Christ in All of Scripture – Habakkuk 3:16-19
my lips quiver at the sound;
rottenness enters into my bones;
my legs tremble beneath me.
Yet I will quietly wait for the day of trouble
to come upon people who invade us.
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the deer's;
he makes me tread on my high places."
The recounting of God’s faithfulness in Israel’s past (Hab. 3:1–15) draws our minds to the great and mighty deeds of the Lord on behalf of his people down through history. And all these deliverances and provisions foreshadow the ultimate mighty deed of history: the coming of Christ “when the fullness of time had come” (Gal. 4:4). The ultimate fulfillment of God’s covenant promises to his people is found in Jesus (2 Cor. 1:20). Through his life, death, and resurrection, he delivers us from sin’s bondage, brings us safely through death to life, and thus defeats our greatest enemies—Satan, sin, and death. And at the end of history, Christ will establish us in the eternal promised land of heaven.
This is why, even amid many difficulties and uncertainties, we can continue to “quietly wait” (Hab. 3:16) and “rejoice in the Lord” (Hab. 3:18) in prayer, looking to him as the “God of my salvation” (Hab. 3:18). When life crumbles all around us (Hab. 3:17), we need not despair. God has not abandoned his purposes. He remains with us, even in the trials and struggles. Jesus Christ has brought us to himself. We are restored to God. Hell cannot touch us, for we say, “God, the Lord, is my strength” (Hab. 3:19). We will rejoice in God.
This series of posts pairs a brief passage of Scripture with associated study notes drawn from the Gospel Transformation Bible.
