August 20, 2025 • 26 mins
Standing beside the weary yet resolute prophet Habakkuk, we witness one of scripture's most profound transformations. This once-questioning prophet who hurled desperate pleas toward heaven now rises with a voice of unwavering faith and unexpected joy.
Habakkuk's journey takes us through the valleys of doubt into the heights of trust. His story resonates deeply with anyone who has questioned God's justice while witnessing suffering. Through vivid imagery of mountains trembling and waters roaring, Habakkuk reveals a vision of divine sovereignty that transcends human understanding. The cosmic scale of God's power places our temporary troubles in eternal perspective.
The culmination of Habakkuk's spiritual pilgrimage arrives in what many consider the pinnacle of faith expression in scripture: "Though the fig tree does not blossom and no fruit is on the vines . . . yet I will rejoice in the Lord." This declaration shatters our transactional approach to faith, challenging us to find joy not in favorable circumstances but in God Himself. The agricultural devastation Habakkuk describes meant economic collapse and potential starvation in his society, yet he chooses radical trust.
What sustains your joy when blessings dry up? Where is your strength anchored—in outcomes or in the unshakable God? Habakkuk 3 offers us a way forward, comparing faith to a deer navigating treacherous terrain with surprising agility. "He makes my feet like the feet of a deer and makes me tread upon the heights." Faith isn't forged in abundance; it's born in drought. True joy often sings its purest notes in silence.
Listen as we walk with Habakkuk through his questions, his awe-filled vision, and his triumphant declaration of trust. Then consider what song you'll sing when your own fig trees wither. Visit www.inthefieldaudiobible.com to discover more content designed to strengthen your faith through every season.
Music Credit: "The Name" by Garden Friend
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
In the Field Audio Bible (06:55):
Walk with me into the final chapter
of Habakkuk, a sacred spacewhere faith is forged in fire,
where confusion gives way to aweand where the prophet chooses
(07:16):
to rejoice even when everythingseems lost.
You hear the crackling of asmall fire, the night air is
cool against your skin.
The distant sounds of thevillage are fading as evening
settles.
Across from you sits an old man, cloaked and weathered, his
(07:39):
eyes deep with sorrow, yetglowing with something else,
something steady.
He motions for you to sit.
His voice, though soft, carriesweight, as if it has wrestled
with heaven itself.
Come sit here beside me.
The night stretches long and Ihave a story to tell.
(08:04):
Come sit here beside me.
The night stretches long and Ihave a story to tell, a story
not only with questions but withtrembling awe and, at last,
with joy.
You may know me as Habakkuk, aprophet, though I have spent
much of my life not proclaimingbut asking.
I am not like the others whodeclared with fire and certainty
(08:26):
no, I am the one who knocked,who pounded, who shouted at the
gates of heaven, asking why, howlong?
I am the one who refused to besilent when the streets of Judah
bled with injustice, when thewicked devoured the righteous as
(08:46):
locusts devour a field.
I am the one who stood upon thewatchtower, waiting not for an
answer I wished to hear, but forthe answer that would come.
The fire pops.
The village behind you has gone.
Still, the wind carries thefaint smell of dry grass and
(09:11):
olive trees.
Habakkuk's eyes flicker as ifwatching the past unfold in the
flames.
There was a time, oh how Iremember when my spirit was
restless, when the silence ofthe Lord was louder than the
cries of the suffering.
(09:32):
I watched the powerful crushthe weak.
I saw violence parade throughour streets, unchecked and
unashamed.
I demanded answers.
How long, o Lord, must I callfor help?
But you do not listen.
(09:53):
My voice was sharp, but my heart, my heart, was breaking.
And the Lord did answer, butnot in the way I expected.
His gaze turns to the distanthills, as if he can still see
the shadow of what was revealedto him.
(10:15):
He said he was raising up theChaldeans, the Babylonians,
fierce and relentless, whosehorses were swifter than
leopards, whose warriorsdevoured nations with terrifying
speed.
Can you imagine it?
The very wickedness I despised,the very nation I feared the
(10:40):
Lord would use as his instrument.
I was undone.
I argued again.
Is this justice, lord?
