תְּפִלָּה לַחֲבַקּוּק הַנָּבִיא עַל שִׁגְיֹנוֹת

A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet, on shigyonot. This word could denote thoughts or mistakes. Alternatively, it could refer to a type of song or musical instrument.

ה' שָׁמַעְתִּי שִׁמְעֲךָ יָרֵאתִי ה'פָּעָלְךָ בְּקֶרֶב שָׁנִים חַיֵּיהוּ בְּקֶרֶב שָׁנִים תּוֹדִיעַ בְּרֹגֶז רַחֵם תִּזְכּוֹר

Lord, I heard Your renown; I was afraid, Lord; your deeds that You have performed in the midst of, over the course of the years, throughout history; revive them! This work that You carry out in the midst of the years, make it known, reveal its meaning. The significance of historical events sometimes only becomes clear many years after the fact. This statement might refer to the redemption of Israel, or humanity as a whole. In wrath, remember mercy. When the meaning of the historical process is revealed, it will become apparent that even events that appeared to be purely expressions of God’s wrath actually incorporated His compassion.

אֱלוֹהַּ מִתֵּימָן יָבוֹא וְקָדוֹשׁ מֵהַר־פָּארָן סֶלָה כִּסָּה שָׁמַיִם הוֹדוֹ וּתְהִלָּתוֹ מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ

The great revelation depicted here is usually interpreted as the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai. God will come from Teman, the southern edge of the inhabited world, and the Holy One will emerge from the distant Mount Paran, Selah. This follows the Torah’s own description of the giving of the Torah. The word “Selah” means forever or, alternatively, serves as a musical sign for ancient singers of biblical poetry. The word Selah is found in only two books of the Bible: in Habakkuk, where it is used three times, and in the book of Psalms, where is it used throughout. His light and glory covered the heavens, and His praise and splendor filled the earth.

וְנֹגַהּ כָּאוֹר תִּהְיֶה קַרְנַיִם מִיָּדוֹ לוֹ וְשָׁם חֶבְיוֹן עֻזּוֹ

An aura will be like the sunlight; rays of light from His hand will be His, and there will be the hiding place of His might.

לְפָנָיו יֵלֶךְ דָּבֶר וְיֵצֵא רֶשֶׁף לְרַגְלָיו

When God will appear, before Him will go pestilence, and a flame, a general name for various disasters, will emerge at His feet.

עָמַד וַיְמֹדֶד אֶרֶץ רָאָה וַיַּתֵּר גּוֹיִם וַיִּתְפֹּצְצוּ הַרְרֵי־עַד שַׁחוּ גִּבְעוֹת עוֹלָם הֲלִיכוֹת עוֹלָם לוֹ

He stood and assessed the earth. He saw and disbanded nations; he destroyed the unity of nations and covenants between nations. Endless, very high, mountains exploded; eternal hills were laid low. In revealing Himself, God reveals that the ways of the world are His.

תַּחַת אָוֶן רָאִיתִי אָהֳלֵי כוּשָׁן יִרְגְּזוּן יְרִיעוֹת אֶרֶץ מִדְיָן

On account of their iniquity I saw the tents of Kushan, nomadic Midyanite tribes, or Kushan Rishatayim, the king of Aram at the beginning of the era of the judges and an enemy of Israel; the curtains of the tents of the land of Midyan tremble; Midyan too attacked Israel in that era. God’s revelation disrupts the existing world order.

הֲבִנְהָרִים חָרָה ה'!אִם־בַּנְּהָרִים אַפֶּךָ ! אִם־בַּיָּם עֶבְרָתֶךָ ! כִּי תִרְכַּב עַל־סוּסֶיךָ מַרְכְּבֹתֶיךָ יְשׁוּעָה

Was it against the rivers that the rage of the Lord was incensed? Was Your wrath against the rivers? Was Your ire against the sea? Clearly, Your anger is not with the rivers and the sea; rather, You will ride on Your horses; Your chariots are salvation, as You emerge as a fierce warrior to bring about salvation.

עֶרְיָה תֵעוֹר קַשְׁתֶּךָ שְׁבֻעוֹת מַטּוֹת אֹמֶר סֶלָה נְהָרוֹת תְּבַקַּע אָרֶץ

When You go out to war, Your bow will be bared as You remove it from its case. You will reveal your strength so that You can fulfill the oaths that You have said to the tribes, Selah. Then the earth, the continent, will be split by rivers.

רָאוּךָ יָחִילוּ הָרִים זֶרֶם מַיִם עָבָר נָתַן תְּהוֹם קוֹלוֹ רוֹם יָדֵיהוּ נָשָׂא

Having seen You, the mountains will shudder; the current of water has passed; the deep sounded its voice; it raised its hands upward, as its water rose or flooded the earth. The verse possibly alludes to certain past events, such as the splitting of the Red Sea or the stopping of the flow of the Jordan River in the time of Joshua.

