{"id":22750,"date":"2022-09-24T09:40:52","date_gmt":"2022-09-24T14:40:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/exegetical-and-hermeneutical-commentary-of-habakkuk-18\/"},"modified":"2022-09-24T09:40:52","modified_gmt":"2022-09-24T14:40:52","slug":"exegetical-and-hermeneutical-commentary-of-habakkuk-18","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/exegetical-and-hermeneutical-commentary-of-habakkuk-18\/","title":{"rendered":"Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Habakkuk 1:8"},"content":{"rendered":"<h3 align='center'><b><i> Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat. <\/i><\/b><\/h3>\n<p> <strong> 8<\/strong>. <em> swifter than the leopards<\/em> ] <span class='bible'>Jer 4:13<\/span> says, &ldquo;his horses are swifter than eagles.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><em> more fierce than the evening wolves<\/em> ] lit. <em> more sharp<\/em>. Being parallel to &ldquo;swift&rdquo; the term &ldquo;fierce&rdquo; probably means keen in attack, eager in flinging themselves on the foe. Gesenius quotes Virg. <em> Georg.<\/em> 3. 264, genus <em> acre<\/em> luporum, and <em> n.<\/em> 4. 156, <em> acri gaudet equo<\/em>. The wolf attacks at night when his hunger is keen. For, &ldquo;evening wolves,&rdquo; Sept. reads &ldquo;wolves of Arabia,&rdquo; supplying different vowels.<\/p>\n<p><em> their horsemen shall spread themselves<\/em> ] <strong> and his horsemen bound<\/strong>, or, <strong> gallop<\/strong>. The word is used of the springing or bounding of cattle, <span class='bible'>Mal 4:2<\/span> (Heb. 3:20); <span class='bible'>Jer 50:11<\/span>.<\/p>\n<p><em> horsemen shall come from far<\/em> ] <strong> his horsemen come<\/strong>. But the repetition of &ldquo;horsemen&rdquo; is unnatural (Sept. omits), and the clause introduces an unequal number of members into the verse. Possibly the words are a marginal explanation of the somewhat uncommon term &ldquo;gallop.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><em> They shall fly as the eagle<\/em> ] <strong> they fly<\/strong>. The word eagle refers possibly to some kind of vulture; cf. <span class='bible'>Mic 1:16<\/span> &ldquo;enlarge thy baldness like the eagle.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> that <em> hasteth to eat<\/em> ] i.e. that swoops upon the prey or carcase.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p><P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>Their horses are swifter &#8211; <\/B>literally, lighter, as we say light of foot<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>Than leopards &#8211; <\/B>The wild beast intended is the panther, the lightest, swiftest, fiercest, most bloodthirsty of beasts of prey  It runs most swiftly and rushes brave and straight. You would say, when you saw it, that it is borne through the air.  Cyril: It bounds exceedingly and is exceedingly light to spring down on whatever it pursues.<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>More fierce &#8211; <\/B><SUP>o<\/SUP><\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>Than the evening wolves &#8211; <\/B>Compare <span class='bible'>Jer 5:6<\/span>, i. e., than they are when fiercest, going forth to prey when urged to rabidness by hunger the whole day through. Such had their own judges been <span class='bible'>Zep 3:3<\/span>, and by such should they be punished. The horse partakes of the fierceness of his rider in trampling down the foe .<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>Their horsemen shall spread themselves &#8211; <\/B>literally, widespread are their horsemen<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>And their horsemen from far shall come &#8211; <\/B>Neither distance of march shall weary them, nor diffusion weaken them. So should Moses prophecy be again fulfilled (<span class='bible'>Deu 28:49-50<\/span>, <span class='_800000'><\/span> occurs in both.) The Lord shall raise against thee a nation from far, from the ends of the earth, as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand; a nation of fierce countenance, which shall not regard the person of the old, nor show favor to the young.<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>They shall fly as the eagle that hasteth &#8211; <\/B>literally, hasting<\/P> <P STYLE=\"text-indent: 0.75em\"><B>To eat &#8211; <\/B>Jerome: not to fight, for none shall withstand; but with a course like the eagles, to whom all fowl are subdued, hasting but to eat. Behold, Jeremiah says of Nebuchadnezzar <span class='bible'>Jer 48:40<\/span>, he shall fly as an eagle and spread his wings over Moab; and, he repeats the words <span class='bible'>Jer 49:22<\/span>, over Bozrah. Our pursuers, Jeremiah says <span class='bible'>Lam 4:19<\/span>, are swifter than the eagles of the heavens. Ezekiel likens him to <span class='bible'>Eze 17:3<\/span> a great eagle with great wings full of feathers; in Daniels vision he is <span class='bible'>Dan 7:4<\/span> a lion with eagles wings.