders, or oppresses miserable nations,—when he distresses the innocent, all cry out, How long? And this cry, proceeding as it does from the feeling of nature and the dictate of justice, is at length heard by the Lord. For how comes it that all, being touched with weariness, cry out, How long? except that they know that this confusion of order and justice is not to be endured? And this feeling, is it not implanted in us by the Lord? It is then the same as though God heard himself, when he hears the cries and greenings of those who cannot bear injustice.
But let us in the meantime see that no one of us should have to say the same thing to himself, which he brings forward against others. For when any avaricious man proceeds through right or wrong, as they say, when an ambitious man, by unfair means, advances himself, we instantly cry, How long? and when any tyrant violently oppresses helpless men, we always say, How long? Though every one says this as to others, yet no one as to himself. Let us therefore take heed that, when we reprove injustice in others, we come without delay to ourselves, and be impartial judges. Self love so blinds us, that we seek to absolve ourselves from that fault which we freely condemn in others. In general things men are always more correct in their judgement, that is, in matters in which they themselves are not concerned; but as soon as they come to themselves, they become blind, and all rectitude vanishes, and all judgement is gone. Let us then know, that this song is set forth here by the Prophet, drawn, as it were, from the common feeling of nature, in order that every one of us may put a restraint on himself when he discharges the office of a judge in condemning others, and that he may also condemn himself, and restrain his desires, when he finds them advancing beyond just bounds.
We must also observe what he subjoins,—that the avaricious accumulate on themselves thick clay. This at first may appear incredible; but the subject itself plainly shows what the Prophet teaches here, provided our minds are not so blinded as not to see plain things. Hardly indeed an avaricious man can be found who is not a burden to himself, and to whom his wealth is not a source of trouble. Every one who has accumulated much, when he comes to old age, is afraid to use what he has got, being ever solicitous lest he should lose any thing; and then, as he thinks nothing is sufficient, the more he possesses the more grasping he becomes, and frugality is the name given to that sordid, and, so to speak, that servile restraint within which the rich confine themselves. In short, when any one forms a judgement of all the avaricious of this world, and is himself free from all avarice, having a free and unblessed mind, he will easily apprehend what the Prophet says here,—that all the wealth of this world is nothing else but a heap of clay, as when any one puts himself of his own accord under a great heap which he had collected together.
Some refer this to the walls of Babylon, which were built of baked bricks, as it is well known; but this is too farfetched. Others think that the Prophet speaks of the last end of us all; for they who possess the greatest riches, being at last thrown into the grave, are covered with earth: but this also is not suitable here, any more than when they apply it to Nebuchadnezzar, that is, to that sottishness by which he had inebriated himself almost through his whole life; or when others apply it to Belshazzar, his grandson, because when he drank from the sacred vessels of the temple, he uttered slanders and blasphemies against God. These explanations are by no means suitable; for the Prophet does not here speak of the person of the king alone, but, as it has been said, he, on the contrary, summons to judgement the whole nation, which had given itself up to plunders and frauds and other evil deeds.
Then a general truth is to be drawn from this expression that all the avaricious, the more they heap together, the more they lade themselves, and, as it were, bury themselves under a great load. Whence is this? Because riches, acquired by frauds and plunders, are nothing else than a heavy and cumbrous lump of earth: for God returns on the heads of those who thus seek to enrich themselves, whatever they have plundered from others. Had they been contented with some moderate portion, they might have lived cheerfully and happily, as we see to be the case with all the godly; who though they possess but little, are yet cheerful, for they live in hope, and know that their supplies are in God’s hand, and expect everything from his blessing. Hence, then, their cheerfulness, because they have no anxious fears. But they who inebriate themselves with riches, find that they carry a useless burden, under which they lie down, as it were, sunk and buried.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv6–7 Signifying, that all the world shall wish the destruction…
Signifying, that all the world shall wish the destruction of tyrants, and that by their oppression and covetousness, they heap but upon themselves more heavy burdens: for the more they get, the more are they troubled.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Hab 2:6 Shall not all these take up a…
Hab 2:6 Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth [that which is] not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!
Ver. 6. Shall not all these take up a parable against him?] Shall not the Babylonian, who is now a terror, be ere long a scorn? shall he not inherit with ignominy, reproach?
Read full note →
And a taunting proverb against him] Heb. An interpretation, and riddles. For example, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his, that is both a proverb (because in many men’s mouths) and an interpretation, because it is plain and perspicuous. But that which followeth is a riddle. "That ladeth himself with thick clay!" This nut must be broken up ere the kernel can be come at. See Jdg 7:15.
Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his!] Heb. Lo, lo. Some render it he, he that multiplieth not for himself but for another, sc. for the Medes and Persians, not woe, but he, a note of insulting and upbraiding, answerable to the Latin Vah, Vah, tunc ille es, &c. Ah sirrah, are you he that increaseth that which is not yours, &c. Eugo, ευρι θεος τον αλιτρον.
How long?] This is the common complaint of the oppressed nations, groaning out their grievances, and longing for deliverance from those troublers of the world. Neither is this usque quo in vain; for God is gracious, and may better style himself, than the Great Turk, Awlem Penawh, that is, The world’s refuge: the poor man’s king, as James IV of Scotland was called.