How can you, the Holy One, usesuch evil to correct your people
.
My legs trembled beneath me,yet I stood my post.
(11:02):
I waited for his reply and hespoke again with the words
carved in stone for allgenerations the righteous will
live by faith.
Faith Not by what I see, not bywhat I can grasp, but by
(11:22):
trusting in the one whose plansunfold far beyond my
understanding.
Habakkuk leans closer, his voicelowers, and now you feel as
though you are no longer sittingin the village, but standing
with him on the edge of a greatrevelation.
(11:44):
It was then that the Lordlifted my eyes, not to Babylon,
not to Judah, but to himself,but to himself.
He showed me his glory, hismight, his footsteps upon the
ancient earth.
I saw the heavens splinter withhis brightness.
(12:12):
The earth trembled beneath hismarch, his power hidden in plain
sight, wrapped in the storms,and the sunrise moving through
the rivers and the mountains.
I saw the pestilence go beforehim.
I watched the nations scatter.
I heard the ground beneath methrob with his pulse.
The sun and moon paused in thesky, as though they too were
silenced by his majesty.
(12:35):
He is not absent.
He is not blind to our pain.
He is not absent.
He is not blind to our pain.
He is not idle, no, he ismoving with a force that shakes
the very foundations of theworld.
The fire dies down to glowingembers.
Habakkuk's face softens, histrembling voice now carries a
(12:58):
deep peace.
I tell you, though the fig treedoes not bud, though the vines
bear no grapes, though thefields lie empty and the stalls
are barren, I, Habakkuk, willrejoice in the Lord, I will take
joy in the God of my salvation,because he is my strength.
(13:24):
He makes my feet like the deer,he enables me to tread upon the
heights, even when the valleyis all I see.
He pauses his words, hanging inthe cool air For a moment.
Neither of you speak.
You see, my questions were notthe end.
(13:51):
They were the beginning of adeeper faith, a faith that sings
even in drought, a faith thatdances upon the hills when there
is no harvest.
So come walk with me.
Let us step into this finalchapter together.
(14:13):
Let me show you what I haveseen not the triumph of human
hands, but the greatness of theGod who moves, who remembers,
who saves.
And maybe, just maybe, you willfind, as I did, that sometimes
the most sacred place is notwhere the answers lie, but where
(14:34):
we choose to trust the one whoholds them.
The fire fades to a soft glowas the night wraps around you
both.
Habakkuk's story is notfinished.
It is waiting to be lived withyou here now, to be lived with
you here now.
(14:55):
Now let's take a moment toquiet our hearts and listen to
the word itself.
Let these words sink deep intoyour spirit, bringing comfort,
conviction and encouragement,whether you're sitting in a
(15:17):
quiet place or out in the world.
Allow scripture to meet youright where you are.
I hope you have your favoritecup of tea or coffee.
Sit back, relax and let's stepinto the sacred text of the book
of Habakkuk 3.
(15:48):
The Book of Habakkuk 3, a Prayerof the Prophet Habakkuk,
according to Shigonot.
O Lord, I have heard of yourrenown and I stand in awe, o
Lord, of your work In our owntime.
Revive it in our own time.
(16:10):
Make it known In wrath.
May you remember mercy.
God came from Taman, the HolyOne, from Mount Paran, Selah.
His glory covered the heavensand the earth was full of His
praise.
The brightness was like the sun.
(16:31):
Rays came forth from His hand.
Where his power lay, hiddenBefore him, went pestilence and
plague followed close behind.
He stopped and shook the earth.
He looked and made the nationstremble.
The eternal mountains wereshattered Along his ancient
(16:52):
pathways, the everlasting hillssank low.
I saw the tents of Kushan underaffliction.
The tent curtains of the landof Midian trembled.
Was your wrath against therivers, o Lord, or your anger
against the rivers or your rageagainst the sea?
(17:12):
When you drove your horses,your chariots, to victory, you
brandished your naked bow Satedwere the arrows at your command,
Selah, you split the earth withrivers.
The mountains saw you andwrithed.
A torrent of water, swept bythe deep, gave forth its voice.
(17:37):
The sun raised high its hands.
