Habakkuk 1:5–11

The Lord Gives His Answer

⁵The Lord replies,

“Look at the nations. Watch them.

Be totally amazed at what you see.

I am going to do something in your days

that you would never believe.

You would not believe it

even if someone told you about it.

⁶I am going to send the armies of Babylonia to attack you.

They are very mean. They move quickly.

They sweep across the whole earth.

They take over places

that do not belong to them.

⁷They terrify others.

They do not recognize any laws but their own.

That is how proud they are.

⁸Their horses are faster than leopards.

They are meaner than wolves in the dark.

Their horsemen charge straight into battle.

They ride in from far away.

They come down like an eagle

diving for its food.

⁹All of them are ready to destroy others.

Their huge armies advance like a wind out of the desert.

They gather prisoners like sand.

¹⁰They laugh at kings

and make fun of rulers.

They laugh at all of the cities

that have high walls around them.

They build dirt ramps against the walls

and capture the cities.

¹¹They sweep past like the wind.

Then they go on their way.

They are guilty.

They worship their own strength.”