And to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!] With gold and silver, that guts and garbage of the earth, fitly called clay, because of the clogging and polluting property, and said to load people as a sumpter horse laden with treasure all day, but at night turned into a stinking stable, with his back full of galls and bruises. He that first called riches bona, goods, was mistaken; the Scripture calleth them thorns, snares, thick clay, &c., a great burden to the owner, according to the proverb, Magna navis, magna cura, a great ship is a great care, and the lading oft proves no better than that which Captain Frobisher brought back with him after his voyage to discover the Straits, viz. a great quantity of stones, which he thought to be minerals, from which, when there could be drawn neither gold nor silver, nor any other metal, they were cast forth to repair the highways. This was labour in vain, pressure to no purpose; and no less is theirs that heap up riches without right, Jer 17:11, or, if by right means, yet set their hearts upon them, Psa 62:10, still striving (as they say the toad doth) to die with as much earth in their mouths as may be, till at length their never enough be requited with fire enough in the bottom of hell. Nenessan the lawyer was wont to say, He that will not venture his body shall never be valiant, he that will not venture his soul never rich. O curvae in terras animae, et coelestium inanes. Is it nothing to lose an immortal soul? to purchase an everlasting death? to sink into the bottomless lake under this thick clay?
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Shall not? the prediction is moulded thus in a…
Shall not? the prediction is moulded thus in a question, to give it emphasis, and make it more affective.
All these, who have been oppressed, contumeliously used, and perfidiously deceived; all the people who have feared the power and policy of Babylon.
Read full note →
Take up a parable; turn him and his state into a by-word and scorn.
Against him; the king of Babylon, awhile since the terror, now the scorn of nations.
Taunting; short, but smart, wounding scoffs; and whereas men usually bewail and condole the mishaps of great, brave, and just kings or kingdoms, all people shall exult and triumph in the miseries of this oppressive, luxurious, and base kingdom.
Woe! either it is a threat of like vengeance on all such transgressors, or it may be a publishing the miseries come upon Babylon.
To him that increaseth; by rapine, frauds, and injurious dealings multiplieth his treasures, as the king of Babylon did.
Not his; it was not his though he had it; it was not his right though it was in his possession. Or else thus, one misery of the Babylonians shall be, they increase wealth, but not for themselves, but for the Medes and Persians.
How long? this seems to be the sigh of the oppressed, who think it long ere the oppressor fall.
To him that ladeth himself; woe to him that is a burden to others, while he burdens himself with amassed treasures gathered by extortion and grievous, unjust taxes!
With thick clay; gold and silver, so called to lower the over-value of them, and perhaps to mind the tyrant of a clay-bed.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Shall not all these take up a parable against…
Shall not all these take up a parable against him,.... A proverbial expression, a short sentence, a laconic speech, delivered in a few words, which contains much in them concerning the vices of these emperors, and imprecating judgments upon them for them; took up and expressed by the nations brought into subjection unto them, and especially by the Christians in those nations spoiled and persecuted by them:
and a taunting proverb against him; or, "whose explanation are riddles to him" (y); the proverb, when explained, would be a riddle to him, which he could not understand, nor would give any credit to; taking it not to belong to him or them, and in which they had no concern; though afterwards would find they had, to their great mortification:
Read full note →
and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! substance or goods, not his own, as the Targum explains it; which they had no right unto, nor property in, but were another's; and therefore guilty of great injustice in taking it from them, and might justly expect vengeance would pursue them for it; such were the goods they spoiled the Christians of for not worshipping their idols, and for professing and abiding by the Christian religion:
how long? that is, how long shall they go on increasing their substance by such unjust and unlawful methods? how long shall they keep that which they have so unjustly got? this suggests as if it was a long time, which, as Cocceius observes, does not so well agree with the Babylonian as the Roman empire, which stood much longer:
and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay: such is gold and silver, no other than yellow and white dust and dirt; and may be called clay, because dug out of the earth, as that; and as clay is defiling, so are gold and silver, when ill gotten, or ill used, or the heart set too much upon them; and as that is very ponderous and troublesome to carry, so an abundance of riches bring much care with them, and often are very troublesome to the owners of them, and frequently hinder their sleep, rest, and ease; and as clay when it sticks to the heels hinders walking, so riches, when the affections are too much set on them, are great obstacles in the way of true religion and godliness; hence our Lord observes, "how hard it is them, that trust in riches to enter into the kingdom of God", Mar 10:24 they are even a weight, a clog to good men. The phrase seems to point at the meanness of them, as well as the hurt that sometimes comes by them, and the contempt they should be had in, in comparison of the true riches; hence, agreeable to this way of speaking, a good man Drusius makes mention of used to call gold "yellow earth": and a certain Greek writer (z) says gold is ashes, and so is silver. The word used is a compound; and, as Kimchi observes, signifies an abundance of riches; but our countryman Mr. Fuller (a) chooses rather to render it an "abundance of pledges"; and thinks it has respect to the many pledges which the person here spoken of, by whom he supposes is meant the Babylonian monarch, had in an unjust manner took of several nations, and heaped up like an usurer; and which should in due time be taken from him, by those whom he had plundered of them: but this expresses the greedy desire of the Romans after money, as well as the unlawful methods they took to acquire wealth, and the vast sums they became masters of, so that they were even loaded with it; but, getting it in an unrighteous manner, it brought the curses and imprecations of the people upon them, especially those they defrauded of it. Joseph Kimchi, as his son David observes, interprets it,
"he shall make thick clay lie heavy on his grave;''
and it was a custom with the Romans, as Drusius (b) relates, that when one imprecated evil upon another, he used to wish a heavy load of earth upon him, that is, when he was dead; as, on the contrary, when one was wished well after death, it was desired he might have a light earth upon him: so Julian the emperor, speaking of Constantius, says (c),
"when he is become happy, or departs out of this life, may the earth be light upon him;''
which is wishing all felicity, and freedom from punishment; whereas the contrary, to have a load of earth or thick clay, is an imprecation of the heaviest punishment.
