EXEGESIS AND EXPOSITION OF HABAKKUK 2:3-4

Pastor William E. Wenstrom Jr. WENSTROM BIBLE MINISTRIES Norwood, Massachusetts 2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries

Exegesis and Exposition of Habakkuk 2:3-4

Habakkuk 2:3

Appointed Time for the Revelation

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV) “For the revelation awaits an appointed time ” is composed of the following: (awaits an appointed time ” (3“ ,( עוֹד) for ” (2) adverb ʿôḏ “ ,( כִּ י) conjunction kî (1) the revelation ” (4) preposition “ ,( חָזוֹן) masculine singular form of the noun ḥā·zôn awaits an appointed time ” (5) articular masculine singular noun mô ʿēd “ ,( לְ ) lĕ ”. awaits an appointed time “ ,( מוֹﬠֵד) means “because, for” since the word is a marker of ( כִּ י) The conjunction kî cause which means that it is introducing an assertion which presents the reason for the previous two commands the Lord issued the prophet Habakkuk, which are recorded in Habakkuk 2:2. Once again, as was the case in Habakkuk 2:2, the masculine singular form of here in Habakkuk 2:3 refers to the prophecy which reveals ( חָזוֹן) the noun ḥā·zôn the Lord’s decree to judge the Babylonian empire for their unrepentant wickedness which is recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20. It denotes that Habakkuk received revelation from God in which extrasensory audiovisual experiences, which were revelatory in character, were perceived by him. God communicated with him in a vision what would transpire in the future on planet earth and specifically what would take place with regards to the Babylonian empire. should be emended to ʿēḏ ( עוֹד) We have textual problem in that the adverb ʿôḏ witness” because it would then parallel the third person masculine singular“ ,( ﬠֵד) in the next statement, which ( פּוּחַ ) hiphil imperfect conjugation of the verb pû aḥ means “to give witness.” J. J. M. Roberts writes “Repoint ‘ôd, ‘yet,’ to ‘ēd, ‘witness,’ because of the parallelism with yāpēaḥ, ‘testifier.’ The error crept into the text after the tradition forgot the noun yāpēaḥ and misanalyzed this form as a verb.”1 At this point the prophet Habakkuk is employing the figure of ellipsis, which means that although it is implied, he is deliberately omitting the third person which means “to ,( הָיָה) masculine singular qal active perfect form of the verb hāyâ exist in a particular state or condition.” Therefore, it is expressing the idea that the

1 Roberts, J. J. M. (1991). Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah: A Commentary (First edition). Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 1 vision of the judgment of the Babylonian Empire exists in the state of being a witness up to the appointed time of its fulfillment. The qal stem of the verb hāyâ is stative meaning the subject exists in the state indicated by the verb and is expressing the idea that the vision of the judgment of the Babylonian Empire exists in the state of being a witness to the appointed time of its fulfillment. The perfect conjugation of the verb hāyâ is a stative perfect which describes a state or condition. Here it is describing the vision of the judgment of the Babylonian Empire as existing in the state of being a witness to the appointed time of its fulfillment. The noun mô ʿēd means “appointed time” since the word pertains to particular point of time in the future that is specified as the time something will take place. Here it speaks of the time when this vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord in Habakkuk 2:4-20 will be fulfilled in history. The articular construction of this word marks the appointed time as unique in that it is unique to the revelation Habakkuk received from the Lord concerning the destruction of the Babylonian Empire in the future. ,which means “up to ,( לְ ) The noun mô ʿēd is also the object of the preposition lĕ until” since the word is a temporal terminative marker indicating that the vision recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 exists in the state of being a witness “up to” or “until” the appointed time of this vision. In other words, it is marking this vision or revelation as existing in the state of being a witness “up to” or “until” this vision is fulfilled in history by the Lord.

The Fulfillment of the Vision

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV) ,( וְ ) It speaks of the end” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction w“ which is not translated (2) third person masculine singular hiphil imperfect (of ” (4 “ ,( לְ ) it speaks ” (3) preposition lĕ“ ,( פּוּחַ ) conjugation of the verb pû aḥ ”. the end“ ,( קֵץ) articular masculine singular noun qēṣ The conjunction w is epexegetical which means it is introducing a statement which explains specifically what is meant by the previous causal clause, that is, it elaborates on this previous causal clause. As we noted earlier, the third person masculine singular hiphil imperfect ”.means “to give witness ( פּוּחַ ) conjugation of the verb pû aḥ The NET Bible has the following note on this verb, they write “The Hebrew yafeakh ) has been traditionally understood as a verb form from the root) יָפֵחַ term

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puakh , “puff, blow”; cf. NEB “it will come in breathless haste”; NASB “it) פּוּחַ hastens toward the goal”) but recent scholarship has demonstrated that it is actually a noun meaning ‘witness’ (cf. NIV “it speaks of the end / and will not prove false”; NRSV “it speaks of the end, and does not lie”). See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 106. ‘The end’ corresponds to ‘the appointed time’ of the preceding line and refers to the time when the prophecy to follow will be fulfilled.”2 Francis Andersen writes “The earlier interpretation of yāpēaḥ as ‘hurries’ followed by ‘delay’ put opposite ideas side by side in a strange way. The certainty of the vision, in spite of apparent delay, requires hope. The verb yāpēaḥ seems to be the Hip ʿil of pw ḥ, ‘breathe, blow.’ None of the meanings that this root has in other biblical occurrences seems to fit the present context, although Humbert (1944:146–47) was able to stretch the meaning through a chain of near synonyms: ‘souffler, répandre, exhaler, affirmer, proclaimer quelque chose’ [to pant, to spread/scatter, to exhale, to proclaim something]. Hence some English translations have ‘speaks’ (NIV, NRSV). Verbs from √pw ḥ occur twice as Qal , and thirteen times as Hip ʿil . Half the occurrences are in Proverbs, two in Psalms, three in Canticles, so its poetic character is evident. It seems to describe all kinds of breathing. In Canticles it describes the pleasant breeze. In other occurrences √pw ḥ describes a destructive wind that stirs up fire (Ezek 21:36; Ps 10:5). The cliché yāpîa ḥ k ězābîm occurs five times in Proverbs, and the occurrence of the same two roots together in Hab 2:3 cannot be an accident. In Prov 29:8, the expression is associated with scorn, while Prov 12:17—'He who breathes truth [ ʾě mûnâ ] proclaims righteousness [ ṣedeq ]’—contains two words with cognates that are conjoined in Hab 2:4. The interpretation that here yāpēaḥ means ‘pant’ because the vision is breathless with hurry (BDB:806) is too fanciful to be taken seriously. Similarly, the meaning of yěkazz ēb is ‘he tells lies’; the weaker alternative ‘disappoint’ is marginal and poorly attested (Isa 58:11). The collocation of pw ḥ and kzb in Hab 2:3 points to the same antithesis that we have in proverbs—yāpîa ḥ ʾě mûnâ , ‘he breathes truth,’ versus yāpîa ḥ k ězābîm , ‘he breathes lies’ (= yěkazz ēb). Furthermore, because it is either a faithful or a deceitful person who ‘breathes’ in these opposite ways, the ‘reciter’ of the vision would be a better antecedent subject than ‘the vision’ for the verbs in v 3aB.

NEB The New English Bible (1970) NASB New American Standard Bible NIV The New International Version NRSV New Revised Standard Version (1989) OTL Old Testament Library 2 Biblical Studies Press. (2005). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible . Biblical Studies Press. NIV New International Version NRSV New Revised Standard Version BDB F. Brown, S. R. Driver, and C. A. Briggs, Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1907, 1955 v verse

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The difficulty of making sense of yāpēaḥ if derived from pw ḥ, ‘breathe, blow,’ prompted many attempts to find an alternative reading assisted by the evidence of the versions. LXX kai anatelei eis peras , ‘and it will rise up unto completion,’ suggested emendation to yipra ḥ, ‘it will spring up.’ The puzzle of the word yāpēaḥ has now been solved, to the satisfaction of many scholars, by evidence from Ugaritic (Haak 1992:55–57; Roberts 1991:106). The potential of the Ugaritic word yp ḥ “witness” ( UT , #1129) for supplying a better meaning for Hebrew cognates was pointed out by Loewenstamm (1962) and applied by Dahood to Ps 27:12 (AB 16:169). Pardee (1978) and Miller (1979) found that the meaning ‘witness’ fitted other passages better than the traditional ‘breathe.’ This meaning has now been accepted: ‘it will testify’ (REB). The parallelism of yp ḥ with ʿd, ‘witness,’ in Hebrew clinched the identification of the synonyms, both nouns: yāpîa ḥ ʾě mûnâ yaggîd ṣedeq a witness of truthfulness will report righteousness wěʿēd š ěqārîm —mirmâ and a witness of falsehoods—deceit (Prov 12:17)

ʿēd š ěqārîm l ōʾ yinn āqeh A witness of falsehoods will not go unpunished wěyāpîa ḥ k ězābîm lōʾ yimm ālēṭ and a witness of lies will not escape (Prov 19:5)

Prov 19:9 is almost identical: wěyāpîa ḥ k ězābîm y ōʾbēd, ‘and a witness of lies will perish.’ It is pushing synonymous parallelism too far, however, to bring Hab 2:3 into line with these bicolons by emending ʿôd to ʿēd (Pardee 1978). The evidence for ʿôd is solid: 1QpHab ʿwd ; LXX eti (cf. Dan 10:14). It needs to be emphasized that in all these passages the terms yāpîa ḥ // ʿēd refer to a person, not a document or an announcement. Looking ahead to v 4b, the point can also be made that ʾě mûnâ is a quality of a truthful, reliable witness. So it is better to look for an agential reference for the following pronominal elements, rather than to connect them all with the vision. This person will ‘witness’ (yāpēaḥ),

LXX Septuagint UT C. H. Gordon, Ugaritic Textbook . Rome, 1965; Supplement, 1967 AB The Anchor Bible (Commentary) REB Revised English Bible 1QpHab Qumran pešer of the book of Habakkuk LXX Septuagint v verse

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 4 and not lie; he will declare the whole vision (“to the end”) and not distort it in any way. A further grammatical comment is needed. In the instances discussed above, yāpēaḥ is nominal. This parsing permits the syntax of v 3aB β to be construed so that the verbal function of the stative form yāpēaḥ comes into play—a suffixed form with wāw-consecutive.”3 J. J. M. Roberts writes “The word yāpēaḥ (also spelled yāpîa ḥ and yāpīaḥ) often occurs in parallelism with ‘ēd, and both terms are further specified by identical syntactical constructions in which they are placed in construct with a following noun. The context makes clear that both terms are nouns meaning ‘witness,’ further specified by the construct chain as either ‘witness of lies/false witness’ or ‘witness of truth/truthful witness’ (Ps. 27:12; Prov. 6:19; 12:17; 14:5, 25; 19:5, 9; see Loewenstamm, Leš 26 [1962–63]: 205–208). Proverbs 12:17 is particularly clear: yāpîa ḥ ’ emûn āh yaggîd ṣedeq we‘ēd š eqārîm mirm āh A truthful testifier declares what is right, But a lying witness deceit. The word yp ḥ is also clearly attested in Ugaritic as a noun meaning ‘witness’ (UT , 413). It apparently dropped out of common Hebrew usage sometime after the exile because none of the ancient versions recognized the word as a noun. Once yāpēaḥ was misconstrued as a verb, the corruption of its synonym ‘ēd into ‘ôd was just a matter of time.”4 means “fulfillment” since the ( ץקֵ ) The articular masculine singular noun qēṣ word pertains to a point in time in which something ends or is fulfilled. Here it speaks of the point in time in the future from the perspective of Habakkuk in 605 B.C. when the vision of Babylon’s destruction recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 will be fulfilled. The articular construction of this word is anaphoric which means that it is marking this word as having the same referent as the articular masculine singular appointed time.” Thus, it is marking both words as referring to“ ,( מוֹﬠֵד) noun mô ʿēd the fulfillment of the vision recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20, which asserts that the Lord would destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future for their unrepentant sinful behavior.

v verse 3 Andersen, F. I. (2008). Habakkuk: a new translation with introduction and commentary (Vol. 25, pp. 205–207). New Haven; London: Yale University Press. Leš Lešonénu UT C. H. Gordon, Ugaritic Textbook , Rome, 1965 4 Roberts, J. J. M. (1991). Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah: A Commentary (First edition). Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press.

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The articular construction of this word is also functioning as a possessive pronoun indicating that the vision recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 is a witness up “its” fulfillment. is the object of the preposition lĕ ( קֵץ) The articular masculine singular noun qēṣ which again means “up to, until” since the word is a temporal terminative ,( לְ ) marker indicating that the vision recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 exists in the state of being a witness “up to” or “until” its fulfillment in history. is intransitive which means that it does ( פּוּחַ ) The hiphil stem of this verb pû aḥ not take a direct object but instead describes its subject as exhibiting a state or quality or as entering into and remaining in a state or condition. Therefore, this is indicating that the vision of Babylon’s destruction in the future is exhibiting the state of being a witness until its fulfillment. The imperfect conjugation of this verb is a customary imperfect which describes a state or condition. Here it is expressing the idea of the vision of Babylon’s destruction in the future existing in the state of being a witness until its fulfillment.

The Revelation Will Not Prove False

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV) ,( וְ ) And will not prove false ” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction w“ not” (3) third person masculine singular piel “ ,( לֹא) and ” (2) negative particle lōʾ“ ”. it will prove false“ ,( כָּזַב) imperfect conjugation of the verb kā·z ǎḇ This time the conjunction w is emphatic which means that is serves to emphasize the statement it is introducing indicating that the Lord is emphasizing with Habakkuk that this vision of Babylon’s destruction in the future is not false or a lie. The third person masculine singular piel imperfect conjugation of the verb means “to lie, to deceive” since the word pertains to telling or ( כָּזַב) kā·z ǎḇ communicating something that does not correspond to reality, i.e. the truth. ,( לֹא) The verb’s meaning is emphatically negated by the negative particle lōʾ which means “by no means, absolutely not” since the word is functioning as a marker of emphatic negation. It is expressing a negation which is absolute and not subject to conditions or exceptions and speaks of something that is not subject to dispute or challenge. The referent of the third person masculine singular form of this verb is the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord regarding His decision to judge the Babylonian Empire in the future.

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Therefore, these two words are expressing the idea of this vision as by no means being devoid of truth, that is, it is absolutely or unequivocally not false with the obvious implication that it is truth from God. is a denominative piel which means that ( כָּזַב) The piel stem of this verb kā·z ǎḇ .( כָּזָב) this verb is derived etymologically from a noun, which is kā·z āḇ The imperfect conjugation of this verb is a customary imperfect which describes a state or condition. Here it is expressing the idea of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord as existing in the state of by no means being false or a lie.

Wait for the Revelation to Be Fulfilled

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV) “Though it linger, wait for it ” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction though ” (2) third person masculine singular hithpael jussive conjugation“ ,( אִ ם) ʾim it linger ” (3) second person masculine singular piel“ ,( מָהַהּ) of the verb mā·h ǎh ,( לְ ) wait ” (4) preposition lĕ“ ,( חָכָה) (imperative conjugation of the verb ḥā·ḵā(h ”. it “ ,( הוּא) for” (5) third person masculine singular pronominal suffix hû ʾ“ means “though” since it is functioning here as a ( אִ ם) The conjunction ʾim marker of concession which means that it is introducing a statement which implies that the action expressed by the command in the apodosis of this concessive clause is true in spite of the state or action expressed by the command in its protasis. The third person masculine singular hitpael jussive conjugation of the verb means “to linger, to be slow in coming about” since the word ( מָהַהּ) mā·h ǎh pertains to something or some event appearing to take long or as being slow to take place. It speaks of some event appearing to be slow in taking place. The referent of the third person masculine singular form of this verb is the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord which revealed the latter’s decision to destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future. Therefore, this verb is expressing the idea of the fulfillment of this vison lingering from the human perspective and in particular from the perspective of the citizens of the southern kingdom of Judah who were faithful to the Lord like Habakkuk. Thus, this is an apparent delay since from the Lord’s perspective it will take place exactly when He has decreed it to take place. is a reflexive-factitive hithpael ( מָהַהּ) The hithpael stem of this verb mā·h ǎh which means that the subject of this verb causes itself to enter a particular state or condition. Therefore, this stem indicates that the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord, which revealed the latter’s decision to

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 7 destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future, causes itself to enter the state of appearing to linger or to be slow in coming to pass. The imperfect conjugation of this verb describes an event without having the end of the event in view and the action may or may not be finished or it may simply be described that way. The event many be present from the speaker’s perspective or the event may be in the past from the speaker’s perspective or the future or even future from a past point of view. Here in Habakkuk 2:3 the imperfect conjugation of this verb describes the apparent lingering of the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord, which revealed the latter’s decision to destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future, as taking place in the future from the perspective of Habakkuk when he received this revelation from the Lord. The second person masculine singular piel imperative conjugation of the verb means “to wait” since the word pertains to looking forward to the ( חָכָה) (ḥā·ḵā(h occurrence of some particular event. The referent of the second person masculine singular is Habakkuk. However, ultimately it refers to the faithful remnant in Judah as a corporate unit speaking of them as one person since this vision was to be communicated to them. ( הוּא) The referent of the third person masculine singular pronominal suffix hû ʾ is the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord which reveals the latter’s decision to destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future. which means “for” since the ,( לְ ) This word is the object of the preposition lĕ word functions as a marker of purpose. Therefore, this prepositional phrase indicates that the fulfillment of this vision is the purpose for which the Lord commanded Habakkuk and his fellow faithful citizens of the kingdom of Judah to wait. is expressing a command ( חָכָה) (The imperative conjugation of the verb ḥā·ḵā(h indicating that the Lord is requiring that Habakkuk and his fellow faithful citizens in the kingdom of Judah wait for the fulfillment of the vision of Babylon’s demise despite the fact that its fulfillment might appear to be slow in coming to pass. The piel stem of this verb is iterative referring to an activity that is done multiple times. Here it speaks of Habakkuk and his fellow faithful citizens of the southern kingdom of Judah “continually” waiting for the fulfillment of the vision of Babylon’s destruction in the future.

The Fulfillment of the Revelation Will Certainly Come

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV)

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,( כִּ י) It will certainly come ” is composed of the following: (1) conjunction kî“ ,( בּוֹא) which is not translated (2) qal infinitive absolute conjugation of the verb bô ʾ “it will certainly come ” (3) third person masculine singular qal imperfect ”. it will certainly come “ ,( בּוֹא) conjugation of the verb bô ʾ is a marker of cause or reason which means that it is ( יכִּ ) The conjunction kî introducing a statement which presents the reason for the previous command. ,( בּוֹא) Next, we have the qal infinitive construct conjugation of the verb bô ʾ which means “to take place, to come to pass” since the word pertains to a particular event taking place. The qal stem of this verb is fientive expressing the action of the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy that Babylon will be destroyed in the future. The infinitive absolute state of this verb is employed with the third person in order to ( בּוֹא) masculine singular qal imperfect conjugation of the verb bô ʾ emphasize the certainty that the Lord’s prophecy of Babylon’s destruction in the future will take place in history. The third person masculine singular qal imperfect conjugation of the verb bô ʾ also means “to take place, to come to pass” since the word pertains to a ( בּוֹא) particular event taking place. is ( בּוֹא) The referent of the third person masculine singular form of this verb bô ʾ the fulfillment of the vision of Babylon’s destruction in the future. The qal stem of this verb is also fientive expressing the action of the fulfillment of the Lord’s prophecy that He will destroy Babylon in the future. The imperfect conjugation of this verb describes an event without having the end of the event in view and the action may or may not be finished or it may simply be described that way. The event many be present from the speaker’s perspective or the event may be in the past from the speaker’s perspective or the future or even future from a past point of view. describes ( בּוֹא) Here in Habakkuk 2:3 the imperfect conjugation of this verb bô ʾ the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord, which revealed the latter’s decision to destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future, as taking place in the future from the perspective of Habakkuk when he received this revelation from the Lord.

The Fulfillment of the Revelation Will Not Delay

Habakkuk 2:3 For the revelation awaits an appointed time; it speaks of the end and will not prove false. Though it linger, wait for it; it will certainly come and will not delay. (NIV)

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“And will not delay ” is composed of the following: (1) negative particle lōʾ not” (2) third person masculine singular piel imperfect conjugation of the “ ,( לֹא) ”. will delay“ ,( אָחַר) verb ʾā·ḥǎ r At this point in the verse, Habakkuk is employing the figure of asyndeton which means that he is not using a connective word between the statement to follow and the previous one. The purpose of this figure is to emphasize the solemn nature of this fifth and final statement in Habakkuk 2:3 and the certainty that the vision Habakkuk received from the Lord regarding His decision to destroy Babylon in the future would by no means be delayed. The third person masculine singular piel imperfect conjugation of the verb means “to delay” since the word pertains to something or some event ( אָחַר) ʾā·ḥǎ r taking longer to take place than expected. It speaks of some event apparently being delayed from the taking place. The referent of the third person masculine singular form of this verb is the fulfillment of the vision the prophet Habakkuk received from the Lord which revealed the latter’s decision to destroy the Babylonian Empire in the future. ,( לֹא) The verb’s meaning is emphatically negated by the negative particle lōʾ which means “by no means, absolutely not” since the word is functioning as a marker of emphatic negation expressing a negation which is absolute and not subject to conditions or exceptions and speaks of something that is not subject to dispute or challenge. Therefore, these two words are expressing the idea of the fulfillment of this vison by no means being delayed from the perspective of the citizens of the southern kingdom of Judah who were faithful to the Lord like Habakkuk. is iterative referring to an activity that is ( אָחַר) The piel stem of this verb ʾā·ḥǎ r done multiple times. Here it speaks of an apparent “continued” delay in the fulfillment of the vision regarding Babylon’s destruction. The imperfect conjugation of this verb is a customary imperfect which describes a state or condition. Here it is expressing the idea of the fulfillment of the vision of Babylon’s destruction existing in the state of by no means being delayed.

Translation of Habakkuk 2:1-3

Habakkuk 2:1 I am determined to stand at my watch post. Namely, I am determined to station myself in the watchtower. Specifically, I am determined to keep myself watching in order to see what he might want to say to refute me so that I would be able to respond to support my argument. 2 Then, the Lord replied to me, namely he said, “You must put down in writing a vision. Indeed, you must inscribe it legibly on tablets in order that the herald would be able to read it easily.” 3 For this vision is a witness up to the appointed

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 10 time. In other words, it is a witness up to its fulfillment. Indeed, it will by no means prove to be false. Although, it appears to be slow to come to pass, you must wait for it because it will certainly take place. It will by no means be delayed. (Author’s translation)

Exposition of Habakkuk 2:3

Habakkuk 2:3 begins with a declarative statement which asserts that this vision recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 is a witness up to the appointed time and which appointed time refers to the fulfillment of this vision. It presents the reason for the previous two commands the Lord issued to the prophet Habakkuk, which are recorded in Habakkuk 2:2. The first of these commands required Habakkuk put down in writing a vision. The second advanced upon the first and required that the prophet inscribe this vision legibly on tablets in order that the herald would be able to read it easily. As was the case in Habakkuk 2:2, the masculine singular form of the noun here in Habakkuk 2:3 refers to a “vision” and is most often associated ( חָזוֹן) ḥā·zôn with the prophets of Israel. It can however refer to ordinary dreams. Visions were often a revelation of the future plans of God, which could involve either judgment or blessing. This term often refers to a revelation of God’s future actions or a compilation of His messages through His prophets. This term ḥā∙zôn speaks of revelation from God the Holy Spirit with regards to the Father’s will for an individual or a nation or the earth as a whole. In other words, this word refers to communication from God to be communicated to others with emphasis on the visual aspects of this communication. Therefore, as was the case in Habakkuk 2:2, the noun ḥā∙zôn here in Habakkuk 2:3 refers to the prophecy which reveals the Lord’s decree to judge the Babylonian empire for their unrepentant wickedness which is recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20. It denotes that Habakkuk received revelation from God in which extrasensory audiovisual experiences, which were revelatory in character, were perceived by him. God communicated with him in a vision what would transpire in the future on planet earth and specifically what would take place with regards to the Babylonian empire. Now, the declarative statement which begins verse 3 indicates that the reason why Habakkuk was to inscribe this vision legibly on tablets so that the herald might be able to read it easily is that this vision is a witness up to the appointed time, which speaks of the time when this vision will be fulfilled in history. The first declarative statement in Habakkuk 2:3 is followed by another which asserts that this vision is a witness up to its fulfillment. It explains the previous causal clause and asserts that this vision Habakkuk received from the Lord

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 11 regarding Babylon’s demise in the future is a witness up to its fulfillment. It explains specifically what is meant by the previous causal clause, that is, it elaborates on it. Therefore, this indicates that when the Lord informs Habakkuk that the vision He gave him of Babylon’s demise in the future is a witness up to the appointed time, He means that it is a witness or it gives witness to when it will be fulfilled in history. Then, the third assertion in verse 3 emphatically states that this vision of Babylon’s destruction will by no means prove to be false. In other words, it is emphasizing that the fulfillment of the prophecy of Babylon’s destruction will be fulfilled in history. Next, we have a concessive clause, which is composed of two parts. The first is the protasis which speaks of the fulfillment of the vision appearing to be slow in coming to pass. The second is the apodosis which is a command for the faithful citizens of the kingdom of Judah to wait for the fulfilment of this vision. This concessive clause implies that the action expressed by the command in the apodosis of this concessive clause is true in spite of the state or action expressed in its protasis. This would then indicate that although the fulfillment of this vision of Babylon’s future demise appears to be slow in coming to pass, those who are faithful in the southern kingdom of Judah were to wait for its fulfillment since it will certainly be fulfilled in the future. Then, we have a statement which presents the reason for the command to wait. It asserts that this vision’s fulfillment will certainly take place. Therefore, the reason why Habakkuk and his fellow faithful citizens of the kingdom of Judah were to wait for the fulfillment of the vision of Babylon’s destruction despite the fact that it might appear to be slow in coming to pass was that its fulfillment would certainly take place in history. Habakkuk 2:3 comes to an end with a solemn emphatic statement which asserts that the fulfillment of this vision of Babylon’s destruction will by no means be delayed. It would appear to be delayed from the perspective of the faithful citizens of the southern kingdom of Judah but from the Lord’s perspective the fulfillment of the vision will take place exactly as He decreed for it to take place. Therefore, the reason why the Lord could confidently assert that the fulfillment of this vision of Babylon’s destruction will not be delayed is that He decreed this destruction to take place. In other words, the reason why this prophecy of Babylon’s destruction and all prophecy in the Word of God will be fulfilled in history is that the Lord decreed for all these prophecies to take place in eternity past. Thus, the reason why the Lord could confidently assert in Habakkuk 2:3 that Babylons will be destroyed in the future is that He decreed this destruction to take place in eternity past.

