Chapter 22 – HABAKKUK

P​eople are generally inclined to scoff at the idea of any judgment from God. After all, it has been thousands of years and still—no judgment day. The days go by, the years too. The world keeps turning round and round.

Maybe you personally do not ridicule the notion of a judgment day; nevertheless, you have likely been mentally conditioned to dismiss any suggestion of a conspiracy to subvert the present world order and install a communist world government. Certainly, there is nothing in the Watchtower’s prophetic outlook that even hints at such a thing. But considering that this world is ruled over by the evil spirit whom Jesus identified as the “father of the lie,” how could there not be a conspiracy against mankind and God’s Kingdom?

With “the wicked one” as its ruler, it is no wonder that modern society has been subtly conditioned to categorize anyone who talks about a new world order conspiracy as paranoid nut-cases who also believe that boogeymen in government are hiding the truth about saucer-flying extraterrestrials leaving crop circles around the planet and that certain members of the global elites are actually shape-shifting reptilians and other such nonsense.

Thus, the idea that there could be an ongoing conspiracy to subvert the world into an anti-God, supranational, totalitarian state is made to appear preposterous.

Even Jehovah’s Witnesses may be inclined to scoff at the suggestion of a conspiracy for a so-called new world order. It might be assumed by some that if it were that important, then the Governing Body would surely be aware of it.

Because there is so much disinformation coming from all angles, complicated by a natural skepticism and even a deep-seated reluctance to believe that a sinister plot to commit genocide on a global scale could even exist, otherwise intelligent people are unable to recognize the truth regarding these matters related to Jehovah’s future judgments.

In recognition of the tendency of many to dismissively deride such things, Jehovah opens his response to Habakkuk’s inquiry by saying: “Look among the nations and pay attention! Stare in amazement and be astounded, for something will happen in your days that you will not believe even if it is told to you.”

“YOU APPOINTED THEM TO EXECUTE JUDGMENT”

After describing the ferocious nature of the invaders, Habakkuk was inspired to explain that the Chaldean war machine would serve as Jehovah’s official agent of punishment. Habakkuk 1:12 reads: “Are you not from everlasting, O Jehovah? O my God, my Holy One, you do not die. O Jehovah, you appointed them to execute judgment; My Rock, you established them for punishment.”

Thus, the principle is established, that being: Although Jehovah does not create such beastly entities, it may suit his purpose at times to simply allow already existing institutions to serve as the executioners of his judgments by not stopping them from carrying out their evil work.

God originally communicated most of the Bible’s prophecies through visions. And just as the visions of Revelation, Daniel, Isaiah, Ezekiel, and others have not yet been fully fulfilled, so too the vision of Habakkuk is reserved for the time of the end. That is why God tells his watchman, Habakkuk, to write down the vision so as to preserve a record of it, because as Jehovah says: “For the vision is yet for its appointed time, and it is rushing toward its end, and it will not lie. Even if it should delay, keep in expectation of it! For it will without fail come true. It will not be late!”

Clearly, Habakkuk’s prophecy concerns the future appointed time of judgment day—even as Jehovah told Habakkuk: “For the vision is yet for its appointed time.”

As with numerous other prophecies, it is evident that Jehovah has also concealed the true meaning of Habakkuk until the vision comes to life. As if a sleeping leviathan suddenly awakens to prey upon an unsuspecting world, that is the way the vision is presented. That is why at Habakkuk 3:1, the prophet implores Jehovah with these words: “O Jehovah, I have heard the report about you. I am in awe, O Jehovah, of your activity. In the midst of the years bring it to life! In the midst of the years make it known. May you remember to show mercy during the turmoil.”

At this late date, as the world seems to be on an unalterable death march towards eventual all-out war and the inevitable use of weapons of mass destruction, it seems particularly timely to consider what the vision of Habakkuk actually portends for the future.

Habakkuk introduces us to the Chaldean by describing him as a bitter, impetuous, and fear-inspiring nation. The eighth verse reads: “Their horses are swifter than leopards, and they are fiercer than wolves in the night. Their warhorses gallop forward; their horses come from far away. They swoop down like the eagle rushing to feed.”

