Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Habakkuk 3:19
The LORD God [is] my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet], and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.
19. The Lord God is my strength ] lit. Jehovah, the Lord is, &c. Psa 73:26, “God is the strength of my heart”; Psa 18:32, “The God that girdeth me with strength.” The strength is an inward one, confidence and assurance and courageousness in the face of all external afflictions.
And he will make my feet ] Or, and he maketh. The points in the comparison are perhaps swiftness and security. What is suggested is the freshness of life, the power and confidence in action, which is felt to be drawn from God.
And he will make me to walk ] Or, and he maketh me.
upon mine high places ] The words seem still to carry on the figure of the “hinds’ feet.” The pronoun mine does not refer to any particular high places; my high places are just those on which I walk or tread. Sept., Syr., Vulg. omit my, with no difference of meaning. The phrase “tread on my high places” expresses the freedom, the superiority to hindrance or restraint, and the power, which the community is conscious of in the strength of God. Cf. Psa 18:33.
To the chief singer ] In the titles to Psalms 4, 6 the word is rendered chief musician. It means director, or, superintendent.
on my stringed instruments ] Or, with my. In the titles to Psalms 4, 6 &c. in A.V. the original word neginoth is retained. In the sing this word may mean playing on strings, in the plur it appears to mean stringed instruments. The whole expression has the meaning: To the director in the (Temple) music; or, To the director; with (Temple) music. The pronoun my occasions difficulty. On the assumption that this musical direction came from the author of the hymn it has been inferred that he was a Levite and a musician. Such an assumption would exclude the authorship of Habakkuk. But even supposing the author were some other Levite, how could a single member of the orchestra say “ my stringed instruments”? The Sept. reads his, which might refer to the director, but no reliance can ever be placed on the pronouns of the Sept. All evidence, however, is against ascribing any of these musical directions to the authors of the hymns themselves. The similar passage Isa 38:20 should perhaps be rendered: “Therefore will we strike (play) my stringed instruments all the days of our life in the house of the Lord.” In both passages the pronoun my must either be deleted according to the usage in the titles to Psalms 4, 6 &c., or the speaker who says “my” must be supposed to be the worshipping congregation. Only a collective body could say “my stringed instruments” and “our life” (Isa 38:20) in the same breath.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
The Lord God is my strength – The prophet does not inwardly only exult and triumph in God, but he confesses also in words of praise, that in Him he hath all things, that He is All things in him. And as he had confessed the Father, under the Name whereby He revealed Himself to Moses, and the Son, the Lord God of my salvation, so he confesses God the Holy Ghost, who, in us, is our strength. He is our strength, so that through Him, we can do all things; He is our strength, so that without Him, we can do nothing; He is our strength, so that when we put forth strength, we put forth nothing of our own, we add nothing of our own, we use not our own strength, of which we have none, but we do use His; and we have It ever ready to use, as if it were our own. For it is not our own and it is our own; not our own, i. e., not from or of ourselves; but our own, since It is in us, yea He the Lord our God is our strength, not without us, for He is our strength, but in us.
And so he says further, how we can use it as our own. He will make my feet like hinds, which bound upward through His imparted strength, trod, when scared by alarms here below, flee tearless to their native reeks, spring from height to height, and at last shew themselves on some high peak, and standing on the Rock, look down on the whole world below their feet and upward on high. Even so when at the end of the world all shall fail, and the love of many shall wax cold, and the Church, which is likened to the fig tree the vine and the (Luk 13:6; Isa 5:1; 21:33; etc. Rom 11:17.) olive, shall yield no fruits, and sweetness shall be corrupted by vanities, and the oil of mercy shall be dried up, and lamps go out, and its promises shall fail and it shall lie, having a show of goodness, but denying the power of it; in words confessing God, and in works denying Him; and through their own negligences, or the carelessness of pastors, the sheep of Christ shall perish from His very fold, and they who should be strong to labor 1Co 9:9-10. shall cease, Gods elect shall joy in Him, beholding His goodness, and loving Him in all things, and He will give them free affections, and fervid longings of holy love, whereby they shall not walk only, but run the way of His commandments and prevail over the enemies of their salvation.
Yet though this strength is inward, and used by man, still God who gives it, Himself guides it. Not man shall direct his own ways, but He will make me to walk (as on a plain way) upon my high place. Steep and slippery places and crags of the reeks are but ways to the safe height above, to those whom God makes to walk on them; and since he has passed all things earthly, what are his high places, but the heavenly places, even his home, even while a pilgrim here, but now at the end, much more his home, when not in hope only, but in truth, he is raised up together, and made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus? Eph 2:6)
And now what remains then, but that this song of praise should be forever? And so it is not without meaning, nor was of old thought to be so that there stand here, at the end, words which elsewhere in the Psalms always stand at the beginning. Nor is it anywhere else, upon my stringed instruments.
To the chief singer on my stringed instruments – To Him to whom all praise is due, through whom we praise Himself, His Spirit pleading in us, for us, upon my stringed instruments. He Himself, providing, as it were, and teaching the prelude of the endless song, and by His spirit, breathing upon the instrument which He has attuned, and it giving back faithfully, in union with the heavenly choir with whom it is now blended, the angelic hymn, Glory to God in the Highest.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Hab 3:19
The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds feet.
