Habakkuk 3:8 (DRB)

Passage

Wast thou angry, O Lord, with the rivers? or was thy wrath upon the rivers? or thy indignation in the sea? Who will ride upon thy horses: and thy chariots are salvation.

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 3:6 He stood and measured the earth. He beheld, and melted the nations: and the ancient mountains were crushed to pieces. The hills of the world were bowed down by the journeys of his eternity.

Habakkuk 3:7 I saw the tents of Ethiopia for their iniquity, the curtains of the land of Madian shall be troubled.

Habakkuk 3:8 Wast thou angry, O Lord, with the rivers? or was thy wrath upon the rivers? or thy indignation in the sea? Who will ride upon thy horses: and thy chariots are salvation.

Habakkuk 3:9 Thou wilt surely take up thy bow: according to the oaths which thou hast spoken to the tribes. Thou wilt divide the rivers of the earth.

Habakkuk 3:10 The mountains saw thee, and were grieved: the great body of waters passed away. The deep put forth its voice: the deep lifted up its hands.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "wast", "thou", "angry", "lord", "rivers", "wrath", and "upon". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "wast" and "thou", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 7's "I saw the tents of Ethiopia for..." into verse 9's "Thou wilt surely take up thy bow...", so "wast" and "thou" 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 "wast" and "thou" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.