How Long And Why?

How Long and Why? Habakkuk 1:1-4; 2:1-4

1. The Prophet seems very upset he asks How Long? How long, O LORD, must I call for help,

but you do not listen?

• Some scholars believe he is boiling mad

• He fires two questions to the Almighty: “How long?” and “Why?”

• “How long?” Habakkuk isn’t whispering polite prayer. He is standing on the edge of despair, daring to ask what many believers quietly wonder when life goes off rails and God seems distant.

2. Justice is seemingly ignored by God according to Habakkuk 3Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong?

• Justice is being ignored. Wickedness is winning. The bad guys — the Chaldeans God seems silent. Uninvolved. Unmoved.

• Habakkuk wants to know where God is. This is the prayer of someone who has prayed for justice and heard nothing, waited for healing and seen none, and pleaded for change

• He is asking, “How long until the pain ends? How long until You show up? How long must I hold out when nothing is changing?”

3. Others have asked God similar questions “WHY”

• Jeremiah once ask “121 You are always righteous, O LORD, when I bring a case before you. Yet I would speak with you about your justice: Why does the way of the wicked prosper? Why do all the faithless live at ease?

• Job wonders why he didn’t die in childbirth (3:3). 3"May the day of my birth perish,

and the night it was said, `A boy is born!'

• David asks God, “Why, O LORD, do you stand far off? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” (10:1). Why do the wicked thrive?

• Why does injustice get the last word?

• Why does God seem to stand by, as violence and destruction escalate? Why did this happen to me?

• Even Jesus, in a moment of anguish, asks a question: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

4. These are our questions we may have or other have had too:

• “How long will cancer rob us of our loved ones?”

• “How long must I wait until my daughter will speak to me again?”

• “Why do good people suffer while the cruel prosper?”

• “Why does violence seem endless, even when we pray for peace?”

• Why did this happen to me?”

5. God answers Habakkuk to How long and why.

• Take notes. Write this down. The actual words are “Write the vision; make it plain on tablets, so that a runner may read it.” (2:2). God is saying, “You need to remember what I’m about to tell you. And others will need it, too.”

• The apostle John is told by the “Son of Man” to “write what you have seen, what is, and what is to take place after this” (Revelation 1:13, 19).

• John even mentions the importance of his written gospel: “These are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name” (John 20:31).

6. He tells Habakkuk Wait for it. “For the vision has its appointed time … If it seems to tarry, wait for it; it will surely come, it will not delay” (2:3).

• You have to wait for the breakthrough. God tells Habakkuk: “Just because you don’t see the victory yet doesn’t mean it isn’t on the way.” The vision has its appointed time. It’s not a matter of if — it’s a matter of when.

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• One scholar said, “ Faith doesn't mean we get instant answers. It means we trust the outcome even in the delay. The greatest spiritual victories are often preceded by the longest silences.

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7. God tells Habakkuk The proud will fall.

• “Look at the proud! Their spirit is not right in them …” (2:4).

• Yes, the Babylonians are dominating — for now.

• But don’t mistake their success for righteousness. Their pride is a flaw, not a strength. It will be their downfall.

• God is essentially saying to us, “Don’t envy the wicked. Don’t fear the oppressors. Their moment is temporary.” Pride looks like power. But it is paper-thin. Don’t be tempted to build your life on appearances. God sees deeper, and justice will come.

8. Finally, Habakkuk is just going to Live by faith. “… but the righteous shall live by their faith.” (2:4).

• What Do We Do Now? Live by faith

• How do we live in times like these — when politics seem broken, when the economy feels uncertain, when violence fills the headlines, and our prayers seem to go unanswered?

• We live by faith Climb the watchtower. Keep showing up in prayer.