In centuries past, the fearless warhorse was the ultimate in military hardware. A charging cavalry or horse-drawn charioteers could quickly cover ground on the battlefield and easily overwhelm or outflank mere foot soldiers. This raises the question: If the primitive Babylonian army was once described as such a formidable conqueror of nations, how much more fear-inspiring are modern mechanized military forces? Modern militaries possess the most awesome and terrible fighting forces ever devised.

The United States, Russia, and China possess formidable weaponry and military capabilities that could potentially destroy the world. Certainly, if the Chaldean army was considered to be fear-inspiring, how much more so is the modern military of the Anglo-American superpower?

“THEY CREDIT THEIR POWER TO THEIR GOD”

Satan the Devil is content to maintain things as they are—as long as he is in power. For the last approximately 6,000 years, the chief demon has misled the world in countless ways. But the time for the Devil to reign as god over mankind is only a temporary allowance on the part of the God of gods. And the demons know it. Jehovah has already laid the groundwork for Christ Jesus and his 144,000 chosen ones to replace the Devil and his band of wicked angels. It should not be supposed, though, that the demonic gods will quietly go off into the abyss when their time expires.

Just like a cornered criminal madman may take hostages in a desperate attempt to stave off his inevitable capture and inflict as much damage as possible, in the same way when the gods of this system are faced with their own incarceration, it will be as if they take the world as their hostage and threaten the entire globe with annihilation should Christ attempt to take them out. During the time of the end, culminating in the critical last hour, coinciding with Satan’s “short period of time,” the vision of Habakkuk will be fully realized when the modern Chaldean becomes the eighth king.

Habakkuk 1:9-11 describes the demonically driven empire with these words: “All of them come bent on violence. The assembling of their faces is like the east wind, And they scoop up captives like sand. They scoff at kings and laugh at high officials. They laugh at every fortified place; they pile up a dirt ramp and capture it. Then they move forward like the wind and pass through, but they will become guilty, because they credit their power to their god.”

The source of the great tempest of Jehovah that is destined to whirl itself upon the wicked is here revealed to be the demon-maddened king of Babylon, whose forces are likened to an onward sweeping wind.

But, although the Chaldean is described as a fierce and formidable military force, there are other, more subtle means of attaining world domination.

Empires have always prospered by means of plundering nations and peoples. According to Habakkuk, the last empire is destined to pillage and enslave the whole world! Or as the sixth verse states: “They sweep through vast stretches of the earth to seize homes not theirs.”

That is no small feat. How might such a calamity come about? In modern times, communist governments have simply revoked the rights of their citizens and confiscated private property. However, capitalism has the same capacity to dispossess—albeit in less overt ways. This may be accomplished through promoting excessive indebtedness, because, as the Bible observes, the borrower becomes a slave of the lender. Governments may also enslave and impoverish their subjects through graduated, heavier taxation, sudden currency devaluation, or hyper-inflating the amount of currency in circulation, thus rendering it worthless.

“TO SEIZE HOMES NOT THEIRS”

In view of the world’s precarious economic and financial condition presently, as individuals, corporations, and nations sink deeper and deeper into a quagmire of unpayable debt, there is now the looming specter of a debt default or hyperinflation triggering a sudden, catastrophic, meltdown scenario with the potential to simply disintegrate the entire debt-burdened economic structure. Because of the interconnectedness of the global financial system, the collapse of a single large institution or nation could trigger a dreaded domino effect, bringing down the entire house of cards.

Without a doubt, the computerized age means the entire world may be virtually foreclosed in the event of a systemic crash. Stock markets can crash with breathtaking suddenness. Currencies may be devalued. Giant corporations that employ tens of thousands of people may go bankrupt. Banks that seem rock solid prove to be an illusion. Money itself is destined by the prophets to become as much paper confetti to be thrown into the streets. How quickly might civilization change if common everyday financial transactions became impossible?

