Good morning. Please open your Bibles to the little book of Habakkuk for the end of the Old Testament, and if you would turn to chapter 2. Let me say a word of prayer before we jump into the message here. Father, again, we just come before you and ask your blessing upon this time as we open your Word. We pray, Lord, that you would speak to our hearts. Lord, open our hearts to your Word. I pray, Lord, that you would stir up our affections for Christ as we walk through this passage this morning. Give me grace, Lord, that I might speak with clarity and conviction And Lord, use the preaching of your word for the edification of the saints and to draw those who are without Christ to yourself by your mercy. We pray these things in Christ's name, amen. Diamonds are a crystallized form of carbon that grows from a primary carbon source that's been subjected to very high temperatures and pressures. And these tiny little stones are very expensive, aren't they Shiloh? Costing anywhere from hundreds to thousands of dollars for something no larger than a cocklebur. Here's an interesting detail, quoting from a diamond expert regarding diamond mines. These mines never seem to be found on the outskirts of major cities. Instead, they're usually located in very remote and often very harsh environments. I'm often amazed at how these mines are ever found. I feel like having worked through the book of Habakkuk, here in the second chapter is a tiny little statement from God that is exceedingly precious. And at the very heart of this book, a statement that later Paul is gonna take out in mine and shape and display like a jewel. The just shall live by faith. So let's review just a little bit. Last week we began in Habakkuk chapter one. And as I mentioned then, the global theme of Habakkuk is this truth, that just shall live by faith. And in chapter one, the theme that we were looking at there was that prevailing evil is both grievous and perplexing, and God's ways beyond searching out. In chapter 1, it began with Habakkuk taking to God his initial grievance. As he is looking out among the people of God, the nation of Israel, he sees all sorts of injustice and law-breaking that is being done. And yet, that injustice just seems to be perpetuating, and God seems to be doing nothing about it. And he takes that grief to God, and God gives him a response, a rather shocking response. And his response is this, yes, I'm aware and I'm going to judge the evil, but I'm going to do it by sending the Chaldeans to come and bring my judgments. And so then Habakkuk goes back to God, confessing that God is just, but being perplexed. How can this be a nation that is more wicked than us coming to deliver your judgments? He has sort of a compounded grievance over this perplexity of prevailing evil. And last week I said the principles that we could draw out of that chapter were this, that sin and evil are indeed grievous things. That God is not indifferent to sin. and that God is sovereign over evil for his good purpose and wrapped into that certain mysteries that are deep and difficult to understand for those of us who are finite in the light of the wisdom of God who is infinite. So that's where we take up here today in our text in chapter two. What we'll see today is that God is just and will certainly bring woeful judgment upon all evil. Yet, in Christ, He will preserve those who cling to Him by faith. We'll look at the passage here and begin with the assurance of divine justice, then the woe of divine justice, and then I'm going to extend that into some further observations and applications, the end of divine justice. So to begin with, the assurance of divine justice, verses 1 through 5. And we begin here with Habakkuk watching, as Justin mentioned, watching and waiting for the answer of God. Verse one, I will stand on my guard post and station myself on the rampart, and I will keep watch to see what he will speak to me and how I may reply when I am approved. So having made his reply to God and his objections, Habakkuk now watches and waits with this sort of mixture of fear and eager anticipation to receive God's response. So I have to wonder what sort of response do you suppose Habakkuk was anticipating? What questions might have been lingering in the mind of the prophets? This is purely speculative, but perhaps it was something like this. Shall God relent of the coming judgment from the Chaldeans? Is there an opportunity here, as there have been in times past, for repentance that we might yet be spared? Either way, Habakkuk is positioning himself as a watchman, as prophets often did. Prophets were often seen or even called in the Old Testament watchmen. In fact, in Ezekiel chapter 3, 17, God says, son of man, I have appointed you as a watchman to the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, warn them from me. In this way, Habakkuk stands as a watchman, not only to hear the reply of God for his own satisfaction, but as one who will take that message and bring it to the people of God. Matthew Henry makes, I feel, a good application of this point, saying this, when we have poured out our complaints and requests before God, We must observe the answers God gives by His word, His spirit, and providences, what the Lord will say to our case. We are to be ourselves in this way watchmen, looking to see how God will respond to those prayers that we have taken to Him. So then God answers, verse two, with an assurance that judgment is coming. Then the Lord answered me and said, record the vision and inscribe it on tablets that the one who reads it may run. For the vision is yet for the appointed time. It hastens toward the goal and it will not fail. Though it tarries, wait for it, for it will certainly come. It will not delay. So God says to Habakkuk, write this message on tablets with large legible letters so that everyone will know what's going to happen. In other words, we might have put it this way ourselves, mark it down. Now, that's a phrase that we use to say that something is certain and it's fixed. And when we say mark it down in regards to something that we might do in the future, that's of course a vain