Imagine you are walking along the edge of the shore when thump something heavy bumps your foot. A bottle. Not just any bottle, but a brown bottle stopped with a cork. You bend down, pick up the bottle, and unstop the cork. There is a rolled up paper inside. A letter. Hand-written. You carefully unroll the letter and begin to read it. At first reading, you will have no idea who wrote it, when it was written, or why it was written. Then you start to examine the letter for clues. Although you can’t pinpoint exactly the date it was written if the letter were to mention the recent “war to end all wars” you would know the letter was written after World War I and before World War II. If the author of the letter wrote about giving birth, you would know that the author was female. Each clue brings a clearer picture in your mind about the letter’s message and meaning.

Bible scholars do a similar thing when they look for the date and background of the Bible books, especially in the Old Testament prophets.

Starting today I will be sharing a five-part series through the book of Habakkuk: How Perplexity Turned to Praise. Before we open up the book itself and pinpoint the perplexity and the praise, Cindy Barnes, Bible study writer and leader shares with us the results of her investigative digging into the who, when, and where of the book of Habakkuk so we can paint a picture in our minds about Habakkuk. Who was he? When did he live? What was his world like? Understanding his context can help us understand both his perplexity and his praise.

As you read Cindy’s findings, pay attention to how Habakkuk’s culture is similar to your own. There are a lot more similarities than you may think!

Introduction to the Burden of Habakkuk

Do you feel like you are living in a time surrounded by people who aren’t serving the Lord? You are not alone thinking that. As we begin a new study on one of the minor prophets, it would be helpful to understand what life was like during the years 650 to 586 BC. This study will reveal the burden of Habakkuk.

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, 2 Timothy 3:16.

Even in this short book, there is something in it for us to learn. Are you ready?

Come, sit with me as we turn back the pages of time to discover the sights and sounds that surrounded Habakkuk. We’ll have fun as we discover what the Jews were facing at the time of Habakkuk’s history. This will help us as we learn why Habakkuk was so heavily burdened.

We don’t know very much about Habakkuk other than what we learn in his book. We can, however, piece together from other prophets, kings and general history, what was happening in this era. By asking the questions who, what, where, when, why, and how, we will discover why Habakkuk was so burdened.

The Kingdom is Divided

Let’s peek at history.

Israel was a united kingdom under both King David and King Solomon’s reign. However, at the end of King Solomon’s reign, the kingdom was split as Northern Kingdom (Israel) and Southern Kingdom (Judah). This happened in 931 BC which means that now Christ’s ancestors would come from the line of Judah.

Judah continued to be in power, though many of the kings were ungodly and the others were not consistent in their faith. The prophet, Isaiah, worked hard to steer Judah back to God but the influence of Syria, Egypt and Babylon continued to threaten the Jewish kingdoms.

Nahum, Jeremiah, Zephaniah, Ezekiel, and Daniel continued to warn the kings and the people that their misconduct and disloyalty to God would be repaid with destruction. Some kings listened, others did not.

After the split of the united kingdom, Israel had 20 kings before it finally fell to the Assyrians in the year 722 BC, under King Hoshea’s reign. Israel ceased to exist at this point. Judah is now all alone to face her enemies.

Habakkuk’s King

Based on the wording of Chapter 1, scholars figure that Habakkuk lived during the reign of the youngest king, Josiah, who came to power at the age of 8. He reigned for 31 years (640-609 BC) in Jerusalem.

Here’s what we know about him.

His father, Amon, was not a good man. In fact, he did evil in the sight of the LORD. Amon lived out the cliche of “like father, like son” as he followed in his father’s footsteps.

Manasseh, (Amon’s father) in his early years as king, did evil in the sight of the LORD but later on, he had a change of heart and began to follow the LORD. So, what did Amon do? He was like his father’s early years, not the later years.

But Josiah was nothing like his father Amon, as Scripture tells us he was a righteous king who ‘walked in the ways of his father David,’ 2 Chronicles 34:2. That is how he is remembered throughout time.

In fact, it is said that there was “no king like him before or after.” What a testimony to righteousness!

King Josiah, as a teenager, made a declaration of faith as he began to seek the ‘God of his father David.’ He was 16 years old when he stood up for righteousness. Can you imagine how hard it would have been for Josiah to do that? Is it any harder for teens today to stand up for what is right?

The Beginning of Revival

So what did Josiah do? He did the right thing as he purged Judah and Jerusalem of the idolatrous images and places of worship to false gods. (2 Chronicles 34:1-7) This purging even filtered over to parts of Israel as well.

Let’s read that in 2 Chronicles 34:9 when he extended an invitation to Israel to join him in returning to the LORD in serving God.

The Book of the Law is Found

Just two years later, when Josiah was 18, he began to repair the house of the LORD. He ordered the taxes to be used to rebuild the temple. It was while the cleanup crew was going through the rubble, that they came upon the Book of the Law and brought it to Josiah, 2 Kings 22:8; 2 Chronicles 34:15.

It’s time to peek in on this scene.