Strength, buoyancy, devotion
The expressions are of a highly metaphorical and imaginative character, but they admit of being brought down to very plain facts, and they tell us the results in heart and mind of true faith and communion with God. It is to be noticed that a parallel saying, almost verbatim, the same is that of my text, occurs in the 18th Psalm. I note that the three clauses of our text present three aspects of what our lives and ourselves may steadfastly be if we, too, will rejoice in the God of our salvation. First, such communion with God brings–
I. God to a man for his strength. The 18th Psalm gives a somewhat different and inferior version of that thought when it says, It is the Lord that girdeth me with strength. But Habakkuk, though perhaps he could not have put into dogmatic shape all that he meant, had come further than that, The Lord is my strength. He not only gives, as one might put a coin into the hand of a beggar, while standing separate from him all the while, but the Lord is my strength. And what does that mean? It is an anticipation of that most wonderful and highest of all the New Testament truths which the Apostle declared when he said: I can do all things in Christ which strengtheneth me within. My grace is sufficient for thee, and My strength is made perfect in weakness. Ah! do not let us deprive ourselves of the lofty consolations and the mysterious influx of power which may be ours. That is the first blessing that this ancient believer, out of the twilight of early revelation, felt as certain to come through communion with God. The second is like unto it. Such rejoicing communion with God will give–
II. Light-footedness in the path of life. He makes my feet like hinds feet. The stag, in all languages spoken by people that have ever seen it, is the very emblem of elastic, springing ease, of light and bounding gracefulness, that clears every obstacle, and sweeps swiftly over the moor. And when this singer, or his brother psalmist in the other psalm that we have referred to, says Thou makest my feet like hinds feet, what he is thinking about is that fight and easy, springing, elastic gait, that swiftness of advance. What a contrast that is to the way in which most of us get through our days work! The monotony of trivial, constantly recurring doings, the fluctuations in the thermometer of our own spirits; the stiff bits of road that we have all to encounter sooner or later; and, as days go on, the diminishing buoyancy of nature, and the love of walking a little slower than we used to do; we all know these things, and our gait is affected by them. It is the same thought, under a somewhat different garb, which the apostle has when he tells us that the Christian soldier ought to have his feet shod with the alacrity that comes from the Gospel of peace. We are to be always ready to run, and to run with light hearts when we do. That is a possible result of Christian communion, and ought, far more than it is, to be an achieved reality with each of us. Of course, physical conditions vary. Of course, our spirits go up and down. Of course, the work that we have to do one day seems easier than the same work does another. Unless that is true, that Christianity gives to a man the Divine gladness which makes him ready for work, I do not know what is the good of his Christianity to him. But not only is that so, but this same communion with God, which is the opening of the heart for the influx of the Divine power, brings to bear upon all our work new motives which redeem it from being oppressive, tedious, monotonous, trivial, too much for our endurance, or too little for our effort. All work that is not done in fellowship with Jesus Christ tends to become either too heavy to be tackled successfully, or too trivial to demand our best energies; and in either case will be done perfunctorily, and, as the days go on, mechanically and wearisomely, as a grind and a plod. If we live in daily communion with God, another thought, too, will come in, which will, in like manner, make us ready to run with cheerfulness the race that is set before us. We shall connect everything that befalls us, and everything that we have to do, with the final issue, and life will become solemn, grave, and blessed, because it is the outer court and vestibule of the eternal life with God in Christ. The last of the thoughts here is, communion with God brings–
III. Elevation. He will make me to walk upon my high places. One sees the herd on the skyline of the mountain ridge, and at home up there, far above dangers and attack; able to keep their footing on cliff and precipice, and tossing their antlers in the pure air. One wave of the hand, and they are miles away. He sets me upon my high places. Communion with God does not, only help us to plod and to travel, but it helps us to soar. If we keep ourselves in touch with Him we shall be like a weight that is hung on to a balloon. The buoyancy of the one will lift the leadenness of the other. Are you and I familiar with these upper ranges of thought and experience and life? Do we feel at home there more than down in the bottom, amongst the swamps and the miasma and the mists? It is safe up there. The air is pure; the poison mists are down lower; the hunters do not come there; their arrows or their rifles will not carry so far. It is only when the herd ventures a little down the hill that it is in danger from shots. But the elevation will not be such aa to make us despise the low paths on which duty–the sufficient and loftiest thing of all–lies for us. Our souls may be like stars, and dwell apart, and yet may lay the humblest duties upon themselves, and whilst we live in the high places, we may travel on lifes common way in cheerful godliness. So we may go on until at last we shall hear the Voice that says, Come up higher, and shall be lifted to the mountain of God, where the living waters are, and shall fear no snares or hunters any more for ever. (A. Maclaren, D. D.)
And will make me to walk upon mine high places.
High places
High places are the best things in life and experience. They lift a man up to God.
I. High places of vision. On a mountain we see more clearly. There are seasons when we get clear views of Divine truth, when they appear in a new glory. True, the revelation is made,–it is all in the book. But so the landscape exists. Yet unless your feet ascend the high places it is as though it were not there. So the revelation is in the book, but you must get up the mount of vision to see it.
II. The high places of faith. On high places we see things farthest, and so the mount of faith. Not only is there nothing between you and the distant object, but through a rarefied atmosphere there is the least possible obstruction. Moses on the heights of Pisgah saw the goodly land of promise spread out before him. It is a beautiful type of faith, Gazing upon the land which lies across the narrow stream, a man may take out his title-deeds and contemplate his possessions.
III. The high places of enjoyment. In high places men breathe more freely, so pure and exhilarating is the rarefied air. So it is with the soul. Drink in the quickening, inspiring influence of the Spirit. Yield yourselves to God. If you live in the Spirit, walk in the Spirit. Be spiritually minded.
IV. The high places of exertion. On the heights a man can do more than on the low places of ordinary life. This is an image of spiritual life. God makes a mans feet like hinds feet; that is, He makes the heavy, sluggish mortal into a light active being. To reach these heights we must climb. God will lead, but we must walk. If we would be great or high we must bear in mind they must depend on our own labour. (Homilist.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
Verse 19. The Lord God is my strength] This is an imitation, if not a quotation, from Ps 18:32-33, where see the notes.