thing because we have in ourselves no control over the future. But when God says, mark it down, be certain it's coming. Such is the word of God. Everything that he says will surely come to pass because his word will not return to him void. And he says this, he says, it hastens toward the goal. And actually in Hebrew, this phrase literally means it pants toward the end. And here, the prophetic fulfillment, is given in a sort of personified or animated sense, like a man or a beast that's running at full stride on a dead sprint. God's word is a living word. And though it's not yet arrived, it's on its way. And there's nothing that you can do or I can do to stop it. So what exactly is on its way? What is this thing that is hastening, panting toward its goal? It's God's judgment for evil. On the one hand, we could say, well, it's the judgment that he's sending to the people of God from the Chaldeans, but it's also this return of evil as we walk through this passage that will come upon the Chaldeans as well. And God then continues with another assurance of His divine justice. Verse 4, we continue, Behold, as for the proud one, his soul is not right within him, but the righteous will live by his faith. Furthermore, wine betrays the haughty man so that he does not stay at home. He enlarges his appetite like Sheol and he is like death, never satisfied. He also gathers to himself all nations and collects to himself all peoples." So God provides here a clear demarcation between the proud and the righteous. The one who lives for self, in rebellion against God, versus the other one who lives by faith in God, the one upon whom divine justice shall fall, and the other whose life shall be preserved. So we have the proud one. Now some believe this is referring to the proud Jews, like the Pharisees in the days of Jesus. And the manner in which verse 4 gets quoted in the book of Hebrews, it certainly is applied in that sense, speaking to those who are among the people of God that shrink back, whose faith is upon themselves rather than God. But in its immediate context here, it's the Chaldeans in particular, I believe, Nebuchadnezzar himself that seemed to fit the bill. the ones who are collecting all nations to themselves with an insatiable appetite. But either way, it's certainly a universal principle. Pride is deeply connected to the root of all sin. To be like God. as it was with the original sin in the Garden of Eden, by which man's rebellion began. And so are all who disbelieve in God, who do not live by faith, but by the rule of self, the one whose fortress and confidence is not in God, but in himself or some other created thing. And then we have In contrast to the proud one, we have the righteous in verse four. In the midst of his declaration of judgment is this small but very precious jewel. But the righteous will live by his faith. As John Piper says, the full-blown doctrine of justification by faith as Paul taught it in Romans and Galatians, is not yet here, but the seed is here. The word live is what's emphasized in this verse. It's the reward promised to those who are patiently waiting on God. In particular, as we see in its context, Those who are waiting for deliverance from the destruction in the waves of divine judgment that are coming. And what is meant by the righteous or just? One commentator put it this way. These are the ones who are humble, meek, sincere, resigned to the will of God, and relying on His wisdom, power, goodness, and faithfulness. In other words, their faith is manifested in the manner in which they live, and their constancy in clinging to God. And to be clear, Faith is not their refuge. God is their refuge. And in Him, their lives are preserved. And that's what their faith is about. Now, I'm gonna come back to this point to develop it a little bit more at the end. But for now, let's move forward through the passage beginning in verse six. We take up here the woe of divine justice, the woe of divine justice. And God gives five specific woes here against the Chaldeans, and He does this in groups of three verses. So verse six, will not all of these take up a taunt song against him, even mockery and insinuations against him and say, woe to him who increases what is not his for how long and makes himself rich with loans? Will not your creditors rise up suddenly and those who collect from you awaken? Indeed, you will become plunder for them. Because you have looted many nations, all the remainder of the people will loot you. because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land, to the town and all its inhabitants." In other words, woe to those who revel in covetous thievery. Woe to those who revel in covetous thievery. They're driven by this insatiable appetite for more and gather to themselves that which does not belong to them. And God says to such a one, you who looted will be looted. We continue then in verse nine. Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house to put his nest on high, to be delivered from the hand of calamity. You have devised a shameful thing for your house by cutting off many peoples. So you are sinning against yourself. Surely the stone will cry out from the wall and the rafter will answer it from the framework. So here we see a woe to those who revel in self-exaltation. Woe to those who revel in self-exaltation. The stones and the beams in the magnificent and lofty palaces constructed by the Chaldeans through the forced labor of the captives and the resources that they have plundered will cry out to God against them. And God says, you who put yourself on high are going to be brought low. Going to verse 12, woe to him who builds a city with bloodshed and founds a town with violence. Is it not indeed from the Lord of hosts that people toil for fire and nations grow weary for nothing? For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as waters cover the sea." In other words, woe to those who revel in bloodthirsty violence. Woe to those who revel in bloodthirsty violence. All of their riches were not only stolen, but they were taken in violence and the remaining captives oppressed and abused. and he study of