Verse 1
I. HEADING 1:1
The writer described this book as an oracle that Habakkuk the prophet saw in a vision or dream. This burden (Heb. massa’, something lifted up) was a message predicting judgment on Judah and Babylon.
"Habakkuk’s prophecy possesses a burdensome dimension from start to finish." [Note: Robertson, p. 135.]
We know nothing more about Habakkuk with certainty than that he was a prophet who also had the ability to write poetry (ch. 3).
"Like Haggai and Zechariah in the books that bear their names (Haggai 1:1; Zechariah 1:1) Habakkuk is called the prophet. This may mean that Habakkuk was a professional prophet on the temple staff . . ." [Note: F. F. Bruce, "Habakkuk," in The Minor Prophets, p. 842. Johannes Lindblom, Prophecy in Ancient Israel, pp. 208, 254, advanced this view. ]
These temple prophets led the people in worshipping God (cf. 1 Chronicles 25:1). [Note: On the subject of prophets who led the people in worship, see Aubrey R. Johnson, The Cultic Prophet in Ancient Israel.]
"One of the functions of temple prophets was to give responses to worshipers who came seeking divine guidance: when the problem was stated, the prophet inquired of God and obtained an answer." [Note: Bruce, p. 832.]
Be the first to react on this!
