Habakkuk 2:3 (DRB)

Passage

For as yet the vision is far off, and it shall appear at the end, and shall not lie: if it make any delay, wait for it: for it shall surely come, and it shall not be slack.

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 2:1 I will stand upon my watch, and fix my foot upon the tower: and I will watch, to see what will be said to me, and what I may answer to him that reproveth me.

Habakkuk 2:2 And the Lord answered me, and said: Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables: that he that readeth it may run over it.

Habakkuk 2:3 For as yet the vision is far off, and it shall appear at the end, and shall not lie: if it make any delay, wait for it: for it shall surely come, and it shall not be slack.

Habakkuk 2:4 Behold, he that is unbelieving, his soul shall not be right in himself: but the just shall live in his faith.

Habakkuk 2:5 And as wine deceiveth him that drinketh it: so shall the proud man be, and he shall not be honoured: who hath enlarged his desire like hell: and is himself like death, and he is never satisfied: but will gather together unto him all nations, and heap together unto him all people.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "vision", "shall", "appear", "make", "delay", and "wait". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "vision" and "shall", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 2's "And the Lord answered me and said..." into verse 4's "Behold he that is unbelieving his soul...", so "vision" and "shall" 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 "vision" and "shall" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.