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Course Syllabus

Live By Faith: A Study of The Book of Habakkuk

Instructor: David Malcolm McGruder, Executive Pastor

Howard Thurman Bible Institute

February 10 – 12, 2025

 

Course Overview: How do you trust God in the face of chaos, disruption, and uncertainty? This question lies at the heart of the book of Habakkuk, where the prophet wrestles with God’s justice in the midst of societal decay and political upheaval. Set during the waning days of Judah, Israel’s southern kingdom, Habakkuk observes the rise of the Babylonian empire as an instrument of divine judgment against Judah’s injustice and idolatry. This course invites students into a close reading of the book of Habakkuk, exploring its historical context, literary content, and timeless themes of faith, justice, and resilience. Through theological reflection and critical analysis, participants will uncover the contemporary social justice implications of this ancient Hebrew text. Together, we will wrestle with Habakkuk’s questions and consider how, in a world marked by uncertainty and systemic injustice, believers can live by faith.

Learning Objectives: By the end of this course, students will:

Examine the historical and political context of Habakkuk and its implications for biblical prophecy.

Analyze the literary structure and poetic nature of Habakkuk’s dialogue with God.

Interpret the theological themes of faith, justice, and divine sovereignty.

Apply Habakkuk’s message to contemporary social justice issues and personal faith journeys.

Reflect on the role of lament and hope in spiritual resilience.

Course Schedule

Monday, February 10, 2025 – Babylon: Wrestling with God’s Justice

📌 Topics:

Introduction to the Book of Habakkuk

Historical Context: Judah’s Decline and the Rise of Babylon

Themes: Lament, Divine Judgment, and Faith in Crisis

Literary Structure: Prayer, Poetry, and Prophecy

Text Focus: Habakkuk 1:2–2:1 (Habakkuk’s First Complaint & God’s Response)

📖 Guiding Questions:

How does Habakkuk’s complaint compare to other prophetic laments in the Bible?

Why does God allow the wicked (Babylon) to prevail over Judah?

What does Habakkuk teach us about questioning God?

📚 Assignment (Optional):

Write a reflection on a modern-day parallel to Habakkuk’s concerns about injustice.

Compare Habakkuk’s lament with Psalm 13 or the book of Job.

🔗 Course Materials: https://february2025htbi.tumblr.com

Tuesday, February 11, 2025 – A Vision for an Appointed Time: Trusting God’s Timing

📌 Topics:

Theological Themes: God's Sovereignty and Human Waiting

The “Appointed Time” and the Call to Live by Faith

The Five Woes: God's Judgment on Oppressive Nations

Text Focus: Habakkuk 2:1–4, 2:6–20

📖 Guiding Questions:

What does it mean to “live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4)?

How do the "Five Woes" reflect divine justice in history?

How do we maintain faith when God's promises seem delayed?

📚 Assignment (Optional):

Research how Habakkuk 2:4 is used in the New Testament (e.g., Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11, Hebrews 10:38).

Write a short reflection on waiting for God’s timing in your personal faith journey.

Wednesday, February 12, 2025 – Live by FAITH: From Lament to Praise

📌 Topics:

Habakkuk’s Prayer: A Shift from Complaint to Worship

God’s Power and Presence in Troubled Times

Rejoicing Despite Hardship: A Model for Faith Today

Text Focus: Habakkuk 3:1-16, 3:17–19

📖 Guiding Questions:

How does Habakkuk’s perspective shift from lament to faith?

Why is Habakkuk’s final response a song of praise rather than another complaint?

How can Habakkuk’s faith journey serve as a model for contemporary believers?

📚 Assignment (Optional):

Write a modern adaptation of Habakkuk’s prayer that speaks to today’s challenges.

Reflect on a time when faith sustained you in hardship.

Course Resources

📖 Primary Text: The Book of Habakkuk (any reliable Bible translation) 📚 Supplementary Readings:

Walter Brueggemann, Prophetic Imagination

Elizabeth Achtemeier, Nahum-Malachi (Interpretation Commentary)

N.T. Wright, God and the Pandemic (for modern application)

T. H. Lim, (2022). Why did Paul cite Habakkuk 2:4b? The Expository Times, 133(6), 225-232. https://doi.org/10.1177/00145246221075893

🖥 Course Materials & Discussion Forum: https://february2025htbi.tumblr.com

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The Book of Habakkuk KJV | Audio Bible (FULL) by Max #McLean #KJV #audio...

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The LORD Answers Again

I will stand at my guard post and station myself on the ramparts. I will watch to see what He will say to me, and how I should answer when corrected.

Then the LORD answered me:

“Write down this vision and clearly inscribe it on tablets, so that a herald may run with it. For the vision awaits an appointed time; it testifies of the end and does not lie. Though it lingers, wait for it, since it will surely come and will not delay. Look at the proud one; his soul is not upright — but the righteous will live by faith — and wealth indeed betrays him. He is an arrogant man never at rest. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol, and like Death, he is never satisfied. He gathers all the nations to himself and collects all the peoples as his own.