<\/P> <\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Albert Barnes&#8217; Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p><P> Verse 8. <I><B>Their horses also are swifter than the leopards<\/B><\/I>] The Chaldean cavalry are proverbial for swiftness, courage, c. In Jeremiah, <span class='bible'>Jer 4:13<\/span>, it is said, speaking of Nebuchadnezzar, &#8220;His chariots are as a whirlwind his horses are swifter than eagles.&#8221;<\/P> <P> <\/P> <P> <I>Oppian<\/I>, speaking of the horses bred about the Euphrates, says, &#8220;They are by nature warhorses, and so intrepid that neither the sight nor the roaring of the lion appals them; and, besides, they are astonishingly fleet.&#8221;<\/P> <P> <\/P> <P> The <I>leopard<\/I>, of all quadrupeds, is allowed to be the <I>swiftest<\/I>.<\/P> <P> <\/P> <P> <I><B>The evening wolves<\/B><\/I>] The wolf is remarkable for his quick sight. <I>AElian<\/I> says,   ,  ,        ; &#8220;The wolf is a very fleet animal; and, besides, it can see by night, even when there is no moonlight.&#8221; Some think the <I>hyaena<\/I> is meant: it is a swift, cruel, and untameable animal. The other prophets speak of the Chaldeans in the same way. See <span class='bible'>De 28:49<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Jer 48:40<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Jer 49:22<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Eze 17:5<\/span>; <span class='bible'>La 4:19<\/span>.<\/P> <\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Adam Clarke&#8217;s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p><P> Their horses also are swifter; they will be sooner upon you than you think, and when once among you, they will be swifter than you can flee from, <span class='bible'>Isa 30:16<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Lam 4:19<\/span>. <\/P> <P>Than the leopards; a fierce creature, ravenous as the lion, and much swifter, a watchful and sly beast, from which it is very hard to shift. <\/P> <P>More fierce, more eager after, and more cruel to the prey, than the evening wolves; which with long fasting in the day, do come out in the evening more fierce on every thing that may be a prey for them: see <span class='bible'>Jer 5:6<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Eze 22:27<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Zep 3:3<\/span>. <\/P> <P>Their horsemen; excellent riders, that can manage the speed and fierceness of these horses. <\/P> <P>Shall spread themselves all over the land, so many shall they be, and so active, and all strong and hale, as some think the word implieth. <\/P> <P>Shall come from far; as far from liking your customs, pitying your persons, or understanding your language, as they are far remote from your country; men that will make you pay the charge of their long and tedious journey. <\/P> <P>They shall fly as the eagle; lest you should dream of escape by flight, your enemies (O miserable Jews) shall be so swift, you will think they flew on wings, on eagles wings, the swiftest of flight, and quickest in espying her prey. <\/P> <P>That hasteth to eat; hunger makes her flight the quicker, and her seizure of the prey more bold and daring, <span class='bible'>Job 9:26<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Eze 17:3<\/span>; so shall your enemies be to you. <\/P> <\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p><P><B>8. swifter than the leopards<\/B>OPPIAN[<I>Cynegeticks,<\/I> 3.76], says of the leopard, &#8220;It runs mostswiftly straight on: you would fancy it was flying through the air.&#8221;<\/P><P>       <B>more fierce<\/B>rather,&#8221;more keen&#8221;; literally, &#8220;sharp.&#8221; <\/P><P>       <B>evening wolves<\/B>wolvesfamished with fasting all day and so most keen in attacking the foldunder covert of the approaching night (<span class='bible'>Jer 5:6<\/span>;<span class='bible'>Zep 3:3<\/span>; compare <span class='bible'>Ge49:27<\/span>). Hence &#8220;twilight&#8221; is termed in <I>Arabic<\/I> and<I>Persian<\/I> &#8220;the wolf&#8217;s tail&#8221;; and in French, <I>entrechien et loup.