5 “Look among the nations, and see; wonder and be astounded. For I am doing a work in your days that you would not believe if told. 6 For behold, I am raising up the Chaldeans, that bitter and hasty nation, who march through the breadth of the earth, to seize dwellings not their own.

7 They are dreaded and fearsome; their justice and dignity go forth from themselves. 8-10 Their horses are swifter than leopards, more fierce than the evening wolves; their horsemen press proudly on. Their horsemen come from afar; they fly like an eagle swift to devour. They all come for violence, all their faces forward. They gather captives like sand. At kings they scoff, and at rulers they laugh. They laugh at every fortress, for they pile up earth and take it. 11 Then they sweep by like the wind and go on, guilty men, whose own might is their god!” Habakkuk 1:5-11 (English Standard Version)

In the opening verses of this book the man named Habakkuk was deeply disturbed at the rampant violence and injustice in the land, and he cried out to God “Why do you make me see iniquity, and why do you idly look at wrong?” It looked to him as if God was ignoring what was going on. We may sometimes feel like that when we see what's going on in the world today. People even boast on social media of the disgusting things they do. God's response, however, wasn’t what Habakkuk, or people in general, expected. (See vs 5) He was going to give power to the Chaldean nation, the cruel Babylonians. (vs 6) So why was that something that was astounding and unbelievable? (vs 7-11)

The answer is because of who these people were, and what they were like! They are described as being 'bitter and hasty', and ‘dreaded and fearsome'. We read that 'they all come for violence'. They were also arrogantly effective in battle, laughing at any fortress that stood in their way. Worst of all was what we read about them in vs 7 and vs 11. What do those verses tell us about their hearts?

Their values came from themselves, and their god was their own strength! They set their own rules and sought their own glory. The horrifying implication for Habakkuk was that these Chaldeans would also laugh and scoff at the God of Israel because God was going to use them to bring judgment even on Jerusalem. God willing, we will see how he expressed his bewilderment in the verses that follow. But for now, the focus is on what motivates destructive people, and the surprising fact that almighty God uses such people for His purposes.

Through the centuries there've been nations who rose to prominence with destructive power. When we think of Alexander's conquering armies, the Caesars of Rome, the Barbarians, the Nazi's, the Communists and today's Socialist Governments, the common denominator is that they gloried in their own strength and set their own values and rules. They had no respect for the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or for His good laws. And today they show contempt for the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet God allowed them to exist, sometimes for many years.

Not only did He allow them to exist, it could be argued that they too have been instruments of His judgment on the wickedness of the nations. In a vision the apostle John saw, when the conquering Lamb opened some seals of a scroll which was in God's hand we read: “I heard the second living creature say, 'Come!' And out came another horse, bright red. Its rider was permitted to take peace from the earth, so that people should slay one another, and he was given a great sword.” (Revelation 6:3-4) As hard a truth as this may be, we have to conclude that tyrants have been used by God as instruments of righteous judgment upon the world.

But there is also a comfort in this distressing picture. For it means that God is NOT ignoring the violence and injustice of our world. He does rise up to do something about it. And if we see ungodly people coming to power in our generation, people who are ready to trample on God's laws and God's people, we mustn't be afraid. God is still in full control of His creation, and all things are moving towards the ultimate goal He has planned.