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Kenneth Barker writes “Impatience is the normal human response to God’s promise to answer his people. God warned the prophet to wait on the prophecy. The answer of God would surely come, but the prophet should write down the message because from the prophet’s point of view the prophecy might seem slow. The prophet was to ‘preserve it until its fulfillment could be demonstrated historically.’5 God had already decided upon a solution and would reveal it according to his timetable, but God was not indebted to any human to reveal the answer before he chose to. ‘Habakkuk, like all of us, was living ‘between the times,’ between the promise and the fulfillment.’6 Heflin notes that the end here ‘may refer to the termination of Babylonian power but, more likely, to the eschaton.’7”8 Interestingly, the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:3 personifies the fulfillment of this vision, which means that the Lord’s arrival is put for the fulfillment of the vision. The LXX translation is dioti eti horasis eis kairon kai anatelei eis peras kai ouk eis kenon, ean hyster ēsē, hypomeinon auton, hoti erchomenos h ēxei kai ou m ē chronis ē. (διότι ἔτι ὅρασις εἰς καιρὸν καὶ ἀνατελεῖ εἰς πέρας καὶ οὐκ εἰς κενόν , ἐὰν ὑστερήσῃ, ὑπόμεινον αὐτόν , ὅτι ἐρχόμενος ἥξει καὶ οὐ μὴ χρονίσῃ.) The Lexham English Septuagint translates the LXX translation of this verse “Because there is still a vision for the time, and he will appear at an end, and not in vain; if he is late, wait for him, because one coming will be present, and he will not tarry.” The reason for this personification is that when the judgment of Babylon is fulfilled the Lord will manifest His presence to His people and the Babylonians and all people in the Mediterranean and Mesopotamian regions of the world. The personification is thus to emphasize that the Lord Himself will judge Babylon. In other words, the judgment of Babylon is personalized in that the Lord is personally involved in the judgment of Babylon. The writer of Hebrew quotes a portion of the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:3 in Hebrews 10:37. He cites this verse in his appeal to Jewish Christians who were tempted to put themselves under the Mosaic Law again rather than remaining obedient to the gospel. He uses Habakkuk 2:3 in relation to the Lord Jesus Christ’s arrival at the Second Advent when He will judge every unrepentant unregenerate person on earth as well. At that time, He will destroy Antichrist and the false prophet and imprison Satan and the fallen angels for a thousand years. He uses this verse in order to encourage these Jewish Christians to remain faithful to the gospel and that eventually the Lord will judge their enemies which are in fact, His enemies. The Second Advent of Christ is not delayed but will take place in His

5 Heflin, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and Haggai , 90. Achtemeier notes that “from the beginning of his work, God has seen its goal and completion” ( Nahum–Malachi , 43). 6 R. L. Smith, Micah–Malachi , 107. 7 Heflin, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, and Haggai , 90. 8 Barker, K. L. (1999). Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (Vol. 20, p. 323). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 13 perfect timing. In fact, the writer of Hebrews is applying the message of Habakkuk 2:3 rather than interpreting it. He is applying its message for these suffering and weary Jewish Christians in order to encourage them to remain faithful to the gospel because eventually the Lord will judge their enemies who were persecuting them. Habakkuk 2:3 was of course an encouragement to the faithful citizens of the remnant of Judah because it would reassure them that even though the Lord was going to use an evil nation like Babylon to discipline their fellow apostate citizens, the Lord was eventually going to judge Babylon. This prophetic revelation Habakkuk received from the God of Israel regarding Babylon’s destruction, which is recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20 manifests the divine decree, which took place in eternity past before anything was ever created and is God’s eternal and immutable will. The divine decrees are the eternal plans by which God renders certain all the events of the universe, including both angelic and human history—past, present, and future. The divine decrees are actually one decree but because of the limitations of our human brain we often use the plural, decrees, to express the many facets of God’s plan. The decree of God is the chosen and adopted plan of all His works. It is His eternal purpose, according to His will; whereby, for His own glory, He foreordains whatever comes to pass. It is the sovereign choice of His divine will and His omniscience, by which all things are brought into being and controlled, made subject to His pleasure, and made to produce His glorification. Thus, the divine decrees originated with God, long before any creature of any kind existed, and are objectively designed for His own glory and pleasure (Romans 8:28-29). Therefore, Habakkuk’s prophecy reveals the Father’s will from eternity past to destroy the Babylonian Empire because of their unrepentant sinful behavior. God has rendered certain all the events of the universe, including both angelic and human history-past, present and future. Therefore, God rendered certain to take place all the events of human history-past, present and future and thus figured these various circumstances into His plan. God’s decree rendered all things as certain to occur and He decided that they would exist and so therefore, God rendered certain to occur all the events of human history-past, present and future and God decided that they would take place. God’s decree has rendered the destruction of the Babylonian empire for their unrepentant sinful behavior. The “providence” of God is the divine outworking of the divine decree, the object being the final manifestation of God’s glory and expresses the fact that the world and our lives are not ruled by chance or fate but by God. Therefore, every event of human history-past, present and future does not happen by chance or fate but because God ordained for them to take place in order to fulfill His plan for their lives and to bring glory to Himself. Therefore, the destruction of the Babylonian empire in history did not happen by chance or fate but rather was a

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 14 manifestation of the Father’s will to destroy this nation for their unrepentant sinful behavior. The decree of God is the chosen and adopted plan of all God’s works and so it was a part of God’s chosen and adopted plan that every event of human history- past, present and future would take place. The decree of God is His eternal purpose according to the counsels of His own will, whereby for His own glory He has foreordained whatever comes to pass. Therefore, it was part of God’s eternal purpose according to the counsels of His own will for His own glory that all the events of human history-past, present and future would take place. It was a part of God’s eternal purpose according to the counsels of His own will for His own glory that the destruction of Babylonian empire would take place in human history. The decree of God is the sovereign choice of the divine will (His sovereignty) and mentality (His omniscience) by which all things are brought into being and controlled, made subject to His pleasure, and producing His glorification. Therefore, the fact that the events of human history-past, present and future are the result of God’s sovereign will and omniscience by which these events were brought into being and were controlled and made subject to God’s pleasure and glorified Him. The destruction of Babylonian empire is the result of God’s sovereign will and omniscience by which this event was brought into being and was controlled and made subject to God’s pleasure and glorified Him because it manifested His holy character and that He is the judge of all the nations. The “decree of God” is His eternal, holy, wise and sovereign purpose, comprehending at once all things that ever were or will be in their causes, courses, conditions, successions, and relations and determining their certain futurition (i.e., that they will certainly take place). It was according to God’s eternal, holy, wise and sovereign purpose to destroy the Babylonian empire for their unrepentant sinful behavior. God comprehended all at once all the causes, courses, conditions, succession of events and decisions and relations in relation to the destruction of the Babylonian empire. He determined that this destruction would certainly take place and the prophecy of Habakkuk expresses this determination to do so. When I say “comprehending” I mean that the omniscience of God is the source of the divine decrees by “determining” I mean that the sovereignty of God chose before anything existed which things would actually become historical events and human decisions. From His sovereignty, God chose this destruction of the Babylonian empire to take place in human history. He chose what historical events would take place and human decisions would made in regard to this destruction. Therefore, the omniscience of God comprehended at once in eternity past each and every positive and negative circumstance that every human being would experience and every negative and positive decision that they would make during the course of their lifetime and every event in human history-past, present and

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 15 future. Thus, He comprehended at once in eternity past all these circumstances and events and decisions. The omniscience of God comprehended at once in eternity past each and every positive and negative circumstance that every human being related to the destruction of the Babylonian empire would experience and every negative and position decision that these individuals would make during the course of their lifetimes and every event related to Babylon’s demise. The will of God in common usage refers to what God desires of an individual or group in a particular situation. In relation to the divine decree the will of God refers to the decision God made in eternity past, from His attribute of sovereignty, which established that certain things would actually come into being while other things would not. The will of God is His sovereign choice as to what will take place in time. God from His sovereignty decided in eternity past that each and every positive and negative decision with respect to His will during the course of their lifetime would take place. He also decided that these events would take place in the exact time that they did. He sovereignly decided that each and every positive and negative decision with respect to His will regarding the Babylonian empire’s destruction would take place. He also decided that these events related to Babylon’s demise would take place in the exact time that they did. This is another reason why this prophecy of Habakkuk was fulfilled completely in history. God in eternity past decreed that angels and human beings would have volition and would be allowed to make decisions contrary to His sovereign will and without compromising His justice. In giving angels and men volition, God decreed that their decisions, whatever they might be, would certainly take place-even those that are contrary to His desires. Therefore, God decreed that each and every positive and negative decision with respect to His will would all take place in time and even those circumstances and decisions, which were contrary to His desires. God decreed that each and every positive and negative decision with respect to His will would take place in time in relation to the destruction of the Babylonian empire. He chose those circumstances and decision by people as related to this destruction, would take place. Being omniscient, God had the good sense to know ahead of time what men and angels would decide, and He not only decreed that those decisions would exist but He also decreed the exact manner, consistent with His integrity, in which He would handle their decisions. God knew ahead of time because He is omniscient that the Babylonian empire would oppose His will. He not only decreed for their bad decisions to take place but also the exact manner, consistent with His integrity, in which He would handle these bad decisions. Therefore, each and every positive and negative decision that every human being would make with respect to His will during the course of their lifetime was a

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 16 part of God’s sovereign will that is based upon His omniscient knowledge of all the facts concerning what will take place in the future. This would include of course each and every positive and negative decision of the citizens of the Babylonian empire during the course of each of their lifetimes because this was a part of His omniscient knowledge. The Lord knows perfectly, eternally and simultaneously all that is knowable, both the actual and the possible and thus has all knowledge of every event in human and angelic history. Therefore, the Lord looked down the corridors of time and decreed to take place each and every positive and negative decision with respect to His will. He looked down the corridors of time and decree every event of the past, all the events of the present and future to take place. He looked down the corridors of time and decreed each and every positive and negative decision of the Babylonian people with respect to His will. The relationship between human volition and the sovereign will and purpose of God can be view from different perspectives, namely, the “permissive” and “directive.” In relation to eternal salvation, the “directive” will of God refers to what God directly requires of an individual and desires for them, which is to be saved. His “permissive” will refers to Him “permitting” His creatures to act contrary to what He desires. Therefore, God permits people to reject His will or accept it. The “permissive” will of God permitted the Babylonian people to commit evil but it was not a part of His “directive” will that they would do this. Therefore, God can reveal unfathomable events, yes, events which are hidden such as the destruction of the Babylonian empire. He can do this before this destruction took place because in His omniscience, He already knew this event would take place and the people who would take part in this destruction and all their decisions were figured into His decree. He alone knows what is in the darkness, i.e. the future because in His omniscience, He already knows the future and it is already figure into His decree. The light, i.e. knowledge of the future, resides in His mind or consciousness because in His omniscience, He already knows the future and it is already figure into His decree. Knowledge of the divine decree should encourage the Christian since it demonstrates that God is sovereign and in control of every event in the past, every event taking place in the present and in the future. Nothing is by chance or by “fate” but every event and person and decision is known by God from eternity past. Not only could the Lord assert that Babylon would be destroyed in the future because He decreed for it to take place in eternity past but also He could do so because of His omniscience, omnipotence as well as omnisapience. His omniscience we noted means that God knows everything-past, present and future. He knows both the actual and the possible. His omnipotence means that He can do whatever is possible to do or He can do what is not impossible to do. It means His

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 17 power is unlimited and uninhibited by anything or anyone else. His omnisapience speaks of God’s wisdom. It refers to God’s unerring ability to choose the best means to accomplish the best ends. His omniscience provides the knowledge for His wise choices, His omnipotence enables Him to achieve His ends by the means He chooses and His omnibenevolence assures that His choices will be good choices. Therefore, the Lord is able to assert that He will fulfill this vision of the destruction of the Babylonian Empire at the time He appoints in the future because His omniscience provides the knowledge for this decision, His omnipotence enables Him to bring about the fulfillment of this vision to achieve His will by the means He chooses. Daniel chapter five records the destruction of the Babylonian Empire. The Lord used the Medo-Persian Empire to destroy Babylon. History states that Babylon fell on the sixteenth day of the Jewish month Tishri which corresponds to either October 11 or 12 539 BC. Daniel chapter five states that Belshazzar was the ruler of the Babylonian Empire when it was defeated by Medo-Persia. The prophecy in Habakkuk 2:4-20 of Babylon’s demise was fulfilled in 605 B.C. Therefore, the fulfillment of the prophecy did not take place until approximately 66 years after Habakkuk received this prophecy from the Lord. Therefore, the fulfillment of the prophecy of Habakkuk 2:4-20 taught a principle that appears in the book of Jeremiah, namely, God is watching over His Word to execute it. Jeremiah 1:12 Then the LORD said to me, “You have seen well, for I am watching over My word to perform it.” (NASB95) The citizens of the Babylonian Empire and their leaders found out painfully that the Lord is watching over His word to perform it. The fact that God can bring to pass that which He has predicted would happen to the Babylonian empire reveals that He is omnipotent and sovereign and omniscient. Speaking in the context of judging Assyria the prophet Isaiah speaking for the Lord under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said the following: Isaiah 14:24 The LORD of hosts has sworn saying, “Surely, just as I have intended so it has happened, and just as I have planned so it will stand.” Babylon and Assyria both learned this statement is true. Babylon learned that the prophecy of Habakkuk 2:4-20 was true. The citizens of Babylon learned through personal experience what Balak was taught by Balaam. Numbers 23:19 “God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent; Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?” (NASB95) The citizens of Babylon also learned through personal experience the teaching of Proverbs 29:1.

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Proverbs 29:1 A man who hardens his neck after much reproof will suddenly be broken beyond remedy. (NASB95) The Babylonians learned the hard way that when God says He will do something, He does it unlike sinful mankind who make promises that they cannot keep or say they are going to do something but do not keep their word. The fall of Babylon is also described in ancient secular literature such as in the writings of Herodotus, Xenophon and the Nabonidus Chronicle. These sources make clear that the Persians captured the city of Babylon without a major battle. Herodotus states that Cyrus took Babylon by temporarily diverting the course of the Euphrates during a nocturnal festival (1.190-191). Xenophon says that the Persians killed Belshazzar who he describes as a riotous, indulgent, cruel and godless man (Cyrus 4-7 on the fall of Babylon). Berossus tells us that when Nabonidus knew Cyrus was going to attack him, he engaged the Persian’s forces. However, he was defeated and with a few of his troops was shut up in the city of Borsippus. After this Cyrus took Babylon and gave the order to destroy the city’s outer walls since they caused him so much trouble. Herodotus writes “[190] [1] Then at the beginning of the following spring, when Cyrus had punished the Gyndes by dividing it among the three hundred and sixty canals, he marched against Babylon at last. The Babylonians sallied out and awaited him; and when he came near their city in his march, they engaged him, but they were beaten and driven inside the city. [2] There they had stored provisions enough for very many years, because they knew already that Cyrus was not a man of no ambitition, and saw that he attacked all nations alike; so now they were indifferent to the siege; and Cyrus did not know what to do, being so long delayed and gaining no advantage. [191] [1] Whether someone advised him in his difficulty, or whether he perceived for himself what to do, I do not know, but he did the following. [2] He posted his army at the place where the river goes into the city, and another part of it behind the city, where the river comes out of the city, and told his men to enter the city by the channel of the Euphrates when they saw it to be fordable. Having disposed them and given this command, he himself marched away with those of his army who could not fight; [3] and when he came to the lake, Cyrus dealt with it and with the river just as had the Babylonian queen: drawing off the river by a canal into the lake, which was a marsh, he made the stream sink until its former channel could be forded. [4] When this happened, the Persians who were posted with this objective made their way into Babylon by the channel of the Euphrates, which had now sunk to a depth of about the middle of a man's thigh. [5] Now if the Babylonians had known beforehand or learned what Cyrus was up to, they would have let the Persians enter the city and have destroyed them utterly; for then they would have shut all the gates that opened on the river and mounted the walls that ran along the river banks, and so caught their enemies

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 19 in a trap. [6] But as it was, the Persians took them unawares, and because of the great size of the city (those who dwell there say) those in the outer parts of it were overcome, but the inhabitants of the middle part knew nothing of it; all this time they were dancing and celebrating a holiday which happened to fall then, until they learned the truth only too well. [192] [1] And Babylon, then for the first time, was taken in this way.” 9 As we saw in Daniel chapter five, Belshazzar and his guests praised gods composed of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood and stone. Undoubtedly, they were praising these gods because they erroneously believed that they had protected the city of Babylon for hundreds of years and would do so again since Babylon had not fallen to an invading army in a thousand years at the time when the king threw this party for his nobles. Belshazzar and his nobles were not only showing contempt for the Medes and Persians but also God. They had great confidence in the city’s fortifications since the city had not fallen to an invader for a thousand years. However, ingeniously, Cyrus’ commander Ugbaru who is referred to in the Chronicle as governor of Gutium, diverted the waters of the Euphrates to an old channel dug by a previous ruler which suddenly reduced the water level well below the river-gates. Not too long after that the Persian invaders came wading in at night and clambered up the riverbank before the guards of the city knew what happened. Pentecost writes “The city had been under assault by Cyrus. In anticipation of a long siege the city had stored supplies to last for 20 years. The Euphrates River ran through the city from north to south, so the residents had an ample water supply. Belshazzar had a false sense of security because the Persian army, led by Ugbaru, was outside Babylon’s city walls. Their army was divided; part was stationed where the river entered the city at the north and the other part was positioned where the river exited from the city at the south. The army diverted the water north of the city by digging a canal from the river to a nearby lake. With the water diverted, its level receded and the soldiers were able to enter the city by going under the sluice gate. Since the walls were unguarded the Persians, once inside the city, were able to conquer it without a fight. Significantly the defeat of Babylon fulfilled not only the prophecy Daniel made earlier that same night (5:28) but also a prophecy by Isaiah (Isa. 47:1-5). The overthrow of Babylon took place the night of the 16th of Tishri (October 12, 539 B.C.). The rule of the Medes and Persians was the second phase of the times of the Gentiles (the silver chest and arms of the image in Dan. 2). The events in chapter 5 illustrate that God is sovereign and moves according to His predetermined plans. Those events also anticipate the final overthrow of all Gentile world powers that rebel against God and are characterized by moral and spiritual corruption. Such a judgment, anticipated in Psalm 2:4-6 and

9 Herodotus. (1920). Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley (A. D. Godley, Ed.). Medford, MA: Harvard University Press.

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Revelation 19:15-16, will be fulfilled at the Second Advent of Jesus Christ to this earth.” 10 Walvoord writes “The long chapter devoted to this incident which brought the Babylonian Empire to its close is undoubtedly recorded in the Word of God not only for its historic fulfillment of the prophecies relative to the Babylonian Empire but also as an illustration of divine dealing with a wicked world. The downfall of Babylon is in type the downfall of the unbelieving world. In many respects, modern civilization is much like ancient Babylon, resplendent with its monuments of architectural triumph, as secure as human hands and ingenuity could make it, and yet defenseless against the judgment of God at the proper hour. Contemporary civilization is similar to ancient Babylon in that it has much to foster human pride but little to provide human security. Much as Babylon fell on that sixteenth day of Tishri (Oc. 11 or 12) 539 B.C., as indicated in the Nabonidus Chronicle, so the world will be overtaken by disaster when the day of the Lord comes (1 Th 5:1-3). The disaster of the world, however, does not overtake the child of God; Daniel survives the purge and emerges triumphant as one of the presidents of the new kingdom in chapter 6.” 11 The Babylonians learned through personal experience that the God of Israel is their judge and does execute judgments against those who violate His laws. God has authority to judge since He is the creator. The Scriptures teach of God’s status as judge (Psalm 75:7; cf. Psalm 50:6; 76:8-9; Ecclesiastes 11:9; Isaiah 33:22; 66:16; 2 Timothy 4:8; Hebrews 12:23; James 4:12). God also decides disputes (Judges 11:27; cf. Genesis 16:5; 31:53; 1 Samuel 24:15; Isaiah 2:4; Micah 4:3; James 5:9). He presides in the heavenly court in the third heaven (Isaiah 3:13; cf. Psalm 50:4; 82:1; Daniel 7:9-10; Joel 3:12; Revelation 20:11-15). God is judge over the whole of creation. He judges the inhabitants of the earth (Genesis 18:25; cf. Psalm 9:8; 58:11; 82:8; 94:2; 96:13; 98:9). God judges every individual (Ezekiel 33:20; cf. Ecclesiastes 3:17; Hebrews 9:27; 1 Peter 4:5; Jude 15; Revelation 20:12). He judges the nations (Joel 3:12; cf. Psalm 9:19-20; 110:6; Obadiah 15; Zephaniah 3:8). God judges rulers of nations (Isaiah 40:23; Jeremiah 25:17-27; Revelation 6:15-17). He also judges His own people in the sense that He disciplines them as His children (Hebrews 10:30; cf. Deuteronomy 32:36; Psalm 78:62; Jeremiah 1:16; 1 Peter 4:17). God will judge the fallen angels (2 Peter 2:4; Jude 6). He judges Satan (Genesis 3:14-15; Matthew 25:41; 1 Timothy 3:6; Revelation 20:10). God’s judgment is inescapable in that no one can hide from Him (Obadiah 4; cf. Genesis 3:8-9; Job 11:20; Jeremiah 11:11; Amos 9:1-4). He searches human hearts

10 Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., & Dallas Theological Seminary. (1985). The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Da 5:29–31). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. 11 Walvoord, John F. Daniel: The Key to Prophetic Revelation; page 131; Moody Press; Chicago; 1971

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(Jeremiah 17:10; cf. 1 Chronicles 28:9; Psalm 7:9; Proverbs 5:21; Jeremiah 11:20). God reveals secrets (Romans 2:16; cf. Ecclesiastes 12:14; Jeremiah 16:17; 1 Corinthians 4:5; Hebrews 4:13). God judged the inhabitants of the antediluvian period by sending a world-wise flood (Genesis 6:7, 13, 17; 7:21-23). He has judged individuals both believers and unbelievers (Genesis 4:9-12 Cain; Acts 5:3- 10 Ananias and Sapphira; Acts 13:8-11 Elymas the sorcerer). He judged families (Joshua 7:24-25 of Achan; 1 Samuel 3:12-13 of Eli). He has judged cities (Genesis 19:24-25 Sodom and Gomorrah; Joshua 6:24 Jericho). He has judged nations (Deuteronomy 7:1-5 the Canaanite nations). He has judged rulers of nations (2 Chronicles 26:16-21 Uzziah; Daniel 4:31-33 Nebuchadnezzar; Daniel 5:22-30 Belshazzar; Acts 12:22-23 Herod). God judges His own people (Judges 2:11-15; 2 Chronicles 36:15-20; Isaiah 33:22). God reveals His holy character through His righteous judgments. By judging men and angels He reveals his sovereignty (Psalm 9:7; 96:10; 99:4; Ezekiel 6:14), His power (Exodus 6:6; 14:31; Ezekiel 20:33-36; Revelation 18:8), His holiness (Leviticus 10:1-3; 1 Samuel 6:19-20; Ezekiel 28:22; Revelation 16:5), His righteous indignation (Nahum 1:2-3; Romans 2:5), His truth (Psalm 96:13; Romans 2:2; Revelation 16:7), His impartiality (2 Chronicles 19:7; Romans 2:9- 11; Colossians 3:25; 1 Peter 1:17), His compassion (Lamentations 3:31-33; Hosea 11:8-9; John 3:10; 4:2), His patience (Numbers 14:18; Nehemiah 9:30; 2 Peter 3:9), and His mercy (Nehemiah 9:31; Job 9:15; Psalm 78:38; Micah 7:18). God the Father has awarded power and authority over all creation and every creature to the incarnate Son of God, Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, because of His substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. Philippians 2:5 Everyone continue thinking this (according to humility) within yourselves, which was also in (the mind of) Christ Jesus, 6 Who although existing from eternity past in the essence of God, He never regarded existing equally in essence with God an exploitable asset. 7 On the contrary, He denied Himself of the independent function of His deity by having assumed the essence of a slave when He was born in the likeness of men. 8 In fact, although He was discovered in outward appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by having entered into obedience to the point of spiritual death even death on a Cross. 9 For this very reason in fact God the Father has promoted Him to the highest-ranking position and has awarded to Him the rank, which is superior to every rank. 10 In order that in the sphere of this rank possessed by Jesus every person must bow, celestials and terrestrials and sub- terrestrials. 11 Also, every person must publicly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord for the glory of God the Father. (Author’s translation) Because the Lord Jesus Christ controls history as sovereign ruler of history, He has the authority to conduct the following judgments and evaluations in the future.

