A Protest and an Answer (i): After the introduction (v. 1), Habakkuk challenges Yahweh about faithlessness and violence in Judah and Yahweh’s failure to act in deliverance (vv. 2–4), and Yahweh announces the intention to take action by means of the Babylonians (vv. 5–11).

1:1  See the introduction to Habakkuk above.

1:2–4  Habakkuk challenges Yahweh in the manner of the Psalms, perhaps doing so as a prophet representing the community. Right away, then, Habakkuk raises what we call the question of theodicy. Why is there so much evil in the world, and why does God do nothing about it? But right away, as in other parts of the OT, Habakkuk raises this question not by talking to other people or by seeking to reflect theologically, but by speaking directly and confrontationally to God about it. An…