(y) "et interpretationem aenigmata ei", Drusius, Burkius; "et interpretatio erit aenigmata ipsi", Cocceius; "cujus explicatio illi erit aenigmatum loco", Van Till. (z) , , Naumachius apud Grotium in loc. (a) Miscel. Sacr. l. 5. c. 8. (b) Observat. l. 15. c. 18. (c) Epist. Hermogeni, Ep. 23. p. 141.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On v8 Of the land - Of the whole land of…
Of the land - Of the whole land of Chaldea. The city - Babylon.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Verse 6. Shall not all these take up a…
Verse 6. Shall not all these take up a parable against him] His ambition, derangement, and the final destruction of his mighty empire by the Persians, shall form the foundation of many sententious sayings among the people. "He who towered so high, behold how low he is fallen!" "He made himself a god; behold, he herds with the beasts of the field!" "The disturber of the peace of the world is now a handful of dust!"
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv6–7 Hab 2:6. Shall not these take up a parable…
Hab 2:6. Shall not these take up a parable against (or, concerning) him, and a taunting proverb — A parable, or proverb, signifies a metaphorical or figurative saying, out of the common way. And say, Wo to him that increaseth, &c. — Wo to him that is still increasing his own dominions, by invading those of his neighbours. How long? — Namely, will he be permitted to do this? Surely he will not be suffered to continue to act thus, without some remarkable check from Providence: and so what he thus increases will not be his, or for himself, (for so the words in the former part of the sentence may be translated,) but for the Medes and Persians, who shall conquer him, and enrich themselves with his spoils: see the following verse. And to him that ladeth himself with thick clay — Gold and silver, so called, being nothing originally but earth, or clay, and what should not turn to his benefit, but rather be his burden; adding weight to his sins and punishment.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Shall not all these take up a parable against…
Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him? - Nebuchadnezzar gathered, Dan 3:4-5, “all people, nations, and languages, to worship the golden image which he had set up.” The second Babylon, pagan Rome, sought to blot out the very Christian Name; but mightier were the three children than the King of Babylon; mightier, virgins, martyrs, and children than Nero or Decius. These shall rejoice over Babylon, that, Rev 18:20, “God hath avenged them on her.”
Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! - Truly wealth ill-gotten by fraud or oppression, “is not his,” who winneth it, before he had it, nor when he hath it, but a woe. It is not his; the woe is his. “Woe unto him.” He shall have no joy in what he gaineth, and what he hath he shall lose.
Read full note →
How long? - What is the measure of thine impiety and greediness and cruelty? Yet if these are like hell, without measure, there remains another “How long?” How long will the forbearance of God endure thee, which thou art daily exhausting?
This is then the end of all. The conqueror sweeps to him “all nations” and gathereth to him “all peoples.” To what end? As one vast choir in one terrible varied chant of all those thousand thousand voices, to sing a dirge over him of the judgments of God which his ill-doings to them should bring upon him, a fivefold Woe, woe, woe, woe, woe! Woe for its rapacity! Woe for its covetousness! Woe for its oppression! Woe for its insolence to the conquered! Woe to it in its rebellion against God! It is a more measured rhythm than any besides in Holy Scripture; each of the fivefold woes comprised in three verses, four of them closing with the ground, because, for. The opening words carry the mind back to the fuller picture of Isaiah. But Isaiah sees Babylon as already overthrown; Habakkuk pronounces the words upon it, not by name, but as certainly to come, upon it and every like enemy of God’s kingdom. With each such fall, unto the end of all things, the glory of God is increased and made known. Having, for their own ends, been unconscious and even unwilling promoters of God’s end, they, when they had accomplished it, are themselves flung away. The pride of human ambition, when successful, boasts “woe to the conquered.” Since “whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth,” the ungodly saying of the pagan is reversed, and it stands, “Man sympathizes with the conquering side, God with the conquered.” It is a terrible thought that people should have been the instruments of God, that they should, through ambition or other ends short of God, have promoted His ends which they thought not of, and then should be “weighed in the balance and found wanting,” and themselves be flung away.
Cyr: “Gentiles also departed from their worship under Satan, and having deserted him who aforetime called them, ran unto Christ. For Satan gathered what was not his; but Christ received what was His. For, as God, He is Lord of all.”
And to him that ladeth himself with thick clay - It is the character of these proverbs to say much in few words, sometimes in one, and more than appears. So the word translated “thick-clay,” as if it were two words, in another way means in an intensive sense, “a strong deep pledge.” At best gold and silver are, as they have been called, red and white earth. Bern. Serm. 4. in Adv: “What are gold and silver but red and white earth, which the error of man alone maketh, or accounteth precious? What are gems, but stones of the earth? What silk, but webs of worms?” These he “maketh heavy upon” or “against himself” (so the words strictly mean). “For He weigheth himself down with thick clay, who, by avarice multiplying earthly things, hems himself in by the oppressiveness of his own sin, imprisons and, as it were, buries the soul, and heaps up sin as he heaps up wealth.” With toil they gather what is not worthless only, but is a burden upon the soul, weighing it down that it should not rise Heavenwards, but should be bowed down to Hell. And so in that other sense while, as a hard usurer, he heaps up the pledges of these whom he oppresses and impoverishes, and seems to increase his wealth, he does in truth “increase against himself a strong pledge,” whereby not others are debtors to him, but he is a debtor to Almighty God who careth for the oppressed Jer 17:11 “He that gathereth riches had not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days and at his end shall be a fool.”