Will make me to walk upon mine high places] This last verse is spoken in the person of the people, who seem to anticipate their restoration; and that they shall once more rejoice in the hills and mountains of Judea.
To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.] This line, which is evidently a superscription, leads me to suppose that when the prophet had completed his short ode, he folded it up, with the above direction to the master singer, or leader of the choir, to be sung in the temple service. Many of the Psalms are directed in the same way. “To the master singer;” or, “chief musician;” to be sung, according to their nature, on different kinds of instruments, or with particular airs or tunes.
Neginoth, which we translate stringed instruments, means such as were struck with a plectrum, or excited by some kind of friction or pulsation; as violins and cymbals or tambarines are. I do not think that the line makes any part of the prophecy, but merely the superscription or direction of the work when it was finished. The ending will appear much more dignified, this line being separated from it.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
The prophet had in his own, and in the name of all the godly, made a full profession of his faith, and resolution to behave himself with joy in midst of troubles, Hab 3:17,18; now he gives us account on what ground he speaks so, it is not in his own strength he can do it, but it is because the Lord God is his strength.
He will make my feet like hinds feet; that I may escape to God my refuge to that safe mountain of salvation, that I may at last flee from Babylon to Judea, to Jerusalem.
He will make me to walk upon mine high places; to my native country, to my beloved city, and thy more beloved temple, which were built like high places to that munition of rocks, &c., Deu 32:13; Isa 33:16. My God will return my captivity, and when I am set at liberty, as I shall be, by Cyrus, my God will be my strength, that, as a hind let loose, I may hasten to the mountains of Israel.
To the chief singer; let this be kept on record for public use, this be a pattern for others as well as it is a declaration of my faith, hope, desire, and prayer.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
19. hinds’ feet . . . walk upon . .. high placesHabakkuk has here before his mind Psa 18:33;Psa 18:34; Deu 32:13.”Hinds’ (gazelles’) feet” imply the swiftness withwhich God enables him (the prophet and his people) to escape from hisenemies, and return to his native land. The “high places”are called “mine,” to imply that Israel shall be restoredto his own land, a land of hills which are places of safetyand of eminence (compare Gen 19:17;Mat 24:16). Probably not only thesafety, but the moral elevation, of Israel above allthe lands of the earth is implied (De33:29).
on my stringedinstrumentsneginoth. This is the prophet’s direction tothe precentor (“chief singer”) as to how thepreceding ode (Hab 3:1-19)is to be performed (compare Psa 4:1;Psa 6:1, titles). The prophet hadin mind a certain form of stringed instrument adapted to certainnumbers and measures. This formula at the end of the ode, directingthe kind of instrument to be used, agrees with that in the beginningof it, which directs the kind of melody (compare Isa38:20).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
The Lord God [is] my strength,…. The author and giver of natural and spiritual strength, as he is to all his people; he is the strength of their hearts when ready to faint and sink, and of their graces, faith, hope, love, patience, c. and continues and increases them, and draws them forth into lively acts and exercise and of their lives, natural and spiritual, which he supports and maintains, secures and defends; from him they have their strength to perform the duties of religion; to oppose their spiritual enemies, sin, Satan, and the world; and to bear them up under all trials and afflictions, and carry them through them, and deliver out of them, and which is principally intended here: the church, though in distress, and pressed with sorrows, yet believed the strength of Christ would be made perfect in her weakness, and she should be upheld by him under all, and brought out of it:
and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet]; swift as they, as the Targum, which are very swift; and on account of the swiftness of them is the comparison used: and which is to be understood, not barely of the Jews being swift of foot to return to their own country, when the time of their conversion is come; or to pursue their enemies, as Kimchi; that is, Gog or the Turks, having got the victory over them: but of all Christians, whose feet will be swift to run, in a lively cheerful manner, the way of Christ’s commandments; their souls being strengthened, and their hearts enlarged with the love and grace of God; and to surmount with ease all difficulties and obstructions that lie in their way: and chiefly this regards the ministers of the Gospel, and the swift progress they will make in spreading it in the world; as the apostles and first ministers of the word, having their feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of peace, went swiftly through all parts of the world, even to the ends of the earth, with it; so in the latter day many will run to and fro, everywhere preaching the everlasting Gospel to all nations; the knowledge of it shall greatly increase; see
Da 12:4 this passage seems to be taken out of
Ps 18:33 and there may be not only an allusion to the swiftness of those creatures, but to the strength and firmness of their feet; so that they can go upon rocks and mountains securely, and tread and walk, and even run upon them with safety; and this sense is directed to, not only by what follows, concerning “walking” on “high places”; but by the word here used, which signifies to “make”, or “set”, fix, place, order, and settle b; and this agrees with the nature of those creatures, whose feet are not only swift, but firm; they tread sure and stable; hence hinds and harts are by the poets c called the “brasen footed hinds”, or “harts”; because of the firmness and stability of their going; and it is an observation of Jarchi’s d, that the feet of the females stand firmer and more upright than the feet of the males; wherefore, both here, and in Ps 18:33, not harts, but hinds, are made mention of; and so this may also denote the stability of the saints in those times, both ministers and common Christians, in the exercise of grace, and in the performance of duty; their hearts will be established in the faith of Christ, and in love to him, and in the hope of eternal life by him; all which they will be settled in, and will hold fast, and not let go; and will be steadfast and immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord their God; and so in the Gospel of Christ, and in the ordinances of it, their souls will be established in and with the doctrines of grace, and will continue steadfastly in them, and abide by and keep the ordinances as they have been delivered to them; nor will any difficulties, which may seem like hills and mountains, and cragged rocks, deter or discourage them, or move them from the hope of the Gospel, or from their duty; but they shall walk on securely and firmly:
