Habakkuk 2:15 (WEB)

Passage

“Woe to him who gives his neighbor drink, pouring your inflaming wine until they are drunk, so that you may gaze at their naked bodies!

Nearby Context

Habakkuk 2:13 Behold, isn’t it of Yahweh of Armies that the peoples labor for the fire, and the nations weary themselves for vanity?

Habakkuk 2:14 For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of Yahweh’s glory, as the waters cover the sea.

Habakkuk 2:15 “Woe to him who gives his neighbor drink, pouring your inflaming wine until they are drunk, so that you may gaze at their naked bodies!

Habakkuk 2:16 You are filled with shame, and not glory. You will also drink, and be exposed! The cup of Yahweh’s right hand will come around to you, and disgrace will cover your glory.

Habakkuk 2:17 For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the destruction of the animals, which made them afraid; because of men’s blood, and for the violence done to the land, to every city and to those who dwell in them.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "gives", "neighbor", "drink", "pouring", "inflaming", "wine", "until", and "drunk". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "gives" and "neighbor", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 14's "For the earth will be filled with..." into verse 16's "You are filled with shame and not...", so "gives" and "neighbor" 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 "gives" and "neighbor" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.