Habakkuk 1:2–11
2 How long,c Lord, must I call for helpd
and you do not listen
or cry out to you about violencee
and you do not save?
3 Why do you force me to look at injustice?f
Why do you tolerate* wrongdoing?
Oppression and violence are right in front of me.
Strife is ongoing, and conflict escalates.
4 This is why the law is ineffective
and justice never emerges.
For the wicked restrictg the righteous;
therefore, justiceh comes out perverted.
5 Look at the nationsB,i and observej—
be utterly astounded!k
For I am doing something in your days
that you will not believel
when you hear about it.m
6 Look! I am raising upn the Chaldeans,C
that bitter,o impetuous nation
that marches across the earth’s open spaces
to seize territories not its own.
7 They are fiercep and terrifying;
their views of justice and sovereignty
stem from themselves.
8 Their horses are swifterq than leopardsr
and more fierceD than wolves of the night.
Their horsemen charge ahead;
their horsemen come from distant lands.
They fly like eagles, swooping to devour.s
9 All of them come to do violence;
their facest are set in determination.E
They gatheru prisoners like sand.v
10 They mockw kings,
and rulers are a joke to them.
They laughx at every fortress
and build siege ramps to capturey it.
11 Then they sweepz by like the wind
and pass through.
They are guilty;F their strength is their god.