and he will make me to walk upon mine high places: meaning not so much the high places of the land of Judea, some part of it being mountainous, though there may be some reference to them; but it signifies the exalted state of the church after the troublesome times, when it shall be exalted above the hills, and established on the top of the mountains; when Christ the Lamb, with his 144,000 sealed ones, shall stand upon Mount Zion with harps in their hands, having gotten the victory over the antichristian beast and his image; and when the saints shall have the dominion of the world; and the kingdom and the greatness of it, under the whole heaven, shall be given to them, Isa 2:2 as well as they shall be in lively, spiritual, and heavenly frames of soul; mount up with wings, as eagles; soar aloft in the exercise of faith; dwell on high in the contemplation of divine things; have their affections set on things above; and their conversation in heaven while they are on earth: especially this may be said of them when they shall have the glory of God upon them in the New Jerusalem state, and shall dwell in the new heavens and the new earth, with Christ at the head of them; and when they shall possess the ultimate glory in the highest heavens to all eternity; see
De 33:29 and thus ends this prayer of Habakkuk; which serves to draw out the desires of good men after the flourishing estate of the kingdom and interest of Christ; to assist their faith in the belief, hope, and expectation of it; and to lead their views to its summit and perfection, notwithstanding all the difficulties and discouragements that may lie in its way: and being of so much moment and importance, that it might remain and continue, and be of use to the church in succeeding ages, the prophet delivered or directed it
to the chief singer, to be set to tune, and sung by him, as David’s prayers, and others, sometimes were, and to be preserved for future usefulness; and this he would have sung (he says)
on my stringed instruments; which were either invented by him, or used by him in the temple, or were his own property: or he sent this prayer or ode to him who was over these instruments, had the care and use of them; and which were such as were to be stricken with the hand, bone, or quill; and are the same that are called “Neginoth” in the title of the fourth Psalm Ps 4:1, and others.
b ‘ , Sept.; “et ponet”, V. L. Pagninus, Montanus, Burkius; “qui disponit”, Junius Tremellius “et possuit”, c “Fixerit aeripedem cervam licet—-” Virgil. Aeneid. 6. prope finem. “Vincunt aeripedes ter terno Nestore cervi.” Ausonii Idyll. 11. d Comment. in Psal. xviii. 34.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
He confirms the same truth,—that he sought no strength but in God alone. But there is an implied contrast between God and those supports on which men usually lean. There is indeed no one, who is not of a cheerful mind, when he possesses all necessary things, when no danger, no fear is impending: we are then courageous when all things smile on us. But the Prophet, by calling God his strength, sets him in opposition to all other supports; for he wishes to encourage the faithful to persevere in their hope, however grievously God might afflict them. His meaning then is,—that even when evils impetuously rage against us, when we vacillate and are ready to fall every moment, God ought then to be our strength; for the aid which he has promised for our support is all-sufficient. We hence see that the Prophet entertained firm hope, and by his example animated the faithful, provided they had God propitious, however might all other things fail them.
He will make, he says, my feet like those of hinds. I am inclined to refer this to their return to their own country, though some give this explanation,—“God will give the swiftest feet to his servants, so that they may pass over all obstacles to destroy their enemies;” but as they might think in their exile that their return was closed up against them, the Prophet introduces this most apt similitude, that God would give his people feet like those of hinds, so that they could climb the precipices of mountains, and dread no difficulties: He will then, he says, give me the feet of hinds, and make me to tread on my high places. Some think that this was said with regard to Judea, which is, as it is well known, mountainous; but I take the expression more simply in this way,—that God would make his faithful people to advance boldly and without fear along high places: for they who fear hide themselves and dare not to raise up the head, nor proceed openly along public roads; but the Prophet says, God will make me to tread on any high places
He at last adds, To the leader on my beatings. The first word some are wont to render conqueror. This inscription, To the leader, למנצח, lamenatsech, frequently occurs in the Psalms. To the conqueror, is the version of some; but it means, I have no doubt, the leader of the singers. Interpreters think that God is signified here by this title, for he presides over all the songs of the godly: and it may not inaptly be applied to him as the leader of the singers, as though the Prophet had said,—“God will be a strength to me; though I am weak in myself, I shall yet be strong in him; and he will enable me to surmount all obstacles, and I shall proceed boldly, who am now like one half-dead; and he will thus become the occasion of my song, and be the leader of the singers engaged in celebrating his praises, when he shall deliver from death his people in so wonderful a manner.” We hence see that the connection is not unsuitable, when he says, that there would be strength for him in God; and particularly as giving of thanks belonged to the leader or the chief singer, in order that God’s aid might be celebrated, not only privately but at the accustomed sacrifices, as was usually the case under the law. Those who explain it as denoting the beginning of a song, are extremely frigid and jejune in what they advance; I shall therefore pass it by.
He adds, on my beatings. This word, נגינות, neginoth, I have already explained in my work on the Psalms. Some think that it signifies a melody, others render it beatings ( pulsationes) or notes ( modos;) and others consider that musical instruments are meant. (68) I affirm nothing in a doubtful matter: and it is enough to bear in mind what we have said,—that the Prophet promises here to God a continual thanksgiving, when the faithful were redeemed, for not only each one would acknowledge that they had been saved by God’s hand, but all would assemble together in the Temple, and there testify their gratitude, and not only with their voices confess God as their Deliverer, but also with instruments of music, as we know it to have been the usual custom under the Law.
(68) No satisfactory conjectures have been made by any as to the my added to this word. Hezekiah says at the end of his prayer, Isa 38:20, [ ננגז ונגינותי ], “and my neginoth will we sing,” or play, etc. Our version makes this my to refer to the ode or song he made to be played on the neginoth, supposed to have been a stringed instrument. In this case, “my neginoth” means the song he made for the neginoth. Then we might render the words,—
For the leader; my song on the stringed instruments.