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Parable. Literally, "marvel," or wonderful speech; parabolam. --- Dark.…
Parable. Literally, "marvel," or wonderful speech; parabolam. --- Dark. Protestants, "a taunting proverb;" (Haydock) when Nabuchodonosor became like a beast, and his empire was soon after divided. (Calmet) --- Clay. Ill-gotten goods, that like mire both burden and defile the soul. (Challoner) --- Gold and silver are only a sort of earth, Job xxvi. 16., and Zacharias ix. 2. Habacuc does not even name riches, out of contempt. Some think (Calmet) that he alludes to the grave. People prayed for their deceased friend: Sit tibi terra levis. (Drusius)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Shall not all these--the "nations" and "peoples" (Hab 2:5)…
Shall not all these--the "nations" and "peoples" (Hab 2:5) "heaped unto him" by the Chaldean.
take up a parable--a derisive song. Habakkuk follows Isaiah (Isa 14:4) and Micah (Mic 2:4) in the phraseology.
Read full note →
against him--when dislodged from his former eminence.
Woe--The "derisive song" here begins, and continues to the end of the chapter. It is a symmetrical whole, and consists of five stanzas, the first three consisting of three verses each, the fourth of four verses, and the last of two. Each stanza has its own subject, and all except the last begin with "Woe"; and all have a closing verse introduced with "for," "because," or "but."
how long?--how long destined to retain his ill-gotten gains? But for a short time, as his fall now proves [MAURER]. "Covetousness is the greatest bane to men. For they who invade others' goods, often lose even their own" [MENANDER]. CALVIN makes "how long?" to be the cry of those groaning under the Chaldean oppression while it still lasted: How long shall such oppression be permitted to continue? But it is plainly part of the derisive song, after the Chaldean tyranny had passed away.
ladeth himself with thick clay--namely, gold and silver dug out of the "clay," of which they are a part. The covetous man in heaping them together is only lading himself with a clay burden, as he dares not enjoy them, and is always anxious about them. LEE and FULLER translate the Hebrew as a reduplicated single noun, and not two words, "an accumulation of pledges" (Deu 24:10-13). The Chaldean is compared to a harsh usurer, and his ill-gotten treasures to heaps of pledges in the hands of a usurer.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv6–8 TAUNT-SONG OVER THE FALL OF THE CHALDEANS, Hab_2:6-20.
TAUNT-SONG OVER THE FALL OF THE CHALDEANS, Hab_2:6-20.
In Hab_2:6-20, the prophet introduces the nations that are now suffering from the oppressions of the Chaldeans as taking up a parable or song against the oppressor about to be crushed. The song is in the form of five woes upon (1) lust of conquest and plunder; (2) rapacity; (3) self-glorification; (4) oppression; (5) idolatry. These woes are placed in the mouth of the nations; in reality the prophet is the speaker.
Read full note →
First woe — upon lust of conquest and plunder, Hab_2:6-8.
Hab_2:6 a introduces the oppressed who will pronounce the woes. The utterances begin with “woe” in 6b. Throughout the song the Chaldean power is personified as an individual (see Introduction, p. 472). The nations will not submit forever.
All these — All the wronged nations.
Against him — The Chaldean oppressor.
Parable — The primary meaning of the Hebrew word seems to be “likeness” or “identity”; hence it came to be applied to any saying containing a comparison or similitude. In a more general sense it is used of any figurative speech or song — in some places of a taunt-song (Isa_14:4); so here.
Taunting proverb — Literally, a dark saying; margin, “riddle”; here practically synonymous with the preceding, a taunt-song. The thought is that the nations will make the Chaldeans, as examples of fallen greatness and pride, objects of taunting proverbs and comparisons, such as are found in Hab_2:6-20.
Woe — With this word begins the first “parable.” Each of the five is directed against a specific crime, the first against lust of conquest and plunder.
Increaseth that which is not his — He seizes the lands and possessions of other nations (compare Hab_1:6; Hab_1:9; Hab_1:15).
How long? — “A sigh appended to the woe.” How long will he be permitted to carry out this policy?
Ladeth himself with thick clay — This is a possible translation, but the context favors the reading of R.V., “with pledges.” The wealth accumulated by the Chaldeans is represented as a mass of pledges which they have taken from the nations like merciless usurers. But the time will come when the plundered nations will rise in wrath and compel the Chaldeans to return these pledges to their proper owners. In this connection it may be interesting to compare the boast of Nebuchadnezzar: “I have amassed silver, gold, metals, precious stones of all kinds and of all values, a collection of objects of great price, immense treasures.”
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–8 6–8. First woe: the Chaldean lust of conquest
6–8. First woe: the Chaldean lust of conquest
6. Shall not all these] i.e. all the nations whom he has drawn into his net, and heaped together as his own possession.
Read full note →
take up a parable] The word may mean originally a saying containing a comparison or similitude; in a wider sense, a figurative speech or song. For the phrase “take up a parable” cf. Num_23:7; Num_23:18; Job_27:1.
taunting proverb against him] Or, in regard to him. Taunting proverb is lit. an enigma, riddles, Pro_1:6; Psa_49:4; Dan_8:23. Both words suggest a song or poem with concealed taunting allusions.
increaseth that which is not his] The reference is to his insatiable lust of conquest and robbery of the nations.
that ladeth himself with thick clay] and that ladeth himself with pledges. That which he compels the nations to give him or takes from them by force is compared to pledges which he heaps up upon himself. The day will come when their restitution shall be exacted of him. Job_20:10; Job_20:15; Job_20:20. The rendering “thick clay” is obtained by taking the word “pledges” as a compound; cf. Exo_19:9, thick cloud.