Will not all of these take up a taunt against him, speaking with mockery and derision:

‘Woe to him who amasses what is not his and makes himself rich with many loans! How long will this go on?’ Will not your creditors suddenly arise and those who disturb you awaken? Then you will become their prey. Because you have plundered many nations, the remnant of the people will plunder you— because of your bloodshed against man and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers.

Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, to place his nest on high and escape the hand of disaster! You have plotted shame for your house by cutting off many peoples and forfeiting your life. For the stones will cry out from the wall, and the rafters will echo it from the woodwork.

Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by iniquity! Is it not indeed from the LORD of Hosts that the labor of the people only feeds the fire, and the nations weary themselves in vain? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.

Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin until they are drunk, in order to gaze at their nakedness! You will be filled with shame instead of glory. You too must drink and expose your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD’s right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will cover your glory. For your violence against Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of animals will terrify you, because of your bloodshed against men and your violence against the land, the city, and all their dwellers.

What use is an idol, that a craftsman should carve it— or an image, a teacher of lies? For its maker trusts in his own creation; he makes idols that cannot speak. Woe to him who says to wood, ‘Awake!’ or to silent stone, ‘Arise!’ Can it give guidance? Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver, yet there is no breath in it at all.”

But the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him. — Habakkuk 2 | The Reader’s Bible (BRB) The Reader’s Bible © 2020 by Bible Hub and Berean Bible. All rights Reserved. Cross References: Genesis 9:22; Numbers 14:21; Joshua 24:27; 1 Samuel 12:21; 1 Kings 18:26; 2 Kings 9:26; 2 Kings 14:10; Job 20:15; Psalm 5:3; Psalm 11:4; Psalm 22:27; Psalm 55:23; Psalm 85:8; Psalm 135:15; Proverbs 20:1-2; Proverbs 29:1; Isaiah 5:8; Isaiah 5:22; Isaiah 10:13; Isaiah 11:13; Isaiah 28:7; Isaiah 33:1; Isaiah 41:1; Isaiah 50:11; Jeremiah 22:13; Jeremiah 25:15; Jeremiah 27:7; Jeremiah 50:14; Jeremiah 51:58; Ezekiel 24:9; Luke 19:40; Romans 1:17; Romans 15:4; 1 Corinthians 12:2; 2 Corinthians 1:21; Galatians 3:11; Hebrews 10:37-38; 2 Peter 3:9; Revelation 1:19

Habakkuk 2 Bible Commentary - Matthew Henry (concise)

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“And the Lord answered me and said, Write the vision and engrave it so plainly upon tablets that everyone who passes may [be able to] read [it easily and quickly] as he hastens by. For the vision is yet for an appointed time and it hastens to the end [fulfillment]; it will not deceive or disappoint. Though it tarry, wait [earnestly] for it, because it will surely come; it will not be behindhand on its appointed day.”

— HABAKKUK 2:2-3

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Behold, his soul which is lifted up is not upright in him: but the just shall live by his faith.

Habakkuk 2:4

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Habakkuk 2:4

Habakkuk 2:4 is quoted in three places in the New Testament. It is quoted in Romans 1:17, Hebrews 10:38, as well as in Galatians 3:11. In these instances, the author uses this as support for his teaching that the “just shall live by faith,” or that those who are justified are justified by faith alone. The question arises as to whether this is a legitimate usage of Habakkuk 2:4. When the the…

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Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord; I will be joyful in God my Savior.

Habakkuk 3:17-18

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Babylon Fallen by Gustave Doré

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Source details and larger version.

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King Hammurabi (18th century BCE) is depicted here on the Code of Hammurabi, standing in a prayer position before Shamash, the god of the sun and justice. The famous Code of Hammurabi was not as much a legal code, as it was a piece of propaganda designed to showcase the king's sense of justice and his concern for the well-being of his subjects. The laws were likely intended as "enlightened" examples. Local judges retained considerable leeway in their rulings, basing decisions predominantly on customs and prior judgments by judges and kings, similar to English common law to an extent.

The Code was also regarded as the pinnacle of classical Old Babylonian Akkadian. Its literary value was celebrated in the centuries that followed, with many students in scribal schools copying excerpts from the Code as a writing exercise.

The Code was taken from Sippar to Susa, Iran, by invading Elamite armies in the 12th century BCE. French archaeologists later excavated the basalt cone-shaped stele and transported it to the Louvre, where it is currently housed.

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Kudurru of Gula-ereš, Kassite Period, Babylonia. British Museum (ID: 102485).

A kudurru is an important Babylonian object that began to appear during the Kassite Period (c. 1500–1155 BCE). These objects were often made from black limestone and were typically placed near temples to ensure that the legal acts inscribed on them were protected by the gods.

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Two depictions of the "Whore of Babylon" from the Book of Revelation. Both of them make the many-headed beast she rides look a little silly. This one's from the 1100s:

And this one's from the 1500s, by Albrecht Durer:

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Glazed bricks depicting a Persian archer, dating back to around 510 BCE, from the city of Susa in the Achaemenid Empire. This glazed brick bas-relief style was perfected in Babylon, and even the Foundation Charter of the Susa palace states that the baked bricks at the palace were the work of the Babylonians. Louvre Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE.  

Photo by Babylon Chronicle