Habakkuk 1:4 (LSB)

Passage

Therefore the law is ignored, And justice never comes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes forth perverted.

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 1:2 How long, O Yahweh, will I call for help, And You will not hear? I cry out to You, “Violence!” Yet You do not save.

Habakkuk 1:3 Why do You make me see wickedness And cause me to look on trouble? Indeed, devastation and violence are before me; And there is strife, and contention is lifted up.

Habakkuk 1:4 Therefore the law is ignored, And justice never comes forth. For the wicked surround the righteous; Therefore justice comes forth perverted.

Habakkuk 1:5 “See among the nations! And look! Be also astonished! Be astounded! Because I am doing something in your days— You would not believe if it was recounted to you.

Habakkuk 1:6 For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, That bitter and hasty nation Who walks on the breadth of the land To possess dwelling places which are not theirs.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "therefore", "ignored", "justice", "never", "comes", "forth", "wicked", and "surround". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "therefore" and "ignored", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 3's "Why do You make me see wickedness..." into verse 5's "See among the nations And look Be...", so "therefore" and "ignored" 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 "therefore" and "ignored" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.