Habakkuk 1:6 (DBY)

Passage

For behold, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and impetuous nation, which marcheth through the breadth of the earth, to possess dwelling-places that are not theirs.

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 1:4 Therefore the law is powerless, and justice doth never go forth; for the wicked encompasseth the righteous; therefore judgment goeth forth perverted.

Habakkuk 1:5 See ye among the nations, and behold, and wonder marvellously; for [I] work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be declared [to you].

Habakkuk 1:6 For behold, I raise up the Chaldeans, that bitter and impetuous nation, which marcheth through the breadth of the earth, to possess dwelling-places that are not theirs.

Habakkuk 1:7 They are terrible and dreadful: their judgment and their dignity proceed from themselves.

Habakkuk 1:8 And their horses are swifter than the leopards, and are more agile than the evening wolves; and their horsemen prance proudly, and their horsemen come from afar: they fly as an eagle that hasteth to devour.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "behold", "raise", "chaldeans", "bitter", "impetuous", "nation", "marcheth", and "through". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "behold" and "raise", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "See ye among the nations and behold..." into verse 7's "They are terrible and dreadful their judgment...", so "behold" and "raise" belong inside that flow. In Habakkuk context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "behold" and "raise" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.