Study questions, maps, charts, outlines, and links to help you study the Old Testament book of Habakkuk.
Podcast series: Habakkuk: Faith Under Fire
Jump to: Background; ** Maps; ** Key Words; ** Encyclopedias; ** Commentaries; ** Articles; ** GotQuestions ** Next **
Habakkuk Basics
- Habakkuk is the only Old Testament book consisting entirely of a dialogue between God and man.
- Habakkuk and Jeremiah were God’s last prophets to Judah before the invasion by Babylon.
- Historical Setting of Habakkuk
Habakkuk Timeline
- 722 BC – Norther Kingdom of Israel falls to Assyria
- 640 BC – Josiah becomes King of Judah (2 Kings 22:1-2)
- 627 BC – Jeremiah begins his ministry
- 626 BC – The Babylonian prince Nabopolassar re-establishes Babylon as an independent city. The Babylonians — also known as the Chaldeans — are one of the vassal states of Assyria and they are threatening rebel.
- 612 BC – Naboppolassar forms an alliance with the Medes and embarks on a quest to gain dominance over the empire and destroy Assyria. They sack Nineveh.
- 609 BC – The Eqyptian king decides he needs Assyria as a buffer between his kingdom and the Babyloian/Mede alliance. He heads north to help Assyria resist the rebellion, marching through Judah in the process. King Josiah decides to stop him. Josiah is killed at Megiddo. His death is disastrous for the nation. (2 Kings 23:29-37).
- After Josiah’s death, the people place his son Jehoahaz on the throne. But 3 months later as the Pharoah returns from his unsuccessful attempt to help the Assyrians against the Bablylonian/Mede alliance, the Pharoah deposes Jehoahaz, carts him off to Egypt and installs Jehoiakim on the throne.
- 605 BC – Nebuchadnezzar II, now the ruler of Babylon, defeats Egypt in the battle at Carchemish. Jehoiakim swears allegiance to Babylon and the whole of Syria and Palestine fall under Babylonian control (Jeremiah 46:1-2).
Genre: Understanding Prophecy
Habakkuk Setting
- It is during the rule of Jehoakim that Habakkuk prophesized.
- Habbakuk’s world is in tremendous geo-political turmoil.
- Into that setting Habakkuk seeks the Lord, asking how long will this go on? When will you rescue your people?
| Southern Kingdom 931-586 BC | Prophets | Biblical References | Assyrian & Chaldean Kings |
| Josiah 31 yrs 640-609 BC | Jeremiah Zephaniah | 2Kng 22:1-23:30; 2Chr 34:1-35:27 | Ashurbanipal 668-627 BC (Assyrian) |
| Jehoahaz (Shallum) 3 mos 609 BC | Jeremiah | 2Kng 23:31-34; 2Chr 36:1-4; Jer 22:1-12 | Nebuchadnezzar II 605-562 BC (Chaldean) |
| Jehoaikim (Eliakim) 11 yrs 609-598 BC | Jeremiah Habakkuk Daniel | 2Kng 23:34-24:7; 2Chr 26:4-8; Jer 22:13-23; Jer 26; Jer 36 | 605 BC – defeats Egypt & Assyria at Carchemish |
| Jehoiachin (Coniah) 3 mos 598-597 BC | Jeremiah Daniel | 2Kng 25:8-17; 2Chr 36:9-10; Jer 22:24-30; Jer 52:31-34 | 597 BC – crushes Jehoiakim’s revolt & loots temple |
| Zedekiah (Mattaniah) 11 yrs 597-586 BC | Jeremiah Daniel Ezekiel | 2Kng 24:17-25:7; 2Chr 36:11-21; Jer 39:1-10; Jer 52:1-11 | 589 BC – Zedekiah revolts; siege of Jerusalem begin |
| 586 BC | Fall of Jerusalem |
NOTE: There is a print-friendly version of this chart in the Habakkuk Study Guide.