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The humanity of Christ in hypostatic union has been awarded the sovereign rulership over the entire cosmos for His voluntary substitutionary spiritual death on the cross and as a result has been awarded by God the Father the power and authority to preside over and conduct the following judgments: (1) Bema Seat Evaluation: Takes place at the Rapture of the Church and is the evaluation of the Church Age believer’s life after salvation (Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:24). (2) Israel: Takes place at the Second Advent and is the removing unregenerate Israel from the earth leaving only regenerate Israel to enter into the Millennial reign of Christ (Ezek. 20:37-38; Zech. 13:8-9; Mal. 3:2-3, 5; Matt. 25:1-30). (3) Gentiles: Takes place at the Second Advent and is for the purpose of removing unregenerate, anti-Semitic Gentiles from the earth (Matt. 25:31-46). (4) Fallen Angels: Takes place at the end of the appeal trial of Satan which runs co-terminus with human history and is execution of Satan and the fallen angels sentence for the pre-historic rebellion against God (1 Cor. 6:3; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6; Rev. 20:10). (5) Great White Throne: Takes place at the end of human history and is the judgment of all unregenerate humanity in human history for the rejection of Christ as Savior (Rev. 20:11-15). The following groups of regenerate human beings throughout human history will be subjected to an eschatological compulsory evaluation that the victorious, resurrected incarnate Son of God as Sovereign Ruler of the entire cosmos will conduct: (1) OT saints in heaven who lived during the dispensation of the Gentiles (Adam to the Exodus). (2) OT saints in heaven that lived during the dispensation of Israel (Exodus to 1st Advent). (3) All Church Age believers (Day of Pentecost to the Rapture). (4) Regenerate Jews who will live during the Tribulation (Post- Rapture to the Second Advent). (5) Regenerate Gentiles who will live during the Tribulation (Post-Rapture to the Second Advent). (6) Regenerate Jews and Gentiles who will live during the Millennial reign of Christ (Second Advent to Gog and Magog Rebellion). The following groups of unregenerate human beings throughout human history will be subjected to an eschatological compulsory judgment that the resurrected incarnate Son of God as Sovereign Ruler of the entire cosmos will conduct: (1) Unbelievers who lived during the dispensation of the Gentiles (Adam to the Exodus). (2) Unbelievers who lived during the dispensation of the Jews (Exodus to the 1st Advent). (3) Unbelievers who lived during the Church Age (Day of Pentecost to Rapture). (4) Unbelievers who lived during the Tribulation (Post- Rapture to Second Advent). (5) Unbelievers who lived during the Millennium (Second Advent to Gog Rebellion). All fallen angels including Satan himself have already been subjected to a judgment before human history but the execution of that sentence has been delayed because the Supreme Court of Heaven granted Satan and the fallen angels an

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 23 appeal trial, which runs co-terminus with human history. The elect angels do not come under judgment for the very same reason that regenerate human beings do not come under judgment because they have exercised personal faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. Every regenerate human being in every dispensation of human history must at some point in the future submit to an evaluation of their lives after salvation which will be conducted by the resurrected and sovereign humanity of Christ in hypostatic union. Regenerate Israel who lived during the Age of Israel and Tribulation period will evaluated at the Second Advent (Ezek. 20:37-38; Zech. 13:8-9; Mal. 3:2-3, 5; Matt. 25:1-30). Regenerate Gentiles who lived during the Age of the Gentiles and Tribulation period will be evaluated at the Second Advent (Matt. 25:31-46). Church Age believers will be evaluated at the Bema Seat Evaluation of Christ (Rom. 14:10; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:24). Regenerate Jews and Gentiles who lived during the Millennium will be subjected to a judgment at the conclusion of human history (Rev. 20:15). Every unregenerate human being in every dispensation of human history must submit to a judgment, which will also be conducted by the resurrected and sovereign incarnate Son of God at the Great White Throne Judgment (Rev. 20:11- 15). Every fallen angel has already been judged and sentenced to the Lake of Fire by the Supreme Court of Heaven before human history. The execution of that sentence will not be carried out until the conclusion of the appeal trial of Satan and the fallen angels (Rev. 20:10).

Habakkuk 2:4

The Arrogance of the Babylonians

Habakkuk 2:4 “See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.” (NIV) “See, the enemy is puffed up ” is composed of the following: (1) interjection see ” (2) third person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of “ ,( הִ נֵּה) (hin·n ē(h ”. is puffed up“ ,( ﬠָפַל) the verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl The figure of asyndeton is being used here in Habakkuk 2:4 in order to mark a transition from the prologue of this prophecy concerning the judgment of Babylon, which is recorded in Habakkuk 2:2-3 to the content of this prophecy, which is recorded in Habakkuk 2:4-20. The interjection hin·nē(h) means “behold, look, but look, but see” since it is used as a discourse marker to introduce a statement implying emphasis. It draws

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 24 the attention of the reader in order to mark a statement as important to the reader. Like the figure of asyndeton, the interjection hin·n ē(h) is also serving to mark a transition in the book from the prologue of this prophecy concerning the judgment of Babylon to the content of this prophecy. This word also emphasizes the beginning of the content of this prophecy and serves to gain the attention of the reader in order to mark this prophecy as extremely important to them. For the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day it would reassure them that the Lord would deal with the unrepentant sinful behavior of the Babylonians in His perfect timing. The third person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of the verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl is being used here in Habakkuk 2:4 in a figurative or metaphorical sense for a ( ﬠָפַל) person with a big or swollen head, and thus it describes a person who is proud and arrogant. in ( לﬠָפַ ) Gary V. Smith commenting on the meaning of this verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl Habakkuk 2:4, writes “The vb. metaphorically pictures the person with a high or swollen head. The Israelites who initially refused to go into Canaan because of the spies’ report realized their mistake and, being puffed up about their own abilities, be , ﬠָפַל ] presumptuously tried to possess it (Num 14:44 [hi.]; || Deut 1:43 , יָהִ יר presumptuous, #2326]). The greedy and violent Babylonians are called puffed up (2:4 [q.]), about their military , ﬠָפַל excessively haughty (Hab 2:5) and power.”12 Ray Clendenen writes “The second word, ʿup ĕlâ (“swollen”), appears only here but appears to be a passive verb (either Pual or Qal passive). It appears in the Hiphil stem in Num 14:44 with the meaning to ‘dare’ or ‘presume.’ Andersen describes its sense there as ‘presumptuous defiance of the LORD ’s command arising from self-trust and leading to death.’13 A related word is ʿōpel, a “swelling” or ‘tumor’ (Deut 28:27; 1 Sam 5:6, 9, 12; 6:4). So a meaning such as “puffed up” or ‘swollen’ would be reasonable.’14 ”15 The referent of the third person feminine singular of this verb is the one who is by no means characterized as being upright or in other words, the person who is by no means characterized by righteousness or the practice of it. Specifically, the .is the Babylonians ( ﬠָפַל) referent of this verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl Therefore, the third person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of the describes the souls of the Babylonians as being “swollen up” in ( ﬠָפַל) verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl hi. hiphil || parallel with q. qal 12 VanGemeren, W. (Ed.). (1997). New international dictionary of Old Testament theology & exegesis (Vol. 3, p. 470). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House. 13 Andersen, Habakkuk , 209. 14 Andersen concludes that the meaning “swollen” carries the sense “proud” or “arrogant” (ibid.). For several suggestions involving emendations, see J. A. Emerton, “Textual and Linguistic Problems of Habakkuk II.4–5,” JTS 28 (1977) 13–17. 15 Clendenen, E. R. (2014). Salvation by Faith or by Faithfulness in the Book of Habakkuk ? Bulletin for Biblical Research , 24 (4), 507.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 25 the sense that they are “swollen” with pride and arrogance, or in other words, they have a “big head.” The pual stem of this verb means that the subject is receiving an action. Here the subject is the person who is proud and arrogant. The action that they are receiving is that of never practicing righteousness. Therefore, this indicates that the proud and arrogant person receives the action of never practicing righteousness. In other words, the pual stem of this indicates that the proud and arrogant person is made proud and arrogant by never practicing righteousness. Also, the pual stem of this verb is iterative indicating repeated or habitual action or something that characterizes a person. Therefore, this indicates that the Babylonians are made proud and arrogant by the fact that they are characterized as never practicing righteousness. The perfect conjugation of this verb describes a present state resulting from a previously completed action. Here it describes the proud and arrogant state of the Babylonians as a result of never practicing righteousness.

The Unrighteousness of the Babylonians

Habakkuk 2:4 “See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.” (NIV) “His desires are not upright ” is composed of the following: (1) negative not ” (2) third person feminine singular qal perfect conjugation of “ ,( לֹא) particle lōʾ are upright ” (3) masculine singular construct form of the“ ,( יָשַׁ ר) the verb yā·š ǎr desires ” (4) third person masculine singular pronominal suffix“ ,( נֶפֶשׁ) noun ně·p̄ ěš which is not translated (6) third person ,( בְּ ) his ” (5) preposition b “ ,( הוּא) hû ʾ .which is not translated ,( הוּא) masculine singular pronominal suffix hû ʾ ”means “soul ( נֶפֶשׁ) The masculine singular construct form of the noun ně·p̄ ěš since the word pertains to the part of the person that thinks, feels, wills and desires. It refers to the soul which contains volition, mentality, conscience, self- conscientiousness and emotions. In other words, it speaks of the invisible essence of a human being which is created in the image of God. The construct state of this noun ně·p̄ ěš indicates that the word is grammatically ”,his“ ,( הוּא) bound to the third person masculine singular pronominal suffix hûʾ which follows it, expressing a genitive relation between each other. In other words, the former governs the latter. The latter refers of course to the soul of a Babylonian. The genitive relation between these two words is possession which indicates that this soul belongs to the one who is by no means unrighteous, which in context we have noted is a reference to the Babylonians. which means ,( הוּא) The third person masculine singular pronominal suffix hû ʾ “him” referring to the one who is by no means righteous, which is a reference to

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 26 the Babylonians. Specifically, it speaks of the bodies of the Babylonians since the which means “in” since it functions as a ,( בְּ ) word is the object of the preposition b marker of location indicating the bodies of the Babylonians is the location of their souls. The third person feminine singular qal perfect conjugation of the verb yā·š ǎr which means “to be right” since the word pertains to being in a state of ,( יָשַׁ ר) conformance with justice, custom, law or morality. Specifically, it speaks of the state of person fulfilling their obligation to both God and one’s fellow human being. is functioning here as a marker of emphatic ( לֹא) The negative particle lōʾ negation indicating that the souls of the Babylonians are by no means righteous within them. Therefore, these two words indicate that the Babylonians are by no means characterized as being upright or in other words, righteous. The qal stem of this verb is stative expressing the state of the unrighteous state of the souls of the Babylonian citizenry. The perfect conjugation of this verb is a characteristic present used to describe the subject’s characteristic actions or attitudes. Therefore, it is used to describe the souls of the Babylonian citizenry as by no means being characterized by righteousness.

The Righteous Person Shall Live by His Faith

Habakkuk 2:4 “See, the enemy is puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.” (NIV) “But the righteous person will live by his faithfulness ” is composed of the but ” (2) masculine singular adjective ṣaddîq“ ,( וְ ) following: (1) conjunction w by ” (4) feminine singular“ ,( בְּ ) the righteous person ” (3) preposition b “ ,( צַדִּ יק) faithfulness ” (5) third person“ ,( אֱמוּנָה) (construct form of the noun ʾěmû·n ā(h his ” (6) third person masculine“ ,( הוּא) masculine singular pronominal suffix hû ʾ ”. will live“ ,( חָיָה) (singular qal imperfect conjugation of the verb ḥā·y ā(h The conjunction w is a marker of an emphatic contrast because it introduces a statement which stands in direct contrast with the previous two statements. The adjective ṣaddîq means “the righteous” since the word pertains to a person who is characterized by righteous words and actions, which are the result of obeying the command to love God with one’s entire being and love your neighbor as yourself. The third person masculine singular qal imperfect conjugation of the verb which means “to live” in the sense of experiencing eternal life and ,( חָיָה) (ḥā·y ā(h

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 27 does not mean “to live” in the sense of surviving the Babylonian invasions in 605, 597 and 586 B.C. is stative expressing the state of a ( חָיָה) (The qal stem of this verb ḥā·y ā(h member of the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day experiencing eternal life. The imperfect conjugation of this verb describes an event without having the end of the event in view and the action may or may not be finished or it may simply be described that way. The event many be present from the speaker’s perspective or the event may be in the past from the speaker’s perspective or the future or even future from a past point of view. ( חָיָה) (Here in Habakkuk 2:4 the imperfect conjugation of this verb ḥā·y ā(h describes the righteous member of the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day experiencing eternal life by means of their faith in the Lord’s promises as taking place in the future from the perspective of Habakkuk when he received this revelation from the Lord. means ( אֱמוּנָה) (The feminine singular construct form of the noun ʾěmû·n ā(h “faith” since the word pertains to a strong confidence in and reliance upon someone with the object of trust understood. It speaks here exercising confidence and reliance upon the promises of the Lord God of Israel. indicates that the ( תּוֹכַחַת) ( אֱמוּנָה) (The construct state of the noun ʾěmû·n ā(h word is grammatically bound to the third person masculine singular pronominal his ,” which follows it, expressing a genitive relation between“ ,( הוּא) suffix hû ʾ each other. In other words, the former governs the latter. The latter refers of course a member of the faithful remnant of Judah in the prophet Habakkuk’s day. The genitive relation between these two words is possession which indicates that this faith belongs to a member of the faithful remnant of Judah in 605 B.C. is the object of the ( תּוֹכַחַת) ( אֱמוּנָה) (The construct state of the noun ʾěmû·n ā(h which means “by, by means of” since the word is functioning as ,( בְּ ) preposition b a marker of means indicating the means by which a member of the faithful remnant of Judah will experiencing eternal life. Therefore, this prepositional phrase indicates that a member of the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day will live in the sense of experiencing eternal life by means of their faith in the promises of God.

Translation of Habakkuk 2:4

Habakkuk 2:4 Look! He is characterized as being proud and arrogant. His soul within him is by no means characterized as being upright. However, in contrast to him, a righteous person will live by means of their faith. (Author’s translation)

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Exposition of Habakkuk 2:4

As we noted in our study of Habakkuk 2:2, this verse begins the fourth major section of the book of Habakkuk which ends in Habakkuk 2:20. The first section was Habakkuk 1:2-4, which records the prophet Habakkuk complaining on behalf of himself and the faithful remnant of Judah that the Lord had failed to judge the unrepentant, apostate individuals in the southern kingdom of Judah. However, the second section in Habakkuk 1:5-11 records the Lord’s response to these complaints by asserting that He will send the Babylonians as His instruments to judge these unrepentant, apostate individuals in the southern kingdom of Judah. The third section of the book is found in Habakkuk 1:12-17, which records Habakkuk questioning the Lord’s choice of the Babylonians as His instrument of judgment to discipline the apostate citizenry of the southern kingdom of Judah in 605 B.C. Now, the fourth section recorded in Habakkuk 2:2-20 contains the Lord’s response to Habakkuk’s argument and records the Lord’s decision to judge the Babylonian empire in the future for their unrepentant sinful behavior. Habakkuk 2:2-3 form a prologue presenting the context for this vision and Habakkuk 2:4-20 contains the content of this vision. Therefore, Habakkuk 2:4 is a transitional statement because it marks the beginning of the content of this prophecy regarding the destruction of the Babylonian Empire. This verse contains three assertions. The first two are describing the Babylonians, which is indicated by both the immediate, preceding and following context since the statements recorded in Habakkuk 2:5-20 and Habakkuk 1:12-17 describe the Babylonians. The third assertion describes the faithful remnant in the southern kingdom of Judah in Habakkuk’s day in 605 B.C. This is indicated by the fact that those who are described in this assertion are said to be righteous, which in the Old Testament describes a person who has been declared justified by faith in the Lord (cf. Gen. 15:6). Consequently, they been entered into a covenant relationship with the Lord through this faith. Now, in the first assertion there is an interpretative problem we need to address with regard to the third person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of the There is no consensus among scholars and interpreters as to the .( ﬠָפַל) verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl correct meaning of the word here in Habakuk 2:4. The NET Bible interprets the word here to mean “to be faint, to be exhausted.” They write “The meaning of this line is unclear, primarily because of the apélah ). Some read this as an’) ﬠֲפְּ לָה ,uncertainty surrounding the second word afal , “swell”) from which are derived nouns’) לﬠָפַ otherwise unattested verb meaning ‘mound’ and ‘hemorrhoid.’ This ‘swelling’ is then understood in an abstract sense, ‘swell with pride.’ This would yield a translation, ‘As for the proud,

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 29 his desires are not right within him’ (cf. NASB “as for the proud one”; NIV “he is puffed up”; NRSV “Look at the proud!”). A multitude of other interpretations of this line, many of which involve emendations of the problematic form, may be found in the commentaries and periodical literature. The present translation ,alaf , “be faint’) ﬠָלַף assumes an emendation to a Pual form of the verb exhausted”). (See its use in the Pual in Isa 51:20, and in the Hitpael in Amos 8:13 חָיָה and Jonah 4:8.) In the antithetical parallelism of the verse, it corresponds to (khayah , “live”).”16 Richard Patterson writes “Verse 4 confronts the reader with a myriad of upp ĕlâ ) has challenged the best efforts˓) ﬠֻפְּ לָה grammatical and lexical difficulties. 17 ,āpal˓) ﬠָפַל of exegetes. Most commonly the word has been related to the root “swell”) and hence as a pual participle is variously translated ‘puffed up’ (NIV; so also La Sainte Bible, “ enflée ”; cf. La Sacra Biblia, gonfia” [conceited]), ‘proud’ (NASB), ‘arrogant’ (BDB), or ‘stiff-necked/stubborn’ (Die Heilege Schrift, “halsstarrig”). , בּרֹ and נַפְ שׁרֹ Some, citing the difficulty of the masculine singular suffixes BHS) or) ﬠַפָּל or פָּלﬠֻ suggest an emendation to a masculine substantive such as or find , ה fly [away],” i.e., “perish”) and“ , עוף from) ﬠַף redivide the consonants into a relation with the Arabic gafala (“be heedless”) and translate the word ‘reckless’ ,in the parallel line יִחְ יֶה NEB). 18 Others, feeling the need for a verb to balance) , ālap˓) ﬠָלַף invert the consonants or emend the word to a form of (1) the verb “cover”) translating ‘become weak’ (Humbert), ‘succumb’ (NJB), ‘draw back’ pā˓al , “do/make”) with the idea of) פָּﬠַל LXX), or ‘fail’ (RSV) or (2) the verb) earning punishment (Rudolph). Still others abandon the consonants of the MT and suggest a word from another ﬠָאֵ ל aww āl, “unjust,” hence “the wicked” [Pesh., Tg. Neb.]) or˓) ﬠַוָּל root such as (˓āṣēl, “be sluggish,” hence “slothful” [Aquila, Janzen]), while some simply translate ad sensum ‘unbelievable’ (Vg) or ‘faithless.’19 The problem is difficult, and some abandon any hope of solving it. 20 It seems, however, that one should follow the reading of the MT due both to the criteria of

NASB New American Standard Bible NIV The New International Version NRSV New Revised Standard Version (1989) 16 Biblical Studies Press. (2005). The NET Bible First Edition; Bible. English. NET Bible.; The NET Bible . Biblical Studies Press. 17 For details, see J. A. Emerton, “Textual and Linguistic Problems of Habakkuk 2:4–5, ” JTS 28 (1977): 1-18. be foolhardy,” “act rashly”; see Marcus Jastrow, A Dictionary of the“ הֶﬠְפִּ יל With the Arabic root one may also compare the late Hebrew 18 Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature (New York: Pardes, 1950), 2:1100. For the division of the Hebrew .see Emerton, “Linguistic Problems,” pp. 16–17 , ﬠַף and ה noun in MT into 19 See the Preliminary and Interim Report on the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project (New York: United Bible Societies, 1980), 5:356. The reading of the Pesh. and the Tg. Neb. underscores the possibility of an emendation to “the wicked” here, an idea supported by the occurrence of together with the concept of wickedness elsewhere (e.g., Deut. 32:4; cf. Ps. 92:15 [HB 92:16]). A similar proposal ישׁר and צדק forms of the roots may have fallen out due to haplography (so Wellhausen). W. H. Brownlee (“The Placarded Revelation of Habakkuk,” JBL ﬠַוָּל is that an original , העול עפל and then with redivision yielding ﬠַוָּל but with the interpolation of a following ﬠֻפְּ לָה suggests the retaining of the MT (322-24 :[1963] 82 “the haughty is naughty”! 20 W. H. Ward ( A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Habakkuk, ICC (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1911], p. 14 n.) pronounces the whole line “corrupt past safe reconstruction.”

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 30 textual criticism (prefer the more difficult reading 21 and consider the evidence of ,and to the fact that the traditional text ( עופלה :1QpHab, which follows the MT though obscure, can be explained. Provisionally, then, the MT can be translated ‘arrogant’ or the like.’”22 This author is in agreement with Patterson that the MT reading should be followed because it is the most difficult reading and is found in the Dead Sea Scrolls (1 QpHab) which are dated well before the LXX. Therefore, the third is being ( ﬠָפַל) person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of the verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl used here in Habakkuk 2:4 in a figurative or metaphorical sense for a person with a big or swollen head, and thus it describes a person who is proud and arrogant. Therefore, the first assertion about the Babylonians in Habakkuk 2:4 is that they are characterized as being proud and arrogant. O. Palmer Robertson writes “This condition of self-exaltation and personal esteem brings with it certain consequences. Such an individual cannot be upright in himself. His own pride of person condemns him. This position of pride and self- reliance also excludes from the proud the possibility of finding a righteousness outside himself. For he has presumed to define himself as the source of his own goodness. The consequence of such self-exaltation is seen concretely at another point in the case of Israel’s ‘acting presumptuously’ (ʿpl —Num. 14:44; cf. Deut. 1:43). They were beaten mercilessly by their enemies because they presumed that in themselves they possessed adequate resources for victory. So by these words of Habakkuk Scripture makes it plain that the proud cannot be upright. As a consequence, neither can they live. They must experience condemnation and judgment. To Habakkuk it may seem that the boisterous, boastful Chaldeans shall continue to prosper. Yet the fact that their soul is not upright in them should be an adequate indicator of their ultimate judgment.”23 Pride is often emphasized as the cardinal sin of the nations, resting in their own power and opposing Yahweh (e.g., Isa 14:13–15; Jer 48:29; Ezek 28:1; compare note on Isa 2:12–18). 24 In the Scriptures, pride is a great evil because it involves pretending to a greatness and glory that belongs rightly to God alone. It is condemned as evil (1 Samuel 15:23; Proverbs 21:4; James 4:16; cf. Mark 7:22-23; Romans 1:29-30; 2 Corinthians 12:20; 2 Timothy 3:1-2; 1 John 2:16). It is a characteristic of Satan (Ezekiel 28:2; 1 Timothy 3:6; cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:4, the antichrist).