6–20. Five woes pronounced against the Chaldean From the mouth of the nations whom he has desolated
Hab_2:5 does not belong to the vision Hab_2:4, but forms the transition to the taunting proverb taken up against the Chaldean by the nations. This proverb is in the form of a prophecy in which woes are pronounced on the lust of conquest, rapacity, selfish pride and idolatry of the people, and their ruin is predicted, for their vices carry in them their own recompense. The woes are five in number, beginning with Hab_2:6; Hab_2:9; Hab_2:12; Hab_2:15; Hab_2:18. Though the nations take up the woes, as the passage proceeds the prophet himself appears to speak.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv6–8 (6) How long?—i.e., how long shall this continual annexation…
(6) How long?—i.e., how long shall this continual annexation be witnessed?
That ladeth himself with thick clay.—Better, That accumulates to himself usury. So the Targum. The rendering “thick clay” originates in a false etymology of the word abtêt, which the student will find in Rashi’s Commentary. For the true derivation see Fürst’s Lexicon.
Read full note →
(6-8) Woe on the reckless rapacity which has spared neither life nor property.
(6-20) The destruction of the Chaldæans has hitherto been only implied. It is now plainly foretold in a denunciatory song, put into the mouths of the invader’s victims. In this song there are five strophes, of three verses each, 6-8; 9-11; 12-14; 15-17; 18-20.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv6–8 Vers. 6-88. The destruction of the Babylonians is announced…
Vers. 6-88. The destruction of the Babylonians is announced by the mouth of the vanquished nations, who utter five woes against their oppressor. The first woe: for their rapacity.
All these. All the nations and peoples who have been subjugated and barbarously treated by the Babylonians. (comp. Isa_14:4) A parable. A sententious song. (see note on Mic_2:4) A taunting proverb. The Anglican Version combines the two Hebrew words, which stand unconnected, into one notion. So the Vulgate, loquelam aenigmatum. The latter of the two generally means "riddle," "enigma;" the other word (melitzah) is by some translated, "a derisive satirical song," or "an obscure, dark saying;" but, as Keil and Delitzsch have shown, is better understood of a bright, clear, brilliant speech. So the two terms signify "a speech containing enigmas," or a song which has double or ambiguous meanings. (comp. Pro_1:6) Septuagint, Problhma eijv dihghsiv, aujtou. Woe. (Nah_3:1) This is the first of the five "woes," which consist of three verses each, arranged in strophical form. Increaseth that which is not his. He continues to add to his conquests and possessions, which are not his, because they are acquired by injustice and violence. This is the first denunciation of the Chaldeans for their insatiable rapacity. How long? The question comes in interjectionally How long is this state of things to continue unpunished? (comp. Psa_6:3 Psa_90:13) That ladeth himself with thick clay; Septuagint, barunwn ton kloion aujtou stibarwv, "who loadeth his yoke heavily;" Vulgate, aggravat contra se densum lutum. The renderings of the Anglican and Latin Versions signify that the riches and spoils with which the conquerors load themselves are no more than burdens of clay, which are in themselves worthless, and only harass the bearers. The Greek Version seems to point to the weight of the yoke imposed by the Chaldeans on them; but Jerome explains it differently, "Ad hoc tantum saevit ut devoret et iniquitatis et praedarum onere quasi gravissima torque se deprimat." The difficulty lies in the apax legomenon abtit, which forms an enigma, or dark saying, because, taken as two words, it might pass current for "thick clay," or "a mass of dirt," while regarded as one word it means "a mass of pledges," "many pledges." That the latter is the signification primarily intended is the view of many modern commentators, who explain the clause thus: The quantity of treasure and booty amassed by the Chaldeans is regarded as a mass of pledges taken from the conquered nations a burden of debt to be discharged one day with heavy retribution. Pusey, "He does in truth increase against himself a strong pledge, whereby not others are debtors to him, but he is a debtor to Almighty God, who careth for the oppressed." (Jer_17:11)
Read full note →
Vers. 6-8Covetousness.
In the remaining portion of this chapter the prophet dwells upon the sins prevailing amongst the Chaldeans, and indicates the misery these should entail. His utterances, taken together, form a satirical ode directed against the Chaldeans, who, though not named, are yet most clearly personified. In the general statement respecting them in ver. 5 allusion is made to their rapacity, and the first stanza in the song is specially directed to this greed, which was so characteristic of that nation. The words of the prophet suggest to us respecting the sin of covetousness, that
I IT IS UNSATISFYING IN ITS NATURE. It is compared (ver. 5) to Hades and death, that crave continually for more. "The covetous man is like Tantalus, up to the chin in water, yet thirsty." Necessarily it must be so, for "a man"s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things that he possesseth". (Luk_12:15) Wealth can only yield satisfaction in proportion as it is acquired, not for its own sake, but to be consecrated to high and holy purposes. George Herbert sings
Be thrifty, but not covetous. Get, to live; Then live and use it: else it is not true That thou hast gotten.
II IT LEADS TO INJUSTICE AND OPPRESSION. The covetous man "increaseth that which is not his" (ver. 6). He disregards the rights of others. He uses all who come within his power with a view to his own aggrandizement. Self is the primary consideration with him, and influences all his movements. "He oppresseth the poor to increase his riches," and out of their grinding poverty and want he grows fat. He is ready to take any mean advantage so as to add to his own stores. He demands heavy security of the debtor, and exacts crushing interest, and "ladeth himself with thick clay" (ver. 6), i.e. "loadeth himself with the burden of pledges.