The moon stood still in itsexalted place At the light of
your arrow speeding by At thegleam of your flashing spear.
In fury, you trod the earth Inanger.
You trampled nations.
You came forth to save yourpeople, to save your anointed.
(18:01):
You crushed the head of thewicked house, laying it bare
from foundation to roof.
Selah, you pierced with his ownarrows the head of his warriors
who came like a whirlwind toscatter us, gloating as if ready
to devour the poor who were inhiding.
You trampled the sea with yourhorses Churning the mighty
(18:26):
waters.
I hear and I tremble within.
My lips quiver at the sound.
Rottenness enters into my bonesand I tremble within.
My lips quiver at the sound.
I wait quietly for the day ofcalamity to come upon the people
who attack us.
Though the fig tree does notblossom and no fruit is on the
(18:49):
vines, though the produce of theolive fails and the fields
yield no food, though the flockis cut off from the fold and
there is no herd in the stalls,yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will exult in the God of mysalvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength.
(19:11):
He makes my feet like the feetof a deer and makes me tread
upon the heights to the leaderwith stringed instruments.
(19:38):
The night has grown deep now.
The village around us hasdrifted into quiet slumber, but
here, beside the dying fire, weremain.
I sit across from you, the lastlight flickering between us,
the weight of my story restingin the coolness of the air.
(20:01):
You have walked with me tonight.
You have heard my cries, myquestions and now you have heard
my song.
The wind rustles the nearbyolive branches, there's silver
leaves catching the faintshimmer of starlight.
(20:21):
Do you feel it, this strangeplace that lingers even when the
answers are not fully given,even when the fields are still
empty and the future stilluncertain.
That peace, it did not come whenmy circumstances changed.
(20:46):
It came when I changed, when myeyes lifted, not to the
violence, not to the ruin, butto the everlasting God who has
always been moving through theshadows.
I trace my fingers in the dustat my feet, as if writing the
words one more time, to rememberthem, to live them.
(21:06):
Though the fig tree does notblossom, nor fruit be on the
vines, though the produce of theolive fail and the fields yield
no food, though the flock becut off from the fold and there
be no herd in the stalls, yet Iwill rejoice in the Lord, I will
(21:29):
take joy in the God of mysalvation.
When all I could see was what Ihad lost.
I forgot what I still had theLord himself.
The embers collapse softly asthe fire dies.
The silence is full, not empty.
(21:53):
Tell me, friend, what will youchoose when your own fig trees
wither, when the vines of yourplans bear no fruit, when the
stalls of your life are quietand empty?
Will you, like me, learn torejoice Not in the gifts but in
(22:13):
the giver?
Will you trust that he is stillworking when you cannot trace
his hand?
Will you stand upon the heightseven when your legs tremble
beneath you?
I glanced toward the road as ifinviting you to walk it with me
.
I'm inviting you to walk itwith me.
(22:34):
You see, this is the life weare called to Faith when there
is no sight.
Joy when there is no visiblereason.
Strength when the ground seemsto give way.
The Lord, the Sovereign One, isour strength.
He makes our feet, like thedeer's steady light, able to
(23:02):
climb even when the path issteep.
I rise slowly, brushing thedust from my hands, my eyes not
on the road behind but on thepath ahead.
As you return to your ownvillage, to your own life, carry
these questions with you.
What will sustain your joy whenthe things you love are
(23:25):
stripped away?
What song will you sing whenthe blessings dry up?
Where is your strength anchored?
In outcomes or in theunshakable God?
Are you waiting forcircumstances to change?
Or are you willing to trust theone who never does Remember?
(23:48):
Faith is not forged in abundance.
It is born in the drought.
Joy is not loudest in abundance.
It is born in the drought.
Joy is not loudest in plenty.
It often sings its truest notesin the silence.
And strength is not always theabsence of trembling, but the
decision to walk forward anyway.
(24:08):
The morning is near now, the skybegins to soften with the
promise of light.
I turn toward the hills, aquiet resolve in my step.
I have told you my story, Ihave shown you my trembling, I
have shared with you my song.
(24:29):
Now go, live your story, walkyour own road of questions and
worship, and may you too findthat the God of your salvation
is more than enough.
