Habakkuk 1 - 2 - Legacy Standard Bible

Habakkuk 1 - 2

Habakkuk Calls for Help

The oracle which Habakkuk the prophet beheld. 2

How long, O Yahweh, will I call for help,

And You will not hear?

I cry out to You, “Violence!”

Yet You do not save.

Why do You make me see wickedness

And cause me to look on trouble?

Indeed, devastation and violence are before me;

And there is strife, and contention is lifted up.

Therefore the law is ignored,

And justice never comes forth.

For the wicked surround the righteous;

Therefore justice comes forth perverted.

Yahweh Raises the Dreaded Chaldeans

“See among the nations! And look!

Be also astonished! Be astounded!

Because I am doing something in your days—

You would not believe if it was recounted to you.

For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans,

That bitter and hasty nation

Who walks on the breadth of the land

To possess dwelling places which are not theirs.

They are dreaded and feared;

Their justice and exaltation come forth from themselves.

Their horses are swifter than leopards

And sharper than wolves in the evening.

Their horsemen come galloping;

Their horsemen come from afar;

They fly like an eagle swooping down to devour.

All of them come for violence.

Their horde of faces moves forward.

And they gather captives like sand.

And they mock at kings,

And rulers are a laughing matter to them.

They laugh at every fortress

And heap up dirt and capture it.

Then they will sweep through like the wind and pass on.

But they will be held guilty,

They whose power is their god.”

Yahweh Has Placed Them to Judge

Are You not from everlasting,

O Yahweh, my God, my Holy One?

We will not die.

You, O Yahweh, have placed them to judge;

And You, O Rock, have established them to reprove.

Your eyes are too pure to see evil,

And You cannot look on trouble.

Why do You look

On those who deal treacherously?

Why are You silent when the wicked swallow up

Those more righteous than they?

And You have made men like the fish of the sea,

Like creeping things without a ruler over them.

The Chaldeans bring all of them up with a hook,

Drag them away with their net,

And gather them together in their fishing net.

Therefore they are glad and rejoice.

Therefore they offer a sacrifice to their net

And burn incense to their fishing net

Because through these things their portion is rich

And their food is fat.

Will they therefore empty their net

And continually kill nations without sparing?

The Righteous Will Live by His Faith

I will stand on my guard post

And station myself on the fortification;

And I will keep watch to see what He will speak to me

And how I may respond when I am reproved.

Then Yahweh answered me and said,

“Write down the vision

And write it on tablets distinctly,

That the one who reads it may run.

For the vision is yet for the appointed time;

It pants toward its end, and it will not lie.

Though it tarries, wait for it;

For it will certainly come; it will not delay.

“Behold, as for the proud one,

His soul is not right within him;

But the righteous will live by his faith.

And indeed, wine betrays the haughty man

So that he does not stay at home.

He enlarges his appetite like Sheol,

And he is like death, never satisfied.

He also gathers to himself all nations

And assembles to himself all peoples.

“Will not all of these lift up a taunt‑song against him,

Even satire and riddles against him

And say, ‘Woe to him who increases what is not his—

For how long—

And makes himself rich with loans?’

Will not your creditors rise up suddenly,

And those who make you tremble awaken?

Indeed, you will become spoil for them.

Because you have taken many nations as spoil,

All that is left of the peoples will take you as spoil—

Because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land,

To the town and all its inhabitants.

“Woe to him who is greedy for evil gain for his house

To put his nest on high,

To be delivered from the hand of evil!

You have counseled a shameful thing for your house

By cutting off many peoples;

So you are sinning against your own soul.

Surely the stone will cry out from the wall,

And the rafter will answer it from the framework.

“Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed

And founds a town with injustice!

Is it not, behold, from Yahweh of hosts

That peoples toil for fire,

And nations grow weary for nothing?

For the earth will be filled

With the knowledge of the glory of Yahweh,

As the waters cover the sea.

“Woe to you who make your neighbors drink,

Who mix in your venom even to make them drunk

So as to look on their nakedness!

You will be filled with disgrace rather than glory.

Now you yourself drink and expose your own nakedness.

The cup in Yahweh’s right hand will come around to you,

And utter disgrace will come upon your glory.

For the violence done to Lebanon will cover you,

And the devastation of its beasts by which you terrified them,

Because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land,

To the town and all its inhabitants.

“What profit is the graven image when its maker has engraved it,

Or a molten image, a teacher of lies?

For its maker trusts in his own making

When he fashions speechless idols.

Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, ‘Awake!’

To a mute stone, ‘Arise!’

And that is your teacher?

Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,

And there is no breath at all inside it.

But Yahweh is in His holy temple.

Let all the earth be silent before Him.”

