Habakkuk 2:13 - Exposition

Is it not of the Lord of hosts? Hath not God ordained that this, about to be mentioned, should be the issue of all this evil splendour? That the people shall labour in the very fire; rather, that the peoples labour for the.fire; i.e. that the Chaldees and such like nations expended all this toil on cities and fortresses only to supply food for fire, which, the prophet sees, will be their end ( Isaiah 40:16 ). Jeremiah ( Jeremiah 51:58 ) applies these and the following words to the destruction of Babylon. This is indeed to weary themselves for very vanity . Babylon, when it was finally taken, was given over to fire and sword (comp. Jeremiah 50:32 ; Jeremiah 51:30 , etc.).