The village stirs, the fire isgone, but the warmth lingers,
(24:53):
and you rise carrying the weightand the hope of Habakkuk's
journey within you.
Thank you for joining me todayas we journeyed through the book
of Habakkuk 3.
I pray that you carry thesereflections with you into your
day, into your week, and thatyou find strength in knowing God
(25:18):
is with you in every trial,every temptation and every step
of obedience.
If this time in God's word hasencouraged you, take a moment to
share it with someone who mightneed it, and be sure to join me
next time as we continuewalking through the scriptures,
(25:38):
learning, growing and stayingfaithful in the field of life.
Until next time, may you findpeace in the quiet, trust in
God's call and rest in hisunchanging love.
This is In the Field AudioBible, where we Listen to the
(25:59):
Bible One Chapter at a Time.
Walk with me into the final chapter
of Habakkuk, a sacred spacewhere faith is forged in fire,
where confusion gives way to aweand where the prophet chooses
(07:16):
to rejoice even when everythingseems lost.
You hear the crackling of asmall fire, the night air is
cool against your skin.
The distant sounds of thevillage are fading as evening
settles.
Across from you sits an old man, cloaked and weathered, his
(07:39):
eyes deep with sorrow, yetglowing with something else,
something steady.
He motions for you to sit.
His voice, though soft, carriesweight, as if it has wrestled
with heaven itself.
Come sit here beside me.
The night stretches long and Ihave a story to tell.
(08:04):
Come sit here beside me.
The night stretches long and Ihave a story to tell, a story
not only with questions but withtrembling awe and, at last,
with joy.
You may know me as Habakkuk, aprophet, though I have spent
much of my life not proclaimingbut asking.
I am not like the others whodeclared with fire and certainty
(08:26):
no, I am the one who knocked,who pounded, who shouted at the
gates of heaven, asking why, howlong?
I am the one who refused to besilent when the streets of Judah
bled with injustice, when thewicked devoured the righteous as
(08:46):
locusts devour a field.
I am the one who stood upon thewatchtower, waiting not for an
answer I wished to hear, but forthe answer that would come.
The fire pops.
The village behind you has gone.
Still, the wind carries thefaint smell of dry grass and
(09:11):
olive trees.
Habakkuk's eyes flicker as ifwatching the past unfold in the
flames.
There was a time, oh how Iremember when my spirit was
restless, when the silence ofthe Lord was louder than the
cries of the suffering.
(09:32):
I watched the powerful crushthe weak.
I saw violence parade throughour streets, unchecked and
unashamed.
I demanded answers.
How long, o Lord, must I callfor help?
But you do not listen.
(09:53):
My voice was sharp, but my heart, my heart, was breaking.
And the Lord did answer, butnot in the way I expected.
His gaze turns to the distanthills, as if he can still see
the shadow of what was revealedto him.
(10:15):
He said he was raising up theChaldeans, the Babylonians,
fierce and relentless, whosehorses were swifter than
leopards, whose warriorsdevoured nations with terrifying
speed.
Can you imagine it?
The very wickedness I despised,the very nation I feared the
(10:40):
Lord would use as his instrument.
I was undone.
I argued again.
Is this justice, lord?
How can you, the Holy One, usesuch evil to correct your people
.
My legs trembled beneath me,yet I stood my post.
(11:02):
I waited for his reply and hespoke again with the words
carved in stone for allgenerations the righteous will
live by faith.
Faith Not by what I see, not bywhat I can grasp, but by
(11:22):
trusting in the one whose plansunfold far beyond my
understanding.
Habakkuk leans closer, his voicelowers, and now you feel as
though you are no longer sittingin the village, but standing
with him on the edge of a greatrevelation.
(11:44):
It was then that the Lordlifted my eyes, not to Babylon,
not to Judah, but to himself,but to himself.
He showed me his glory, hismight, his footsteps upon the
ancient earth.
I saw the heavens splinter withhis brightness.
(12:12):
The earth trembled beneath hismarch, his power hidden in plain
sight, wrapped in the storms,and the sunrise moving through
the rivers and the mountains.