Shaphan, the scribe, read the book to the King and upon hearing the words of the law, King Josiah repented and wept. He tore his clothes and grieved as he realized how disobedient the nation had been. Can you see how brokenhearted he was? How repentant he was? And he was only 18!

The words of the law, the blessings, and the curses, concerned him very much. Were he and his nation going to be judged because of their disobedience?

A Meeting with the Prophetess

To find that answer, he sent Shaphan’s son Ahikam who was an officer of the court to go see Huldah, the prophetess. If anyone would know, she would. She responded by emphasizing the importance of the book. She said the curses written in the book would come to pass because of the broken covenant.

As for Josiah, this is what was said “Because your heart was tender and you humbled yourself before God when you heard His words against this place and against its inhabitants, and because you humbled yourself before Me, tore your clothes and wept before Me, I truly have heard you, declares the LORD.” (2 Chronicles 34:14-28)

King Josiah and the nation of Judah made a covenant before God, to serve Him and Him only. (2 Chronicles 34:29-33). There was a revival in the land but will these reforms be enough to ward off disaster? Should Habakkuk still have a burden now that there was revival in the land?

King of Babylon

While King Josiah reigned in righteousness, King Nabopolassar (626-605) reigned in Babylon and was the opposite of Josiah.

Nabopolassar reigned for the last 19 years of Josiah’s reign. For sure, King Josiah knew of this Babylonian king as he would have heard of his exploits in the nation surrounding him and would soon face him in battle. Was this the burden of Habakkuk?

He was also father to Nebuchadnezzar, the crown prince, who succeeded him in 605 BC when it is thought that Nabopolassar died of natural causes at the age of 53.

Kings of Assyria

Continuing to lay the background scene, keep in mind that the nation of Israel had been captured by the Assyrians in 722 BC and lived under the rule of these kings.

While Nabopolassar ruled over Babylon, the following kings reigned over Assyria:

Ashurbanipal (669-633)

Ashuretililani (633-629)

Sinsharishkun (629-612)

Ashuruballit (612-609)

Do we care about these men? Only to show the lineage in the who’s who lineup.

Dates referenced are for the time period of the reign of the kings and prophets.

In 612 BC, Nineveh (located in Assyria) was attacked by combined forces of the Babylonians and the Medes. It is thought that King Ashuruballit died in the fall of Nineveh.

King Nabopolassar and the Assyrian kings worshipped and served idols. They were surrounded everywhere by temples to false gods. These nations were heavy into the cults and encouraged everyone in their false worship. They influenced the nations surrounding them and definitely had an influence on Judah.

In 609 BC, the Egyptian Pharaoh, Necho II, helped the Assyrians fight against the Babylonians. When he attempted to enter the hill country from the Jezreel Valley, surprise! he came up against King Josiah and his Judean army as they had sided with the Babylonians.

A fierce battle was fought at Carchemish (Megiddo) and King Josiah was injured and died from his battle wounds at the hands of Pharaoh Necho. Can you almost picture that scene now? (2 Kings 23:29-30; 2 Chronicles 35:20)

Pharaoh Necho installed puppet kings on Judah’s throne but neither Necho nor the Judean kings were any match for the Babylonians. Judah was now at the mercy of the Chaldeans and was carried away in captivity in 586 BC. Was this the burden of Habakkuk?

The Burden of Habakkuk

We have peeked in on the religious and political climate surrounding Habakkuk. We know that King Josiah was a righteous man who led his people in revival between them and God.

Now, what do we know about Habakkuk? While much of this information will be revealed in the next study, we do want to know about the burden he carried.

No one is certain but many scholars think that Habakkuk actually ministered as a prophet during the reign of King Jehoiakim, perhaps around the year 607 BC.

As you can see from this historical account, at the end of Josiah’s reign, the covenant between the people and the LORD has broken once again.

Habakkuk lived during a revival and now he is seeing chaos as the succeeding kings did not follow the ways of the LORD.

He had a burden for the people. The spiritual revival was over. Sin ran rampant. His burden? We’ll learn about it in the next study with Rachel Schmoyer.

It is presumed that he wrote his book during the 25 year period when Babylon conquered both Nineveh and the Assyrian Empire (612 BC) and the time of the fall of Judah when Babylon captured Jerusalem in 586 BC.

That’s a Wrap

Thanks for sitting with me on the couch to take a closer look at what caused the burden of  Habakkuk.

Next study is Habakkuk, Chapter 1 as Rachel Schmoyer of Read the Hard Parts takes us through the first conversation between Habakkuk and God.

I found this interesting. Are you a history buff? Did you enjoy the peek behind the scenes to help you understand Habakkuk?

Tell me, what part did you find the most interesting? Leave me a comment, Rachel and I would love to hear from you.

Sources:

https://www.blueletterbible.org/comm/guzik_david/studyguide_hab/hab_1.cfm

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josiah

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabopolassar)

Bible Time Line, Rose Publishing

The New Bible Commentary Revised: Habakkuk, page 767-768

Nave’s Topical Bible: Four Thousand Questions and Answer on the Old and New Testaments: Habakkuk; Josiah, King of Judah

From Adam to Jesus, Creation to Crucifixion Timeline