Habakkuk 3:16 (DRB)

Passage

I have heard and my bowels were troubled: my lips trembled at the voice. Let rottenness enter into my bones, and swarm under me. That I may rest in the day of tribulation: that I may go up to our people that are girded.

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 3:14 Thou hast cursed his sceptres, the head of his warriors, them that came out as a whirlwind to scatter me. Their joy was like that of him that devoureth the poor man in secret.

Habakkuk 3:15 Thou madest a way in the sea for thy horses, in the mud of many waters.

Habakkuk 3:16 I have heard and my bowels were troubled: my lips trembled at the voice. Let rottenness enter into my bones, and swarm under me. That I may rest in the day of tribulation: that I may go up to our people that are girded.

Habakkuk 3:17 For the fig tree shall not blossom: and there shall be no spring in the vines. The labour of the olive tree shall fail: and the fields shall yield no food: the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls.

Habakkuk 3:18 But I will rejoice in the Lord: and I will joy in God my Jesus.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "heard", "bowels", "troubled", "lips", "trembled", "voice", "rottenness", and "enter". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "heard" and "bowels", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 15's "Thou madest a way in the sea..." into verse 17's "For the fig tree shall not blossom...", so "heard" and "bowels" 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 "heard" and "bowels" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.