THE GOOD NEWS OF HABAKKUK.

Chapter 2, verse 4 “The just shall live by faith.” All right, so you thought Martin Luther said that. He did. What about Paul? Yes, he did too. Also the writer of Hebrews said that. It is pretty plain. And it is the heart of Christianity. We cannot earn our way into heaven. That has already been paid! By Jesus Christ. Does your church creed say that? It should.

THE FIVE WOES IN HABAKKUK chapter 2

Verse 6: …woe to him who piles up stolen goods and makes himself wealthy by extortion.

Verse 9: Woe to him who builds his realm by unjust gain …You have plotted the ruin of many people…

Verse 12: Woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and establishes a town by crime!

Verse 15: Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbors…till they are drunk, so that he can gaze on their naked bodies.

Verse 19: Woe to him who says to wood, “Come to life” …

Compare “woes” v 6-20 with Isaiah Chapter 5 “woes”.

Woe to those who “put up property so others have no place to live.  …whose homes are built on great estates so you can be alone in the midst of the earth.”  (LB 5:8)

• Woe to you who get up early in the morning to go on long drinking bouts that last till late at night – woe to you drunken bums.  (LB 5:11)

• Woe to those who drag their sins behind them like a bullock on a rope.  (LB 5:18)

• Woe to them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! (KJ 5:20)

• Woe to them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! (KJ 5:21)

• Woe to them who are “heroes” when it comes to drinking, and boast about the liquor they can hold. (LB 5:22)

HABAKKUK’S WOES, ISAIAH’S WOES, ONETA’S WOES

Woe to the the greedy who share little with the poor or the alien. To the “class” systems, where the elite take advantage of the little man. The Harvard class against the Rednecks. Hab. v6; Is 5:8

Woe to those who use money to gain advantage over others. The loan sharks, the gambling industry, dishonest “wall” streeters, those who do not pay a worker his due rewards. Hab. v9,

Woe to the leaders of cities who turn a blind eye to bloodshed, crime, and lawlessness. Hab. v12.

Woe to those who strain at a gnat and swallow a camel, those who nit-pick a person for something done long ago, but overlook what he/she did last night. Is 5:20

Woe to those who sit in the seat of the learned and call others chumps, uncouth, and superstitious. Those who deride the person who believes in God calling him a crutch. Is 5:21

Woe to the acceptance of mind altering drinks, drugs, movies, books, and other things that call a person to baseness, sexual perversions, gender disfunction, and idleness. Hab. v15; Is 5:11,22

Woe to those who make gods from God’s creation. Who worship the creation rather than the Creator. Hab. v19.

Woe to those who “come out of the closet” bragging about their perversions, portraying their sin as normal and good. Is. 5:18

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I’ll be back. 😀