Habakkuk 2:6 further describes the work of Jehovah’s punishing agent and the curse he brings upon himself for hatching such a villainous scheme, saying of him: “Woe to him who accumulates what is not his —For how long?— And who makes even greater his own debt! Will not your creditors rise up suddenly? They will wake up and violently shake you, and you will become something for them to plunder. Because you plundered many nations…”

The Chaldean king is the one who sets himself on high by seizing homes and plundering entire nations. The prophecy describes the dispossession of all nations as part of the judgment work Jehovah has assigned to the Chaldean. In reality, the vision for the appointed time involves the utter collapse of the present system and the ushering in of a totalitarian, global superstate. Apparently, all private property, and even national governments, will come into the possession of a small clique of already ultra-wealthy men. Through Habakkuk, Jehovah foretells that when the appointed time for the vision to come to life arrives, the Neo-Chaldean empire “keeps gathering all the nations and collecting for himself all the peoples.”

The gathering and collecting of all the peoples and all the nations should not be mistaken for any sort of peaceful unification. They are gathered and collected into his fisherman’s net as captured prey. The dispossession of the nations will make them dependent upon the largess of the merciless last king. The Chaldean is destined to bring all the nations to ruin. That is why Jeremiah 51:25 addresses Babylon as: “You destroyer of the whole earth.”

That is the day when men will be forced by sheer desperation of circumstance to give an accounting as regards whom they worship.

God’s pronouncement against the Chaldean condemns him for coercing mankind into venerating a mere idol, saying: “Woe to the one who gives his companions something to drink, adding to it rage and anger, to make them drunk, in order to look on their nakedness! You will be glutted with dishonor rather than glory. You too—drink and expose your uncircumcised condition. The cup in the right hand of Jehovah will come around to you, and disgrace will cover over your glory…” (Habakkuk 2:15-16)

“A METAL STATUE AND A TEACHER OF LIES”

Some are of the opinion that idolatry is a practice relegated to the ignorant peoples of the ancient past. They suppose that idol worship is solely that crude form of veneration carried on by brutish pagans as they groveled before grotesque images of their own contrivance. However, Jehovah has a different perspective on matters. From his lofty standpoint, the people of our modern world, even professed non-religious people, will become guilty of idolatry. Just as a literal carved image denigrates the illustrious God, paying homage to a political image that presumes to substitute for the Kingdom of God is blasphemous and idolatrous.

Jehovah considers it vain and presumptuous for sinful humans to boast that their wisdom and might will solve the world’s complex problems. The prophecy of Habakkuk expresses this thought in harmony with others of the prophets, saying: “Of what benefit is a carved image when its maker has carved it? Of what benefit is a metal statue and a teacher of lies, even though its maker trusts in it, making worthless gods that are speechless? Woe to the one who says to a piece of wood, ‘Awake!’ Or to a speechless stone, ‘Wake up! Instruct us!’ Look! It is overlaid in gold and silver, and there is no breath at all within it.”

“A teacher of lies” is an appropriate description of the propaganda machine behind the scheme for world government. As mentioned in the previous chapter, the prophecy may be alluding to the soon-to-be-unveiled Artificial General Intelligence. It could indeed become a very effective “teacher of lies” and a god.

Those who are informed in such matters know that the United Nations has adopted the Bible’s messianic prophecy, which foretells that men will beat their swords into plowshares when Jehovah sets matters straight, and it has shamelessly presumed that it will bring about world peace. But, as the above-quoted verse of Habakkuk infers, what benefit can it possibly bring to those who might make a molten statue, even of Isaiah’s symbol of peace, thus idolizing its ideal, when they are powerless to achieve its realization?

No wonder Habakkuk 2:4-5 depicts the presumptuous Chaldean as being bloated with self-assurance, saying of him: “Look at the one who is proud; he is not upright within himself. But the righteous one will live by his faithfulness. Indeed, because the wine is treacherous, the arrogant man will not reach his goal. He makes his appetite as large as the Grave; he is like death and cannot be satisfied.”

In what way will the last king have an appetite as insatiable as death?

Modern civilization, for all its scientific advances and sophistry, is merely part of an ages-old wicked system of things, and as such, it is plagued by the very same problems that have afflicted human societies for centuries. The reason is that fallen human nature has not improved over time. People are still just as prone to acts of immorality, greed, and barbarism as in ancient times.