21 See E. Würthwein, The Text of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1979), pp. 116–17; C. E. Armerding, The Old Testament and Criticism (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1983), p. 126. 22 Patterson, R. D. (2003). Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (pp. 196–197). Biblical Studies Press. 23 Robertson, O. P. (1990). The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah (pp. 174–175). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co. 24 Barry, J. D., Mangum, D., Brown, D. R., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Ritzema, E., … Bomar, D. (2012, 2016). Faithlife Study Bible (Ob 3). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

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There are warnings about pride in the book of Proverbs (Proverbs 16:5, 18; cf. Proverbs 3:7, 34; 6:16-17; 11:2; 25:6-7, 27; 26:12; 27:1; 29:23) as well as elsewhere in Scripture (Psalm 119:21; cf. Leviticus 26:19). God is said to be opposed to the proud (1 Peter 5:5; James 4:6; Proverbs 3:34). Arrogance is an attitude of the heart (Mark 7:21-22; cf. Job 35:12; Psalm 10:2- 11; 73:3-12; 86:14; 94:3-7; Malachi 3:15; Romans 1:28-31). It arises from self- confidence (Isaiah 9:9-10; Daniel 4:29-30; Revelation 18:7; cf. Exodus 15:9; 1 Kings 20:11; 2 Kings 14:10; 2 Chronicles 25:19; Isaiah 28:15; Ezekiel 16:49; Hosea 12:8; Habakkuk 2:4-5; Luke 18:9; Acts 8:9-10; 2 Peter 2:10-12). Arrogance expresses itself in words (Psalm 17:10; 119:51; James 3:5; cf. 1 Samuel 2:3; Psalm 31:18; 119:69; 123:4; Proverbs 17:7; 21:24; Jeremiah 43:1-2). Arrogance is essentially rebellion against God (Deuteronomy 1:43; 1 Samuel 15:23; cf. Nehemiah 9:16-17,29; Job 36:8-9; Psalm 5:5; 119:85; Hosea 5:4-5; 7:10; Zephaniah 3:1-4). It may even be found in the church (2 Corinthians 12:20; cf. 1 Corinthians 4:18; 1 Timothy 6:17). The Christian should reject arrogance (Proverbs 8:13; Jeremiah 9:23-24; cf. Jeremiah 13:15; Romans 11:20; 1 Corinthians 1:28-31; 4:7; 13:4; Ephesians 2:8-9). God punishes the arrogant whether they are a believer or a non-believer (Isaiah 2:17-18; Exodus 18:11; 1 Samuel 15:23). There are several examples of pride in the Bible and the most notable are Satan (Ezek. 28:11-19; Is. 14:12-14), and Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 4). Daniel 4:1 “King Nebuchadnezzar, to each and every person belonging to the nations, ethnicities and language groups, who are living throughout the entire earth: May your prosperity increase! 2 It is pleasing to me to make known the miraculous signs, yes, and wondrous signs at that, which the Most High God performed on my behalf. 3 How great are His miraculous signs! Indeed, how great are His wondrous signs! His kingdom is eternal. In other words, His governmental dominion is from generation to generation. 4 I myself, Nebuchadnezzar was content in my house, specifically prosperous in my palace. 5 I saw a dream, which caused me to be frightened, specifically revelations on my bed. Indeed, visions in my mind caused me to be terrified. 6 Therefore, from me a command was issued for the purpose of causing each and every one of the city of Babylon’s wise men to be brought into my presence in order that they could make known to me the dream’s interpretation. 7 So when the occult priests, necromancers, astrologers as well as diviners entered, I communicated the content of the dream before them but they could not make its interpretation known to me. 8 Then Daniel entered my presence whose name was Belteshazzar according to my god’s name and in addition one who possesses God’s Holy Spirit in him. Next, I communicated the content of the dream before him. 9 ‘O Belteshazzar, chief over the wise

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 32 men, because I myself know personally that God’s Holy Spirit is in you so that any mystery is by no means too difficult for you, please consider the content of my dream, which I saw. Also, please communicate its interpretation. 10 Now, concerning the visions in my mind on my bed, I was in a trance like state staring as behold a tree was in the midst of the earth. In fact, its height was enormous. 11 The tree became enormous so that it was strong. Indeed, its height reached to the heavens so that it was visible as far as the extremity of the whole earth. 12 Its foliage was beautiful. Also, its fruit was abundant so that food was in it for the benefit of all. The beasts of the field found shade under it. Also, the birds of the sky lived in its branches. Indeed, each and every living creature was fed from it. 13 I was in a trance like state staring because of the visions in my mind on my bed as behold a watchman, yes a holy one descended out from the heavens. 14 He publicly proclaimed with authority and said “Cut down the tree! Also, lop off its branches! Strip off its foliage! Furthermore, scatter its fruit! Let the beasts flee out from under it as well as the birds from its branches! 15 Nevertheless, leave intact in the ground, the taproot which produces its roots but with a band composed of iron as well as bronze in the midst of the wild grass produced by the open field. Also, let it be drenched with the dew from heaven as well as its dwelling place among the beasts in the grass produced by the field. 16 Let his mind be transformed from a human being. Instead let a beast’s mind be given to him. Then, let seven years pass by for him. 17 This sentence is by the Watchmen’s decree yes this decision is a command from the Holy Ones in order that the human race would admit that the Most High is the sovereign authority over mankind’s realm. Therefore, He can give it to whomever He desires. He can even establish ordinary men over it.” 18 This is the dream I myself, King Nebuchadnezzar saw. Now, as for you, O Belteshazzar, please communicate the interpretation because each and every one of the wise men belonging to my kingdom is absolutely unable to make known to me the interpretation. However, in contrast to them, you are able because God’s Holy Spirit is in you.’ 19 Then Daniel, whose name is Belteshazzar, was shocked for a brief period of time so that his thoughts caused him to be terrified. The king responded and said, ‘Belteshazzar, don’t let the content of the dream as well as the interpretation cause you to be terrified.’ Belteshazzar replied and said

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‘May the content of the dream be against those who hate you, indeed, its interpretation against your enemies. 20 The tree, that you saw which became enormous so that it was strong, indeed, whose height reached to the heavens so that it was visible throughout the entire earth 21 and in addition whose foliage was beautiful as well as its fruit was abundant so that food was in it for the benefit of all, under it, the beasts of the field lived as well as in its branches, the birds of the sky nested- 22 it is you O king! For you have become enormous so that you are strong. Indeed, your greatness has become enormous so that it has reached to the heavens in the sense that, your governmental authority extends to the extremity of the earth. 23 Moreover, in view of the fact that the king saw a watchman, yes a holy one descending out from the heavens and saying “Cut down the tree! In other words, destroy it however leave intact in the ground, the taproot which produces its roots but with a band composed of iron as well as bronze in the midst of the wild grass produced by the open field. Also, let it be drenched with the dew from heaven as well as its dwelling place among the beasts in the grass produced by the field until seven years pass by for him, 24 this is the interpretation to follow O king. Specifically, the decree is from the Most High which has been issued against my lord the king. 25 Namely that you will be driven away from mankind so that your dwelling place will be among the beasts of the field. You will even be fed grass like cattle. Furthermore, you will be drenched with the dew from heaven. Indeed, for your benefit, seven years will pass by until you acknowledge that the Most High is the sovereign authority over mankind’s realm so that He can give it to whomever He desires. 26 However, in view of the fact that they decreed to leave intact the tree’s taproot, which produces its roots, your kingdom will be restored to you when you acknowledge the Heavens rule. 27 Therefore, O king let my advice be acceptable to you: Please substitute your sins with righteousness, specifically your iniquities by demonstrating mercy to the poor. Then, your prosperity will be prolonged.’ 28 Each and every detail took place for the benefit of Nebuchadnezzar the king. 29 At the end of twelve months, he was walking about on the roof of the city of Babylon’s royal palace. 30 The king posed a rhetorical question to himself and said, “Is this not the great Babylon, which I myself have built her for a royal residence by means of my mighty military power as well as for the praise of my greatness?” 31 While the statement was in the king’s mouth, a voice came down from the heavens: “We declare to you, King Nebuchadnezzar: Sovereignty has been taken away from you! 32 Specifically, you will be driven away from mankind so that your dwelling place will be among the beasts of the field. You will be fed grass like cattle. Indeed, for your benefit, seven years will pass by until you acknowledge that the Most High is

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 34 the sovereign authority over mankind’s realm so that He can give it to whomever He desires.” 33 At that very moment, the command was executed for the benefit of Nebuchadnezzar. Consequently, he was driven away from mankind. He even habitually ate grass like cattle. Furthermore, he was continually drenched with the dew from heaven until his hair became extremely long like eagle’s feathers likewise his nails like a bird’s claws. (Author’s translation) Daniel 4:30 records what the king said to himself when this sentence against him was executed by God. The king poses a rhetorical question to himself which from his perspective demanded an emphatic affirmation. This indicates that Nebuchadnezzar was expressing his great pride by boasting of the city of Babylon as his personal possession and a reflection of his power and glory. In this boast, he describes the city of Babylon as great in the sense that the city was preeminent among the cities of the world at that time, which it was. He says that he built her, which is not true since Nimrod built the city originally. However, he did build her into a great city, which is true. This is what he is saying. He is not claiming he built her originally but that he built her into the greatest city on the earth at that time. He built her into the greatest city in the world at that time for two purposes. The first was for his royal residence and the second was for the praise of his greatness meaning he wanted the city to reflect his greatness as a human being in the sense that he wanted the city to demonstrate that he was the greatest man on the earth at that time. Nebuchadnezzar says that his mighty military power was the means by which he accomplished both purposes. His mighty military power enabled him to accomplish these two purposes because he exacted tribute from those nations he defeated on the battlefield and subjugated to himself. This wealth from these nations would be brought to the city of Babylon the capital of Nebuchadnezzar’s empire. This city would then grow and expand immensely as a result of so much money and possessions in the city’s treasury. The pride and arrogance of the Babylonians is first mentioned in the book of Habakkuk in Habakkuk 1:7 and 10. Habakkuk 1:7 They are terrifying as well as feared. They determine for themselves their own justice as well as their own authority. (Author’s translation) Habakkuk 1:7 contains three more descriptions of the Babylonians. The first asserts that they were terrifying and the second asserts that they were feared. These two descriptions solemnly emphasize with Habakkuk and the faithful remnant of Judah that the Babylonians terrified those nations and peoples whom they attacked. Thus, they struck fear in these peoples and nations. The third description of the Babylonians is that they determined for themselves their own justice as well as their own authority. In other words, they recognized themselves as the supreme

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 35 authority on earth and did not recognize God’s sovereign authority over them. This is indicated by the cruel treatment of other nations and peoples. In other words, they were a law unto themselves. Or, we could say that they were so proud and arrogant that they consider that anything they did what is right and lawful. Or they were so proud and arrogant that they considered that nothing they did was wrong or unlawful. This third description of the Babylonians in Habakkuk 1:7 which asserts that they determine for themselves their own justice and their own authority or in other words, they were a law unto themselves reveals this nation’s great pride and arrogance. Habakkuk 1:10 Indeed, for their own enjoyment, they repeatedly mock their kings so that rulers are an object of laughter for their enjoyment. They laugh at each and every fortified city while they build siege ramps and then they capture them. (Author’s translation) Now, here in Habakkuk 1:10, the Lord through the prophet Habakuk presents five more descriptions of the Babylonian soldiers which brings us to a total of twenty descriptions of the Babylonians which are contained in Habakkuk 1:5-10. The first description asserts that for their own enjoyment, the Babylonian soldiers repeatedly mock the kings of those whom they had taken prisoner. This assertion advances upon and intensifies the previous description of the Babylonian army in Habakkuk 1:9, which asserts that a multitude of the faces of this army from the east indeed are characterized as gathering prisoners of war like sand. Therefore, a comparison of these two assertions indicates that not only did the Babylonian army gather prisoners of war like sand but they also for their own enjoyment mocked their kings, which was a shocking disrespect for the rulers of other nations. The second description of the Babylonian soldiers in Habakkuk 1:10 presents the result of the first and asserts that rulers are an object of laughter for the enjoyment of the Babylonian soldiers. Therefore, this indicates that the Babylonian soldiers for their own enjoyment laughed at the rulers of those whom they had taken as prisoners of war as a result of repeatedly mocking them for their own enjoyment. The third description of the Babylonian army in Habakkuk 1:10 solemnly states that the Babylonian soldiers laugh at each and every fortified city. The fourth is a temporal clause occurring simultaneously with the third and asserts that the Babylonian soldiers build siege ramps. The fifth and final description of the Babylonian soldiers presents the next chronological sequence after the event described by the third and fourth assertions and states that the Babylonian army captures these fortified cities. Therefore, a comparison of these three assertions indicates that the Babylonian soldiers laugh at each and every fortified city while they simultaneously build siege ramps and then capture these cities (cf. 2 Sam. 20:15; 2 Kings 19:32; Jer. 32:24; Ezek. 17:17).

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The Scriptures and secular historians tells us that the Babylonian military were experts at siege warfare (e.g., 2 Sam 20:15; 2 Kgs 19:32; Jer 32:24; Ezek 17:17). Commenting on this, Winfried Corduan writes “Siege warfare—common in Old Testament accounts—was extremely costly both in terms of human lives, provisions, and material, and it was frequently unsuccessful. In order to be successful, a defender must force the aggressor to depart; for the aggressor to be successful, he needs to go through a long and weary process, stage by stage, with no guarantee of achieving his aims anywhere along the line. In addition to the walls and other fortifications already mentioned, many larger fortified cities had walls separating various quarters of the city and an even more fortified citadel. These five descriptions of the Babylonian soldiers in Habakkuk 1:10 reveals their great pride and arrogance. Warren Wiersbe writes “The Babylonians were ‘puffed up’ with pride over their military might and their great achievements. They had built an impressive empire which they were sure was invincible. The words of Nebuchadnezzar express it perfectly: ‘Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for a royal dwelling by my mighty power for the honor of my majesty?’ (Dan. 4:30, NKJV ) But Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians are not the only ones puffed up with pride and self-sufficiency. This is the condition of most of the people in today’s society who belong to the world and live for the world. The Apostle John warns us against ‘the pride [vain glory] of life’ that belongs to this present evil world system which is against God and without God (1 John 2:15–17). Besides puffing them up, what else does pride do to people? It twists them inwardly, for the soul of the unbeliever is ‘not upright,’ which means his inner appetites are crooked and sinful. He delights in the things that God abhors, the things God condemns in the five ‘woes’ in this chapter. One of the chief causes of the corruption in this world is what Peter calls ‘lust’ (2 Peter 1:4), which simply means ‘evil desires, passionate longing.’ Were it not for the base appetites of people, longing to be satisfied but never satisfied, the “sin industries” would never prosper. Pride also makes people restless: they’re never satisfied (Hab. 2:5). That is why they are given over to wine, never at rest, never satisfied. They are constantly seeking for some new experience to thrill them or some new achievement to make them important. Pride makes us greedy. The Babylonians were not satisfied with what they had; they coveted even more land and wealth, and therefore set their course to conquer every nation that stood in their way. More than one king or dictator in history has followed this resolve, only to discover that it leads to disappointment, ruin, and death.”25

25 Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be amazed (pp. 118–119). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

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There is also another interpretative problem we need to address with regard to the second assertion in Habakkuk 2:4 and it involves the meaning of the masculine .( נֶפֶשׁ) singular construct form of the noun ně·p̄ ěš Richard Patterson writes “However broad might be the range of meanings for many passages are best understood in their traditional sense as the seat of 26, נֶפֶ שׁ moral or religious agency (i.e., the soul; e.g., Ex. 23:9; Isa. 26:8–9).27 Therefore, the translation ‘soul’ cannot be dismissed categorically. At this point, however, a does not elsewhere 28 occur נֶפֶשׁ .couple of controlling factors need to be observed לֵב/ בלֵבָ which is usually associated in a moral sense with , ישׁר with the root (l ēb/l ēbāb, “heart”; e.g., 2 Kings 10:15; 2 Chron. 29:34; Pss. 7:10 [HB 7:11]; in him”) rather“) בּרֹ HB 94:16]; 97:11). Accordingly, the following] 94:15 ;32:11 not upright”), as most expositors“) לֹא יָשְׁרָ ה is to be understood with נַפְ שׁרֹ than ,in v. 5 in the sense of ‘appetite’ or ‘desire’ (cf. NJB נֶפֶשׁ suggest. Also, the use of NASB) probably argues for a similar understanding in v. 4 (cf. NIV). Thus the .as ‘soul’ in v. 4 (KJV, NASB, RSV) is probably incorrect נֶפֶשׁ translation of Turning to the first problem, one solution to the difficulty with the masculine suffixes is to propose that the Chaldean, the subject of vv. 6–20, is to be assumed and yields נֶפֶשׁ to agree with יָשְׁרָ ה here (so Keil). This leaves the predicate adjective a translation something like ‘behold. puffed up, his soul is not straight within him.’29 Such a procedure gives tolerable sense and takes account of the apparent .and the following masculine suffixes ﬠֻפְּ לָה incongruity between the feminine as composed of a masculine ﬠֻפְּ לָה Additional possibilities include (1) viewing noun of the qu ṭṭāl type (“arrogance and a masculine singular suffix -ōh (rather than -ô), 30 here functioning as the antecedent of pronominal suffixes in a relative clause 23—”Behold his arrogance whose desire is not upright in him” (i.e., “Behold the ﬠֻפְּ לָה arrogance of him in whom his desire is not upright”)—and (2) understanding as a masculine noun with a masculine singular suffix and viewing all of the suffixes as anticipatory of the Chaldeans of the following discussion: ‘Behold his (the Chaldean’s) arrogance; his desire is not upright in him.’ Any of these explanations can yield a translation compatible with the parameters of the language and faithful to the MT. Keil’s translation has the advantage of taking the text as it stands, but he must supply the antecedent for the suffixes from the demands of the context. He also fails to come to grips although this difficulty could possibly be נֶפֶשׁ satisfactorily with the problem of solved by translating the word as ‘desire.’ The second additional view deals with

26 See the excellent discussion in Wolff, Anthropology , pp. 10–26. 27 Wolff ( Anthropology , pp. 17–18) gives an inclusive list of such passages. 28 Prov. 29:10 seems to indicate that the upright is concerned for his neighbor’s nepeš (but cf. NIV). For an excellent discussion of the difficult second line of this verse, see William McKane, Proverbs (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1970), p. 637. 29 C. F. Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets , COT (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1954), 2:71. 30 For details, see GKC, par. 7b, c; 84c; 91e; cf. Hab. 3:4. .would be resumptive ב See GKC, par. 15e, f; the pronoun with 23

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and takes advantage of the Masoretic accents but, like Keil’s proposal, faces נֶפֶשׁ the problem of finding a satisfactory antecedent for the suffixes. It also depends on The first additional suggestion has the advantage of . ﬠֻפְּ לָה a repointing of accounting for all the linguistic problems but at the expense of repointing the consonants of the MT. The solution tentatively proposed here notes the seeming incongruity between the feminine substantive and the following masculine suffixes by understanding :as a predicate adjective before a relative clause with omitted particle ﬠֻפְּ לָה ‘Arrogant is the one whose desires are not upright’ (lit. “An arrogance is he whose desire is not upright in him”). Thus construed the syntax is much like that of Isa. ,tô ˓ēbâ yib ḥar b ākem ), which the NIV accurately translate) בָּכֶם יִבְ חַר תּרֹﬠֵבָ ה ,41:24 ‘He chooses you’ is detestable.’31 On the whole this seems the easiest solution and has OT literary precedent. Whatever the final solution to the difficulties in the first line, the MT can be translated as it stands, making it hasty to conclude that the text can ‘give no sense.’32 ”33 Ron Clendenen writes “The basic meaning of the noun nepeš is ‘throat’ or ‘neck,’ but it can by extension mean appetite, desire, life, person, self, or soul. 34 The word most likely has the same meaning here as in v. 5, where ‘throat’35 or ‘appetite’ seems to fit best: ‘an arrogant man … enlarges his appetite [ napšô ] like Sheol, and like Death he is never satisfied’ (cf. Prov 27:20). Verse 4a, then, describes a man whose appetite is insatiable, unjust, and wicked. Verse 5 fills out the description. Like the drunkard (for whom wine “betrays”), the arrogant man is never satisfied, ‘never at rest.’ In that sense, he is also like Sheol/Death, always wanting more. The evidence for his insatiable wickedness and arrogance is given in the final couplet (literally): ‘he gathered to him all the nations / he collected to him all the peoples.’ Here is a clue that the Babylonians are the ones primarily in view in this stanza. They are also the wicked in 1:12–17 and thus furnish the closest reasonable antecedent for ‘his appetite in him.’36 That passage also suggests that their insatiability included a lust for violence and death. To call him ‘not upright’ is in context a deliberate understatement, meaning wicked, treacherous.”37 This author interprets the masculine singular construct form of the noun ně·p̄ ěš as meaning “soul” since the word pertains to the part of the person that ( נֶפֶשׁ) thinks, feels, wills and desires. The noun ně·p̄ ěš refers to the soul which contains volition, mentality, conscience, self-conscientiousness and emotions. In other

31 See further A. B. Davidson, Hebrew Syntax , 3d ed. (Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark, 1901), par. 143; 144 and the translation on p. 177. 32 Ward, Habakkuk , p. 14. 33 Patterson, R. D. (2003). Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (pp. 197–198). Biblical Studies Press. 34 Cf. H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament (trans. M. Kohl; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1974) 10–25. “Today we are coming to the conclusion that it is only in a very few passages that the translation ‘soul’ corresponds to the meaning of nepeš ” (p. 10). 35 Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 11. 36 Cf. D. Hunn, “Habakkuk 2.4b in Its Context: How Far Off Was Paul?” JSOT 34 (2009) 223. 37 Clendenen, E. R. (2014). Salvation by Faith or by Faithfulness in the Book of Habakkuk ? Bulletin for Biblical Research , 24 (4), 508.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 39 words, it speaks of the invisible essence of a human being which is created in the image of God. Now, although this word ně·p̄ ěš appears in Habakkuk 2:5 with the meaning of “desire,” the adversative clause in Habakkuk 2:4 would suggest that the meaning in Habakkuk 2:4 is “soul.” This is indicated by the fact that the ( נֶפֶשׁ) of ně·p̄ ěš word is employed with the third person feminine singular qal perfect conjugation whose meaning is emphatically negated by the negative ,( יָשַׁ ר) of the verb yā·š ǎr Together, they stand in an emphatic contrast with the masculine .( לֹא) particle lōʾ which speaks of a righteous person. The emphatic ,( צַדִּ יק) singular adjective ṣaddîq contrast is between the unrighteous Babylonians and the righteous members of the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day. In other words, the contrast is between the unrighteous and righteous and the soul is the seat of the personality of a human being. Therefore, the second assertion in Habakkuk 2:4 describes the soul of the Babylonian as by no means characterized as being upright, that is, they were unrighteous in their souls. Thus, they were by no means characterized by righteousness or the practice of it. Righteousness is fulfilling one’s obligation to both God and one’s fellow human being. The former requires loving God with one’s entire being while the latter requires loving one’s fellow human being as one would like to be treated. As we noted, the third assertion in Habakkuk 2:4 presents an emphatic contrast with the first two statements in the verse. The third statement asserts that the righteous person will live by means of their faith. This is a description of the faithful remnant in Judah in Habakkuk’s day who possessed a covenant relationship through faith in the Lord and were thus declared justified by the Lord (cf. Gen. 15:6). Therefore, the emphatic contrast is between unrighteous Babylonians who live unrighteous lives and the righteous faithful remnant in Judah in Habakkuk’s day who live by means of their faith which produces righteousness in their lives. Thomas Constable writes “This is the key verse in Habakkuk because it summarizes the difference between the proud Babylonians and their destruction, with the humble faith of the Israelites and their deliverance. The issue is trust in God.”38 “The righteous person ” speaks of the faithful remnant of Judah in Habakkuk’s day who were characterized by righteous words and actions as a result of obeying the command to love God with one’s entire being and love your neighbor as yourself. They not only were declared righteous through faith in the Lord but also they were practicing divine righteousness as a result of exercising faith in the

38 Constable, Thomas L., Notes on Habakkuk-2015 Edition , page 18; copyright 2015; Published by Sonic Light: http://www.soniclight.com/ 38

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Lord’s promises. This faith manifested itself in obedience to the commands and prohibitions of the Mosaic Law which governed the spiritual, economic, and social life of the southern kingdom of Judah in Habakkuk’s day in 605 B.C. The reference to living by one’s faith is a reference to experiencing eternal life and does not mean “to live” in the sense of surviving the Babylonian invasions in 605, 597 and 586 B.C. This is indicated by the fact that surviving the Babylonian invasions, only to die in exile would not be any consolation for the one belonging to the faithful remnant in Judah. Also, few would live long enough to return from exile in Babylon. However, those who exercise faith in the Lord’s promises will experience eternal life in the millennial kingdom and in the creation of the new heavens and the new earth. In fact, Habakkuk 2:14 refers to the millennial kingdom. We have one more interpretative issue we need to address here in Habakkuk 2:4 and it is in regard to the feminine singular construct form of the noun ʾěmû·n ā(h) ”.Many scholars, expositors and translations render the word “faithfulness .( אֱמוּנָה) Ray Clendenen writes “In its 49 uses, the semantic range of ʾĕ mũnâ has three foci: faithfulness or trustworthiness, integrity or honesty, and reliability or truthfulness. About half of the uses describe Yahweh and his Torah. In passages identifying characteristics God requires in people, the term most often refers to honesty or integrity (see 2 Kgs 12:15; 22:7). The sins that had ‘built barriers between you and your God’ and ‘made Him hide His face from you’ (Isa 59:2) were especially violence and deceitfulness. ‘No one makes claims justly; / no one pleads [his case] honestly [lit., “with honesty,” ʾĕmũnâ ]” (Isa 59:4). Deceitfulness was also a major concern in Jeremiah: ‘They bent their tongues like their bows; / lies and not integrity [ ʾĕ mũnâ ] prevail in the land’ (Jer 9:3). Jeremiah seems to use the term with the meaning ‘honesty, integrity’ (see also 5:1–3; 7:28). ‘Integrity’ also seems to be the meaning in Proverbs, where 12:17 reads, ‘Whoever speaks the truth [lit., “Whoever testifies with integrity”] declares what is right, / but a false witness, deceit.’ And 12:22 declares, ‘Lying lips are detestable to the LORD , / but faithful people [lit., “doers of integrity”] are His delight’ (also 28:20). Therefore, according to usage , the most likely meaning of ʾĕ mũnâ in Hab 2:4 is not ‘faithfulness’ but ‘integrity.’ Unfortunately, the issue of the meaning of ʾĕ mũnâ in Hab 2:4 is more complex than a simple word study can resolve. For one thing, the LXX of the verse is translated, ‘If he draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him, but the righteous one will live by my πιστις .’39 The Greek word πιστις can mean either ‘faith’ or ‘faithfulness.’ (The word for “my” in “my faith[fulness],” which replaces ‘his’ in