שֶׁמֶשׁ יָרֵחַ עָמַד זְבֻלָה לְאוֹר חִצֶּיךָ יְהַלֵּכוּ לְנֹגַהּ בְּרַק חֲנִיתֶךָ

The sun, the moon stand in their abode; by the light of Your arrows they will go, by the glow of the flash of Your spear. The entire natural order is disrupted. Nothing remains as it once was, not the mountains nor the seas and rivers, while enemies are crushed and destroyed.

בְּזַעַם תִּצְעַד אָרֶץ בְּאַף תָּדוּשׁ גּוֹיִם

With fury you will march upon the earth; with wrath You will thrash the nations.

ָצָאתָ לְיֵשַׁע עַמֶּךָ לְיֵשַׁע אֶת־מְשִׁיחֶךָ מָחַצְתָּ רֹּאשׁ מִבֵּית רָשָׁע עָרוֹת יְסוֹד עַד־צַוָּאר סֶלָה

You subsequently emerged to save Your people, to save Your anointed, Your king; You crushed the head of the house of the wicked, baring the foundation to the neck, Selah.

נָקַבְתָּ בְמַטָּיו רֹאשׁ פְּרָזָיו יִסְעֲרוּ לַהֲפִיצֵנִי עֲלִיצֻתָם כְּמוֹ־לֶאֱכֹל עָנִי בַּמִּסְתָּר

You pierced with his, the enemy’s, own staffs the head of his leaders, the mayors of his cities or the heads of his army. You have subdued those who come storming to scatter me; they rejoice as though to devour the poor in secret. They are not concerned that retribution might befall them, just like one who destroys a poor person secretly. An alternate interpretation is that their rejoicing has been shattered, the people have scattered and gone into hiding, and they have been rendered poor, with nothing left to eat but a small portion of food in their hiding place.

דָּרַכְתָּ בַיָּם סוּסֶיךָ חֹמֶר מַיִם רַבִּים

You trampled the sea with Your horses, in the roiling of mighty waters.

שָׁמַעְתִּי וַתִּרְגַּז בִּטְנִי; לְקוֹל צָלְלוּ שְׂפָתַי; יָבוֹא רָקָב בַּעֲצָמַי וְתַחְתַּי אֶרְגָּז אֲשֶׁר אָנוּחַ לְיוֹם צָרָה לַעֲלוֹת לְעַם יְגוּדֶנּוּ

The prophet describes his own experience: I heard this statement, and then my stomach trembled in fear, my lips quivered at the sound of the voice speaking this matter; rot, terror, will come into my bones, and I tremble, frozen in my place that I may persist to, or survive on, the day of trouble, the day when God will decide to come and wage war against a people aligned against both Him and it, Israel, surrounding it in troops.

כִּי תְאֵנָה לֹא־תִפְרָח וְאֵין יְבוּל בַּגְּפָנִים כִּחֵשׁ מַעֲשֵׂה זַיִת וּשְׁדֵמוֹת לֹא־עָשָׂה אֹכֶל גָּזַר מִמִּכְלָה צֹאן וְאֵין בָּקָר בָּרְפָתִים

For at that time the fig tree will not blossom and there will be no fruit on the vines; the produce of the olive tree will fail, and the fields will yield no food; the flock will be severed from the fold and there will be no cattle in the barns.

וַאֲנִי בַּה' אֶעֱלוֹזָה אָגִילָה בֵּאלֹהֵי יִשְׁעִי

But I will rejoice in the Lord, I will exult in the God of my salvation. The prophet prays as he experiences a vision in which the entire world is destroyed. Nothing remains, neither the kingdoms and great powers of the world, nor the bases of human subsistence. Habakkuk declares that although he sees this calamity occurring, he rejoices in the fulfillment of God’s will in the heavens and the earth.

אֱלוֹהִים אֲדֹנָי חֵילִי וַיָּשֶׂם רַגְלַי כָּאַיָּלוֹת וְעַל בָּמוֹתַי יַדְרִכֵנִי לַמְנַצֵּחַ בִּנְגִינוֹתָי

With my power alone, I cannot do anything; but the Lord, my Lord, is my strength; He makes my feet like the deer’s, so that I can run away when necessary, and He guides me on my heights in peace. This song is directed to the conductor, with my melodies. When God’s wrath is revealed, the entire world will be insignificant in His presence. None will be able to resist the revelation. Even those who cleave to God sometimes have to flee from Him like deer, while at other times they remain peacefully on the hilltops. One who experiences this revelation must accept it submissively.