I saw the pestilence go beforehim.
I watched the nations scatter.
I heard the ground beneath methrob with his pulse.
The sun and moon paused in thesky, as though they too were
silenced by his majesty.
(12:35):
He is not absent.
He is not blind to our pain.
He is not absent.
He is not blind to our pain.
He is not idle, no, he ismoving with a force that shakes
the very foundations of theworld.
The fire dies down to glowingembers.
Habakkuk's face softens, histrembling voice now carries a
(12:58):
deep peace.
I tell you, though the fig treedoes not bud, though the vines
bear no grapes, though thefields lie empty and the stalls
are barren, I, Habakkuk, willrejoice in the Lord, I will take
joy in the God of my salvation,because he is my strength.
(13:24):
He makes my feet like the deer,he enables me to tread upon the
heights, even when the valleyis all I see.
He pauses his words, hanging inthe cool air For a moment.
Neither of you speak.
You see, my questions were notthe end.
(13:51):
They were the beginning of adeeper faith, a faith that sings
even in drought, a faith thatdances upon the hills when there
is no harvest.
So come walk with me.
Let us step into this finalchapter together.
(14:13):
Let me show you what I haveseen not the triumph of human
hands, but the greatness of theGod who moves, who remembers,
who saves.
And maybe, just maybe, you willfind, as I did, that sometimes
the most sacred place is notwhere the answers lie, but where
(14:34):
we choose to trust the one whoholds them.
The fire fades to a soft glowas the night wraps around you
both.
Habakkuk's story is notfinished.
It is waiting to be lived withyou here now, to be lived with
you here now.
(14:55):
Now let's take a moment toquiet our hearts and listen to
the word itself.
Let these words sink deep intoyour spirit, bringing comfort,
conviction and encouragement,whether you're sitting in a
(15:17):
quiet place or out in the world.
Allow scripture to meet youright where you are.
I hope you have your favoritecup of tea or coffee.
Sit back, relax and let's stepinto the sacred text of the book
of Habakkuk 3.
(15:48):
The Book of Habakkuk 3, a Prayerof the Prophet Habakkuk,
according to Shigonot.
O Lord, I have heard of yourrenown and I stand in awe, o
Lord, of your work In our owntime.
Revive it in our own time.
(16:10):
Make it known In wrath.
May you remember mercy.
God came from Taman, the HolyOne, from Mount Paran, Selah.
His glory covered the heavensand the earth was full of His
praise.
The brightness was like the sun.
(16:31):
Rays came forth from His hand.
Where his power lay, hiddenBefore him, went pestilence and
plague followed close behind.
He stopped and shook the earth.
He looked and made the nationstremble.
The eternal mountains wereshattered Along his ancient
(16:52):
pathways, the everlasting hillssank low.
I saw the tents of Kushan underaffliction.
The tent curtains of the landof Midian trembled.
Was your wrath against therivers, o Lord, or your anger
against the rivers or your rageagainst the sea?
(17:12):
When you drove your horses,your chariots, to victory, you
brandished your naked bow Satedwere the arrows at your command,
Selah, you split the earth withrivers.
The mountains saw you andwrithed.
A torrent of water, swept bythe deep, gave forth its voice.
(17:37):
The sun raised high its hands.
The moon stood still in itsexalted place At the light of
your arrow speeding by At thegleam of your flashing spear.
In fury, you trod the earth Inanger.
You trampled nations.
You came forth to save yourpeople, to save your anointed.
(18:01):
You crushed the head of thewicked house, laying it bare
from foundation to roof.
Selah, you pierced with his ownarrows the head of his warriors
who came like a whirlwind toscatter us, gloating as if ready
to devour the poor who were inhiding.
You trampled the sea with yourhorses Churning the mighty
(18:26):
waters.
I hear and I tremble within.
My lips quiver at the sound.
Rottenness enters into my bonesand I tremble within.
My lips quiver at the sound.
I wait quietly for the day ofcalamity to come upon the people
who attack us.
Though the fig tree does notblossom and no fruit is on the
(18:49):
vines, though the produce of theolive fails and the fields
yield no food, though the flockis cut off from the fold and
there is no herd in the stalls,yet I will rejoice in the Lord.