<\/I> <\/P><P>       <B>spread themselves<\/B>proudly;as in <span class='bible'>Jer 50:11<\/span>; <span class='bible'>Mal 4:2<\/span>,it implies <I>strength<\/I> and <I>vigor.<\/I> So also the <I>Arabic<\/I>cognate word [MAURER]. <\/P><P>       <B>their horsemen . . . comefrom far<\/B>and yet are not wearied by the long journey.<\/P><\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown&#8217;s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible <\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p><strong>Their horses also are swifter than the leopards<\/strong>,&#8230;. Creatures remarkable for their swiftness: these are creatures born of the mating of a he panther and a lioness, and not of a lion and a she panther, as some have affirmed; and which adultery is highly resented by the lion; nor will he suffer it to go unrevenged, as Pliny u and Philostratus w observe: those thus begotten differ from common lions in this, that they have no manes: the panthers are the creatures here meant, which are very swift, as Bochart x from various authors has observed. Lucan y calls this creature &#8220;celerem pardum&#8221;, t&#8221;he swift panther&#8221;; and Jerom says z nothing is swifter than the panther; and Aelianus a observes that the panther, by the swiftness of its running, will overtake most creatures, and particularly apes; and Eustathius b confirms the same, saying that it exceeds other creatures in swiftness, and as it were flies before the eyes of hunters; and Osorius c relates, that the king of Portugal once sent to the pope of Rome a panther tamed, which being had into the woods a hunting by a Persian hunter, with wonderful swiftness leaped upon the boars and deer, and killed them at once; and the Septuagint version here is, &#8220;their horses will leap above the panthers&#8221;: or exceed them in leaping, for which these panthers are very famous too: an Arabic writer d, whom Bochart mentions, says it will leap above forty cubits at a leap. Pliny e reports, that the panthers in Africa will get up into thick trees, and hide themselves in the branches, and leap from thence on those that pass by; and because of the swiftness of this creature, with other qualities of it, the third beast or Grecian monarchy, especially in its first head Alexander the great, is represented by it, <span class='bible'>Da 7:6<\/span> he making such a swift and rapid progress in his conquests; and yet the Chaldean horses would exceed them in swiftness, and be very speedy in their march into the land of Judea; and therefore it was in vain for the Jews to please themselves with the thoughts that these people were a great way off, and so they secure from them, when they could and would be upon them presently, ere they were aware:<\/p>\n<p><strong>and are more fierce than ravening wolves<\/strong>; which creatures are naturally fierce, and especially when they are hungry, and particularly at evening; when, having had no food all the day, their appetites are very keen, and they go in quest of their prey; and, when they meet with it, fall upon it with greater eagerness and fierceness. The Septuagint and Arabic versions render it, than the wolves of Arabia; that there are wolves very frequent in Arabia, is observed by Diodorus Siculus f, and Strabo g; but that these are remarkable for their fierceness does not appear; rather those in colder climates are more fierce; so Pliny h says, they are little and sluggish in Africa and Egypt, but rough and fierce in cold climates. It is, in the original text, &#8220;more sharp&#8221; i; which some interpret of the sharpness of their sight. Aelianus says k, it is a most quick and sharp sighted creature; and can see in the night season, even though the moon shines not: the reason of which Pliny l gives is, because the eyes of wolves are shining, and dart light; hence Aelianus m observes, that that time of the night in which the wolf only by nature enjoys the light is called wolf light; and that Homer n calls a night which has some glimmering of light, or a sort of twilight, such as the wolves can see themselves walk by,  , which is that light that precedes the rising sun; and he also observes that the wolf is sacred to the sun, and to Apollo, which are the same; and there was an image of one at Delphos; and so Macrobias o says, that the inhabitants of Lycopolis, a city of Thebais in Egypt, alike worship Apollo and a wolf, and in both the sun, because this animal takes and consumes all things like the sun; and, because perceiving much by the quick sight of its eyes, overcomes the darkness of the night; and observes, that some think they have their name from light, though