—
Ed.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(19) The Lord God.This is an adaptation from Psa. 18:33. The hinds feet indicate the strength and elasticity of the prophets confidence; the high places are, as Kleinert observes, the heights of salvation which stand at the end of the way of tribulation, and which only the righteous man can climb by the confidence of faith.
To the chief singeri.e., to the precentor, or presiding singer. The rubric may be interpreted either To the precentor. (To be performed) on my stringed instruments, or, To him who presides over my stringed instruments. The fact that the same direction occurs with the words in the same order in six Psalms perhaps favours the latter rendering in all cases. The preposition al would, however, in this case be appropriate rather than b On the terms used, see Psa. 4:1. It has been inferred from the use of the possessive pronoun, my stringed instruments, that Habakkuk was a Levite, and therefore himself entitled to accompany the Temple music. But see Introduction, 1.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
‘YHWH the Lord is my strength,
And he makes my feet like hind’s feet,
And will make me to walk on my high places.’
From now on no disaster will be able to touch him. For YHWH, the Lord of creation and deliverance as revealed in the poem, is his strength. And He gives him feet that can clamber without slipping, and makes him walk in the high places, within his soul far from strife and trouble. He lives in the heavenly places with his God.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Hab 3:19. And he will make me to walk, &c. And cause me to tread again on my own high places. By high places, the prophet seems to mean the fruitful hills of Judaea; at least Moses uses the word in this sense, Deu 32:13. Some are of opinion, that Habakkuk speaks only of the strongholds of the land; but if we reflect on the naked and defenceless state that Judaea was in when the Jews returned from captivity, we may rather be induced to think that the prophet meant no more than this; that after the land had rested seventy years, and enjoyed its sabbaths, it should become fruitful again; and that then the Jews should once more delight themselves in the plenty of its pleasant hills, as the hind on her favourite high places. As Habakkuk seems to have had the beginning of Moses’s blessing in his eye at Hab 3:3 so in this he alludes to the conclusion of it. See Deu 33:29. It appears from the last words, To the chief musician, on his stringed instruments, that this prayer was sung in the temple service. See Green. Houbigant, however, gives the last words another turn; rendering them thus, And shall bring me to the tops of the mountains to victory in my song; or, “that I may overcome, when those “things which I here sing shall have their completion.”
REFLECTIONS.1st, This chapter is called a prayer of Habakkuk the prophet: it is drawn up like David’s psalms, and suited for the service of the sanctuary.
1. The prophet acknowledges the notices of God’s will, which he had given him, and the impression that they made upon him. O Lord, I have heard thy speech, and was afraid; because of the sad tidings concerning the desolations of his people, which affected him exceedingly.
2. He cries on their behalf, that God would manifest his favour to them in the time of their distress. O Lord, revive thy work in the midst of the years; give the people some tokens of regard before the captivity ends, or revive the work of grace among them, which cannot but comfort and support them. In the midst of the years make known thy pity, providence, and love: in wrath remember mercy, and shew them some signs of reconciliation, that they may not sink into despair. Note; When we are stirred up to cry to God, whatever wrath our souls appear to be under, there is then good hope of mercy in store for us.
2nd, The prophet, as the encouragement of his faith, remembers the days of old, and mentions the past deliverances that God had wrought for his people, as a plea for present help.
1. He had appeared to them on Sinai, with most magnificent displays of his greatness and glory. He was seen advancing in majesty from afar, from Teman and Paran, while the heavens shone with his brightness, and earth rang with his praise, or was full of his light, he shone like the sun; he had horns, or beams, coming out of his hand or sides; begirt around with irradiation; and there was the hiding of his power; a little of his glory appeared; the far greater part was hid; for the greatness of his power who can understand?
2. He sent his messengers before him, to prepare the way of his people. Before him went the pestilence, and burning coals went forth at his feet; when Egypt felt his plagues, or when the Canaanites were by his judgments consumed, or were at least weakened in order to their final destruction. He stood, and measured the earth; dividing the land of Canaan among the tribes, and with a look expelled the inhabitants. The mighty sons of Anak, strong as the everlasting mountains, were scattered and broken; and all the nobles and princes of the land, who thought their possessions sure as the perpetual hills, did bow before the God of Israel: for his ways are everlasting, nor can any of the sons of men frustrate his decided counsels, or stay his arm when he is determined to destroy. With panic fears the neighbouring nations of Midian and Cushan beheld and trembled, lest to them also the desolations should extend: so easily can God dismay the mightiest.
3. When the Red Sea was divided, and Jordan driven back, it seemed as if the very rivers, affrighted, fled from his displeasure; whilst, as the captain of Israel’s host, he rode triumphant through the parted waters, and led them on horses and chariots of salvation, walking securely along through the bed of the Red Sea. The overflowing streams, Jos 3:15 passed by, retiring on either side: the deep uttered his voice, and lifted up his hands on high, roaring as it fled.
4. His rivers cleaved the earth, when in the barren wilderness the stony rock at his command poured forth a torrent of waters.
5. To give Israel an opportunity to destroy their enemies, the sun and moon stood still in their habitation, Jos 10:12-13. At the light of thine arrows they went, and at the shining of thy glittering spear; God himself fought for them, and directed them in the pursuit of their routed foes. Thy bow was made quite naked, to consume their enemies, according to the oaths of the tribes, even thy word, having sworn to their fathers to give them this land for a heritage. From one end of Canaan to the other did the Lord, as the leader of Israel’s army, march in indignation against the wickedness of the inhabitants, and threshed them in anger, as corn on the floor. Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people, even for salvation with thine anointed; assisting and strengthening his divinely appointed generals, Moses, Aaron, and Joshua: thou woundedst the head out of the house of the wicked, the princes of Canaan, by discovering the foundation, utterly destroying their cities and the inhabitants, unto the neck; the whole body politic, with all the members of it, being cut in pieces. Thou didst strike through with his staves the head of his villages; turning their own arms against them, and ruining the country throughout. Their rejoicing was as to devour the poor secretly; they were confident of victory over God’s poor people; or this was a part of their crimes which provoked these judgments of God against them.
