TEXT [Commentary]

  6.   The fifth taunt: the polytheistic Babylonians will be deserted by their idols (2:18-20)

18 “What good is an idol carved by man,

or a cast image that deceives you?

How foolish to trust in your own creation—

a god that can’t even talk!

19 What sorrow awaits you who say to wooden idols,

‘Wake up and save us!’

To speechless stone images you say,

‘Rise up and teach us!’

Can an idol tell you what to do?

They may be overlaid with gold and silver,

but they are lifeless inside.

20 But the LORD is in his holy Temple.

Let all the earth be silent before him.”

NOTES

2:18 What good is . . . The question is a rhetorical one, expecting a negative answer. This song begins without the customary initial hoy [TH1945, ZH2098] (woe) with which the others begin, although hoy does occur in 2:19. Robertson (1990:207) is probably correct in suggesting that “Habakkuk alters the order of the oracle simply as a literary device to provide variety and climax in his expression.”

idol carved by man . . . cast image . . . god. Three Hebrew words for idols lie behind the NLT rendering: pesel [TH6459, ZH7181] (carved image), massekah [TH4541, ZH5011] (cast image), and ’elilim [TH457, ZH496] (idols). Although one may not always be able to press the distinctions in the first two words, they do at least serve as representative examples of idols in whatever way they are made (see the note on Nah 1:14). As for the third term, this word lays stress on the idols’ lack of value, for it is denounced as an empty or worthless thing. It is compounded with the alliterated adjective ’illemim [TH483, ZH522] (mute), perhaps to yield an effect something like “voiceless idols.”

deceives. The Hebrew text calls such an idol as discussed here a “teacher of falsehood/lies.” The word for teacher (moreh [TH3384E, ZH3723]) is read in 1QpHab 12:11 as mry, which Vermes (1995:346) understands to be a construct of meri’ [TH4806, ZH5309] (fatling). It could also be understood as meri [TH4805, ZH5308] (rebellion).

2:19 Can an idol tell you what to do? Lit., “Shall it give you instruction?” The word yoreh [TH3384E, ZH3723] is properly a verb, although some have treated it as a nominal form (e.g., NASB, NJB). The accents of the MT demand that the phrase be treated as separate from what precedes (cf. KJV). Although some have regarded it as a statement (NJB, NKJV), it is usually understood as a question. Others have omitted it as a gloss (e.g., NEB). In any case, the wordplay with moreh [TH3384E, ZH3723] (in 2:18) is obvious.

2:20 Temple. “Temple” here probably refers not only to the Temple in Jerusalem (1 Kgs 8:10-11; 2 Chr 5:13-14; 7:1-3) but also to God’s heavenly sanctuary (Ps 11:4; Isa 6:1-5; Mic 1:2; cf. Rev 4:2-11) from which, though it cannot contain him (1 Kgs 8:27), he hears and answers the prayers of those who know him and seek him (1 Kgs 8:28-30; Ps 73:17).

be silent. This word (has [TH2013A, ZH2187]) is an onomatopoeic interjection with the force much like the English “hush!”

COMMENTARY [Text]

The fifth taunt song, with which the series ends, examines the Babylonians’ religious orientation. Their idolatrous polytheism is shown to be worthless. The condemnation of idolatry here is in harmony with that found in the other Old Testament prophets (cf. Isa 44:9-20; Jer 5:7; 44:1-8; Hos 8:4). The judgment of Babylon and its gods announced previously by Isaiah (Isa 21:9) is repeated by Jeremiah (Jer 50:2; 51:47-48, 52-53).

The oracle ends with a pronouncement that displays the vast difference between Israel’s God and the gods of Babylon. Unlike those gods, who have neither life nor words of guidance for their followers (cf. Isa 44:9-11), Yahweh is a living God, the Lord of all the earth. He is in his holy Temple and available to all who fear him (cf. Deut 4:1-40; Ps 91:14-16). He is ever-present, superintending all that comes to pass (cf. Isa 44:6-8, 24-28).

It is no accident that John closes his first epistle with the admonition, “Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1 John 5:21, NRSV). Not only should believers be reminded that religion and morality are inseparable, so that living a righteous life can only be done in the power of him who is life itself (1 John 5:20), but they should also realize that nothing should be allowed to take God’s place as the center of their devotion.

Habakkuk 2:20 reminds us once again that God is sovereign over all individuals and nations, guiding them in accordance with his predetermined purpose to bring glory to himself (cf. 2:14 and the commentary on Nah 3:8-13). Further, he is a holy God (cf. 1:12) who expects not only the reverence and respect due him on the part of his followers but also that they reproduce that holiness in their lives.

The word to Habakkuk becomes doubly sobering for today’s believers when they realize that their bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor 6:19). As such, they belong to God and ought not to be profaned in thought or deed. Because the Holy Spirit indwells the believer (1 Cor 3:16), his or her life should reflect the One who alone is God (2 Cor 6:16-18), living in anticipation of that glorious day when the home of God will be permanently among his people (Rev 21:3).