LXX Septuagint 39 The LXX translation of Hab 2:4a does not likely evidence a variant Hebrew text. “Draw back,” ὑποστελλω , is probably a guess based on the meaning of ʾlp , “become faint” (which some Hebrew scholars believe was the original reading). “Have pleasure,” εὐδοκεω , translates a secondary meaning of yāšar , “to please,” although LXX usually uses ἀρεσκω for this meaning.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 41 the Hebrew, 40 is omitted in one LXX manuscript.) In Paul’s quotation of Hab 2:4b in Rom 1:17 and Gal 3:11 he has ‘(but) the righteous one will live by faith.’41 The context in both places makes clear that Paul means ‘faith’ and not ‘faithfulness.’ Mark Seifrid explains that in Rom 1:17 ‘Paul does not understand “faith” as a human quality or virtue [like “faithfulness”]. The context makes this clear. In proclamation (‘from faith’) God’s saving righteousness is revealed and thus effects faith (‘unto faith’ [1:17a]). The righteousness of the one who believes (1:17b) is found in the righteousness of God revealed in the gospel (1:17a).’42 The same is true in the quotation of Hab 2:4 in Heb 10:38, 43 where the author transposes the two clauses (from LXX) to make his argument (lit.): ‘But my righteous one will live by faith; and if he draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him.’ So did Paul and the author of Hebrews not know the Hebrew of Hab 2:4? Or did they see something we are missing? Another complication with our word study is that the root ʾmn , from which ʾĕ mũnâ is derived, has no derivative that means ‘faith.’ In fact, according to James Barr, ‘there is no word in the OT in Hebrew meaning “faith: or “belief”; that is to say, there is no noun form representing nominally the act indicated by the verb he ʾĕ min ‘believe’—a fact which is widely known and acknowledged.’44 If one wanted to say ‘faith, belief, believing’ in Hebrew, the closest one could get would be mivt āḥ, which means ‘trust, reliance’ (13×), or bit ḥâ, bit āḥon , ‘confidence’ (4×), 45 or kesel , kislâ , “confidence” (4×). But especially if the author of Habakkuk is alluding to Gen 15:6, which according to C. F. Keil is ‘impossible to mistake,’46 and wanted to use the root ʾmn , which is found there in its verbal form (“Abram believed [ he ʾĕ min ] the LORD , and He credited it to him as righteousness [ṣĕ dāqâ]”), the closest he could get was ʾĕmũnâ . My proposal is that Habakkuk used ʾĕ mũnâ with the meaning ‘faith,’ which could be inferred from the parallel passage in Gen 15:6. The Hebrew ʾĕ mũnâ seems to mean ‘faith’ in 1QpHab 8:2–3, which is a commentary on Hab 2:4. The phrase could be translated either ‘because of their toil and their faith in the teacher’ or ‘because of their toil and their faithfulness to

and vice) ו which was often mistaken for ,י at the end of the word it modifies. The Hebrew “my” is the letter ו The Hebrew “his” is the letter 40 versa). Cf. J. A. Fitzmyer, To Advance the Gospel: New Testament Studies (2nd ed.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998) 236–41. LXX Septuagint 41 The word δε , “but,” is missing in Gal 3:11, indicating that an author was free to adjust the wording of a quotation to fit his context. 42 Seifrid, “Romans,” 609 (emphasis original). F. Watson, Paul and the Hermeneutics of Faith (London: T. & T. Clark, 2004) 71–75, demonstrates that Rom 1:17 is echoed and amplified in Rom 3:21–22 (“But now, apart from the law, God’s righteousness has been revealed— attested by the Law and the Prophets—that is, God’s righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ, to all who believe”). 43 The quotation begins with Hab 2:3 quoted in Heb 10:37. LXX Septuagint 44 J. Barr, The Semantics of Biblical Language (London: Oxford University Press, 1961) 173. 45 The use of forms of btch might have been rejected because of its use “for a sense of security encouraged by riches, by one’s own power, by armaments; and for a false security as well as a genuine one” (Barr, The Semantics of Biblical Language, 180–81). Cf. Hab 2:18. But note positive uses as well, as in 1 Chr 5:20; Ps 37:3. 46 C. F. Keil, The Twelve Minor Prophets, Commentary on the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1954) 2:73. Cf. R. Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah (WEC; Chicago: Moody, 1991) 222.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 42 the teacher.’ But Barr proposes, ‘To me the presence of the preposition b, which is used with the verb he ʾmin ‘believe’, rather suggests the former.’47 If Barr is correct, we not only have evidence for semantic change, but we also have evidence for the interpretation ‘faith’ in Hab 2:4 at least as early as the second half of the first century B.C., the date usually given to 1QpHab. Another argument for ‘faith’ as the meaning for ʾĕ mũnâ in Hab 2:4 is the context. 48 The topic of v. 3 is the vision, which ‘will not lie. / Though it delays, wait for it, / since it will certainly come and not be late.’ The ‘righteous one,’ then, would be one who waits for, that is, believes, the vision, or the God who gave the vision. He is the one who, like Habakkuk, takes his questions to God and watches for an answer. According to Richard Hays, in Habakkuk ‘the faithful community is enjoined to wait with patience for what they do not see: the appearing of God’s justice.’49 Some scholars point out the significant relationship between ‘faith’ and ‘faithfulness.’ A servant who has faith in his master will likely be faithful to him, and genuine faithfulness will likely stem from faith. Gordon Wenham explains that the response of faith to God’s promises will entail belief, but faith will respond to his commands with obedience. Anytime obedience is found in Scripture, faith is assumed. Likewise unbelief and disobedience are often paired in Scripture (e.g., Deut 9:23). 50 Richard Patterson points out that belief and obedience were Abraham’s response of faith (Heb 11:8: “By faith Abraham … obeyed”). Patterson may go too far, however, when he says that ‘Scriptural precedent thus reinforces the blending of active and passive meanings in ʾĕ mũnâ . The force of the words accordingly becomes all the stronger: a genuinely righteous man will live out his faith in faithful activity.’51 Faith and faithfulness are two distinct qualities; faith is passive, equivalent to belief and truth, while faithfulness is active, equivalent to integrity or loyalty. As Tom Schreiner says, ‘Faith and obedience are distinct, but remain undivided.’”52 The aspect of ʾĕ mũnâ in view in Hab 2:4 seems to be belief or trust, 53 which is the use to which Paul puts the verse in Rom 1:17 and Gal 3:11. For Paul, faith is the passageway to righteousness, and the one who is declared righteous by faith will live. But speaking of righteousness by faith or life by faith are closely related since righteousness produces life. The quotation in Heb 10:38 is close to the

47 Barr, The Semantics of Biblical Language, 202. Similarly, Andersen, Habakkuk , 214; Watson, Paul and the Hermeneutics of Faith , 120–21. 48 Barr agrees with J. C. C. van Dorssen that “within the general context its value is to all intents and purposes that of our ‘faith’ ” ( The Semantics of Biblical Language , 173 n. 1). 49 R. B. Hays, Echoes of Scripture in the Letters of Paul (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1993) 40–41. However, Hays interprets pistis in Romans to refer to “faithfulness.” 50 G. J. Wenham, Faith in the Old Testament (Leicester: Theological Students Fellowship, 1976) 4–5. 51 Patterson, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah , 222. 52 T. R. Schreiner, “The Commands of God,” in Central Themes in Biblical Theology: Mapping Unity in Diversity (ed. S. J. Hafemann and P. R. House; Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007) 71. 53 Robertson ( Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah , 179) considers the “root meaning” of ʾĕ mũnâ to be “steadfastness,” but he considers it to be steadfastness of faith.

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Hebrew in that the emphasis is on the hope that is coming. Andersen concludes, ‘The oracle [in Habakkuk] is addressed to God’s people and will evoke disbelief or trust. Only those who have faith (or who trust in the reliability of God or of his word) will live. To that extent, the Greek versions, including Heb 10:38, have the gist of it.’54 My view of the meaning of ʾĕ mũnâ in Hab 2:4 is in essential agreement with Elizabeth Achtemeier. I say ‘essential’ because she actually defines ʾĕ mũnâ as ‘faithfulness.’ But then she proceeds to define ‘faithfulness’ as ‘faith.’ Habakkuk further makes the affirmation that the relationship with God is fulfilled by ‘faithfulness.’ That does not mean moral steadfastness, rectitude, and earnestness. It does not signify the proper performance of ethical or cultic duties. Rather, faithfulness here means trust, dependence, clinging to God; it means living and moving and having one’s being in him alone; it means relying on him for the breath one draws, for the direction one takes, for the decisions one makes, for the goals one sets, and for the outcome of one’s living.… Faithfulness means placing one’s whole life in God’s hands and trusting him to fulfill it, despite all outward and inward circumstances; despite all personal sin and guilt; despite all psychological and social and physical distortions. Faithfulness is life by God’s power rather than by one’s own (cf. 1 Cor. 1:30–31); and there it is truly life, because it draws its vitality from the living God who is the source of life. 55 ”56 as meaning “faith” rather than ( אֱמוּנָה) (This author interprets noun ʾěmû·n ā(h “faithfulness” because it is by means of “faith” that one obeys God (Heb. 11:8) and thus pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). It is by means of “faith” that one practices righteousness and loves God with one’s entire being and neighbor as oneself and loving God and one’s neighbor constitutes the practice of righteousness (cf. 1 John 2:28-3:10). On the other hand, “faithfulness” is the direct result of habitually exercising faith in God’s promises. It is a description of a person who is characterized by exercising faith in God’s promises. Therefore, “faith” and “faithfulness” are related but distinct since the latter flows from the former. pertains to a strong confidence in and ( אֱמוּנָה) (Therefore, this word ʾěmû·n ā(h reliance upon someone with the object of trust understood. It speaks here of exercising confidence and reliance upon the promises of the Lord God of Israel. Thomas Constable writes “The Hebrew word 'emunah , ‘faith,’ can also mean ‘faithful’ or ‘steadfast.’ It can also mean ‘integrity.’57 Did the Lord mean that the

54 Andersen, Habakkuk , 215. 55 E. Achtemeier, Nahum–Malachi (Interpretation; Atlanta: John Knox, 1986) 46. 56 Clendenen, E. R. (2014). Salvation by Faith or by Faithfulness in the Book of Habakkuk ? Bulletin for Biblical Research , 24 (4), 509–513. 57 Bruce, p. 831.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 44 righteous will live by his trust in God or by being faithful to God, by being a person of integrity? Scripture elsewhere reveals that both meanings are true: trust and integrity. However, in this context ‘faith’ or ‘trust’ seems to be the primary meaning, since the Babylonians did not trust God, whereas the Israelites did. Both the Babylonians and the Israelites, though, had been unfaithful (disloyal or disobedient) to God.”58 Therefore, we can see that the Lord is telling the prophet Habakkuk yes the Babylonians were unrighteous implying that He would judge them eventually as indicated by His statements in Habakkuk 2:5-20 but in contrast to the Babylonians, the faithful remnant in Judah must live by means of their faith in Him. They must do this mind you in light of the imminent Babylonian invasion. The translation of Habakkuk 2:4 in the LXX is quoted three times in the Greek New Testament (cf. Rom. 1:17; Gal. 3:11; Hebrews 10:38). Now, before we look at these passages, we need to compare the MT of Habakkuk 2:4 and the LXX translation of this verse since they are significantly different from each other. Here is the MT of Habakkuk 2:4: hinn ē ʿupp ĕlâ l ōʾ-yošrâ napš ōw bô w ĕṣ addîq See, the enemy is“ ,( הִנֵּ֣ה ﬠֻפְּ לָ֔ ה לֹא־יָשְׁרָ ֥ ה נַפְשֹׁ֖ ו בּוֹ֑ וְצַדִּ֖ יק בֶּאֱמוּנָתוֹ֥ יִחְ יֶֽה) be ʾĕ mûn ātô yi ḥye puffed up; his desires are not upright— but the righteous person will live by his faithfulness.” (NIV) The LXX translation of Habakuk 2:4 is as follows: ean hyposteil ētai, ouk eudokei h ē psych ē mou en aut ō, ho de dikaios ek piste ōs mou z ēsetai (ἐὰν ὑποστείληται , οὐκ εὐδοκεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου ἐν αὐτῷ, ὁ δὲ δίκαιος ἐκ πίστεώς μου ζήσεται ), “If he draws back, my life does not find pleasure in it, but the righteous one will live by my faith .” (Lexham English Septuagint) In Romans 1:17, Paul quotes the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:4b. Romans 1:17 dikaiosyn ē gar theou en aut ō apokalyptetai ek piste ōs eis pistin, kath ōs gegraptai; HO de dikaios ek piste ōs z ēsetai (δικαιοσύνη γὰρ θεοῦ ἐν αὐτῷ ἀποκαλύπτεται ἐκ πίστεως εἰς πίστιν , καθὼς γέγραπται ·* Ὁ δὲ δίκαιος ἐκ πίστεως ζήσεται ), For in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed—a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: “The righteous will live by faith.” (NIV) Habakuk 2:4 ean hyposteil ētai, ouk eudokei h ē psych ē mou en aut ō, ho de dikaios ek piste ōs mou z ēsetai (ἐὰν ὑποστείληται , οὐκ εὐδοκεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου ἐν αὐτῷ, ὁ δὲ δίκαιος ἐκ πίστεώς μου ζήσεται ), “If he draws back, my life does not find pleasure in it, but the righteous one will live by my faith .” (Lexham English Septuagint) In Galatians 3:11, the apostle Paul again quotes the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:4b.

58 Constable, Thomas L., Notes on Habakkuk-2015 Edition , page 18; copyright 2015; Published by Sonic Light: http://www.soniclight.com/

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Galatians 3:11 hoti de en nom ō oudeis dikaioutai para t ō the ō d ēlon, hoti HO dikaios ek piste ōs z ēsetai (ὅτι δὲ ἐν νόμῳ οὐδεὶς δικαιοῦται παρὰ τῷ θεῷ δῆλον , ὅτι Ὁ δίκαιος ἐκ πίστεως ζήσεται ), Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” (NIV) In Hebrews 10:38, the writer of Hebrews quotes all of the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:4. However, he inverts the first and second statements in the verse by placing the adversative clause before the declarative statement. Hebrews 10:38 ho de dikaios mou ek piste ōs zēsetai, kai ean hyposteil ētai, ouk eudokei hē psychē mou en aut ō (ὁ δὲ δίκαιός ⸂μου ἐκ πίστεως ζήσεται , καὶ ἐὰν ὑποστείληται , οὐκ εὐδοκεῖ ἡ ψυχή μου ἐν αὐτῷ), And, “But my righteous one will live by faith. And I take no pleasure in the one who shrinks back.” (NIV) Now, this problem of whether to translate Habakkuk 2:4 from the LXX or the MT might be resolved the date their dates. Is the MT older than the LXX or vice versa? Are the Dead Sea Scrolls, which contain Habakkuk 2:4, older than the LXX? The MT of Habakkuk 2:4 is supported by the Dead Sea Scrolls (cf. 1QpHab). So let’s take a cursory look at both. First, the Dead Sea Scrolls. A relatively large number of biblical manuscripts were found in the caves around Qumran. Of the nearly 900 manuscripts found, approximately 210 scrolls or approximately 25 percent of the library, were copies of biblical books such as Habakkuk. Copies of every book in the traditional Hebrew Bible were discovered, with the exception of Esther and possibly Nehemiah following today’s division of Nehemiah as a separate book from Ezra. These individual copies of the Bible date to approximately 250 B.C. – A.D. 50 with most having been copied in the century around the turn of the millennium. Consequently, these are the earliest substantial copies of the Hebrew Bible in existence today. Before the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the earliest complete copy of the Hebrew Bible was the Lennigrad Codex which is dated from A.D. 1008. Furthermore, the biblical scrolls from Qumran are several hundreds of years older than the surviving ancient Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible which are from the fourth century A.D. and beyond. One of these Greek translations is the Septuagint (LXX). J. William Johnstone writes “The Septuagint often is represented as Roman numerals: “LXX” (L [50] + X [10] + X [10] = 70). According to Philo, Josephus, the Letter of Aristeas, and rabbinic sources, King Ptolemy II Philadelphus (285– 247 BC ) assembled 70 (or 72) translators to render the Law of Moses into Greek. In the most limited sense, ‘Septuagint’ refers just to this project, which covered the Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. Although the usage is imprecise, ‘Septuagint’ (and the abbreviation “LXX”) is a convenient term generally used to refer to any or all of the Greek translations of the Hebrew Bible, as well as several other Jewish religious books written in Greek

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(Tov, Textual Criticism , 135). Sometimes the term ‘Old Greek’ (OG) is used to describe the ‘oldest recoverable form of the Greek text of a particular book’ (McLay, Septuagint in New Testament Research , 7), while ‘Septuagint’ is used to refer to a collection of books.”59 The earliest translation of OT texts into Greek are said to have taken place sometime during the late fourth to mid third century B.C. Scholars point then to several Jewish-Hellenistic witnesses who used the LXX in the late third century or early second century. Examination of the themes and chronologies in the texts of the witnesses indicates none flourished earlier than 150 BC. Without the early witnesses there is no evidence supporting a claim of an early date for the LXX. Scholars should not assume the earliest LXX translations occurred before c. 150. As a collection of books, the Septuagint contains (Tov, Textual Criticism , 135): 1. A Greek translation of the Jewish Bible (the 24 books of the Hebrew canon). 2. The deuterocanonical literature—books written by or for Jewish people but not included in the traditional Hebrew canon. These include some books originally written in Hebrew or Aramaic, but now known mostly in Greek, as well as books written in Greek: • Tobit; • Judith; • Additions to Esther; • 1 Maccabees; • 2 Maccabees; • Wisdom of Solomon; • Sirach (a.k.a. Ecclesiasticus); • Baruch; • Letter of Jeremiah; • Additions to Daniel: • Prayer of Azariah and the Song of the Three Young Men; • Susanna; • Bel and the Dragon. The most important witnesses to the Greek text of the LXX are full-Bible manuscripts containing both the Old and New Testaments: Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Vaticanus, and Codex Alexandrinus. These manuscripts each contain some of the Apocrypha (see Wegner, The Journey from Texts to Translations , 48). There are dozens of manuscripts in addition to these, including the fragmentary ones among the Dead Sea Scrolls, as well as medieval cursive witnesses.

59 Johnston, J. W. (2016). Septuagint . In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary . Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

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The two most authoritative modern critical editions of the LXX are those produced at Göttingen and Cambridge. Lists of the oldest manuscripts can be found in Rahlfs, Verzeichnis . The LXX owes its origins ultimately to the conquests of Alexander the Great and the resulting spread of Greek language and culture throughout most of the ancient world. Even after the exile, Jewish people remained for centuries in Greek- speaking areas. Alexandria, Egypt, for instance, had a sizable community of Jewish people who had—for the most part—lost their homeland’s native language. The need for an Old Testament in Greek led to the production of translations. The so-called Letter of Aristeas is the most important primary source about the name of the work and about Jewish traditions concerning its origin. This ‘letter’ dates to the second century BC —some date it as early as 200 BC (Wasserstein and Wasserstein, Legend , 20), though a later date toward the end of the second century is often preferred (see Fernández Marcos, Septuagint in Context , 41). The author (a court official) relates how Ptolemy II Philadelphus, king of Egypt, asked the Jewish high priest to send six translators from each of the 12 Jewish tribes (72 in all) for the work. According to this story, the 72 translators completed their commission in 72 days ( Letter of Aristeas §307). Later Jewish writers repeat essentially the same story as Aristeas. Although the Letter probably wasn’t written by a contemporary to the events, it is generally considered evidence of an important and authoritative translation effort by Alexandrian Jews in the middle of the third century (Wasserstein and Wasserstein, Legend , 25). Philo recounts that the translators worked in isolation from the public: ‘Therefore, being settled in a secret place, and nothing even being present with them except the elements of nature, the earth, the water, the air, and the heaven, concerning the creation of which they were going in the first place to explain the sacred account; for the account of the creation of the world is the beginning of the law; they, like men inspired, prophesied, not one saying one thing and another, but every one of them employed the self-same nouns and verbs, as if some unseen prompter had suggested all their language to them. And yet who is there who does not know that every language, and the Greek language above all others, is rich in a variety of words, and that it is possible to vary a sentence and to paraphrase the same idea, so as to set it forth in a great variety of manners, adapting many different forms of expression to it at different times’ (Mos 2.37–38; Yonge). Although it seems that Philo indicates that the translators miraculously produced exactly the same result (Hengel, Septuagint , 26), Philo may be simply appreciating the difficulty of producing a translation and that the men ‘not only always found the right words to represent what they found in their text but also all used the same (and the only right) words and expressions when they appeared in

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 48 the different contexts that they were translating’ (Wasserstein and Wasserstein, Legend , 45). If Wasserstein and Wasserstein are correct, the agreement Philo implies is not in the Greek output of the enterprise, but in their agreement with the originals—the remarkable clarity of the translation. As Philo put it, ‘exactly corresponding Greek words were employed to translate literally the appropriate Chaldaic [Hebrew] words’ (Philo, Mos. 2.38, Yonge; compare Müller, First Bible , 62). In light of later rabbinic embellishment of the Aristeas story, Philo does stop short of the miraculous in his description. Josephus recounts much the same story as Aristeas (Antiquities 12.2.1–15 §§11–118), repeating 72 as the number of days ( Antiquities 12.2.13 §107) and giving 70 as the number of translators ( Antiquities 12.2.7 §57). This designation of ‘the 70’ possibly popularized that name for the whole collection of Jewish scriptures translated into Greek (Hengel, Septuagint , 26). Although the story related by the Letter of Aristeas , Philo, and Josephus really only deals with the Pentateuch, the rest of the Jewish Scriptures were also available in Greek probably before the second century BC (the Greek preface to Sirach [which itself probably dates to the second century BC ] seems also to indicate this), and certainly no later than the first century BC .”60 Now, as we noted the MT is supported by the Dead Sea Scrolls (cf. 1QpHab) J. M. Matson writes “1QpHab is the most complete and extensive continuous commentary found among the Dead Sea Scrolls. The continuous commentary preserves the text of Hab 1:3–2:20, which discusses the destruction of Israel at the hands of the Chaldeans (the Babylonians). 1QpHab provides an ‘interpretation’ ,pesher ) that employs the use of the names Kittim, Teacher of Righteousness , פֵּשֶׁ ר) the House of Absalom, the Wicked Priest, and the Man of the Lie. The interpretation centers on the position of each group/person in regards to whether they did right or wrong before God and others. This text is one of the central texts for reconstructing the Qumran community and their beliefs. The text focuses on the Qumran community (who are understood as God’s chosen in the text) and how they will survive while their enemies will not.”61 So therefore, we can see that support for the MT of Habakkuk 2:4 in the Dead Sea Scrolls is as ancient as the LXX translation of this verse. However, the writer of Hebrews follows the LXX translation rather than the MT. Why is that? Should the interpreter today follow the LXX or the MT? To answer this question, we must keep in mind that not only does the LXX alter the structure of the MT but also the writer of Hebrews alters the text of the LXX for theological reasons. The writer of Hebrews used the LXX translation of

60 Johnston, J. W. (2016). Septuagint . In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary . Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. 61 Matson, J. M. (2016). Pesharim from Qumran . In J. D. Barry, D. Bomar, D. R. Brown, R. Klippenstein, D. Mangum, C. Sinclair Wolcott, … W. Widder (Eds.), The Lexham Bible Dictionary . Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press.