III IT INCURS SURE RETRIBUTION. Whether this sin is committed by individuals or nations, it is alike "woe" unto such; for there shall assuredly follow Divine judgments. Habakkuk represents the Chaldeans as one who had gathered men and nations into his net, (Hab_1:14-17) and as having "spoiled many nations" (ver. 8), and Jeremiah confirms these representations of their rapacity by describing them as "the hammer" (Jer_50:23) and the destroyer (Jer_51:25) of the whole earth; and they also declare that there should overtake them certain retribution for the wrongs they had thus done and the sorrows they had thus occasioned, and that the spoiler should be at length spoiled (vers. 7, 8). In the destruction of the Chaldean empire by the Medes and Persians we have the fulfilment of the threatenings, whilst, at the same time, we hear the voice of God speaking to us in the events of history and saying, "Take heed, and beware of covetousness! S.D.H.
Vers. 6-8National wrongs ending in national woes. No. 1.
"Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay! Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee, and awake that shall vex thee, and thou shalt be for booties unto them?" etc. In these verses, up to the nineteenth inclusive, the prophet denounces upon the Chaldeans and Babylonians five different woes. One for their pride and insatiableness (vers. 6-8); another for their covetousness, etc., which would become the cause of their corruption (vers. 9-11); another for the bloody and cruel means which they had employed for gratifying their thirst for acquiring possessions not their own (vers. 12-14); and fourth, for their wickedness, etc., which would be recompensed to them (vers. 15-17); and the fifth, for their trust in idols, which would redound to their shame (vers. 18, 19). We shall take each of the five sections separately under the title, National wrongs ending in national woes. Notice
I THE NATIONAL WRONGS.
1. Dishonest accumulation. "Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his!" Babylon grew wealthy. Its treasures were varied and all but inexhaustible. But whence came they? Came they by honest industry? Were they the home produce of diligent and righteous labour? No; from other lands. They were wrested from other countries by violence and fraud. Even the golden and silver vessels used at the royal feast were taken out of the temple which was at Jerusalem. "No more," says an old writer, "of what we have is to be reckoned ours than what we came honestly by. Nor will it long be ours, for wealth gotten by vanity will soon diminish." Take away the ill-gotten wealth of the nations of Europe wealth gotten by fraud and violence and how greatly will they be pauperized! How much of our national wealth has come to us honestly? A question this worth the impartial investigation of every man, and which must be gone into sooner or later.
2. Dominant materialism. "And to him that ladeth himself with thick clay." Although some render this "ladeth himself with many pledges," our version, which gives the word "clay," will cover all. The burning and insatiable desire of Babylon was for material wealth; and the men or the nation who succeed in this, only lade themselves with "thick clay" It is a bad thing for moral spirits to be laden with "thick clay." See the individual man who so pampers his animal appetites until he becomes a Falstaff. His spirit is laden with "thick clay." See the nation whose inspiration is that of avaricious merchandise, and whose god is mammon; its spirit is laden with "thick clay." Ah me! what millions are to be found in all civilized countries who are buried in "thick clay"! Clay is everything to them.
3. Extensive plunder. "Thou hast spoiled many nations." The first monarchy we read of in Holy Scripture is that of the Assyrians, begun by Ninus, of whom Nineveh took name, and by Nimrod, whom histories call Belus, and after him succeeded Semiramis his wife. This monarchy grew, by continual wars and violences on their neighbours, to an exceeding height and strength; so that the exaltation of that monarchy was the ruin of many nations, and this monarchy lasted, as some write, annos 1300.
4. Ruthless violence. "Because of men"s blood, and for the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein." "The terms "men," "land," "earth," "city, says Henderson, "are to be understood generally, not restricted to the Jews, their country and its metropolis." What oceans of the blood of all countries were shed by these ruthless tyrants of Babylon!
II THE NATIONAL WOES. All these wrongs, as all other wrongs, run into woes. Crimes lead to calamities. What are the woes connected with these wrongs, as given in these verses?
1. The contempt of the injured. "Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!" The woe comes out in a derisive song, which continues to the end of the chapter. Dishonesty and low animalism must ever sink the people amongst whom they prevail into bitter contempt. Scarcely can there be anything more painful than the contempt of others when it is felt to be deserved. To be sneered at, laughed at, ridiculed, scorned, is not this bitterly affictive? Jeremiah predicted that one part of the punishment should be that he should be laughed to scorn.
2. The avenging of the spoiled. "Because thou hast spoiled many nations, all the remnant of the people shall spoil thee." Here is retaliation plunder for plunder, blood for blood. Divine retribution often pays man back in his own coin. "With what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.
CONCLUSION. Ever under the righteous administration of Heaven woes tread closely on the heel of wrongs. More certainly than the waves of the ocean follow the moon must suffering follow sin. To every crime there is linked a curse, to every sin a suffering, to every wrong a woe. Be sure that "your sins will find you out. D.T.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v6 Him that ladeth himself with thick clay.
Hab_2:6
Him that ladeth himself with thick clay.
Read full note →
Heavy clay
It is the glory of the religion of the Lord Jesus Christ when it is regarded in its moral aspect, that it is not the religion merely of transcendental and unpractical truths, but that its motives and precepts go down to the minutest details of everyday duty. Note--
1. The danger of a false start and a false aim in life. God has given us a complex nature, and He has given us the use of our reason and the other faculties, physical and mental, which He bestows upon men. And the great end of man is to glorify God. If a man uses his powers only to found a family or amass wealth, we earnestly warn that man. He has mistaken the great end of his being.
