What is a summary of the book of Habakkuk?

from the old testament

• The first chapter of Habakkuk opens with Habakkuk, a prophet of Judah, asking why God seems to permit evil against Judah. Specifically, Habakkuk questions why God allows the Babylonians to threaten Judah (Habakkuk 1:1-4, 1:12-17).
• God tells Habakkuk that He is using the Chaldeans to punish Judah for its iniquity (Habakkuk 1:5-11).
• In chapter two, God says that His justice will prevail against wickedness, such as pride, greed, and idolatry (Habakkuk 2:4, 2:5, 2:18-19). God encourages trust in Him (Habakkuk 2:3), as He is the true holy God: "But the Lord is in his holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before him" (Habakkuk 2:20).
• Chapter three is Habakkuk's prayer of confidence and trust in God, based on His mercy and what He has done. Habakkuk vows to rejoice in God no matter what may come: "Though the fig tree should not blossom, 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" (Habakkuk 3:17-18).

from the new testament

• Faith in God is a major theme in Habakkuk and the New Testament. Paul quotes Habakkuk 2:4 in Romans when writing about the gospel: "For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, 'The righteous shall live by faith'" (Romans 1:17).
• He quotes that same verse from Habakkuk when correcting the Galatians who were slipping back into a law-based view of salvation: "Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for 'The righteous shall live by faith'" (Galatians 3:11).

implications for today

“Trust me.” Those two words might make you instantly suspicious if they come from the mouth of a politician or pushy salesman.

But when God says them, you can be fully confident they are true. He said them to Habakkuk, and Habakkuk believed Him even though everything around him seemed bleak.

In our weakness, we might be like Habakkuk and ask God, “Why?” Why did I lose my job? Why has my son left the faith? Why did my spouse ask for a divorce? Why did God allow this diagnosis, this loss, this disappointment, or this injustice? Sometimes we want God to explain Himself before we will trust Him.

But Habakkuk shows us that faith doesn’t require having every answer. Habakkuk brought his questions honestly to God, listened to what God said, and ultimately chose to trust Him. By the end of the book, his circumstances had not necessarily changed—but his perspective had. He could say, “yet I will rejoice in the Lord” (Habakkuk 3:18).

God doesn't promise us a life on Earth free of suffering. But He does promise that suffering will not have the final word. He promises His presence, His faithfulness, His justice, and ultimately an eternity free from suffering. He has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5). That’s a promise we can count on.

Trusting God doesn’t mean you stop asking questions or stop grieving. It means that even when you don’t understand what God is doing, you refuse to believe that He has stopped being good. Like Habakkuk, you can bring God your “Why?” and still arrive at “Yet I will trust You.”