“Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labour of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls:”
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD; I will joy in the God of my salvation—despite the catastrophic loss hypothetically envisioned, Habakkuk chooses joy in God. This verse articulates the resolution of theodicy through the entire prophecy: faith does not depend on external circumstances but on God's character and salvation. The multiplication of agricultural loss gives profound weight to the following affirmation; this is not trivial joy but joy born through deep trial.
COMMUNITY REFLECTIONS
Publish a note on this verse
MB
Markus BauerNote2mo agoThough the Fig Tree Does Not Bud
Habakkuk has seen God's power, and now he declares: even if everything fails - the fig tree doesn't produce, the vines don't have grapes, the olive crops fail, the fields produce nothing, the flocks a...
1
AW
Anna WestbrookNote1mo agoStrength in weakness - Habakkuk 3
God is faithful in every circumstance. God is faithful in every circumstance. What a reminder that God's ways are not our ways.
The contrast between human weakness and divine strength is so vivid in ...
1
SK
Sarah KoenigNote1mo agoThough the Fig Tree Fails
Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vine, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, yet I will rejoice in the Lord. Habakkuk's describing a world stripped...
1