they would have it be from the morning light; because those creatures especially observe that time for seizing on cattle, after a nights hunger, when before day light they are turned out of the stables into pasture; but it is for the most part at evening, and in the night, that wolves prowl about for their prey p; and from whence they have the name of evening wolves, to which the Chaldean horses are here compared: and yet there seems to be an antipathy between these, if what some naturalists q say is true; as that if a horse by chance treads in the footsteps of a wolf, a numbness will immediately seize it, yea, even its belly will burst; (This sounds like a fable. Ed.) and that, if the hip bone of a wolf is thrown under horses drawing a chariot full speed, and they tread upon it, they will stop and stand stone still, immovable: whether respect is here had to the quick sight or sharp hunger of these creatures is not easy to say; though rather, since the comparison of them is with horses, it seems to respect the fierceness of them, for which the war horse is famous,<\/p>\n<p> <span class='bible'>Job 39:24<\/span> and may be better understood of the sharpness of the appetite of evening wolves, when hunger bitten:<\/p>\n<p><strong>and their horsemen shall spread themselves<\/strong>; or be multiplied, as the Targum; they shall be many, and spread themselves all over the country, so that there will be no escaping; all will fall into their hands:<\/p>\n<p><strong>and their horsemen shall come from far<\/strong>; as Chaldea was reckoned from Judea, and especially in comparison of neighbouring nations, who used to be troublesome, as Moab, Edom, c. see <span class='bible'>Jer 5:15<\/span>:<\/p>\n<p><strong>they shall flee as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat<\/strong> those horsemen shall be so speedy in their march, that they shall seem rather to fly than ride, and even to fly as swift as the eagle, the swiftest of birds, and which itself flies swiftest when hungry, and in sight of its prey; and the rather this bird is mentioned, because used by many nations, as the Persians, and others, for a military sign r.<\/p>\n<p>u Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 16. w De Vita Apollonii, l. 2. c. 7. x Hierozoic. par. 1. l. 3. c. 7. col. 788. y Pharsalia, l. 6. z Comment. in Hos. v. 14. fol. 10. L. a Hist. Animal. l. 8. c. 6. b In Hexaemeron. c De Rebus Portugall. l. 9. apud Frantz. Hist. Animal. Sacr. par. 1. 8. p. 90. d Damir apud Bochart, ut supra. (Hierozoic. par. 1. l. 3. c. 7. col. 788.) e Nat. Hist. l. 10. c. 73. f Bibliothec. l. 3. p. 177. g Geograph. l. 16. p. 534. h Nat. Hist. l. 8. c. 22. i  &#8220;et acuti erunt&#8221;, Montanus, Cocceius; &#8220;et acutiores&#8221;, Pagninus, Calvin, Junius Tremellius, Piscator, Drusius, Grotius so Ben Melech; &#8220;et acuti sunt&#8221;, Burkius. k De Animal. l. 10. c. 26. l Nat. Hist. l. 11. c. 37. m Ut supra. (De Animal. l. 10. c. 26.) n Iliad. 7. prope finem. o Saturnal. l. 1. c. 17. p &#8220;Vesper ubi e pastu vitulos ad tecta reducit, Auditisque lupos acuunt balatibus agni.&#8221; Virgil. Georgic. l. 4. &#8220;Ac veluti pleno lupus insidiatus ovili Nocte super media&#8212;&#8211;&#8220;, Ibid. Aeneid. l. 8. q Aelian. de Animal. l. 1. c. 36. Plin. Nat. Hist. l. 28. c. 20. r Vid. Lydium de Re Militari, l. 3. c. 7. p. 87.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: John Gill&#8217;s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p> The design of these figurative expressions is the same. The Prophet had spoken of the cruelty of those enemies whom the Jews despised: he now adds, that they would be so active as to surpass in velocity both leopards and eagles, or to be at least equal to them. He then says first, that their horses would be swifter then leopards. The Jews might have eluded his threatenings, or at least have cherished their insensibility by a vain confidence, as we see how this vice prevails in the world; for they might have thought thus within themselves, &#8220;The Chaldeans are far away, and the danger of which the Prophet speaks cannot be so near at hand.