Because the world has spurned Jehovah’s counsel and has sown winds of destruction, the laws of reciprocity demand an eventual reaping of the whirlwind of annihilation. As unpleasant and disturbing as it may be to contemplate, the fact is that men have a long history of murdering one another and are still no less disposed to do so. Indisputably, empires and their religious consorts are the worst blood-spillers on the planet. The Assyrian and Babylonian empires, with their powerful priests, were notoriously ruthless and cruel. So was the Roman Empire and Christendom. Soberingly, Habakkuk’s vision foretells that the worst is yet to come.

After Jehovah responded to Habakkuk’s initial question by introducing the prophet to the Chaldean executioner, Habakkuk was appalled at what he next envisioned involving the fear-inspiring Chaldean. That is why the prophet addressed himself to God again, imploring Jehovah to explain why he allows a treacherous tyrant to swallow down someone more righteous than he. At Habakkuk 1:14, the prophet continues his query, asking: “Why do you make man like the fish of the sea, like creeping things that have no ruler?”

The answer is: Since Adam rebelled against Jehovah, leaving mankind without the direct oversight of our heavenly King, God has determined not to shield mankind from experiencing the inevitable horrific end result of rebellion. In the animal kingdom, the strongest or most cunning are considered most successful. According to the earthly, animalistic philosophical underpinnings of civilization, man is nothing more than a highly intelligent, self-evolved animal.

The lack of spirituality has led men, originally made in the image of God, to view and treat one another as beasts. The ultimate end for this evil system is that entire nations are destined to be ensnared by the Chaldean, as if mere fish in a net.

The 15th verse reads: “All of these he hauls up with a fishhook. He catches them in his dragnet, and he gathers them in his fishing net. That is why he rejoices greatly.” The animalistic mindset of an Anglo-European imperialist regards other ethnic groups and lower social classes as belonging to a sub-human species. And like mere cattle and fish, they are to be herded and culled as the ruling oligarchy sees fit.

No one should doubt that there are powerful men today who fully intend to use every means at their disposal to implement a Nazi-like global “final solution” to the artificial problems of global warming, overpopulation, and dwindling natural resources.

“SLAUGHTERING NATIONS WITHOUT COMPASSION”

Genocide is the foundational policy of the British Empire, and through Anglo influence, Malthusianism has also been adopted as American policy. Massive population reduction is also embedded in the United Nations’ creed. Think of the ramifications—the most powerful alliance the world has ever known, the Anglo-American dual world power, has as its official policy the wholesale reduction of earth’s billions! That is not to say that the people who  inhabit Great Britain or America will not also be caught up in the “dragnet.”

Apparently, they will “succeed” in fully implementing their scheme to reduce humanity by a sizable percentage, which is why Habakkuk was inspired to write: “Woe to the one who makes evil gain for his house, so as to set his nest on the height, to escape the grasp of calamity! You have plotted shame against your house. By wiping out many peoples you sin against yourself.” (2:9-10)

Through the prophets, Jehovah has stated His purpose to allow a predatory superstate to unleash a genocidal holocaust on a scale never before seen on this already blood-soaked planet. Habakkuk continues: “That is why he offers sacrifices to his dragnet and makes sacrifices to his fishing net; for by them his portion is rich, and his food is choice. Will he then keep emptying out his dragnet? Will he go on slaughtering nations without compassion?”

In true predator fashion, the last king is destined by prophecy to dine on mankind for his own pleasure. In that way, he makes “his appetite as large as the Grave.”

The 14th chapter of Isaiah parallels Habakkuk, depicting the king of Babylon as the killer of nations. Isaiah 14:6 refers to “The one furiously striking peoples with unceasing blows, the one angrily subduing nations with relentless persecution.”

Verses 18-20 also depict the inglorious death of earth’s last genocidal tyrant in grisly terms, saying: “All other kings of the nations, yes, all of them, lie down in glory, each one in his own tomb. But you are discarded without a grave, like a detested sprout, clothed with the slain who were stabbed with the sword, who go down to the stones of a pit, like a carcass trampled underfoot. You will not join them in a grave, for you destroyed your own land, you killed your own people. The offspring of evildoers will never again be named.”