Background & Outlines
Chart: Bible History at a glance
Simple overview of biblical history
Chart: Kings of Israel & Judah
Kings of Babylon in Biblical times
Kings of Assyria in Biblical times
Kings of Persia in Biblical Times
Blue Letter Bible: Old Testament Timeline
Ray C Stedman: Overview of the Book
John MacArthur: Author, Date, Background
ESV: Introduction to Minor Prophets
ESV: Introduction to Habakkuk (contains a nice map)
ESV: The Global Message of Habakkuk
Habakkuk quotes in the New Testament
James van Dine: Analysis of Habakkuk
JVernon McGee: Nahum and Habakkuk – Introduction
David Malick: An Argument of the Book of Habakkuk
Arend Remmers: The Prophet Habakkuk (Overview)
Charles Swindoll: Habakkuk Overview
Will Pounds: Habakkuk: Lord How Long? – Background Introduction
Maps from Holman Bible Atlas
The Kingdoms of Israel and Judah
The Kingdoms of Israel and Judah (1)
The Kingdoms of Israel and Judah (2)
The Kingdoms of Israel and Judah (3)
Conflicts between Israel and Aram-Damascus
The Golden Ages of the 9th & 8th centuries BCE
Phoenician Trade and Civilization
Trade Routes throughout the Middle East
Israel & Judah in the days of Jeroboam II and Uzziah
The Assyrian Empire under Tiglath-Pileser III
Fall of Samaria and Deportation of Israelites
The Fall of the Kingdom of Israel
Assyrian Districts after the Fall of Samaria
Prophets of the 8th Century BCE
Judah Alone amid International Powers
Hezekiah’s Preparation for Revolt
Sennacherib’s Campaign against Judah
Assyria in the 7th century BCE
The Rise of the Neo-Babylonian Empire
The Districts of Judah under King Josiah
Nebuchadnezzar’s Campaigns against Judah
The Persian Period
World Powers of the 6th century BCE
The Conquests of Cyrus the Great
The Return of the Jewish Exiles to Judah
ESV Study Bible Maps
Key Words in Habakkuk
LORD/God is always a key word (12x)
Why? 4x/3v – Hab 1:3; Hab 1:13; Hab 1:14;
Faith 1x in Hab 2:4
Save/Salvation 5x in Hab 1:2; Hab 3:8; Hab 3:13; Hab 3:18 (2x)
Selah (a call to pause and be silent that the soul may “listen to the divine illuming” (3x) in Hab 3:3; Hab 3:9; Hab 3:13(elsewhere only in Psalms).
wicked (3x) in Hab 1:4; Hab 1:13; proud (1x) – Hab 2:4; evil (3x) in Hab 1:13; Hab 2:9; Hab 3:13.
Dictionaries & Encyclopedias
Baker’s Evangelical Dictionary: Habakkuk, Theology of
Holman Bible Dictionary: Habakkuk
Hastings’ Dictionary of the Bible: Habakkuk
McClintock and Strong: Habakkuk, Book of
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: Habakkuk
Kitto’s Popular Cyclopedia of Biblical Literature: Habakkuk
Habakkuk means “He that embraces; a wrestler” – Hitchcock’s Bible Names
American Tract Society Habakkuk
Bridgeway Bible Dictionary Habakkuk
Easton’s Bible Dictionary Habakkuk
Fausset Bible Dictionary Habakkuk
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica Habakkuk
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Prayer of Habakkuk ; Habakkuk
McClintock and Strong’s Bible Encyclopedia Habakkuk (2) ; Habakkuk
The Nuttall Encyclopedia Habakkuk
The Jewish Encyclopedia Habakkuk
Commentaries & Study Bibles
Top 5 Commentaries on Habakkuk Keith Mathison – Ligonier.org
Walter Kaiser-Preacher’s Commentary (Micah through Malachi)
Biblehub Commentaries: Habakkuk
Calvin’s Commentary on the Bible: Habakkuk
Albert Barnes Notes on the Whole Bible: Habakkuk
Matthew Henry’s Complete Complete Commentary on the Bible: Habakkuk
Reformation Study Bible Notes: Habakkuk
Precept Austin Commentaries & Sermons: Habakkuk
Articles
A Literary Look at Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah — Richard Patterson
The Psalm of Habakkuk — Richard D. Patterson
Habakkuk — H. L. Ellison, Men Spake from God, Exeter: Paternoster Press, 1958
Interpretive Challenges Relating to Habakkuk 24b — George J. Zemek, Jr.
Prayer, Oracle And Theophany The Book Of Habakkuk – Michael E.W. Thompson
The Dead Sea Habakkuk Scroll – F F Bruce
Ugaritic Poetry And Habakkuk 3 – David Toshio Tsumura
The Laments of Habakkuk’s Prophecy – J G Harris
‘Trust in the Lord’: Hezekiah, Kings and Isaiah, John W. Olley Tyndale Bulletin 50.1 (1999): 59-77.
The Function of LXX Habakkuk 1:5 in the Book of Acts, Robert W. Wall Bulletin for Biblical Research 10.2 (2000): 247-258.
Habakkuk: Challenger and Champion of Yahweh — Nicole Ream
The Translation of Romans 1:17 – A Basic Motif in Paulism – Wilber B Wallis – Habakkuk 2:4
Shimon Bakon: Habakkuk: From Perplexity to Faith – interesting article from a Jewish perspective
GotQuestions.org
Book of Habakkuk – Bible Survey
Does God sometimes use evil to accomplish His plans?
What does it mean that the righteous will live by faith?
How can we learn to trust God like the prophet Habakkuk?
What does it mean that God came from Teman?
What is the meaning of shigionoth in Habakkuk?
What does selah mean in the Bible?
Next: Zephaniah
Previous: Nahum
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