&#8221; Hence he declares that their horses would be swifter than leopards. <\/p>\n<p> He then adds, that  they would be fiercer than the evening wolves. The wolf is a rapacious animal; and when he ranges about all the day in vain seeking what he may devour, then in the evening hunger kindles his rage. There is, therefore, nothing more dreadful than hungry wolves. But, as I have said, except they find some prey about the evening, they become the more furious. We shall meet with the same simile in <span class='bible'>Zep 3:1<\/span>. We now see the drift of the Prophet&#8217;s words. <\/p>\n<p> He adds that  their horsemen would be numerous   (14) He now sets forth their power, lest the Jews should have recourse to vain hopes, because they might obtain some help either from the Egyptians or other neighbors. The Prophet shows that all such hopes would be wholly vain; for had they gathered auxiliaries from all quarters, still the Chaldeans would exceed them in power and number. <\/p>\n<p> He afterwards says, that  their horsemen would come from a distance. Though they should have a long journey, yet weariness would not hinder and delay them in coming from a remote part. The toil of travelling would not weaken them, until they reached Judea. How so? Because it will fly, he says, (he speaks throughout of the nation itself,)  as an eagle hastening to devour. This metaphor is also most suitable to the present purpose; for it signifies, that wherever the Chaldeans saw a prey, they would instantly come, as an eagle to any carcass it may observe. Let the distance be what it may, as soon as it sees a prey, it takes a precipitate flight, and is soon present to devour; for the rapidity of eagles, as it is well known, is astonishing. <\/p>\n<p> We now see that what we learn from the Prophet&#8217;s words is substantially this,&#8212;that God&#8217;s judgement ought to have been feared, because he purposed to employ the Chaldeans as his servants, whose cruel disposition and inhumanity would be dreadful: he also shows that the Chaldeans would be far superior in power and number; and in third place he makes it known, that they would possess an astonishing rapidity, and that though length of journey might be deemed a hindrance, they would yet be like eagles, which come like an arrow from heaven to earth, whenever a prey is observed by them. And eagles are not only rapid in their flight, but they possess also sharpness of sight; for we know that the eyes of eagles are remarkably keen and strong: and it is said that they cast away their young, if they find that they cannot look steadily at the sun; for they regard them as spurious. The Prophet then intimates that the Chaldeans would from a distance observe their prey: as the eagles, who are endued with incredible quickness of sight, see from mid air every carcass lying on the ground; so also would the Chaldeans quickly discover a prey, and come upon it in an instant. Let us proceed. <\/p>\n<p>  (14)  Multiples, various: but this is not the meaning of the verb [ &#1508;&#1513;&#1492; ]; it signifies to range at large, or to spread far and wide. The whole verse may be thus rendered,&#8212; <\/p>\n<p> And swifter than leopards shall be its horses,  And more eager than the wolves of the evening;  Spread far and wide shall its horsemen;  Yea, its horsemen from far shall come,  And fly as an eagle hastening to devour. <\/p>\n<p> The horsemen are represented as sweeping the whole country, spreading themselves in all directions; and when espying a prey at a distance, they are said to fly to it like an eagle. The idea of being &#8220;numerous&#8221; or &#8220;abundant,&#8221; as  Junius  and  Tremelius  render the verb, is derived from the Rabbins, and is not sanctioned by examples in Scripture. The rendering of the Septuagint is &#7952;&#958;&#953;&#960;&#960;&#945;&#963;&#959;&#957;&#964;&#945;&#953;,  shall ride forth, and of  Jerome,   diffundentur  , shall spread themselves. There is no occasion to borrow a meaning from Arabic, as  Henderson  does, and to render it &#8220;spread proudly along.&#8221;  Newcome  follows our common version.&#8212; Ed.  <\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Calvin&#8217;s Complete Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p>(8) <strong>Are more fierce.<\/strong>Better, <em>are sharper.<\/em> This is the literal meaning of the verb. The ideas intended are those of activity and ferocity, both prompted by hunger. The evening wolf coming out of his lair to find prey is elsewhere an illustration of ravenous greediness. (See <span class='bible'>Zep. 3:3<\/span> and <span class='bible'>Psa. 59:7<\/span>). In <span class='bible'>Jer. 5:6<\/span> Gods punishment is likened to a wolf of the evening, a lion out of the forest. <span class='bible'>Jer. 4:13<\/span> his chariots shall be as a whirlwind; his horses are swifter than eagles, is similar to <span class='bible'>Hab. 1:8<\/span>, but it is not necessary to regard it either as its original or its echo. Both passages are to some extent based on <span class='bible'>2Sa. 1:23<\/span>.