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Habakkuk 2:3-4 in light of Jesus Christ to support the appeal to Jewish Christians to continue to persevere and obey the gospel in Hebrews 10:35-36. Also, as we noted in our exegesis of Habakkuk 2:4, the Hebrew text of this verb has the third person feminine singular pual perfect conjugation of the verb ʿā·p̄ ǎl which is being used in a figurative or metaphorical sense for a person with a ( ﬠָפַל) big or swollen head, and thus it describes a person who is proud and arrogant. In context, we noted that it refers to the Babylonians. However, the LXX translation of this verse has the third person singular aorist middle subjunctive conjugation of the verb hypostellomai (ὑποστέλλομαι ), which means “to draw back” and in context speaks of a believer entering into apostasy. This word has nothing to do with the Babylonians. What is the reason for this significant change? F. F. Bruce suggested that this might be due to a “Vorlage” which is a literary source or prototype that lies behind an extent composition of a biblical text. He writes that this Vorlage “had ʿullìpâ (“faints”), which occurs in some manuscripts. The third-person singular masculine suffix on napšô has been translated as hē psych ē mou (“my soul”) by the Greek version, and the Hebrew yāšrâ (“be straight”) has been replaced with the Greek eudokei . Finally, the third- person singular masculine suffix added to ʾìmûnâ (“his faithfulness”) has been translated rather with the pronoun mou (“my”).”62 So therefore, we could tentatively say that the writer of Hebrews apparently under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit employed the LXX translation of Habakkuk 2:4 and this Vorlage, which together are Messianic, rather than the MT. He did so because he wanted to encourage and exhort the recipients of Hebrews that they must persevere in the gospel in order that they would please the Lord Jesus Christ to whom they must give an account to at the Bema Seat Evaluation of the church (cf. Rom. 14:10-12; 1 Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:10; 1 John 2:28). Now, let’s take a look the use of Habakkuk 2:4 in Romans 1:17, Galatians 3:11 and Hebrews 10:38. Romans 1:17 For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.” (NASB95) In order to support his assertion that by means of the communication of the gospel message, the righteousness of God is revealed in those who accept the gospel by means of faith, the apostle Paul quotes Habakkuk 2:4. In Romans 1:17, Paul quotes Habakkuk 2:4 in order to demonstrate that the righteousness of God is manifested in those who exercise faith in the subject of the gospel message, which is Jesus Christ.

62 Guthrie, G. H. (2007). Hebrews . In Commentary on the New Testament use of the Old Testament (p. 983). Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, UK: Baker Academic; Apollos.

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In Romans 1:17, the adjective dikaios , “the righteous ” describes the permanent state or condition of the person who exercised faith in the subject of the gospel message which is Jesus Christ resulting in God the Father imputing the righteousness of Christ to them. Therefore, the adjective describes the permanent state or condition of the believer who received the imputation of the righteousness of Jesus Christ from God the Father the moment they trusted in Jesus Christ as Savior. The righteousness of Christ refers to the character of Christ having perfect integrity in the sense that His character is perfectly sound, perfectly adhering to the will of God, which is love, upright, honest, perfectly whole, undiminished, sound, unimpaired and in perfect condition. The righteousness of Christ refers to the character of Christ having perfect virtue in the sense that His character is perfect moral excellence, goodness, and His conduct is conformed perfectly to the will of God. Therefore, the adjective dikaios describes the believer as receiving “positionally” the righteousness of Christ. By “positionally” I mean that God views the believer as possessing the righteousness of His Son Jesus Christ and what He has done for the sinner who has trusted in His Son as their Savior. “Shall live ” is the third person singular future middle indicative form of the verb zao , which refers to experiencing eternal life in time by appropriating by faith the teaching of the gospel that the believer has been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. Eternal life is knowing the Father and the Son experientially in the sense of personally encountering them through the process of fellowship as They are revealed in the pages of Scripture and prayer by God the Holy Spirit. It also involves being affected by this encounter with the Father and the Son resulting in the gaining of practical spiritual wisdom and more of the character of Christ. Eternal life gives the believer the capacity to experience fellowship with God. It is received as a gift through faith alone in Christ alone and is appropriated after salvation by the believer who obeys the Spirit of life who reveals the will of the Father through the communication of the Word of life. The believer experiences eternal life in time and thus experiences fellowship with God in time by obeying the will of the Father of life, which is revealed to the believer by the Spirit of life through the communication of the Word of life. The believer who is obedient to the Father’s will, which is revealed by the Holy Spirit through the communication of the Word of God will live in eternal life and thus experience fellowship with God. In Habakkuk 2:4, the statement “ the righteous shall live by his faith ” is translated by the LXX (Greek translation of Hebrew Bible) and by the New Testament writers without any pronoun (“ his ”).

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The grammatical construction in the Hebrew text of Habakkuk 2:4 links the shall live ” rather “ ,( חָיָה) (faith ” with the verb ḥā·y ā(h “ ,( אֱמוּנָה) (noun ʾěmû·n ā(h righteous ” which emphasizes how to go on with “ ,( צַדִּ יק) than with the noun ṣaddîq life after salvation and not how to become righteous. “By faith ” is composed of the preposition ek , “ by ” and the genitive feminine singular form of the noun pistis , “ faith .” The preposition ek is a marker of means as constituting a source and thus indicates that faith is the means by which the believer experiences eternal life and fellowship with God and constitutes the source from which he experiences eternal life. The noun pistis , “ faith ” is used in the active sense and refers to the believer’s faith in the Word of God after salvation, which demonstrates itself in obedience to the Word of God and is reflected in his conduct and Christ-like character. The noun pistis , “ faith ” is a “genitive of means” indicating that the believer’s faith in the Word of God after salvation is the means by which he experiences eternal life and fellowship with God. In Galatians 3:11, the apostle Paul quotes Habakkuk 2:4 in order to prove that no one is justified before God by obeying the 613 mandates contained in the Mosaic Law. Galatians 3:11 Now that no one is justified by the Law before God is evident; for, “THE RIGHTEOUS MAN SHALL LIVE BY FAITH.” (NASB95) In Hebrews 10:38, the writer quotes Habakkuk 2:4 in order to demonstrate to believers that it is imperative that they remain faithful to God in order to please God and receive a reward at the Bema Seat Evaluation of the church. Hebrews 10:35 Therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. 36 For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. 27 “FOR YET IN A VERY LITTLE WHILE, HE WHO IS COMING WILL COME, AND WILL NOT DELAY. 38 BUT MY RIGHTEOUS ONE SHALL LIVE BY FAITH AND IF HE SHRINKS BACK, MY SOUL HAS NO PLEASURE IN HIM.” (NASB95) O. Palmer Robertson writes “The NT treatment of the text corresponds appropriately to the central message of Habakkuk. Particularly Paul displays a magnificent grasp of the prophet’s message when he adopts this single phrase as a basis for constructing the entire letter to the Romans. Not merely as a keynote sounded to introduce his treatise, but as a well-balanced theme that structures the entirety of his message, this verse from Habakkuk permeates the whole of the epistle. In setting forth his theme in Romans, Paul declares that a righteousness of God has been revealed from faith to faith (Rom. 1:17). Faith serves as the origin of

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 52 righteousness in justification, and as the framework for the continuation of righteousness in sanctification. The apostle then develops this twofold role of faith as originally presented in Hab. 2:4, dealing with the faith that receives the gift of justification in Rom. 1–5, and the faith that receives the gift of sanctification in Rom. 6–8. Thus Paul offers a well-balanced gospel in his development of his theme that ‘the justified (by faith) shall live by his steadfast trust.’ When Paul first introduces his quotation from Habakkuk, he attaches ‘faith’ with ‘justification’ rather than with the ‘life’ of the sinner. But how may it be explained that while Habakkuk apparently relates the ‘by faith’ phraseology to the way of life , Paul has no compunction in relating ‘by faith’ to the way of righteousness instead? Is he exercising a liberty with the inspired text that goes beyond its original intention? If the earlier exegesis of Hab. 2:4b was correct, this problem is imagined rather than real. The ‘just’ of Habakkuk are none other than the ‘justified,’ and in accordance with the parallel to Abraham, their justification is ‘by faith’ even as was Abraham’s. Although Paul omits the pronoun altogether from his quotation, he interprets the ‘faith’ of Habakkuk to refer to the trust exercised by the sinner, in contrast with any works he might do (cf. Rom. 3:22, 25–28, 31; 4:3, 5, 9, 11–14, 16–20, 24; 5:1–2). Although the ‘faithfulness’ of God obviously is essential for the salvation of sinners, in all these references Paul is treating Habakkuk’s ‘faith’ as that trust in God required of sinners for salvation. As Paul proceeds in Rom. 6–8, he then stresses continually the possession of the gift of ‘life’ as it had been mentioned in Hab. 2:4 (Rom. 6:4–5, 8, 10–11, 13, 22–23; 7:4, 6; 8:2, 6, 10–11, 13). ‘Resurrection’ and the ‘Spirit’ in these chapters relate directly to this ‘life’ promised by Habakkuk to the one who believes. So Paul simply is emphasizing the heart and core of the proclamation of Habakkuk. This great message of justification and life by faith alone is eschatological in nature and shall be true to the end of the age. The writer to the Hebrews cites Hab. 2:4 in Heb. 10:37–38, but for a different purpose. His concern is to stress the importance of persevering in faith. He wishes to stir his readers to claim the gift of life by faith, despite many obstacles. The positioning of the ‘my’ in Hebrews corresponds to its location in some LXX manuscripts (“ my righteous one”—ho dè díkaiòs mou , instead of “by my faithfulness”—ek píste ōs mou ). As a consequence, the writer to the Hebrews avoids giving the misimpression that he is understanding Habakkuk to affirm simply that it is by God’s faithfulness that the righteous shall live. Although such a statement is true in itself, it was not the precise truth that the suffering believers of the 1st century needed at this point. Instead, they needed to be reminded that God has his righteous ones, and they indeed shall live by faith!

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The catalogue of the faithful in Heb. 11 which immediately follows this citation from Habakkuk does not make faith itself a work, thereby cancelling out the heart of Habakkuk’s message. Instead it is ‘by faith’ that all these works have been performed throughout the ages. So two diverse authors of the NT quote the same OT Scripture with a different emphasis to make significantly different points. Yet each author remains true to the essence of the OT Scripture as recorded by Habakkuk. Paul stresses that by faith a person is justified, and the writer to the Hebrews stresses that by faith a person who has been justified shall live. As has been noted, Paul also develops the idea of life by faith in Rom. 6–8.”63 Bob Spender writes “A great deal has been written on Paul’s use of Habakkuk 2:4 in Galatians and Romans. Its use in Hebrews (10:38) adds further weight to the importance of this verse in New Testament thought. In each case the emphasis is upon the concept of faith, which is in complete harmony with Habakkuk. God was telling the prophet that His followers were to be marked by a different lifestyle than either the coming Babylonians or the evil Israelites. The righteous, including Habakkuk, must learn to live (must keep on living) by faith. In Galatians (3:11), the earliest citation, Paul is exasperated by the movement of the believers towards law over gospel (3:1ff). His Old Testament quotations (Gal. 3:6, 8, 10, 11, 12), including Habakkuk 2:4, add up to a critical assessment of faith over the law. This too, is the emphasis of Romans (1:17). Many have seen the stress in Romans on ‘the righteous’, and while there is some truth to that, the greater emphasis is upon justification by faith. Paul is not citing Habakkuk 2:4 as a proof text, but as an illustration of how basic (and old) this principle really is. In Hebrews, the quotation occurs in a discussion about living or staying the course when challenged to compromise (10:36). But even there the greater emphasis is upon faith, as Hebrews 11 so eloquently portrays. Believers need to affirm that God’s desire is for faith to grow (Eph. 4:13; 2 Thess. 1:3–4). Faith is not to be static but dynamic. One grows in faith by listening to the Lord. That is what Habakkuk did. Growing faith takes patience and dependency. A growing faith needs to wait upon the Lord and trust Him while waiting. Faith also grows as a result of teaching and encouragement (Luke 17:5– 10). In addition, a dynamic faith produces results (2 Cor. 10:15). Habakkuk’s psalm of praise (chapter 3) illustrates both the growth and fruit of his faith. God’s challenge to live by faith must have been an encouragement for Habakkuk, as well as any that felt surrounded by the injustice of the time. But difficulties would increase with the approach of the Babylonians. Nebuchadnezzar personally directed eight of nine campaigns to the west during the first ten years of

63 Robertson, O. P. (1990). The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah (pp. 181–183). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 54 his reign. 64 Appropriately, Babylon is personified as the grave with its insatiable appetite for human life. Habakkuk’s earlier portrayal of the Babylonian military was correct (1:14–17) and during such tumultuous times living by faith is the key. Believers are encouraged to trust the Lord when they cannot fully understand the circumstances of a given situation. That does not mean that our faith is irrational. The Lord tells us to love Him with our mind (Luke 10:27), and that position is only achieved by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.”65 Warren Wiersbe writes “This is the first of three wonderful assurances that God gives in this chapter to encourage His people. This one emphasizes God’s grace, because grace and faith always go together. Habakkuk 2:14 emphasizes God’s glory and assures us that, though this world is now filled with violence and corruption (Gen. 6:5, 11–13), it shall one day be filled with God’s glory. The third assurance is in Habakkuk 2:20 and emphasizes God’s government. Empires may rise and fall, but God is on His holy throne, and He is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. ‘The just shall live by his faith’ was the watchword of the Reformation, and they may well be the seven most important monosyllables in all of church history. It was verse 4, quoted in Romans 1:17, that helped to lead Martin Luther into the truth of justification by faith. ‘This text,’ said Luther, ‘was to me the true gate of Paradise.’ Justification is the gracious act of God whereby He declares the believing sinner righteous and gives that believing sinner a perfect standing in Jesus Christ. The ‘just’ person is not someone who has met all of God’s requirements by means of good works, ‘For by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified’ (Gal. 2:19; see Rom. 4:5). ‘For if righteousness comes through the law, then Christ died in vain’ (Gal. 2:21, NKJV ). Our Lord’s Parable of the Pharisee and the Publican makes it clear that no amount of religious effort can save a lost sinner (Luke 18:9–14). We cannot justify ourselves before God because we stand with the whole world, guilty and condemned before His throne (Rom. 3:19). All we can do is put saving faith in Jesus Christ and His work on the cross because that is the only way to be saved. ‘Therefore, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ’ (Rom. 5:1). The victory . We are not only saved by faith (Eph. 2:8–9), but we are instructed to live by faith. ‘And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith’ (1 John 5:4, NKJV ). Faith is a lifestyle that is just the opposite of being ‘puffed up’ and depending on your own resources. Habakkuk knew the difficult times were coming

64 Kuhrt, 2:591. 65 Spender, R. (2002). Grow your Faith with Habakkuk . Emmaus Journal , 11 (1), 63.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 55 to the people of Judah, and their only resource was to trust God’s Word and rest in His will. Living by faith is the major them of the Book of Hebrews (Heb. 10:30), for in that book the phrase ‘by faith’ is found over twenty times. To live by faith means to believe God’s Word and obey it no matter how we feel, what we see, or what the consequences may be. This is illustrated in Hebrews 11, the famous ‘by faith’ chapter of the Bible. The men and women mentioned in that chapter were ordinary people, but they accomplished extraordinary things because they trusted God and did what He told them to do. It has well been said that faith is not believing in spite of evidence; it’s obeying in spite of consequence, resting on God’s faithfulness.”66 O. Palmer Robertson writes “The problem that Habakkuk faced was the prospect of the devastation of Israel, signifying the end of life for God’s own nation. The prophet’s frustration in grasping the divine message of judgment is epitomized in his spontaneous interjection, ‘We shall not die!’ (Hab. 1:12). Yet the revelation of God to him seemed to be that Israel indeed would die. But the Lord gives this vision of the eschaton: ‘… shall live !’ (Heb. 2:4). The justified (by faith) shall live by his steadfast trust. In a very real sense, the problem faced by Habakkuk was identical with the problem Paul later confronted in Rom. 11. Had God cast off his people? The devastation of Israel was obvious to the first-century Christian. The richest blessings of God’s ancient covenant now had become the possession of all nations, while Israel had been ‘cut off’ by the very words of Christ himself. The kingdom had been taken from them and given to another nation bearing its proper fruit (Matt. 21:23). Paul responds to this confusing picture by the same perspective as that found in Habakkuk. For as Israel turns from its unbelief, it shall be grafted in (Rom. 11:23). Even today a believing remnant remains according to the election of grace (Rom. 11:5). So the justified by faith continue to live by faith. Despite the just judgments of God, a remnant shall survive. By steadfast trust through the darkest hours, they shall live.”67

Righteousness

In the New Testament, the righteousness of God is an attribute of all three members of the Trinity and refers to His “integrity” and “virtue.” It refers to God’s perfect integrity in that His character is perfectly sound, perfectly adhering to His own perfect standards and what He promises to men. It is all that God is, all that He commands, all that He demands, all that He approves, and all that He provides

66 Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be amazed (pp. 119–120). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books. 67 Robertson, O. P. (1990). The Books of Nahum, Habakkuk and Zephaniah (p. 183). Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co.

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 56 through Christ. The righteousness of God refers to the Trinity’s perfect integrity in that their character is upright, honest, perfectly whole, undiminished, sound, unimpaired and in perfect condition. It refers to the Trinity’s perfect virtue in that their character is perfect moral excellence, goodness, and their conduct is conformed perfectly to their own perfect standards and what they have promised to men. Regardless of the dispensation in which they live, sinners receive the righteousness of God as a gift through faith in the Lord. This gift is received at the moment of conversion at justification. In Old Testament dispensations, this would involve communicating the Word of God to the unregenerate who in turn respond by exercising faith in Yahweh, the God of Israel who the New Testament identifies as the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. During the First Advent of Jesus Christ, the church age and the seventieth week, sinners receive the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ. The imputation of divine righteousness results in the Father declaring the sinners justified. Therefore, all those sinners who respond to the Word of God in Old Testament dispensations and respond to the gospel of Jesus Christ during the First Advent, the church age and the seventieth week will receive the imputation of divine righteousness. This results in God the Father declaring them justified. God wants His righteousness exemplified in the church age believer’s life. In fact, in every dispensation, God wants all those who have been declared justified by Him through faith to exemplify His righteousness. Therefore, in the New Testament epistles, we see the New Testament writers exhorting church age believers to experience and exemplify the righteousness of Jesus Christ after their conversion by appropriating the teaching of the Word of God that they have been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ (See Romans 6). The New Testament Scriptures teach that the righteousness of God will be manifested in the believer’s life when they fulfill their obligations to love both God and men, or in other words by doing right to both God and men.

Relative and Absolute Righteousness

The Bible teaches that there are two categories of righteousness: (1) Absolute righteousness originating in the essence of God revealed by the Spirit in the Word of God and in the Person of Christ (2) Relative righteousness, which is rooted in man’s comparison of himself with other men. The Bible teaches that the entire human race both Jew and Gentile do not measure up to the righteousness of God and are therefore condemned before God but qualified for grace (Romans 1:18-3:20). God does not accept relative human

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 57 righteousness but rather demands His own absolute perfect righteousness. The only way that man can acquire this absolute perfect righteousness required by God to have a relationship with Him is by means of faith alone in Christ alone. Man’s relative righteousness falls infinitely short of God’s absolute righteousness in the Person of Christ (Isa. 64:6). The righteousness of God can never be attained by anyone through human power and dynamics or by keeping the Mosaic Law but rather it is received as a gift through faith in Jesus Christ who is the righteousness of God incarnate. The works of the Law can never attain the righteousness of God (Titus 3:5). The nation of Israel sought to establish their own righteousness rather than accept by faith the righteousness of God in the Person of Jesus Christ (Romans 10:1-10). The Lord Jesus Christ manifested the righteousness of God during His First Advent, which was witnessed by the Law and the Prophets in the Old Testament Scriptures (Romans 3:21-26). The Lord was made our Substitute in order that we might receive the imputation of God’s righteousness and live in that righteousness. The righteousness of God is received as a gift and is imputed to the unregenerate person who exercises faith alone in Christ alone. By imputed I mean that God credits to the believer the perfect integrity and virtue of Christ.

Faith and the Righteousness of God

The Scriptures teach that the sinner receives the imputation of divine righteousness as a gift at the moment of conversion or in other words, justification. They experience this righteousness by exercising faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ through appropriating by faith their union and identification with Jesus Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session at the right hand of the Father. So, the justified sinner appropriates the righteousness of God provided for them through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by exercising faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ. There are three forms of perception: (1) Empiricism: Trusting in one’s experiences in life to make decisions. (2) Rationalism: Trusting in one’s intellect to make decisions in life. (3) Faith: Trusting in the authority of another to make decisions in life. Hebrews 11:1-3 gives a definition of faith and also a description of the nature of faith or in other words, what faith does and how it works. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the men of old gained approval. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. (NASB95)

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Faith is the only system of perception that God will accept because it is compatible with His grace policy (Ephesians 2:8-9). The object of the Christian’s faith at the moment of conversion is the Lord Jesus Christ and the object of his faith after conversion is the written Word of God. Faith for the Christian is trusting in the authority of the Word of God in order to govern one’s life. Faith is obedience to God’s commands and is the positive response to God’s commands and acting upon those directions. The Bible never separates faith from obedience (cf. Hebrews 11:8). Unbelief on the other hand is disobedient and is the negative response to God’s commands and as a result the failure to act upon God’s commands (Hebrews 3:12). After conversion, the believer is to walk by means of faith in the Word of God (2 Corinthians 5:7; Galatians 2:20; Romans 1:16-17; Hebrews 10:37-38). Just as the Christian received the Lord Jesus as his Savior by exercising faith in Him for eternal salvation, so after conversion he is to live by the same principle of faith (Compare Ephesians 2:8-9 with Colossians 2:5-7). The principle of faith operates quite simply: (1) God speaks and we hear His Word. (2) We trust His Word and act on it no matter what the circumstances are or what the consequences may be. The circumstances may be impossible, and the consequences frightening and unknown but we obey God’s Word just the same and believe Him to do what is right and what is best.

Justification and the Righteousness of God

One of the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith is that of the doctrine of justification. This doctrine has given assurance to believers throughout the centuries and has changed the course of human history. By way of definition, justification is a judicial act of God whereby He declares a person to be righteous as a result of crediting or imputing to that person His righteousness the moment they exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Consequently, God accepts that person and enters that person into a relationship with Himself since they now possess His righteousness. Imputation is the function of the justice of God in crediting something to someone for cursing or for blessing. There are several different imputations in Scripture. First, there is the imputation of soul life at the moment of physical birth (Genesis 2:7). There is also the imputation of Adam's original sin in the Garden of Eden to every single human being at physical birth (Romans 5:12-19). The Scriptures also teach that the Father imputed the sins of every human being-past, present and future to Jesus Christ on the cross (2 Corinthians 5:21). There is also the imputation of eternal life to the sinner when he exercises faith in Jesus Christ as

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 59 his or her Savior (John 3). Lastly, there is the imputation of divine righteousness to the sinner through faith in Jesus Christ (Romans 4:3; Genesis 15:6). The mechanics of justification are as follows: (1) God condemns the sinner, which qualifies them to receive His grace. (2) The sinner believes in Jesus Christ as His Savior. (3) God imputes or credits Christ’s righteousness to the believer. (4) God declares that person as righteous as a result of acknowledging His Son’s righteousness in that person. Justification is God declaring a person to be righteous as a result of acknowledging or recognizing His righteousness in that person, and which righteousness He imputed to that person as a result of their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. It causes no one to be righteous but rather is the recognition and declaration by God that one is righteous as He is. It is a once and for all declaration, which never changes and never can be rescinded since God is a perfect Judge who because He is immutable, always makes perfect decisions. To be justified by God through faith alone in Christ alone means that God can never condemn us for our sins. It means that a believer can never lose his salvation because of any sin since God, who is a perfect judge, rendered a perfect decision when he declared righteous the person, who exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ! Thus, Paul declares the following: Romans 8:1, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

Justification by Faith in Christ in Romans 3:21-31

The Scriptures teach that the only way that a member of the human race can ever be declared righteous by God is through receiving the gift of divine righteousness by grace through faith alone in Christ alone. In Romans 3:28, Paul teaches that justification is by means of faith in Jesus Christ, independently of actions produced by obedience to the Law. Romans 3:28 For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. (NASB95) This verse presents the reason why human boasting is excluded by means of the principle of faith in Jesus Christ. Human boasting is the sinner’s arrogant self- confidence in his own merits when approaching a holy God as the means of establishing a relationship with Him. This arrogant self-confidence in approaching God on the basis of one’s own merits expresses itself through an attitude of independence from God, which is evil. To attempt to approach God independently of the means He provided through His Son is the epitome of arrogance and independence from God or the epitome of evil. Thus, boasting in oneself before God is evil since evil is independence from God (Isaiah 14:12-14).

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Boasting in oneself can manifest itself by attempting to perform a meritorious system of works to establish a relationship with God. It can manifest itself by thinking one has merit with God based upon one’s racial background as the Jews did. It can manifest itself in thinking that one has merit with God based upon what one possesses such as the Jews in relation to the Old Testament. Also, boasting in oneself can manifest itself by attempting to establish a relationship with God through some system of morality. The Bible rejects human righteousness since it is based upon a comparison with the morality of other human beings rather than based upon the absolute standard of God’s perfect righteousness. In Romans 3:9-20 and 23, Paul demonstrates that there is no one in the human race that has merit with God and could get into heaven or enter into a relationship with a holy God based upon his own merits. Now, in Romans 3:21-31, Paul argues that since the sinner is justified by means of faith in Jesus Christ and not through a meritorious system of works or obedience to the Law, then the sinner has no room for boasting. Therefore, the sinner is justified on the basis of the merits of Jesus Christ and the merits of His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. In Romans 3:27-31, Paul’s argument has his Jewish countrymen in mind since the unsaved Jews presumptuously and arrogantly thought that they would enter the kingdom of heaven because of their racial background as Jews and circumcision as well as being the recipients and custodians of the Old Testament canon of Scripture. The only form of appropriate and justified form of boasting is that of boasting in the unique Person, Finished Work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Sinful mankind could not produce the perfect obedience required by the Law in order to establish a relationship and fellowship with a holy God. What the Law could not do through sinful mankind, namely, save it, God the Father did through the Person and Work of His Son on the Cross (Rom 8:1-8). Religion promotes human pride and arrogance whereas Biblical Christianity rejects it. Theologically, religion is the antithesis to Biblical Christianity in that it is the ignorant, presumptuous, vain and arrogant attempt by man to gain the approbation of God by depending upon a legalistic, meritorious system of human works rather than the impeccable Person and Finished Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Religion is sponsored by Satan and the kingdom of darkness and is his ace trump. Romans 3:28 reiterates what Paul taught in Romans 3:20-21. Paul teaches in Romans 3:20-24 that the Law required perfect obedience, which mankind has no capacity to do because they are under the dominion of the old Adamic sin nature. Thus, the human race stands condemned before a holy God, having absolutely no merit with God.