Some suppose that the whole of this section refers to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in the flesh, his erection of his spiritual kingdom in the world, the subdual of sin, Satan, death, and hell before him, and especially his coming at the latter day for the destruction of the anti-christian powers; of all which, his appearances for his people in time past, no doubt, were typical; and genuine believers may, in every time of their distress and trouble, as confidently hope to see this great salvation of God, as ever Israel experienced his salvation from their enemies of old. This is their glorious privilege. O, that none may come short of it!
3rdly, The tidings of distress which the prophet heard concerning his countrymen, though there was hope in the end, affected him deeply.
1. When I heard, my belly trembled; my lips quivered at the voice; overpowered with fear and dismay; rottenness entered into my bones; his whole frame seemed as dissolved: I trembled in myself, at the desolations he beheld; that I might rest; or O, that I might be at rest; or notwithstanding I shall rest in the day of trouble; be safe under the divine protection, and delivered from the evil, though he plainly foresaw, that when he cometh up unto the people, when the Chaldeans with their king come up, he will invade them, or cut them in pieces, with his troops. Note; (1.) Holy souls tremble at God’s word, and with awful apprehensions look forward to the wrath ready to be revealed from heaven. (2.) God’s faithful people are enabled to exercise faith in him in the worst of times, and they shall be hid in the day of his fierce anger.
2. Notwithstanding every discouraging circumstance, his faith triumphs in the God of his salvation. He supposes the worst of calamities which can happen; that drought, blasting, mildew, or the ravages of an enemy destroy their vines, fig-trees, and olives; that pestilence and famine devour the cattle, so that the barren fields are quite forsaken: Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. And thus can a faithful soul under the loss of every earthly comfort rejoice in Christ Jesus, in the present experience of his grace, and the holy expectation of his glory. The Lord God is my strength, when every other help fails; and he will make my feet like hinds’ feet, firm and swift to run the way of his commandments, amidst every difficulty and danger: and he will make me to walk upon mine high places; victorious over every foe, as every faithful saint of God shall shortly be, when he cometh to the mount of God in glory. Thus ends the prophet’s prayer, with assured faith, and joyful hope; and he has left it upon record, directed to the chief singer on the stringed instruments, to teach God’s believing people in all their trials never to cease from prayer and praise; but, rejoicing in hope, to expect with humble confidence the final, full, and eternal salvation of God.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
REFLECTIONS
HAIL! thou Almighty Lord Jesus! do I not behold thee in this precious scripture, set forth as the great Saviour and Redeemer of thy Church and people? Truly, Lord, thy goings forth have been, in this divine character, from everlasting. Before the earth was formed; yea, before thou hadst gone forth in any acts of creation, thou didst stand up at the call of thy Father, thy Church’s glorious head and husband, from all eternity. And until the fulness of time appointed in the counsel of peace arrived, what were all the manifestations in the Old Testament Church, but tokens how ardently thou didst long openly to come and tabernacle in our nature, for the redemption of thy people. Didst thou reveal thyself to Abraham, to Isaac, to Jacob; didst thou call Moses at the bush, and go before thy Church, when bringing the Church out of Egypt; didst thou give the law at Sinai, and make the inhabitants of Palestina and Midian to tremble; what, dearest Jesus, what were all these, and numberless other revelations of thyself, but to testify how assuredly thou wert come forth for the salvation of thy people. And what is it now, O Lord, now thou hast finished redemption work, and art returned to glory, but every day, and all the day, renewed manifestations of the same, that Jesus will bring home his ransomed ones finally, fully, and completely; that where he is, there they shall be also. Hail then, thou glorious, gracious, great I AM; the visible Jehovah of thy Church and people! Oh! grant, that like thy servant the Prophet, whether fig-trees blossom or withhold their fruit; whether the olives fail, or fields yield their meat; Jesus lives and loves, and will live and love forever. He is a rock, his work his perfect: and He is the rock of my salvation. Farewell Habakkuk! thy God is my God; and He is the horn of his people. Blessed be the Lord for this sweet ministry of thine; and blessed be thy labours. Above all blessed, blessed forever be the God of all mercies in Jesus Christ. Amen.
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Hab 3:19 The LORD God [is] my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet], and he will make me to walk upon mine high places. To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.
Ver. 19. The Lord God is my strength ] And hence his joy of faith, and ability to bear up under pressures of afflictions, as a man that is well lined within, and hath abundance of good blood and fresh spirits, can endure to go with less clothes than another.
And he will make my feet like hinds’ feet] As these do swiftly and suddenly run up to the top of inaccessible rocks, so shall I quickly escape out of trouble and walk upon mine high places again in the holy land; yea, as Jacob, after he had conversed with God at Bethel, lifted up his feet and went lustily on his way to Padanaram, Gen 29:1 , so shall I go lightly on my long journey to heaven; and, having my soul supplied with the oil of spiritual joy, I shall find it made more lithe, nimble, and ready to every good work.
To the chief musician on my stringed instruments
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
Habakkuk
THE IDEAL DEVOUT LIFE
Hab 3:19
So ends one of the most magnificent pieces of imaginative poetry in Scripture or anywhere else. The singer has been describing a great delivering manifestation of the Most High God, which, though he knew it was for the deliverance of God’s people, shed awe and terror over his soul. Then he gathers himself together to vow that in this God, thus manifested as the God of his salvation, he ‘will rejoice,’ whatever penury or privation may attach to his outward life. Lastly, he rises, in these final words, to the apprehension of what this God, thus rejoiced in, will become to those who so put their trust and their gladness upon Himself.