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Ellicott&#8217;s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p> Hab 1:8 Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat.<\/p>\n<p> Ver. 8. <strong> Their horses also are swifter than the leopards<\/strong> ] Or panthers, famous for their swiftness; whence the proverb, <em> Panthera velocior<\/em> (see Plin. i. 10, viii. 17). The horse is so swift in service that the Persians (as Pausanias hath it) dedicated him to their god, the Sun; as the swiftest creature to the swiftest god,       . See <span class='bible'>Job 41:20<\/span> <span class='bible'>Pro 21:31<\/span> . <\/p>\n<p><strong> <\/p>\n<p> And are more fierce than the evening wolves<\/strong> ] Heb. More sharp-set, after that they have been held hunger bitten and empty all the day long. See Virg. Aeneid. ix. 59, &amp;c.; Oppian. i. 3. <em> Homo homini lupus,<\/em> One man (left to himself) is a wolf, nay, a devil to another. The metaphor is here taken from sharpest swords, which quickly cut. <\/p>\n<p><strong> <\/p>\n<p> And their horsemen shall spread themselves<\/strong> ] With incredible swiftness, which in war is most necessary and useful, as Julius Caesar experienced, and we in our late commotions. <\/p>\n<p><strong> <\/p>\n<p> And their horsemen shall come from far<\/strong> ] The Jews were secure of the Chaldeans, as being far remote; but that shall be no hindrance. <\/p>\n<p><strong> <\/p>\n<p> They shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat<\/strong> ] <em> In singulis verbis pondus est,<\/em> saith Drusius, here each word hath its weight; for he that hasteth on his way is said to fly, and the eagle is swifter of flight than any bird, and especially when she hasteth to eat, <span class='bible'>Job 9:26<\/span> . Of the eagle&rsquo;s swiftness why and whence, see Ambrose, Hexam. l. i. c. 14.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: John Trapp&#8217;s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p>more fierce = keener. <\/p>\n<p>shall fly as the eagle. Reference to Pentateuch (Deu 28:49, Deu 28:50). App-92. <\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p>horses: Deu 28:49, Isa 5:26-28 <\/p>\n<p>fierce: Heb. sharp <\/p>\n<p>evening: Jer 5:6, Zep 3:3 <\/p>\n<p>they: Jer 4:13, Lam 4:19, Eze 17:3, Eze 17:12, Hos 8:1, Mat 24:28, Luk 17:37 <\/p>\n<p>Reciprocal: Lev 11:13 &#8211; the eagle Job 9:26 &#8211; as the eagle Job 39:24 &#8211; He swalloweth Isa 30:16 &#8211; therefore Jer 50:42 &#8211; shall ride Eze 1:4 &#8211; a whirlwind Eze 26:11 &#8211; hoofs Rev 13:2 &#8211; was like<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p>Hab 1:8. The horse was a prominent means ot warfare in ancient times, both for the drawing ot chariots and carrying of cavalrymen. The Chaldeans possessed some of the finest specimens of that noble creature. Evening wolves Is a figure denoting the viciousness with which they would lunge into battle. A wolf that had been fasting through the day would be hungry and ravenous by evening. The fact is used to illustrate the activities of the Chaldeans when their cavalry operated in the battle. Fly as the eagle is another figure of speech that means the same as the above comments.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n<p>The military armaments of the Babylonians were state of the art. Their horses, implements of war in the ancient world, were the swiftest, faster even than leopards, one of the fastest animals in the cat family (hyperbole?). They were more eager to attack their enemies than wolves (cf. Jer 5:6). Their mounted soldiers swooped down on their enemies as fast and unsuspected as an eagle (or vulture) plummeting from the sky to devour a small animal on the ground (cf. Jer 5:17; Lam 4:19). All three of these animals that God used for comparison with the Babylonians were excellent hunters, fast and fierce.<\/p>\n<h4 align='right'><i><b>Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle [that] hasteth to eat. 8. swifter than the leopards ] Jer 4:13 says, &ldquo;his horses are swifter than eagles.&rdquo; more &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/exegetical-and-hermeneutical-commentary-of-habakkuk-18\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Habakkuk 1:8&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-commentary"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22750"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22750\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/bible-commentary\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}