2. A form in which the lading of thick clay is found is greed of money. Covetousness in some one or other of its forms or specious disguises is one of the besetting idolatries of the day. This greed of money manifests itself in money-getting and in money-losing, and also in money-spending. Comparatively few recognise the principle of stewardship to God in the expenditure of their income.
3. Another form in which this heavy clay is sometimes found is anxiety. What our Lord and His apostles tell us to avoid is the carking, distracting care which turns a mans mind away from God, and keeps him continually on the rack, forgetting the loving Father who is willing to be the bearer of all his cares.
4. Another form of this clay among business men is sharp practice. Sharp practice is in our manufactories, upon the exchange, with lawyers, and not only among the little petty hucksters, but among tradesmen who make a much fairer show in our streets.
5. Another form is a worldly tone and spirit. To be a Christian, there is no necessity to leave your work and to lead the life of a recluse. Go into the world and make your money, but do not worship it. (Canon Miller, D. D.)
Under a heap of clay
The avaricious accumulate on themselves thick clay. Hardly, indeed, an avaricious man can be found who is not a burden to himself, and to whom his wealth is not a source of trouble. Everyone who has accumulated much, when he comes to old age, is afraid to use what he has got, being ever solicitous lest he should lose anything; and then, as he thinks nothing is sufficient, the more he possesses the more grasping he becomes, and frugality is the name given to that sordid and, so to speak, that servile restraint within which the rich confine themselves. In short, when any one forms a judgment of all the avaricious of this world, and is himself free from all avarice, having a free and unbiassed mind, he will easily apprehend what the prophet says here,--that all the wealth of this world is nothing else but a heap of clay, as when any one puts himself of his own accord under a great heap which he had collected together. The general truth to be drawn from the expression is, that all the avaricious, the more they heap together, the more they lade themselves, and as it were, bury themselves under a great load. Riches acquired by frauds and plunders are nothing else than a heavy and cumbrous lump of earth; for God returns on the heads of those who thus seek to enrich themselves whatever they have plundered from others. Had they been contented with some moderate portion, they might have lived cheerfully and happily, as we see to be the case with all the godly, who, though they possess but little, are yet cheerful; for they live in hope, and know that their supplies are in Gods hands, and expect everything from His blessing. (John Calvin.)
Making money
Whatever we do to please ourselves, and only for the sake of the pleasure, not for an ultimate object, is play, the pleasing thing, not the useful thing The first of all Enish games is making money. That is an all-absorbing game; and we knock each other down oftener in playing at that than at football or any other rougher sport; and it is absolutely without purpose. No one who engages heavily in that game ever knows why. Ask a great money-maker what he wants to do with his money; he never knows. He doesnt make it to do anything with it. He gets it only that he may get it. What will you make of what you have got? you ask. Well, Ill get more, he says. Just as at cricket you get more runs. Theres no use in the runs, but to get more of them than other people is the game. And theres no use in the money, but to have more of it than other people is the game. (John Ruskin.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v6 Hab_2:6. These] “nations” and “people” (Hab_2:4). Parable] A derisive…
CRITICAL NOTES.]
Hab_2:6. These] “nations” and “people” (Hab_2:4). Parable] A derisive song (Isa_14:4; Mic_2:4), some; ode, given by others, enigmatical in character. Woes] fivefold given, a song raised by the oppressed over the fall of the oppressor. First woe, ill-gotten gains. Increaseth] i.e. seizes what does not belong to him. How long] will he do this with impunity? Ladeth] To make heavy by a weight or load upon one. Thick clay] (mass of dirt) Lit. a cloud of clay, which will cause her ruin. Many render “a burden of pledges gained by usury,” taken by an unmerciful usurer, which he will be compelled to give up (Deu_24:10).
Read full note →
Hab_2:7. Shall] Answer to question, How long? Bite] of a snake; the enemy like savage vipers (Jer_8:17). Rise] Shake or rouse up from possession.
Hab_2:8. Because] Reason for woe. Many] Boundless the spoil. Remnant] Only a remnant left, will be sufficient to punish. “Blood, land, and city] Understood generally, and not restricted to the Jews with their country and its metropolis” [Hend.].
THE SIN OF THE AVARICIOUS.—Hab_2:6-8
The first woe is pronounced, and the sentence passed, upon avaricious men in these words. The fundamental thought is like that expressed concerning the Chaldæan, in Isa_14:12-14. Ambition manifests itself in cruelty, and proud edifices built upon the ruins of others.
I. Avaricious men increase their guilt. The covetous and those who thrive unlawfully in the world are under woe. They multiply their sins and their judgments. They break God’s commands, and add injustice to their apostasy (1Ti_6:10). “Great abundance of riches cannot of any man,” says Erasmus, “be both gathered and kept without sin.” “A faithful man shall abound with blessings; but he that maketh haste to be rich shall not be innocent.”
II. Avaricious men increase their enemies. “Shall they not rise up suddenly that shall bite thee?” &c. God will not long permit their conduct to prosper. Enemies will suddenly rise up to disturb their rest. When they are most secure and least prepared nations will retaliate; “the remnant of the people,” whom they have despised, or whom God has hid from their fury, will rise against them. Those whom they have oppressed shall taunt them. Nations and “many nations” will destroy them. Covetous and ambitious men turn God and their fellow-creatures into their enemies. “For many nations and great kings shall serve themselves of them also, and I will recompense them according to their deeds, and according to the works of their own hands.”
III. Avaricious men increase their dangers. Men haste to be rich and rush into danger.
1. They heap up booty for others. “Thou shalt be for booties unto them.” Notwithstanding their labour and strength, the enemy will easily overcome them. Their wealth gotten by vanity will be diminished. Men collect and foster what they cannot keep. They brood over ill-gotten gains which forsake and disappoint them. “As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool.”