Acts 24 - 25

Paul’s Trial Before Felix the Governor

Now after five days the high priest Ananias came down with some elders, with an attorney named Tertullus, and they brought charges to the governor against Paul. 2 And after Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, “As we have attained much peace through you—and because by your provision reforms are being carried out for this nation— 3 we welcome this in every way and everywhere, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness. 4 But, that I may not weary you any further, I plead with you by your forbearance to hear us briefly. 5 For we have found this man a real pest and a fellow who stirs up dissension among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes. 6 And he even tried to desecrate the temple; and then we arrested him. [We wanted to judge him according to our own Law. 7 But Lysias the commander came along, and with much violence took him out of our hands, 8 ordering his accusers to come before you.] By examining him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to ascertain the things of which we accuse him.” 9 And the Jews also joined in the attack, asserting that these things were so. 10 And when the governor had nodded for him to speak, Paul answered: “Knowing that for many years you have been a judge to this nation, I cheerfully make my defense, 11 since you are able to ascertain the fact that no more than twelve days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship. 12 And neither in the temple, nor in the synagogues, nor across the city did they find me carrying on a discussion with anyone or causing a riot. 13 Nor are they able to prove to you of what they are now accusing me. 14 But this I confess to you, that according to the Way, which they call a sect, I do serve the God of our fathers, believing everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets; 15 having a hope in God, for which these men are waiting, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. 16 In view of this, I also do my best to maintain always a conscience without fault both before God and before men. 17 Now after several years I came to bring alms to my nation and offerings; 18 in which they found me, having been purified in the temple, without any crowd or uproar. But there were some Jews from Asia— 19 who ought to have been present before you and to make accusation, if they should have anything against me. 20 Or else let these men themselves tell what wrongdoing they found when I stood before the Sanhedrin, 21 other than for this one statement which I shouted out while standing among them, ‘For the resurrection of the dead I am on trial before you today.’” 22 But Felix, having a more accurate knowledge about the Way, put them off, saying, “When Lysias the commander comes down, I will decide your case.” 23 Then he gave orders to the centurion for him to be kept in custody and yet have some rest, and not to prevent any of his friends from ministering to him. 24 But some days later Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and summoned Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. 25 But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and answered, “Go away for the present, and when I find time I will call for you.” 26 At the same time, he was also hoping that money would be given him by Paul; therefore he also used to summon for him quite often and converse with him. 27 But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.

Paul Before Festus

Festus then, having arrived in the province, after three days went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. 2 And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul, and they were pleading with him, 3 requesting a favor against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (while they set an ambush to kill him on the way). 4 Festus then answered that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly. 5 “Therefore,” he *said, “let the influential men among you go down there with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them accuse him.” 6 And after he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the judgment seat and ordered Paul to be brought. 7 And after Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove, 8 while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no sin either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.” 9 But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and to be tried before me on these matters?” 10 But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know. 11 If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.” 12 Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.”

Festus and Agrippa Discuss Paul’s Trial

13 Now when several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus. 14 And while they were spending many days there, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, “There is a man who was left as a prisoner by Felix; 15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him. 16 I answered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to hand over any man before the accused meets his accusers face to face and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges. 17 So after they had assembled here, I did not delay, but on the next day took my seat on the judgment seat and ordered the man to be brought before me. 18 When the accusers stood up, they were not bringing any charges against him for the evil deeds I was expecting, 19 but they had some points of disagreement with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, a dead man whom Paul asserted to be alive. 20 And being perplexed about how to investigate such matters, I was asking whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there to be tried on these matters. 21 But when Paul appealed to be held in custody for the Emperor’s decision, I ordered him to be kept in custody until I send him to Caesar.” 22 Then Agrippa said to Festus, “I also would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he *said, “you shall hear him.”

Paul Before Agrippa and Bernice

23 So, on the next day when Agrippa came together with Bernice amid great pomp, and entered the hall accompanied by the commanders and the prominent men of the city, at the order of Festus, Paul was brought in. 24 And Festus *said, “King Agrippa, and all you gentlemen here present with us, you see this man about whom all the people of the Jews appealed to me, both at Jerusalem and here, loudly declaring that he ought not to live any longer. 25 But I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and since he himself appealed to the Emperor, I decided to send him. 26 Yet I have nothing definite about him to write to my lord. Therefore I have brought him before you all and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the investigation has taken place, I may have something to write. 27 For it seems absurd to me in sending a prisoner, not to indicate also the charges against him.”

Psalm 94

God of Vengeance, Shine Forth

O Yahweh, God of vengeance,

God of vengeance, shine forth!

Be lifted up, O Judge of the earth,

Render recompense to the proud.

How long shall the wicked, O Yahweh,

How long shall the wicked exult?

They pour forth words, they speak arrogantly;

All workers of iniquity vaunt themselves.

They crush Your people, O Yahweh,

And afflict Your inheritance.

They slay the widow and the sojourner

And murder the orphans.

They have said, “Yah does not see,

Nor does the God of Jacob discern.”

Discern, you senseless among the people;

And when will you have insight, you fools?

He who planted the ear, does He not hear?

He who formed the eye, does He not see?

He who disciplines the nations, will He not rebuke,

Even He who teaches man knowledge?

Yahweh knows the thoughts of man,

That they are vanity.

Blessed is the man whom You discipline, O Yah,

And whom You teach out of Your law;

That You may grant him calm from the days of calamity,

Until a pit is dug for the wicked.

For Yahweh will not abandon His people,

Nor will He forsake His inheritance.

For judgment will again be righteous,

And all the upright in heart will follow it.

Who will arise for me against evildoers?

Who will take his stand for me against workers of iniquity?

If Yahweh had not been my help,

My soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.

If I should say, “My foot has stumbled,”

Your lovingkindness, O Yahweh, will hold me up.

When my anxious thoughts multiply within me,

Your consolations delight my soul.

Can a throne of destruction be allied with You,

One which forms trouble by statute?

They band themselves together against the life of the righteous

And condemn the innocent to death.

But Yahweh has been my stronghold,

And my God the rock of my refuge.

He has brought back their iniquity upon them

And will destroy them in their evil;

Yahweh our God will destroy them.