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As Paul points out in Romans 3:21-31, the fact that the sinner is justified on the basis of God’s grace policy and through faith in Jesus Christ totally rejects and excludes the idea that the sinner could enter into a relationship with a holy God based upon his own merits. As long as sinful man boasts in his own actions and merit, it will be impossible for him to trust in Jesus Christ whom the Father sent to redeem sinful man. The sinner can only be justified that is rightly related to God or can only be accepted by God and entered into a relationship and fellowship with God when he ceases to place confidence in his own actions, accomplishments or human merit and instead trusts in the merits of Jesus Christ and His death on the Cross to be put right with God. So, Paul’s statement in Romans 3:28 presents the reason why human boasting is not excluded by means of obedience to the Law but rather by the principle of faith in Jesus Christ. Paul refutes the idea that actions produced by obedience to the Law are the means by which human boasting is excluded by reiterating in Romans 3:28 what he said in Romans 3:19-24. Now, the question arises, does not God want us to be obedient to His Word? The answer is yes. However, Paul is speaking in the context of unbelievers seeking to be justified before a holy God based upon their own merits. He is not speaking in the context of believer’s obeying their heavenly Father as an expression of love for Him. We must remember that the unsaved Jews were seeking to establish a relationship as sinners with a holy God who demanded perfect obedience, which was impossible for the unsaved Jews to do since they were under the power of the sin nature. Therefore, faith in Jesus Christ is the only way an unsaved Jew or Gentile can enter into a relationship with a holy God since Jesus Christ was perfectly obedient and His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross dealt with the sins of humanity. So, the concept of being obedient to the Law in order to be justified by God was impossible since the Law of God demanded perfect obedience, which a sinner has no capacity to do. In fact, for the unsaved Jew to attempt to establish a relationship with a holy God through obedience to the Law was in essence attempting to enter into the kingdom of God based upon one’s own merits. This is impossible since mankind has no merit with a holy God due to the fact that man is a sinner by nature and practice. “We maintain ” is the first person plural present (deponent) middle indicative form of the verb logizomai , which means, “conviction” in the sense of having a fixed or firm belief and confident assurance that is the result of a process of reasoning from the Scriptures. It means that Paul has come to the conviction that a person is justified by faith in Jesus Christ apart from the works of the Law or in other words, apart from actions that are produced by obedience to the Law.

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This word means that Paul was of the conviction that the sinner is justified before God by faith in Jesus Christ rather by attempting to establish a relationship with God based upon one’s own merits or through obedience to the Law as a system of merit. The word means that he came to this conviction that justification is by faith in Jesus Christ apart from actions produced by obedience to the Law as a system of merit as a result of a thorough and detailed study of the Scriptures. This conviction is not only the result of a process of studying the Scriptures and receiving direct revelation from the Lord but is also the result of even attempting himself to establish a relationship with God based upon his own merit while as a legalistic, self-righteous Pharisee. In Romans 3:28, the verb logizomai is in the first person plural form and is identified by grammarians as an “exclusive we” referring to Paul, the other apostles as well as other communicators of the gospel of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ such as Titus and Timothy and also includes Christians in general. This is not an “inclusive” or “literary we” referring to Paul and his audience but rather it is a “exclusive we” referring to himself and other communicators of the gospel of Jesus Christ and Christians in general. The reason this is the case is that in context, Paul is refuting the unsaved Jews who maintained that they were justified before God by their obedience to the Law, as well as through circumcision and their racial background. Neither is this an “editorial” or “epistolary we” meaning that Paul is referring to himself exclusively since in context Paul has been presenting the Christian doctrine of the total depravity of mankind in Romans 1:18-3:20 and another Christian doctrine of justification through faith in Jesus Christ. Both of which are in stark contrast to the teaching of the Judaizers or those unsaved Jews who maintained that you could be justified by obedience to the Law or through circumcision or one’s racial background as a biological descendant of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Therefore, the first person plural of this verb indicates that this was the conviction or fixed firm belief of not only himself but also other communicators of the gospel and all Christians in general. “A man ” is the accusative masculine singular form of the noun anthropos , which is used in a generic sense for a human being without reference to sex or racial background and is equivalent to “a person.” “Is justified ” is the present passive infinitive form of the verb dikaioo , which means, “to declare or pronounce righteous.” Therefore, the verb dikaioo refers to God declaring a person as righteous as He is as a result of God imputing or crediting to that person His Son’s righteousness, the moment they exercised faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

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This is the sixth time that we have seen this word in our studies of the book of Romans (Romans 2:13; 3:4, 20, 24, 26). In every instance, the word refers to the doctrine of justification except for Romans 3:4, where it is used with God as the object. In Romans 2:13, Paul uses the word to teach his unsaved Jewish audience that only those who are always obedient to the Law will be justified before God. In Romans 3:20, he uses the word to teach that no sinner will ever be justified before God by means of actions produced by obedience to the Law as a system of merit. Then, in Romans 3:24, Paul uses the word to teach that the sinner is declared righteous by God on the basis of God’s grace policy and by means of the redemption that was accomplished by the spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ on the cross. The verb dikaioo is used by the apostle Paul in Romans 3:26 of God declaring anyone justified or righteous as He is as result of exercising faith in Jesus. In Romans 3:28, the word once again is used with reference to the sinner being declared justified by God as a result of faith in Jesus Christ. Thus, Paul and his fellow communicators of the gospel of Jesus Christ were of the firm conviction that a person is justified by faith in Jesus Christ and independently of actions produced by obedience to the Law as a system of merit. “By faith ” is the dative feminine singular form of the noun pistis , which refers to the non-meritorious system of perception of placing one’s “trust” or “confidence in” the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the object of faith for salvation and justification since His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross as an impeccable person redeemed sinful mankind from the slave market of sin, satisfied the demands of a holy God that human sin be judged, reconciled the entire human race to God and fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law. The object of faith is Jesus Christ on the Cross as indicated as indicated in Romans 3:22 and 26. The noun pistis functions as “dative instrumental of means” indicating that faith in Jesus Christ is “the means by which” the sinner is declared righteous by a holy God. “Apart from ” is the improper preposition choris , which is employed with genitive case of the noun ergon , “ works ” indicating that a person is justified “independently of” or “without relation to” observance of the Law. The word is an “improper” preposition meaning that it does not form compound words with verbs as does epi and sun . When the word is used as a preposition it governs the genitive case and serves to specify the use of the “genitive of separation” or some grammarians identify as the “ablative” case.

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In Romans 3:28, the improper preposition choris indicates that the sinner is justified “independently of” or “without any connection to” the actions produced by obedience to the Law as a system of merit. “Works ” is the genitive neuter plural form of the noun ergon , which refers to “actions ” that are produced by obedience to the Old Testament Scriptures. The noun ergon is used with reference to unsaved humanity in a negative sense and in the plural form referring to “ actions ” that are produced by obedience to the Old Testament Scriptures, which is designated by the term nomos , “ Law .” The noun ergon , “ actions ” functions as a “genitive” or “ablative of separation” meaning that the genitive substantive ergon is that from which the head noun pistis , “ by faith ” is separated. Therefore, as a “genitive of separation” the noun ergon indicates that attempting to be justified by means of actions produced by obedience to the Law is entirely “separated from” attempting to be justified by means of faith in Jesus Christ. They are totally antithetical because in the former the merit is with the subject, himself, whereas with the latter, the merit is in the object of the sinner’s faith, Jesus Christ. The sinner is never justified before God by means of actions produced by obedience to the Law since the presence of the sin nature renders man powerless to be perfectly obedient, which the Law requires. Therefore, the human race does not have the capacity to obey the Word of God perfectly, which a holy God requires in order to be accepted into a relationship and fellowship with Him. In Romans 8:3, Paul explains that God sent His Son to fulfill the requirement of the Law because obedience to the Law could not save humanity because the human race does not have the capacity to be perfectly obedient to the Law. “The Law ” is the genitive masculine singular form of the noun nomos , which again does not refer to simply the Mosaic Law, i.e. the Pentateuch but rather the entire Old Testament Scriptures including the Pentateuch. This is indicated by the fact that in Romans 3:27-28, Paul is echoing his statement in Romans 3:19-23 where Paul used nomos to refer to the Old Testament Scriptures. The fact that nomos in Romans 3:19-23 referred to the Old Testament Scriptures is indicated in that in Romans 3:10-18, Paul quotes from “the Writings” and “the Prophets” and not the Mosaic Law or Pentateuch in order to illustrate that both Jew and Gentile are under the power of the old Adamic sin nature. Therefore, in context, the noun nomos , “ Law ” in Romans 3:27-28 refers to the entire Old Testament canon of Scripture and not the Mosaic Law exclusively. Also, the noun nomos , “ Law ” contains a figure of speech called “metonymy” where the Law is put for obedience to the Law. The noun nomos , “ Law ” functions as a “genitive of production” meaning that it “produces” the noun ergon , “ actions ” to which it stands related. Thus, the noun

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 65 nomos , “ Law ” as a “genitive of production” indicates that obedience to the Old Testament Scriptures “produced” these actions. Therefore, we will translate the noun nomos , “ produced by obedience to the Law .” In Romans 3:28, Paul is teaching his audience that the sinner is justified by means of faith in Jesus Christ independently of actions produced by obedience to the Law. The unsaved Jew erroneously and presumptuously and arrogantly thought that his actions produced by obedience to the Law would serve as a system of merit with God, which cause God to declare him righteous. However, the Law demanded perfect obedience, which was impossible because both Jew and Gentile are under the dominion or power of the old Adamic sin nature that manifests itself through the function of the volition resulting in the sinner producing mental, verbal and overt acts of sin (Romans 1:18-32; Romans 2:1). Therefore, there is no human being that could be declared justified by God as a result of performing actions that are in obedience to the Law since the Law demanded perfect obedience, which no human being could accomplish because they are sinners by nature (Gal. 2:16).

Justification by Faith in Romans 5:1-2

In Romans 5:1, Paul teaches that since the believer has been justified by faith in Jesus Christ, he has peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. (NASB95) “Therefore ” is the “inferential” use of the conjunction oun , which denotes that what is introduced at this point is the result of an inference from Paul’s teaching that is contained in Romans 1:18-4:25. In Romans 1:18-4:24, Paul has presented his case in exhaustive detail that the sinner, whether Jew or Gentile can only be justified by means of faith in Jesus Christ and not by observing the Law or circumcision. “Having been justified ” is the nominative masculine first plural aorist passive participle form of the verb dikaioo , which means, “to declare or pronounce righteous.” The first person plural form of the verb dikaioo refers exclusively to those Jews and Gentiles who have exercised absolute confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior since only those who do so are declared justified by God (Romans 3:21-26).

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The participle form of the verb dikaioo in Romans 5:1 is a “causal” participle since the rule of grammar states that the causal participle normally precedes the verb it modifies, which in Romans 5:1 is the verb echo , “ we have .” Furthermore, the context indicates that Paul is presenting the reason why the Christian has peace with God through the Lord Jesus Christ. As a “causal” participle it answers the question as to “why” the believer has peace with God. The believer has peace with God “because” he has been declared justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ. The aorist tense of the verb dikaioo is a “culminative” or “consummative” aorist tense, which is used to emphasize the cessation of an act or state. This type of aorist views an event in its entirety but regarding it from the viewpoint of its existing results. Therefore, the “culminative” aorist views God the Father declaring the sinner justified through faith in His Son Jesus Christ in its entirety. But regards it from the standpoint of its existing results, which is that the believer has peace with God as indicated by the statement eirenen echomen pros ton theon , “ we have peace with God .” The aorist tense is extremely important to understand since it signifies that this judicial act of God in declaring the sinner justified through faith in Jesus Christ is a once and for all declaration, which never changes or can be rescinded since God is a perfect Judge who because He is immutable, always makes perfect decisions. This indicates that to believe in Jesus Christ as one’s Savior is a one shot decision since justification is a once and for all declaration! Therefore, the believer has eternal security. The passive voice means that the subject receives the action of the verb from either an expressed or unexpressed agency. Therefore, the passive voice means that the sinner who trusts in Jesus Christ as their Savior as the subject received the action of being declared justified by the unexpressed agency of God the Father. Although the Father is not explicitly mentioned as the agency in declaring the sinner justified through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, Romans 3:21-26 makes clear that He was the member of the Trinity that performed this act. This passage also makes clear that His Son Jesus Christ was the agency and His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross were the means, which made this possible. “By faith ” is composed of the preposition ek , “ by ” and the genitive feminine singular form of the noun pistis , “ faith .” The noun pistis refers to the non-meritorious system of perception of placing one’s “trust” or “confidence in” the merits of the Lord Jesus Christ and His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. He is the object of faith for salvation and justification since His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross as an impeccable person redeemed sinful mankind from the slave market of sin, satisfied the

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 67 demands of a holy God that human sin be judged, reconciled the entire human race to God and fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law. The object of faith is Jesus Christ on the Cross as indicated as indicated in Romans 3:22 and 26. Paul omits Iesous , “ Jesus” but is clearly implied from Romans 3:21-26 that the object of faith must be Jesus Christ. In Romans 5:1, the preposition ek is used with the genitive form of pistis as a marker of means constituting a source. The noun pistis as a “genitive of means” indicates that faith in Jesus Christ is “the means constituting the source by which” God the Father justifies the sinner. Paul uses ek not only because he wants to emphasize the means of justification, faith in Jesus Christ but that this means constitutes the source of justification. This preposition ek is a reminder to the Jew that justification is not only by means of faith in Jesus Christ but that it also constitutes the source of justification since the Jews erroneously believed that observing the Law or circumcision was the means constituting the source by which one was declared justified by God. In fact, in Romans 3:20, Paul uses the preposition ek with genitive form of the noun ergon , “actions, works” and states that sinful humanity will never be justified by means of actions produced by obedience to the Law (as a source of justification). Therefore, the preposition ek is a reminder to the Jew that justification is not only by means of faith in Jesus Christ but that this faith in Jesus Christ constitutes the source of justification.

Justification and Deliverance from Eternal Condemnation

The apostle Paul in Romans 5:9 writes that if Christ died as a substitute for sinners, how much more then, will He deliver the sinner justified by faith in Jesus Christ from the wrath of God. In this passage, Paul uses the logical argument of a fortiori . Romans 5:9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. (NASB95) In Romans 5:9, “ then ” is the “emphatic inferential” use of the post-positive conjunction oun , which denotes that what is introduced at this point is the result of an inference from Paul’s teaching that is contained in Romans 5:1-8. It is introducing a summarization of Paul’s statements in Romans 5:1-8 that are the result of an inference from these verses. In Romans 5:1, Paul teaches that since the believer has been justified by faith in Jesus Christ, he has peace in the presence God through the Lord Jesus Christ whose spiritual and physical deaths on the cross reconciled them to God, implying that the believer now has a relationship with God. In Romans 5:2a, he teaches that because the believer has been justified by faith in Jesus Christ, he also has as a

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 68 permanent possession access to this gracious benefit of a relationship with God, in which he stands forever. Then, in Romans 5:2b, we noted that in addition Paul rejoiced in the confident expectation of receiving a resurrection body. Next, in Romans 5:3, Paul taught us that the confident expectation of the rapture produces endurance in the believer in times of adversity. In Romans 5:4, we noted that perseverance produces tested character and tested character produces confidence in the believer in his relationship with God, that he will be rewarded for enduring undeserved suffering and that God is conforming him into the image of His Son. Romans 5:5 teaches that the believer’s confidence in the Lord is never disappointed because God the Holy Spirit reassures the believer that he is the object of God’s love. If you recall, Romans 5:6-8 forms a single argument that demonstrates the unconditional and absolute nature of God’s love for the believer. This argument not only provides evidence for the love of God being poured out in the believer’s heart through the Holy Spirit by pointing out that the source of this love is God’s character and nature, but also, in doing so, it substantiates the absolute dependability of the believer’s confidence in the Lord. This confidence in the Lord is mentioned by Paul in Romans 5:2b and 5:5. The Holy Spirit’s work in communicating God’s love for the justified sinner is also mentioned in Romans 5:5. In Romans 5:6-8, the apostle Paul ends each verse with the verb apothnesko , “died ,” which refers to the voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical death of the impeccable human nature of Jesus Christ in hypostatic union. He uses this verb at the end of verses six, seven and eight in order emphasize the unity of the argument presented in these verses. This verb along with the statement dikaiothentes en to haimati autou , “ having been justified by His blood ” in Romans 5:9 indicates that oun in Romans 5:9 is introducing a statement that is the result of an inference from Romans 5:1-8. This statement summarizes Paul’s statements in Romans 5:6-8 and refers to the fact that the voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths of the impeccable human nature of Jesus Christ in hypostatic union is the basis for the believer’s justification. Romans 3:21-26 also emphasizes that our Lord’s spiritual and physical deaths are the basis for the sinner’s justification. In Romans 3:25 and 5:9, the expression “His blood ” depicts the substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ on the cross, which were the payment for our sins. The expressions the “ His blood ,” “ blood of Christ ” or the “ blood of Jesus ” that appear in Scripture do “not” refer to the literal blood of Christ but are part of a “representative” analogy between the physical death of the animal sacrifice in the Mosaic Law and the spiritual and physical deaths of Christ. Therefore, in Romans

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5:9, Paul refers to the voluntary spiritual and physical deaths of the impeccable human nature of Jesus Christ in hypostatic union by reverting back to the representative analogy to haimati autou , “ His blood .” This again indicates that the conjunction oun is introducing a summarization of Paul’s statements in Romans 5:1-8 that are the result of an inference from these verses that emphasize the spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ demonstrates God’s love for the sinner while he was an enemy of God. Therefore, the believer’s confidence in the Lord is not misplaced but is on a firm and eternal foundation. The fact that God the Father sent His Son to the Cross to die as a substitute for the believer prior to being justified by faith in Jesus Christ guarantees the believer that his confidence in the Lord is not misplaced but rather He can be depended upon. Therefore, Paul’s statements in Romans 5:6-8 and the expression dikaiothentes en to haimati autou , “ having been justified by His blood” in Romans 5:9 emphasize that as an expression of His love for sinners, the Father sent His Son to the Cross to die a substitutionary spiritual and physical death on the cross. This sets up the a fortiori or “ much more ” logical argument in Romans 5:9 that if God the Father sent His Son to the Cross while the justified sinner, i.e. believer in Jesus Christ was still an enemy of His, how much more then will He deliver the sinner justified by faith in His Son from God’s wrath. Christ’s substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on behalf of the believer while he was unregenerate and an enemy of God, guarantees that the believer will be blessed in the future and avoid the wrath of God. In other words, if God the Father expressed His love for the believer by sending His Son to the Cross to die as a substitute for them while they were His enemies, then He will certainly bless the believer now that he is reconciled to God. This a fortiori or “ much more ” logical argument is used by Paul to return to the subject of the believer’s confidence in the Lord, which he mentions in Romans 5:2b and 5. In Romans 5:2b, Paul rejoiced in the confident expectation of receiving a resurrection body and in Romans 5:5, he teaches that the believer’s confidence in the Lord is never disappointed because God the Holy Spirit reassures the believer that he is the object of God’s love. Therefore, in Romans 5:9, he is returning to the concept of the believer’s confidence in the Lord but from the perspective of the future in that since Christ died for the believer while he was an enemy of God, it follows that he will not face the wrath of God. “Much more ” is composed of the dative neuter singular form of the adjective polus , “ much ” and the comparative adverb mallon , “ more .” The adjective polus is joined with the comparative adverb mallon in order to increase or intensify its comparative force. The word is used as a positive adjective

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 70 of degree and is employed with the comparative adverb mallon denoting degree, increasing the adverb’s comparative force. Mallon means “more, to a greater degree,” and denotes an increase, greater quantity, a larger measure, a higher degree. The positive adjective of degree polus functions grammatically as a “dative of measure” or “degree of difference.” This type of dative occurs when the dative substantive precedes or follows a comparative adjective or adverb as is the case in Romans 5:9 where polus precedes the comparative adverb mallon . This type of dative may be used to indicate the extent to which the comparison is true or the degree of difference that exists in the comparison. In Romans 5:9, the positive adjective of degree polus functions as a “dative of measure” indicating the extent to which the comparison between the death of Christ while the believer was an enemy of God and the believer’s deliverance from eternal condemnation now that he is reconciled to God. The adjective of degree polus and the comparative adverb mallon form the logical argument called a fortiori , which is a Latin phrase meaning “with stronger reason” and is an idiom of greater degree. A fortiori has two parts: (1) The greater (2) The lesser. What requires a greater degree of effort is used as the basis for showing what requires less effort. It is a conclusion compared with some other conclusion or recognized fact, as inferred to be even more certain or inescapable than the two conclusions it combines. Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary defines a fortiori , “with greater reason or more convincing force-used in drawing a conclusion that is inferred to be even more certain than another.” A fortiori uses an inferential conclusion as being more conclusive than another reasoned conclusion. It is a system of argumentation or debate which takes an accepted fact and by a comparison produces an inescapable fact and confident conclusion. Therefore, in Romans 5:9, the adjective polus and the comparative adverb mallon form the principle of a fortiori . They emphasize that if God has done the most “difficult” or “greater” thing for the believer in sending His Son to die as a substitute for them while they were His enemies, how much more can God be depended upon to accomplish the “easier” thing, namely, deliver them from the wrath of God now that they are reconciled to Him. The expression pollo mallon introduces the argument that if Christ had done the “greater” work of providing the basis for the justification of sinners by dying for them as their substitute, He will certainly then perform the comparatively “lesser” or simple task of delivering them from the Lake of Fire, now that they are reconciled to Him.

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The “most difficult” or “greatest” problem facing God when dealing with sinful mankind was that not only did He need to fulfill the demands of His holiness that required that sin and sinners face His righteous indignation but at the same time He also needed to express His love for sinners in providing them a way of avoiding His righteous indignation. So, the logical argument of a fortiori as expressed by the words pollo mallon emphasizes that if Christ died for His enemies, it follows that He will deliver His friends or those who have been reconciled to His Father through faith in Him. If the greater benefit has been given, the less will not be withheld. If God can do the greater work, it follows a fortiori that He can do the lesser. The “greater” is the work of salvation accomplished by Jesus Christ’s spiritual and physical deaths on the Cross, which is an accomplished fact of history. The “less” is God protecting, sustaining and delivering the believer in time and blessing him in the future and delivering him from the eternal Lake of Fire. “Having been justified ” is the nominative masculine first person plural aorist passive participle form of the verb dikaioo , which means, “to declare or pronounce righteous.” Once, again, in Romans 5:9, the verb dikaioo refers to the doctrine of justification, which by way of definition is a judicial act of God whereby He declares a person to be righteous as a result of crediting or imputing to that person His righteousness the moment they exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Consequently, God accepts that person and enters that person into a relationship with Himself since they now possess His righteousness. The first person plural form of the verb dikaioo refers exclusively to those Jews and Gentiles who have exercised absolute confidence in the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior since only those who do so are declared justified by God (Romans 3:21-26). The participle form of the verb dikaioo in Romans 5:9 is a “causal” participle since the rule of grammar states that the causal participle normally precedes the verb it modifies, which in Romans 5:9 is the future tense of the verb sozo , “ we shall be saved .” As a “causal” participle it answers the question as to “why” the believer will certainly be delivered from wrath of God. The believer will be delivered from the wrath of God “because” he has been declared justified by God through faith in Jesus Christ. The aorist tense of the verb dikaioo is a “culminative” or “consummative” aorist tense, which is used to emphasize the cessation of an act or state. This type of aorist views an event in its entirety but regarding it from the viewpoint of its existing results. Therefore, the “culminative” aorist views God the Father declaring the sinner justified through faith in His Son Jesus Christ in its entirety. But regards

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 72 it from the standpoint of its existing results, which is that the believer will certainly be delivered from the wrath of God. This is indicated by the statement sothesometha di’ autou apo tes orges , “ we shall be saved from the wrath (of God) through Him .” The passive voice means that the subject receives the action of the verb from either an expressed or unexpressed agency. Therefore, the passive voice means that the sinner who trusts in Jesus Christ as their Savior as the subject received the action of being declared justified by the unexpressed agency of God the Father. Although the Father is not explicitly mentioned as the agency in declaring the sinner justified through faith in His Son Jesus Christ, Romans 3:21-26 makes clear that He was the member of the Trinity that performed this act. “Now ” is adverb of time nun , which emphasizes the present state of Paul and his fellow Christians who were declared justified by God the Father in the past when they exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ. The word is employed with the aorist tense of the verb dikaioo in order to emphasize the believer’s present state of being justified as a result of the past action of the Father declaring them justified through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. “By His blood ” is composed of the preposition en , “ in ,” which is followed by the articular dative neuter singular form of the noun haima , “ blood ” and the genitive third person masculine singular form of the intensive personal pronoun autos , “ His. ” So, in Romans 5:9, the phrase “ His blood ” refers to our Lord’s substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. In Romans 5:9, Paul is emphasizing the “basis” for the believer’s justification, which is signified by the expression to haimati autou , “ His blood .” This again, is a representative analogy referring to the spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ on the Cross. The voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths of the impeccable humanity of Christ in hypostatic union on the Cross are the basis for justification since His unique spiritual and physical deaths propitiated or satisfied the demands of God’s holiness, which required that sin be judged. His unique spiritual and physical deaths on the cross also redeemed mankind out of the slave market of sin, fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law and reconciled the human race to God. Therefore, the sinner is justified on the basis of the merits of Jesus Christ and the merits of His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross. The perfection of Christ’s Person and Work are the foundation of the imputation of divine righteousness and resultant justification. The intensive personal pronoun autos refers to the Lord Jesus Christ since the word’s antecedent is the proper noun Christos , “ Christ ,” which appears at the end of Romans 5:8.