The Chaldean is condemned for killing his own people; however, the Scriptures do not indicate that King Nebuchadnezzar committed genocide against the people of Babylon themselves. In that respect, the prophecy seems to foreshadow something else.

What?

If the U.N. becomes a collectivist world government, as certain powerful financial elites intend, all peoples and nations would be subject to it. If it were to implement a large-scale liquidation of the population, it would indeed become guilty of killing its own people, as the prophecies of Isaiah and Habakkuk foretell. From our standpoint in the 21st century, it is as if all the previous empires have lain down in decorated memorial tombs. For example, the British Museum in London houses many artifacts and treasures from ancient Assyria, Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome.

It is as if the Anglo king is the custodian of the treasures of his honored imperial predecessors. However, the last king leaves no such glorious legacy. It is as though he is left to rot like an animal carcass in the field for having perpetrated such an appallingly hideous, evil scheme.

“TO SAVE YOUR ANOINTED ONE”

Ultimately, the Chaldean (eighth king) becomes guilty, as Habakkuk 1:11 foretells, due to directly attacking God’s people. In the third chapter of his prophecy, Habakkuk describes Jehovah’s response to the attack, saying: “You went out for the salvation of your people, to save your anointed one. You crushed the leader of the house of the wicked. It was exposed from the foundation to the top. You pierced the head of his warriors with his own weapons when they stormed out to scatter me. They were overjoyed to devour an afflicted one in secret.”

Jehovah’s going forth to save his anointed one does not mean that the anointed are spared from experiencing death at the hands of the Chaldean. They are saved in the same sense that Jehovah saved his original anointed one—Jesus—not by sparing him from suffering death, but by resurrecting him from the pit of destruction.

Once the anointed kings of God’s Kingdom have been finally sealed with Jehovah’s irreversible approval, there is nothing that any antichrist, Devil, or imperial tyrant can do to break their loyalty to God. Their salvation is assured. They are immortal and incorruptible from that point on. Their martyrdom instantly transforms them into glorious, invincible, heavenly kings. From their heavenly station, Christ and his gathered 144,000 will unleash total annihilation upon the killer of nations and the would-be usurper of God’s Kingdom in the battle of Armageddon.

Since Christ and his associate rulers have the legal right to protect their interests and assert their authority over the earth, it is perfectly just that the Chaldean be held accountable for his atrocities against the nations and the city of God.

Habakkuk 2:7-8 foretells how the Kingdom heirs will pillage the pillager and kill their killer, saying: “Will not your creditors rise up suddenly? They will wake up and violently shake you, and you will become something for them to plunder. Because you plundered many nations, all the rest of the peoples will plunder you, because of your shedding men’s blood and your violence to the earth, to the cities and those living in them.”

“The rest of the peoples” represent the people of Jehovah who will ultimately inherit the earth after the last king is vanquished, and in that way, they will pillage the Chaldean.

Habakkuk concludes his prophecy by describing the physical and emotional toll that the vision had upon him personally: “I heard and I trembled within; at the sound my lips quivered. Rottenness entered my bones; my legs beneath me were shaking. But I quietly wait for the day of distress, for it is coming upon the people who attack us.”

Jesus once told his apostles that he had many things to tell them, but that they were unable to bear the burden at that time. No doubt the future unveiling of Christ will mean that he will fully reveal all the things his followers must suffer, including the correct understanding of Habakkuk and the other prophets. Interestingly, several translations of the first verse of Habakkuk’s prophecy call it: “The burden that Habakkuk hath seen.”

But even though the prophet was distressed by the appalling vision of the world’s future, Habakkuk’s abiding faith in Jehovah empowered him to look forward to its realization, knowing it would ultimately lead to salvation for God’s people.

Hence, the closing words of “the burden that Habakkuk” envisioned conclude on a positive note: “Yet, as for me, I will exult in Jehovah; I will be joyful in the God of my salvation. The Sovereign Lord Jehovah is my strength; He will make my feet like those of a deer and cause me to tread on high places.”