2. They insure fearful retribution. As they had spoiled others, they would be spoiled themselves. “Refrain from covetousness,” says Plato, “and thy estate shall prosper.” Innocent blood which they had shed would be avenged upon the land, the city, and the people (Hab_2:8). “When thou shalt cease to spoil, thou shalt be spoiled; and when thou shalt make an end to deal treacherously, they shall deal treacherously with thee.”
HOMILETIC HINTS AND OUTLINES
Hab_2:6.
1. Ambitious men become contemptible to others. They are ignominious, a taunting proverb, a public derision. “Shall not these take up a parable against him?”
2. Ambitious men have no right to the possession of that which they illegally acquire. Unjust conquest brings a curse. “Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his.”
3. Ambitious men will be stripped of all their unjust acquisitions. To what end does the conqueror sweep all nations together. Not for himself, but for others. “Riches do not exhilarate us so much with their possession as they torment us with their loss” [Gregory].
Riches are often—
1. Connected with covetousness.
2. With violence,—oppression, robbery, cruelty.
3. With folly. What is that heaped up?—only “clay.” What results from all toil and vexation?—a burden for themselves; “ladeth himself.” “A bag of gold from a Western steamer was found bound to the neck of the robber, his treasure having sunk him” [Van Doren]. “A great fortune is a great slavery” [Seneca].
Hab_2:8. People shall spoil thee. Avaricious men are spoiled:
1. In their friends; who fall away, taunt, and help to strip them.
2. In their dignities; which are tainted by sin and fall into dust.
3. In their reputations; their names are a proverb in the land, and hated by all men.
4. In their posterity; who are cursed by the sins of their fathers, and cut off from the earth. “God loves to retaliate, to spoil the spoilers by a remnant of the people, by such as were of no note, and much unlikely to do such exploits. Thus he spoiled these Babylonians, by Cyrus and his Medes; the Persians, by Alexander and his Macedonians. So the Roman empire was miserably rent and torn by the Goths, Vandals, Huns, Lombards, people not before heard of, and the Greek empire by Turks, Tartars, Saracens, Scythians” [Trapp].
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 2
Hab_2:5-6. Desire. Could you change the solid earth into a single lump of gold, and drop it into the gaping mouth of avarice, it would only be a crumb of transient comfort, a cordial drop, enabling it to cry a little louder, “Give, give” [Royal Preacher].
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 General Information:
General Information:
Yahweh continues to answer Habakkuk and to speak of the Chaldeans as if they were one man. (See: Metaphor)
Read full note →
Will not all these create
The words "all these" refer to the nations and peoples from Habakkuk 2:5. This negative rhetorical question emphasizes the positive answer. It can be translated as a statement. AT: "All of these nations and peoples will certainly create" (See: Rhetorical Question)
Woe to the one increasing what is not his
It is implicit that he is increasing his possession of things that do not belong to him. AT: "Woe to the one who claims for himself more and more things that do not belong to him" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
For how long will you increase the weight of the pledges you have taken?
The word "pledges" refers to objects that people give to others from whom they have borrowed money as a guarantee that they will repay their debt. As the man collects more and more pledges, the total weight of the pledges that he carries increases.
For how long will you increase the weight of the pledges you have taken?
The Chaldeans robbing the people of the nations of their wealth is spoken of as if the Chaldeans were a person who forces others to give him pledges and to pay him what they do not owe. AT: "For how long will you make yourself rich by extorting others?" (See: Metaphor)
Will the ones biting at you not rise up suddenly, and the ones terrifying you awaken?
This negative rhetorical question emphasizes the positive answer. It can be translated as a statement. AT: "The ones biting at you will certainly rise up suddenly, and the ones terrifying you will awaken." (See: Rhetorical Question)
the ones biting at you
The Hebrew word translated here as "the ones biting" can also mean "the ones paying interest" or "debtors." In this context, the word probably has both meanings. The phrase is a metaphor in which those whom the man has oppressed and made debtors by forcing them to give him pledges will now oppress him, which is spoken of as if they were biting him. (See: Metaphor)
the ones terrifying you
This refers to the same debtors. They will terrify the Chaldeans by attacking them in revenge for the pledges that they were forced to give.
rise up ... awaken
The people of the nations beginning to act against the Chaldeans is spoken of as if they were to "rise up" and to "awaken" from sleep. (See: Metaphor)
plunder
to rob or take things by force
you have shed human blood
The idiom "to shed blood" means "to murder." AT: "you have murdered people" (See: Idiom)
translationWords
pledge
raise
nation
remnant
people group
blood
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v6 2:6-20 Five taunt songs (2:6-8, 9-11, 12-14, 15-17, 18-20)…
2:6-20 Five taunt songs (2:6-8, 9-11, 12-14, 15-17, 18-20) portray God’s future judgment of the Babylonians (and others who, like the Babylonians, indulge in violence and injustice). God allows them to seal their own doom. Those who suffer will be able to repeat these taunts when the wicked come to judgment (see 1:14-17). Each taunt contains a pronouncement of sorrow, a judgment, and the reason for God’s judgment.
2:6-8 In the first of Habakkuk’s taunt songs, he condemns the Babylonians for despoiling the nations. • thieves . . . extortion: The imagery compares the Babylonians to creditors whose oppressive measures cause their debtors to rise up against them. Greed can easily mar an individual’s or nation’s spiritual fiber (Luke 12:15; Eph 5:3).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.