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The definite article that is before the noun haima , “ blood is used with the intensive pronoun autos to denote possession. Together, this blood “belongs to” Jesus Christ and of course, His blood is representative analogy signifying His spiritual death that delivered the believer from spiritual death and eternal condemnation. “We shall be saved ” is the first person plural future passive indicative form of the verb sozo , which means, “to deliver.” The future tense of the verb sozo indicates that the word is referring to the act of God delivering the believer in an “ultimate” sense in the future from eternal condemnation. The believer’s deliverance from eternal condemnation is in view here in Romans 5:9 and not his deliverance from the tribulation period, which is also called by students of prophecy as “Daniel’s Seventieth Week.” This is indicated in that Paul is used this deliverance in the context of Christ’s spiritual and physical deaths, which delivers them from spiritual and eternal condemnation in the eternal Lake of Fire. Also, up to this point in the book of Romans, Paul has been teaching that the entire human race is under the wrath, or righteous indignation of God due to sin (Romans 18:3:18). He has pointed out that the sinner can only be declared justified by God the Father and delivered from the wrath of God through faith in His Son Jesus Christ and not by observing the Law or circumcision (Romans 3:19-4:25). In Romans 5:1-5, Paul presents results concerning this justification by faith, which is that the believer now has peace with God, permanent access to a relationship with God, confidence that he will be blessed by God through undeserved suffering. In Romans 5:6-8, he demonstrates that the believer’s confidence in future blessing is not misplaced since Christ died for the believer as a substitute while the believer was still and enemy of God. Therefore, in Romans 5:9, when Paul uses sozo he is speaking in the context of the benefits that accrue to the believer because of the spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ as their substitute, which delivered them from eternal condemnation and reconciled them to God. In Romans 5:10-11, he talks about the reconciliation of the sinner to a holy God through the spiritual and physical deaths of Jesus Christ on the cross. Therefore, in Romans 5:9, the verb sozo refers to the believer’s deliverance from eternal condemnation in the eternal Lake of Fire. The future tense of the verb is a “predictive” future tense indicating that something will take place or come to pass. Therefore, it indicates the believer’s deliverance from eternal condemnation in the eternal Lake of Fire “will take place” in the future. They will be delivered from eternal condemnation because they have been declared justified by God the moment he exercised faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior whose spiritual and physical deaths on the cross propitiated the

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Father’s holiness that required that sin and sinners face His righteous indignation forever in the eternal Lake of Fire. The passive voice means that the subject receives the action of the verb from either an expressed or unexpressed agency. In Romans 5:9, the subject is the sinner who has been justified by faith in Jesus Christ. The agency is expressed by the prepositional phrase, di’ autou , “ by Him .” Therefore, the passive voice of sozo indicates that the sinner who has been declared justified by God the Father through faith in His Son Jesus Christ will be delivered in the future from eternal condemnation in the eternal Lake of Fire by the Lord Jesus Christ. “From the wrath of God ” is composed of the preposition apo , “ from ” and the articular genitive feminine singular form of the noun orge , “ wrath .” The noun orge is used of God’s settled opposition to and displeasure against sin meaning that God’s holiness cannot and will not coexist with sin in any form whatsoever. It is not the momentary, emotional, and often uncontrolled anger to which human beings are prone and does not refer to an explosive outburst but rather it refers to an inner, deep resentment that seethes and smolders, often unnoticed by others as in the case of God’s wrath. God hates sin so much and loves the sinner so much that He judged His Son Jesus Christ for every sin in human history-past, present and future and provided deliverance from sin through faith in His Son Jesus Christ. The only way to avoid God’s righteous indignation is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The preposition apo is a marker of separation and dissociation and the noun orge functions as a “genitive of separation” or as some grammarians call an “ablative of separation” in which the genitive substantive is that from which the verb or sometimes the head noun is separated indicating point of departure. Thus, the noun orge functions as a “genitive” or “ablative of separation” indicating that because the believer has been declared justified by means of faith in Jesus Christ as their Savior, he is “totally and completely separated from” experiencing God’s righteous indignation forever in the eternal Lake of Fire. The definite article preceding the noun orge functions as a possessive pronoun since possession is obviously implied. Therefore, the article is referring to the Lord Jesus Christ’s righteous indignation, which will be expressed at the Great White Throne Judgment when He executes the sentence of eternal condemnation upon every sinner who rejected Him as Savior. If the sinner will not exercise faith in Jesus Christ as his or her Savior, then they will face His righteous indignation at the Great White Throne Judgment. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself declared to the Jews that the Father had given Him authority to judge the living and the dead (John 5:22-29). The judgment of God is inescapable unless one trusts in Jesus Christ as their Savior.

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The fact that unregenerate man will receive eternal condemnation in the lake of fire forever and ever is a righteous judgment since as sinners they can never be justified before a holy God and have rejected God’s only provision for sin, which is the Person and Finished Work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. God who is holy and cannot tolerate sin is justified in throwing His creatures into the lake of fire for rebelling against Him but also God, who as to His nature, is love, did everything He could to prevent any of His creatures from going to the lake of fire forever and ever for their rebellion against Him. The fact that God did not immediately deposit all mankind in the lake of fire for their disobedience is incontrovertible evidence that God loves His creatures and desires none of them to go to the lake of fire. The fact that God the Father sent His Son into the world to become a human being to satisfy His righteous demands that the sin of men be judged is also incontrovertible evidence that God loves His creatures. The Lord Jesus Christ will conduct the Great White Throne Judgment as He will all judgments since God the Father has promoted Him to sovereign ruler of creation as a result of His voluntary substitutionary spiritual and physical deaths on the cross (See Philippians 2:5-11; Hebrews 1:1-3). The sins of the unbeliever are never brought up since Christ died for all their sins and instead their self-righteous works that do not measure up to Christ perfection will be used to condemn them to the eternal lake of fire. “Through Him ” is composed of the preposition dia , “ through ” and genitive third person masculine singular form of the intensive personal pronoun autos , “Him ” The preposition dia is employed with the genitive form of the intensive personal pronoun autos , “ Him ” to denote that the Lord Jesus Christ is the personal intermediate agent who delivers the believer from eternal condemnation since He is the mediator between sinful mankind and a holy God. The intensive personal pronoun autos refers to the Lord Jesus Christ since the word’s antecedent is the intensive personal pronoun autos , which appears in the prepositional phrase en to haimati autou , “ on the basis of His blood.” The intensive personal pronoun autos functions as a “genitive of agency” indicating that the Lord Jesus Christ is the personal intermediate agency by whom the action of being delivered from God’s righteous indignation is accomplished. In Romans 5:9, the prepositional phrase en to haimati autou , “ on the basis of His blood ” refers to the “finished work” of Jesus Christ on the Cross, which was accomplished by our Lord’s spiritual and physical death on the Cross. This “finished work” refers to that which the spiritual and physical death of Jesus Christ on the Cross accomplished.

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Our Lord’s spiritual and physical deaths on the cross redeemed sinful mankind from the slave market of sin, propitiated the Father’s holiness that required that sin be judged, reconciled sinful humanity to a holy God, fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law, providing the forgiveness of sins, and destroyed the works of the devil. In Romans 5:9, the prepositional phrase di’ autou , “ by Him ” emphasizes the “unique impeccable Person” of Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus Christ is the one and only mediator between sinful mankind and a holy God since His spiritual and physical deaths on the cross propitiated the demands of God’s holiness that required that sin and sinners be judged. Consequently, His spiritual and physical deaths fulfilled the righteous requirements of the Law, redeemed sinful mankind out of the slave market of sin and the cosmic system of Satan, destroying his works, and reconciled or established peace with a holy God.

The Righteousness of God and the Christian Way of Life

God wants His righteousness manifested in the lives of His people. It is produced in the life of the church age believer when they exercise faith in the Spirit inspired commands and prohibitions communicated of the gospel. This results in obedience to these commands and prohibitions. When a believer is living in the righteousness of God or manifesting it, they are fulfilling their obligation to God to love Him with their entire being and strength and fulfilling their obligation to their fellow human being to love them as themselves. The church age believer experiences the righteousness of God in their life by appropriating by faith his union and identification with Christ in His crucifixion, death, burial, resurrection and session, which results in obedience to the various prohibitions and commands that appear in the gospel. This obedience constitutes loving God with one’s entire being and strength and one’s neighbor as oneself. Therefore, when the Christian is doing this, they are exemplifying God’s integrity and virtue. They are in turn exemplifying Christ-like character which is perfectly sound. They are also perfectly adhering to God’s perfect standards, which appear in the gospel. They are thus doing all that God commands them in the gospel and all that He demands of them in the gospel as His child and all that He approves, and all that He provides for them through Christ. The work of transforming the believer into the image of Christ involves the manifestation of the righteousness of God in the believer, which like the believer’s sanctification and salvation is accomplished in three stages. The first stage is described as “positional” which means that at the moment the believer exercises faith in the gospel message and trusts in Jesus Christ as their Savior. At the moment of justification and their spiritual birth, God imputed His

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 77 righteousness to the believer so that they are “positionally” the righteousness of God meaning God has given His righteousness as a gift to the believer and He views the believer as righteous as Him. This in turn sets up the potential for the believer to experience this righteousness in time. Therefore, the moment a person believes in Jesus Christ as Savior, God the Father imputes the righteousness of Christ so that He becomes the believer’s righteousness. 1 Corinthians 1:30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption. (NASB95) The second stage can be described as “experiential” which means that after justification or conversion the believer experiences the righteousness of God by exercising faith in the gospel message that they have been crucified, died, buried, raised and seated with Christ. After conversion, the believer is commanded to present the members of their physical body as instruments of righteousness, which is accomplished by appropriating by faith the imputed righteousness they received at justification (See Romans 6). This faith is demonstrated by the believer through his obedience to the teaching that he has died with Christ and has been raised with Him (See Romans 6:11-13). This “experiential” stage also means that the believer is fulfilling their obligations after justification to love God with their entire being and their fellow human being as they would themselves. It also speaks of the believer obeying the Lord’s command in John 13:34 to love their fellow-believer as He loves them. The third and final stage can be described as “perfective,” which speaks of the righteousness of God being perfected in the life of the believer when they receive their resurrection body at the rapture of the church. Galatians 5:5 For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness. (NASB95) The apostle Paul in Philippians 3:2-11 describes his exchange of his pre- salvation self-righteousness as a Pharisee for the righteousness of Christ as a believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. The new Christ nature received at the moment of conversion was created in the righteousness of God and holiness from the truth according to Ephesians 4:24. Ephesians 4:24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. (NASB95) In Philippians 1:9-11, one of the objectives of Paul prayer for the Philippians was that they would produce fruit to God through the function of the nature of Christ, i.e. the righteousness of Christ. Philippians 1:9 Now, this I make it a habit to pray that your divine-love might continue to flourish yet more and more by means of a total discerning experiential knowledge 10 so that all of you might continue to choose the

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 78 essentials in order that all of you might be sincere and without offense for the day of Christ 11 by all of you being filled with the fruit produced by righteousness, which is by means of the nature of Jesus who is the Christ for the ultimate purpose of glorifying and praising God. (My translation) The Lord Jesus Christ commanded His disciples to seek after God’s righteousness. Matthew 6:33 “But above all else (number one priority in life), all of you make it your habit to diligently, earnestly and tenaciously seek after the kingdom of the God and His righteousness (grow to spiritual maturity), sparing no effort or expense, and as a result all these things will be provided for all of you.” (Author’s translation) Paul commanded Timothy to pursue living in the righteousness of Christ (See Timothy 2:22). 2 Timothy 2:22 Now flee from youthful lusts and pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace, with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. (NASB95) The Word of God trains the believer to live in the righteousness of Christ. 2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; 17 so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (NASB95) In fact, the Word of God is designated in Hebrews 5:13 as the “ Word of righteousness .” Hebrews 5:13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an infant. 14 But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil. (NASB95) The believer who practices the righteousness of God by living in the new Christ nature demonstrates that he is born again of God and a child of God. 1 John 2:29 If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone also who practices righteousness is born of Him. (NASB95) The children of the devil and the children of God are distinguished from each other because the latter practice the righteousness of God and the former practice evil according to 1 John 3:10. The righteousness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is our invisible weapon is against Satan and the kingdom of darkness since he is commanded in Scripture to protect himself in spiritual combat with the righteousness of Christ, which is called in Ephesians 6:14, the “ breastplate of righteousness .” Ephesians 6:14 Therefore, I solemnly charge all of you to stand your ground. I solemnly charge all of you to buckle yourselves up, your waist with the belt of truth. Also, I solemnly charge all of you to clothe yourselves with

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 79 the breastplate, which is (the divine) righteousness (of Christ). (My translation) Revelation 19:11 reveals that by means of His righteousness, the Lord Jesus Christ at His Second Advent will wage a war against His enemies and judge them. Undeserved suffering and divine discipline are designed to produce the righteousness of God in our lives and not to hurt us. Hebrews 12:11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. (NASB95) If the believer enters into committing any mental, verbal or overt act of sin after salvation, he can rest assured that he has an advocate with the Father, namely Jesus who is the righteous Christ. 1 John 2:1 Now, if anyone does enter into committing an act of sin, then we possess as an Advocate with the Father, Jesus who is the righteous Christ. (NASB95) Properly motivated grace giving is called “ righteousness ” according to 2 Corinthians 9:10. The production of divine good is called the “ fruit of righteousness ,” (Ephesians 5:9) which is the result of living in the new Christ nature by being obedience to the Word of God. The believer will be rewarded with a “ crown of righteousness ” by the Lord Jesus at the Bema Seat for executing the Father’s will and growing to spiritual maturity according to 2 Timothy 4:8. The believer will be rewarded with a “ crown of righteousness ” by the Lord Jesus at the Bema Seat for executing the Father’s will and growing to spiritual maturity according to 2 Timothy 4:8. Second Timothy 4:8 In the future, the crown which is the product of faithfully exemplifying divine righteousness is reserved for me, which the Lord, the righteous Judge will, as a certainty reward me on that day. In fact, by no means only me but also anyone who longs for His appearing. (Author’s translation) In this declarative statement, Paul asserts that in the future, the crown which is the product of faithfully exemplifying divine righteousness is reserved for him. When Paul speaks of the future he is referring to the time when he will receive rewards from the Lord Jesus Christ at the Bema Seat because he was a faithful steward of the time, talent, treasure and truth the Lord bestowed upon him. Here in Second Timothy 4:8, the apostle Paul is speaking of the experiential aspect of righteousness in that he exemplified this righteousness habitually in his life after conversion.

Faith

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The Scriptures teach that the spiritually dead sinner appropriates the salvation provided for them through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ by exercising faith in Jesus Christ. There are three forms of perception: (1) Empiricism: Trusting in one’s experiences in life to make decisions. (2) Rationalism: Trusting in one’s intellect to make decisions in life. (3) Faith: Trusting in the authority of another to make decisions in life. Faith is the only system of perception that God will accept because it is compatible with His grace policy (Ephesians 2:8-9). The object of the Christian’s faith at the moment of conversion is the Lord Jesus Christ and the object of his faith after conversion is the written Word of God. Faith for the Christian is trusting in the authority of the Word of God in order to govern one’s life. Faith is obedience to God’s commands and is the positive response to God’s commands and acting upon those directions. The Bible never separates faith from obedience (cf. Hebrews 11:8). Unbelief on the other hand is disobedient and is the negative response to God’s commands and as a result the failure to act upon God’s commands (Hebrews 3:12). After conversion, the believer is to walk by means of faith in the Word of God (2 Corinthians 5:7; Galatians 2:20; Romans 1:16-17; Hebrews 10:37-38). Just as the Christian received the Lord Jesus as his Savior by exercising faith in Him for eternal salvation, so after conversion he is to live by the same principle of faith (Compare Ephesians 2:8-9 with Colossians 2:5-7). The principle of faith operates quite simply: (1) God speaks and we hear His Word. (2) We trust His Word and act on it no matter what the circumstances are or what the consequences may be. The circumstances may be impossible, and the consequences frightening and unknown, but we obey God’s Word just the same and believe Him to do what is right and what is best. Hebrews 11:1-3 gives a definition of faith and also a description of the nature of faith or in other words, what faith does and how it works. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the men of old gained approval. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. (NASB95) One of the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith is that of the doctrine of justification. This doctrine has given assurance to believers throughout the centuries and has changed the course of human history. By way of definition, justification is a judicial act of God whereby He declares a person to be righteous as a result of crediting or imputing to that person His righteousness the moment they exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ. Consequently, God accepts that

2020 William E. Wenstrom, Jr. Bible Ministries 81 person and enters that person into a relationship with Himself since they now possess His righteousness. The mechanics of justification are as follows: (1) God condemns the sinner, which qualifies them to receive His grace. (2) The sinner believes in Jesus Christ as His Savior. (3) God imputes or credits Christ’s righteousness to the believer. (4) God declares that person as righteous as a result of acknowledging His Son’s righteousness in that person. Justification is God declaring a person to be righteous as a result of acknowledging or recognizing His righteousness in that person, and which righteousness He imputed to that person as a result of their faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. It causes no one to be righteous but rather is the recognition and declaration by God that one is righteous as He is. It is a once and for all declaration, which never changes and never can be rescinded since God is a perfect Judge who because He is immutable, always makes perfect decisions. To be justified by God through faith alone in Christ alone means that God can never condemn us for our sins. It means that a believer can never lose his salvation because of any sin since God, who is a perfect judge, rendered a perfect decision when he declared righteous the person, who exercised faith in His Son Jesus Christ! Thus, Paul declares the following: Romans 8:1, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Faith is the positive response and obedience to God’s commands and prohibitions and acting upon those directions whereas unbelief on the other hand is disobedient and is the negative response to God’s commands and as a result the failure to act upon God’s commands. A Christian’s faith is based upon trusting in the authority of the Scriptures in order to govern his life and is a non-meritorious system of perception. The object of the sinner’s faith for eternal salvation is the Lord Jesus Christ and the object of his faith after conversion is the written Word of God. In order for the Christian to please God and gain His approval he must trust in the authority of the Scriptures to govern his life (See Hebrews 11:6). The Christian experiences fellowship with God and thus their salvation and sanctification after their conversion by exercising faith in the Word of God. In fact, fellowship with God is based upon a moment-by-moment walk of faith in the Spirit inspired teaching of the Word of God. Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the {life} which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. (NASB95) Faith in the Word of God is the way to victory over the enemy, Satan. 1 John 5:4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has overcome the world -- our faith. (NASB95)

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In fact, the believer is commanded to take up for himself the shield of faith. Ephesians 6:16 In addition to everything, I solemnly charge all of you to take up for yourselves your shield, which is your faith because that will enable all of you to extinguish all the flaming arrows originating from the evil one. (Author’s translation) The believer acquires faith through hearing the communication of the Word of Christ. Romans 10:17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ. (NASB95) Answered prayer requires faith and is thus an expression of confidence in God’s ability to meet one’s need (Matt. 8:10; Luke 7:9; Matt. 9:22; Mark 5:34; Luke 8:48; Matt. 9:29; 17:20; Luke 17:5; Mark 9:29; Matt. 21:22; Mark 11:24; 1 John 3:21-22; James 1:5-8; 5:15). True faith regards what has been requested as one’s own possession even though the request has not been received. Faith is an attitude toward God, in which the believer considers God to be faithful who will perform all that which He is promised in His Word. This attitude is illustrated in Philippians 1:6. The great Old Testament saints were men and women who lived by this principle of faith. Hebrews 11:1-3 gives a definition of faith and also a description of the nature of faith or in other words, what faith does and how it works. Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. 2 For by it the men of old gained approval. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible. (NASB95) The Lord will test the believer’s faith after conversion in order to produce endurance in them. James 1:2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 2 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance 3 and let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. (NASB95) The Lord rewards the believer after his faith has been tested. James 1:12 Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. (NASB95) James chapter 2 also uses faith in relation to the Christian way of life after justification. When Paul speaks of justification in Romans 3 and 4, he is using it in relation to eternal salvation whereas James uses justification in relation to the believer’s spiritual life after receiving eternal salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

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In the epistle of James, James makes a reference to justification, which is not a reference to justification in relation to eternal salvation but rather approval from God for performing actions, which are in obedience to the Word of God. In the epistle of James, James teaches his readers who were believers that Abraham demonstrated his faith by performing works and when he speaks of works, he is referring to actions that are produced by obedience to God’s commands. James 2:14-24 is addressed to believers challenging them to operate in faith “after” salvation and which faith is demonstrated by obedience to God resulting in good works that are approved by God. James 2:14 What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? (NASB95) In the Bible, the term “ brethren ” is always used as a designation for believers and never unbelievers, thus James is addressing his readers as fellow believers in relation to their walk with God “after” salvation since they are already saved. Therefore, the term “ save ” is “not” a reference to eternal salvation but rather the believer’s “deliverance” after conversion from his sin nature, the devil and the cosmic system by obeying the Word of God. The term “ works ” is “not” a reference to working for one’s eternal salvation but rather it is a designation for obedience to God resulting in actions that benefit one’s fellow believer. James 2:15 If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food 16 and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,’ and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? 17 Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself. (NASB95) In James 2:15-17, James teaches his readers that if they do not help their fellow believer who is destitute and in need of the essentials of life, then they are not operating in faith meaning they are disobeying God who commanded them to love one another as themselves (Mark 12:28-31). James 2:18 But someone may well say, “You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” (NASB95) James teaches that a believer’s faith is demonstrated by his works and when he speaks of works, he is referring to his actions that benefit his fellow believer, and which actions are produced by obedience to God’s Word. James 2:19 You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. (NASB95) This passage teaches that the demons believe that God is one but they do not produce actions that are the result of obedience to God.

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James 2:20 But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? (NASB95) James teaches that Abraham was justified by his works and identifies what those works were, namely, the offering of Isaac his son on the altar, which was in obedience to God. Therefore, we can see that when James uses the term “ works ” in this passage he is referring to a believer’s actions that are the result of obedience to God’s commands. When Paul in Romans 3:20 uses the term “ works ” he is using it with reference to the unbeliever’s actions that are in obedience to the Scriptures, which can never justify him before a holy God since the Law demands perfect obedience. When James uses the term “ justified, ” he is “not” referring to justification in relation to eternal salvation of the sinner but rather justification in the sense of the believer receiving “approval” from God for being obedient. James 2:22 You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected. (NASB95) James teaches that Abraham’s faith produced actions that were in obedience to God and which actions, he calls “works .” When James uses the term “ perfected ” he means perfected in the sense of being accomplished. Therefore, James is teaching that as a result of Abraham’s actions in sacrificing Isaac, and which actions were in obedience to God, the goal of faith was accomplished. The goal of faith is obedience to God, which is what Paul is referring to in Romans 1:5. James 2:23 and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS,” and he was called the friend of God. (NASB95) James is quoting Genesis 15:6. James 2:24 You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. (NASB95) When James uses the term “ justified by works ” he means that a believer is justified before God in the sense that he is “approved” by God when he produces actions that are in obedience to God. This obedience demonstrates his faith in God and does “not” refer to the sinner being declared justified through faith in Christ resulting in eternal salvation. Abraham was a tremendous example for James’ readers to follow in that Abraham was approved by God because his attempted sacrifice of his beloved son Isaac was in obedience to God’s commands and which obedience demonstrated his faith. James is not attempting to describe for his readers how they can identify a so- called “genuine” believer but rather he is simply challenging his readers to obey God, which demonstrates their faith and benefits their fellow believer.

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Now, although James is referring to believers receiving approval from God for their obedience, God’s approval of the believer’s actions that are in obedience to His Word are evidence that the believer has been justified in relation to eternal salvation.

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