Habakkuk 3:9

"Was the LORD displeased with the rivers? Was your anger against the rivers, or your wrath against the sea, that you rode on your horses, on your chariots of salvation?"

Key Reflection

Habakkuk 3:9 highlights God's control over natural elements as metaphors for his sovereignty and power. By questioning whether God was angry with rivers or seas, the text emphasizes that even nature is subject to divine authority, underscoring God’s supremacy in all creation.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Thy bow was made quite naked -The word is repeated for emphasis. Literally, (In) “nakedness, it was laid naked;” the sheath being laid aside and cast away, as Isaiah says,Isaiah 22:6. “Kir laid bare the shield.” Gregory, Mor. xix. 9. n. 54, Compare Augustine inPsalms 59:0, n. 6.: The bow represents the threat of the vengeance of Almighty God, from which it is at length discharged, if not turned aside; the longer the string is drawn, the sharper issueth the arrow. So then the more the coming of the day of judgment is delayed, the stricter is the severity of the judgment then issuing. So long as judgment is delayed, the bow seems laid up in its sheath.

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