The expressions are of a highly metaphorical and imaginative character, but they admit of being brought down to very plain facts, and they tell us the results in heart and mind of true faith and communion with God.
It is to be noticed that a parallel saying, almost verbatim the same as that of my text, occurs in the 18th psalm, and that there, too, it is the last and joyous result of a tremendous manifestation of the delivering energy of God.
Without any attempt to do more than bring out the deep meaning of the words, I note that the three clauses of our text present three aspects of what our lives and ourselves may steadfastly be if we, too, will rejoice in the God of our salvation.
I. First, such communion with God brings God to a man for his strength.
And what does that mean? It is an anticipation of that most wonderful and highest of all the New Testament truths which the Apostle declared when he said: ‘I can do all things in Christ which strengtheneth me within.’ It is the anticipation in experience-which always comes before dogmatic formulas that reduce experiences into articulate utterances, of what the Apostle recorded when he said that he had heard the voice that declared, ‘My grace is sufficient for thee, and My strength is made perfect in weakness.’
Ah, brother! do not let us deprive ourselves of the lofty consolations and the mysterious influx of power which may be ours, if we will open our eyes to see, and our hearts to receive, what is really the central blessing of the Gospel, the communication through the same faith as Habakkuk exercised when he said, ‘I will rejoice in the God of my salvation,’ of an actual divine strength to dwell in and manifest itself majestically and triumphantly through, our weakness. ‘The Lord is my strength,’ and if we will rejoice in the Lord we shall find that Habakkuk’s experience was lower than ours, inasmuch as he knew less of God than we do; and we shall be able to surpass his saying with the other one of the Prophet: ‘The Lord is my strength and song; He also is become my salvation.’ That is the first blessing that this ancient believer, out of the twilight of early revelation, felt as certain to come through communion with God.
II. The second is like unto it. Such rejoicing communion with God will give light-footedness in the path of life.
It is the same thought, under a somewhat different garb, which the Apostle has when he tells us that the Christian soldier ought to have his ‘feet shod with the alacrity that comes from the gospel of peace.’ We are to be always ready to run, and to run with light hearts when we do. That is a possible result of Christian communion, and ought, far more than it is, to be an achieved reality with each of us. Of course physical conditions vary. Of course our spirits go up and down. Of course the work that we have to do one day seems easier than the same work does another. All these fluctuations and variations, and causes of heavy-footedness-and sometimes more sinful ones, causes of sluggishness-will survive; but in spite of them all, and beneath them all, it is possible that we may have ourselves thus equipped for the road, and may rejoice in our work ‘as a strong man to run a race,’ and may cheerily welcome every duty, and cast ourselves into all our tasks. It is possible, because communion with God manifest in Christ does, as we have been seeing, actually breathe into men a vigour, and consequently a freshness and a buoyancy that do not belong to themselves, and do not come from nature or from surrounding things. Unless that is true, that Christianity gives to a man the divine gladness which makes him ready for work, I do not know what is the good of his Christianity to him.
But not only is that so, but this same communion with God, which is the opening of the heart for the influx of the divine power, brings to bear upon all our work new motives which redeem it from being oppressive, tedious, monotonous, trivial, too great for our endurance, or too little for our effort. All work that is not done in fellowship with Jesus Christ tends to become either too heavy to be tackled successfully, or too trivial to demand our best energies, and in either case will be done perfunctorily, and as the days go on, mechanically and wearisomely, as a grind and a pled. ‘Thou makest my feet like hinds’ feet’-if I get the new motive of love to God in Christ well into my heart so that it comes out and influences all my actions, there will be no more tasks too formidable to undertake, or too small to be worth an effort. There will be nothing unwelcome. The rough places will be made plain, and the crooked things straight, and our feet will be shod with the preparedness of the gospel of peace.
If we live in daily communion with God, another thought, too, will come in, which will, in like manner, make us ready ‘to run with’ cheerfulness ‘the race that is set before us.’ We shall connect everything that befalls us, and everything that we have to do, with the final issue, and life will become solemn, grave, and blessed, because it is the outer court and vestibule of the eternal life with God in Christ. They that hold communion with Him, and only they, will, as another prophet says, ‘run and not be weary,’ when there come the moments that require a special effort; and ‘will walk and not faint’ through the else tediously long hours of commonplace duty and dusty road.
III. The last of the thoughts here is-Communion with God brings elevation.
Are you and I familiar with these upper ranges of thought and experience and life? Do we feel at home there more than down in the bottoms, amongst the swamps, and the miasma, and the mists? Where is your home, brother? The Mass begins with Sursum corda : ‘Up with your hearts,’ and that is the word for us. But the way to get up is to keep ourselves in touch with Jesus Christ, and then He will, even whilst our feet are travelling along this road of earth, set us at His own right hand in the heavenly places, and make them ‘ our high places.’ It is safe up there. The air is pure; the poison mists are down lower; the hunters do not come there; their arrows or their rifles will not carry so far. It is only when the herd ventures a little down the hill that it is in danger from shots.
But the elevation will not be such as to make us despise the low paths on which duty-the sufficient and loftiest thing of all-lies for us. Our souls may be like stars, and dwell apart, and yet may lay the humblest duties upon themselves, and whilst we live in the high places, we ‘may travel on life’s common way in cheerful godliness.’ Communion with Him will make us light-footed, and lift us high, and yet it will keep us at desk, and mill, and study, and kitchen, and nursery, and shop, and we shall find that the high places are reachable in every life, and in every task. So we may go on until at last we shall hear the Voice that says, ‘Come up higher,’ and shall he lifted to the mountain of God, where the living waters are, and shall fear no snares or hunters any more for ever.
