Wait At The Watchtower!
Opening Prayer
Lord, You are the God of tradition and innovation, the old and the new. Refresh my spirit now, I pray.
Read HABAKKUK 1:12—2:1
12 Lord, are you not from everlasting?
My God, my Holy One, you will never die.
You, Lord, have appointed them to execute judgment;
you, my Rock, have ordained them to punish.
13 Your eyes are too pure to look on evil;
you cannot tolerate wrongdoing.
Why then do you tolerate the treacherous?
Why are you silent while the wicked
swallow up those more righteous than themselves?
14 You have made people like the fish in the sea,
like the sea creatures that have no ruler.
15 The wicked foe pulls all of them up with hooks,
he catches them in his net,
he gathers them up in his dragnet;
and so he rejoices and is glad.
16 Therefore he sacrifices to his net
and burns incense to his dragnet,
for by his net he lives in luxury
and enjoys the choicest food.
17 Is he to keep on emptying his net,
destroying nations without mercy?
2 I will stand at my watch
and station myself on the ramparts;
I will look to see what he will say to me,
and what answer I am to give to this complaint.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Reflect
“I wait for the Lord, my soul waits… my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning” (Psa. 130:5,6).
As you may expect, Habakkuk launches his second protest after receiving an unsatisfying reply from God. The decision to use the Babylonian invaders to discipline the ungodly Israelites is utterly incomprehensible to the prophet: how can God use such an instrument that is even more evil than his own people (1:12,13)? Habakkuk’s vivid description in 1:14–17 seemingly demonstrates his full knowledge of the Babylonians’ violence and brutality to the nations. His great bewilderment about God’s plan is well summarized by this statement: “The cure is far worse than the disease!” (Thomas Edward McComisky).
After venting his spleen at God, Habakkuk climbs up to the watchtower and stands at his guard post, waiting to see what God will say to him (2:1). He identifies himself as a watchman, looking out expectantly for the divine message. A watchman must be vigilant, obedient and prompt to respond when necessary. He must stay alert all night and wait for the dawn to come. Habakkuk is sure that God’s answer will come and he is willing to wait for it.
Scripture does not tell us how long the prophet waited until the divine reply finally came to him, but whoever inquires of God must be prepared to wait. Habakkuk’s waiting at the watchtower reflects his confident, hopeful, active and disciplined holding on to God, however long or painful the process may be. In our quick-fix modern societies, nobody likes to wait. To make things worse, advanced technology has made us lose our patience to take our time. Unlike pressing the button on a machine, however, there is no shortcut for waiting upon the Lord. God is able to act immediately, of course, but he never promises us automatic and instant responses.
Apply
With the watchtower metaphor in mind, read Psalm 130:5,6 again. What answer from the Lord are you waiting for? How has Habakkuk’s predicament helped you?
Closing prayer
God, my loving Heavenly Father, waiting and listening takes discipline, often more than I possess. However, I am listening, Lord. I pray that You are readying Yourself to speak to me again.
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