I will exult in the God of mysalvation.
God, the Lord, is my strength.
(19:11):
He makes my feet like the feetof a deer and makes me tread
upon the heights to the leaderwith stringed instruments.
(19:38):
The night has grown deep now.
The village around us hasdrifted into quiet slumber, but
here, beside the dying fire, weremain.
I sit across from you, the lastlight flickering between us,
the weight of my story restingin the coolness of the air.
(20:01):
You have walked with me tonight.
You have heard my cries, myquestions and now you have heard
my song.
The wind rustles the nearbyolive branches, there's silver
leaves catching the faintshimmer of starlight.
(20:21):
Do you feel it, this strangeplace that lingers even when the
answers are not fully given,even when the fields are still
empty and the future stilluncertain.
That peace, it did not come whenmy circumstances changed.
(20:46):
It came when I changed, when myeyes lifted, not to the
violence, not to the ruin, butto the everlasting God who has
always been moving through theshadows.
I trace my fingers in the dustat my feet, as if writing the
words one more time, to rememberthem, to live them.
(21:06):
Though the fig tree does notblossom, nor fruit be on the
vines, though the produce of theolive fail and the fields yield
no food, though the flock becut off from the fold and there
be no herd in the stalls, yet Iwill rejoice in the Lord, I will
(21:29):
take joy in the God of mysalvation.
When all I could see was what Ihad lost.
I forgot what I still had theLord himself.
The embers collapse softly asthe fire dies.
The silence is full, not empty.
(21:53):
Tell me, friend, what will youchoose when your own fig trees
wither, when the vines of yourplans bear no fruit, when the
stalls of your life are quietand empty?
Will you, like me, learn torejoice Not in the gifts but in
(22:13):
the giver?
Will you trust that he is stillworking when you cannot trace
his hand?
Will you stand upon the heightseven when your legs tremble
beneath you?
I glanced toward the road as ifinviting you to walk it with me
.
I'm inviting you to walk itwith me.
(22:34):
You see, this is the life weare called to Faith when there
is no sight.
Joy when there is no visiblereason.
Strength when the ground seemsto give way.
The Lord, the Sovereign One, isour strength.
He makes our feet, like thedeer's steady light, able to
(23:02):
climb even when the path issteep.
I rise slowly, brushing thedust from my hands, my eyes not
on the road behind but on thepath ahead.
As you return to your ownvillage, to your own life, carry
these questions with you.
What will sustain your joy whenthe things you love are
(23:25):
stripped away?
What song will you sing whenthe blessings dry up?
Where is your strength anchored?
In outcomes or in theunshakable God?
Are you waiting forcircumstances to change?
Or are you willing to trust theone who never does Remember?
(23:48):
Faith is not forged in abundance.
It is born in the drought.
Joy is not loudest in abundance.
It is born in the drought.
Joy is not loudest in plenty.
It often sings its truest notesin the silence.
And strength is not always theabsence of trembling, but the
decision to walk forward anyway.
(24:08):
The morning is near now, the skybegins to soften with the
promise of light.
I turn toward the hills, aquiet resolve in my step.
I have told you my story, Ihave shown you my trembling, I
have shared with you my song.
(24:29):
Now go, live your story, walkyour own road of questions and
worship, and may you too findthat the God of your salvation
is more than enough.
The village stirs, the fire isgone, but the warmth lingers,
(24:53):
and you rise carrying the weightand the hope of Habakkuk's
journey within you.
Thank you for joining me todayas we journeyed through the book
of Habakkuk 3.
I pray that you carry thesereflections with you into your
day, into your week, and thatyou find strength in knowing God
(25:18):
is with you in every trial,every temptation and every step
of obedience.
If this time in God's word hasencouraged you, take a moment to
share it with someone who mightneed it, and be sure to join me
next time as we continuewalking through the scriptures,
(25:38):
learning, growing and stayingfaithful in the field of life.
Until next time, may you findpeace in the quiet, trust in
God's call and rest in hisunchanging love.
This is In the Field AudioBible, where we Listen to the
(25:59):
Bible One Chapter at a Time.
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