Fuente: Expositions Of Holy Scripture by Alexander MacLaren
God. Hebrew Adonai. App-4.
strength = might, or force. Compare Psa 18:32.
will make, &c. Compare 2Sa 1:23; 2Sa 23:24. 1Ch 12:8. Psa 18:33.
He will make me, &c. Reference to Pentateuch (Deu 32:13; Deu 33:29). App-92. Compare Amo 4:13. Mic 1:3.
To the chief singer. See App-64. The same word here.
my stringed instruments. Hebrew. neginoth. Referring to the smitings of Jehovah on the enemies of Israel (Hab 3:16). See App-65.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
my strength: Psa 18:1, Psa 27:1, Psa 46:1, Isa 12:2, Isa 45:24, Zec 10:12, 2Co 12:9, 2Co 12:10, Eph 3:16, Phi 4:13, Col 1:11
like: 2Sa 22:34, Psa 18:33
to walk: Deu 32:13, Deu 33:29, Isa 58:14
stringed instruments: Heb. Neginoth, Psa 4:1-8, Psa 6:1-10, Psa 54:1-7, Psa 55:1-23, Psa 67:1-7, Psa 76:1-12, *titles
Reciprocal: 2Sa 2:18 – a wild roe Psa 27:5 – set me Psa 59:9 – defence Psa 71:22 – psaltery Psa 150:4 – stringed Pro 18:10 – safe Isa 33:16 – shall dwell Isa 38:20 – to the stringed Jer 16:19 – my strength Eze 36:2 – even Amo 4:13 – and treadeth Mic 1:3 – the high Eph 6:15 – your
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Hab 3:19. Habakkuk gives honor to God as being the source of alt strength and success. The chapter ends with a reference to rhythmic measures similar to the term used in its beginning.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Hab 3:19. The Lord God is my strength He that is the God of our salvation in another world, will be our strength in this world, to carry us on in our journey thither, and help us over the difficulties and oppositions we meet with in our way, even then when provisions are cut off, to make it appear that man does not live by bread alone, but may have the want of bread supplied by the graces and comforts of Gods Spirit. Observe, reader: 1st, We may be strong for our spiritual warfare and work, The Lord God is my strength, the strength of my heart, Psa 73:26. 2d, We may be swift for our spiritual race, He will make my feet like hinds feet, that with enlargement of heart I may run the way of his commandments. 3d, We may be successful in our spiritual enterprises, He will make me to walk upon my high places: that is, I shall gain my point, shall be restored unto my land, and tread upon the high places of the enemy: see the notes on Psa 18:33; Deu 32:13; Deu 33:29. Thus the prophet, who began his prayer with fear and trembling, concludes it with joy and triumph; for prayer is the support and consolation of a pious soul. And as he seems to have had the beginning of Mosess blessing in his eye, at Hab 3:3, so in this he alludes to the conclusion of it. Some think it appears from the last words, To the chief singers, &c., that this prayer was sung in the temple service. Houbigant, however, gives the last words another turn, rendering them thus: And shall bring me to the tops of the mountains to victory in my song; or, that I may overcome, when those things which I here sing shall have their completion.
Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
3:19 The LORD God [is] my strength, and he will make my feet like hinds’ [feet], and he will make me to walk upon my high places. {z} To the chief singer on my stringed instruments.
(z) The chief singer upon the instruments of music, will have occasion to praise God for this great deliverance of his Church.
Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes
Sovereign Yahweh, Habakkuk’s master, was the source of His strength, even though the prophet’s legs shook (Hab 3:16). He enabled his servant to walk through the perilous valley he faced as sure-footedly as the hoofs of a gazelle enabled it to navigate precipices (cf. Deu 32:13; Deu 33:29; 2Sa 22:34; Psa 18:32-33; Psa 18:39).
This statement of strong confidence contrasts with the prophet’s doubts and fears out of which he spoke at the beginning of this book (Hab 1:2-4). A revelation from God, and Habakkuk’s decision to believe what God revealed, turned his attitude around.
"Habakkuk was about to ’go under’ when he started this book. Destruction, violence, strife, conflict, injustice, and wickedness were all he could see. But he cried out to God and his cry did not go unheeded. The Lord not only answered his complaint but also provided the confidence needed to lift him from the quagmire. Habakkuk started in the pits, but ended on the mountaintop. His journey was not exactly an easy one, but it was certainly worth it." [Note: Blue, p. 1522.]
Essential elements in true prayer that are obvious in Habakkuk’s prayer include humiliation, adoration, and petition. [Note: Lloyd-Jones, pp. 58-67.]
Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)
E. The concluding musical notation 3:19b
The final footnote to this book gives direction to the choir director who used this chapter as part of Israel’s formal worship. Habakkuk specified the use of stringed instruments to accompany the singing undoubtedly because they set the proper mood.
The book opened with a dialogue between Habakkuk and Yahweh in which the prophet vented his fears and the Lord responded in love (ch. 1). Then it proceeded to a dirge in which the Lord explained the wickedness of the instrument that He would use to judge Judah, the Babylonians, and promised their ultimate destruction (ch. 2). It closes with a doxology in which Habakkuk praised God and recommitted himself to faith in and faithfulness to Yahweh as he anticipated hard times to come (ch. 3).
"Habakkuk teaches us to face our doubts and questions honestly, take them humbly to the Lord, wait for His Word to teach us, and then worship Him no matter how we feel or what we see." [Note: Wiersbe, p. 422.]
This book can be a great help to people who are discouraged about their present circumstances and or can see nothing good coming in the future. It helps us adjust our attitude from one of pessimism and even despair to optimism and rejoicing. The crucial issue is whether we will listen to God and believe Him, namely, exercise faith.