history and of how the Chaldeans would conquer the nations, the towns, it was a bloody affair. It was a very cruel and violent affair. God says, you who took by violence will be vanquished by God and His eternal kingdom, like the waters which fill the sea. For His is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Verse 15. Woe to you who make your neighbors drink, who mix in your venom even to make them drunk so as to look on their nakedness. You will be filled with disgrace rather than honor. Now you yourself drink and expose your own nakedness, The cup in the Lord's right hand will come around to you, and utter disgrace will come upon your glory. For the violence done to Lebanon will overwhelm you, and the devastation of its beasts by which you terrified them, because of human bloodshed and violence done to the land, to the town, and all its inhabitants." In other words, he says, woe to those who revel in lustful exploitation. Woe to those who revel in lustful exploitation. You who intoxicated others to shamefully use them for yourselves, will yourself be taken advantage of. Verse 18, what profit is the idol when its maker has carved it? Or an image, a teacher of falsehood, for its maker trusts in its own handiwork when he fashions speechless idols? Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, awake, to a mute stone, arise. And that is your teacher. Behold, it's overlaid with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all inside of it. But the Lord is in his holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before him. He says woe to those who revel in worthless idolatry. Woe to those who revel in worthless idolatry. You who conquered by consulting your false gods will find them as lifeless as they truly are and unable to deliver you from the one true and living God. So I want to then wrap things up by looking at what I've called the end of divine justice. The prophecy that's given here is eschatological in nature. Eschatology is that which pertains to end times or to future events. And I believe that the prophetic word has really a sense that is both a short end and a long end. So to begin with, let's look at the short end of the prophecy that is given. It would be about five years later from the time that Habakkuk received this vision that the Babylonians began their conquest of Judah and would take them into exile. And we can think of the story of Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel chapter four, while he's at the zenith of his power and walking out on the rooftop of his palace, reflecting on his own glory, he says this, is this not Babylon the great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty? While the word was in the king's mouth, a voice came from heaven saying, King Nebuchadnezzar, to you it is declared, sovereignty has been removed from you and you will be driven away from mankind and your dwelling place will be with the beasts of the field. You will be given grass to eat like cattle and seven periods of time will pass over you until you recognize that the Most High is ruler over the realm of mankind and bestows it on whomever he wishes. And that word was done accordingly to King Nebuchadnezzar. In the next chapter of Daniel, we can read the account of King Belshazzar, son of Nebuchadnezzar, who while holding this great feast and celebration, saw the infamous writing on the wall. which made his knees begin to tremble and buckle and his face turned pale. And that very night, the Babylonian kingdom would fall to the Persians under the reign of King Cyrus. And we can think also in the midst of all of these things happening of the man named Daniel, a righteous man who lived by faith. a man who is preserved through many judgments, including the mouths of hungry lions. And we can think about all of these events and say, yes, these events certainly do answer the prophecy given to Habakkuk. These are what I would refer to as the short end of this prophecy, but I believe there's also a long end here. There are aspects of this prophecy that I believe have a scope much larger than the ruin of ancient Babylon, because in many ways, these things serve as a type of something larger that's to come. Pull out the phrase here in the midst of this, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. This is the long end. Things that we cannot say are reflected in the events that occurred in the days of Daniel, or in the days of the return from exile. Things that are yet to come, found here in this prophecy. In the gospel of Jesus, is going out into this world now toward that end. But its full consummation will not be until His glorious return. You see, Babylon is used in Scripture as a type of this world. In Revelation, we see Babylon representing the sum of the nations steeped in wickedness and rebellion against God. And as we look at the indictment against the Chaldeans in Habakkuk 2, we can readily appreciate the words of the Apostle John when he says, for all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life is not from the Father, but from the world. And that describes Babylon, the symbol of our world in rebellion against God. So I want to consider, when we think about the long end here, I want to consider the assurance of divine justice. Mark it down. Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead. So consider for a moment the words of Habakkuk in light of that truth. For the vision is yet, for the appointed time, it hastens toward the goal and it will not fail. Though it tarries, wait for it. For it will certainly come, it will not delay." Just as surely as God's word was fulfilled concerning ancient Babylon and its fall, so his word will be fulfilled concerning this present world. And as E.J. read out of 2 Peter 3, Peter says, know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts and saying, where is the promise of his coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation. And he points back to the flood and he says, see what happened to them? There is another day coming. like a thief in the night when this present world will be destroyed by fire. Which leads me to my next point. Consider the woe of divine justice. Consider the woe of divine justice. The coming divine judgment is, indeed, a dreadful thing. We see a glimpse of this in Revelation, particularly in chapter 18, concerning the destruction of Babylon, this present world. It says, For this reason, in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire. For the Lord God who judges her is strong, and the kings of the earth who committed acts of immorality and live sensuously with her will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning. standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, woe, woe, the great city Babylon, the strong city, for in one hour, your judgment has come. And finally, we ought to consider the haven of divine justice. The haven of divine justice. This is the jewel in the rock. Jesus is a haven of divine justice for those who cling to Him by faith. In fact, the author of Hebrews has this very thing in mind when he quotes from Habakkuk 2 in chapter 10, saying, therefore, do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. For you have need of endurance so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised. For yet in a very little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay, but my righteous one shall live by faith. And if he shrinks back, my soul has no pleasure in him. But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul. What does it mean? What does it mean to live by faith in Christ? One man put it this way. He took the word faith and said, this is a good way, kids, for you to remember it. I think a good thing to remember. The letters F-A-I-T-H. Forsaking all, I take Him. forsaking all, I take Him. I liked Calvin's comments on Habakkuk 2.4. It's rather lengthy, bear with me, I'll put it up here, you can read along with me. Faith is not to be taken here for man's integrity, but for that faith which sets man before God, emptied of all good things, so that he seeks what he needs from his gratuitous goodness. For all the unbelieving try to fortify themselves, and thus they strengthen themselves, thinking that anything in which they trust is sufficient for them. But what does the just do? He brings nothing before God except faith. Then he brings nothing of his own, because faith borrows, as it were, through favor, what is not in man's possession. He then who lives by faith has no life in himself, but because he wants it, he flies for it to God alone. The prophet also puts the verb in the future tense in order to show the perpetuity of this life. for the unbelieving glory in a shadowy life. But the Lord will at last discover their folly and they themselves shall really know that they have been deceived. But as God never disappoints the hope of his people, the prophet promises here a perpetual life to the faithful. One example. given in chapter 11 of Hebrews, the chapter that we might call the hall of faith, the chapter of those who he sets forward as those who have lived by faith, those who have believed in God and his promises. One key example is that of Noah. It says in Hebrews 11, Verse seven, by faith Noah, being warned by God about things not yet seen, in reverence prepared an ark for the salvation of his household by which he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. In fact, Peter, uses the story of the flood when he speaks about the coming judgment upon this world. He draws a parallel here and he puts it forth as the hope of those who live by faith concerning the promise of God for a new heaven and a new earth where righteousness dwells. One thing that caught my attention as we read through Psalm 37 is how many times we saw that phrase about the righteous shall inherit the earth. It looks to that land where there is no longer any evil or sin, where only righteousness dwells, a land of restoration. And in the example of Noah and the flood, We see a perfect illustration of what is meant by a haven of divine justice, which, of course, is Christ. It's a type of Christ. The Ark was the place of safety for Noah and his family when God's judgment destroyed the earth, a place of refuge for those who had faith in God. Think about the ark. The reign of God's judgment fell upon it. It floated upon the waters of His judgments. In other words, the ark itself took in itself, upon itself, all of the judgments of God as He destroyed this earth. But those inside remained safe. Christ, who is that ark, upon whom judgment fell, who died and was buried and rose again, so that those who come to him in faith shall find the only haven of divine justice." If we want to see a firm declaration of God's justice, we look at the cross. there is a firm declaration of God's justice. And it is these who are in Christ who shall find themselves in the land of restoration where sin and evil shall be no more. Here is the reality. All sin will be judged by our just and holy God. But Christ bore the penalty in Himself for those who belong to Him. He drank the full cup of God's wrath in our stead. And in Him, we find the haven of divine justice. because God in this way, as we read in Romans, is both just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. So in closure, here is the jewel, the precious promise in the midst of God's firm declaration of judgment. The just shall live by faith. Let's close. Heavenly Father, we confess that, Lord, your ways are truly above our ways. And we are so grateful, Lord, that though you are holy and just and can tolerate no sin, yet, Lord, you have in forbearance Lord, waited and stayed Your full justice and wrath, that by Your mercy and grace, some would be saved, Lord. And these through Christ. Father, we're grateful that You have invited us into that haven of divine justice in Your Son. Lord, we are thankful that for those of us that have entered in, that you even gave us the faith that would bring us into Christ. And Lord, we just acknowledge this morning your kindness to us in these things. If we do pray, Lord, that you would draw others as Christ has proclaimed, the work of your Holy Spirit would be to draw more and more into that haven of divine justice. We pray these things in His name, amen. So I'll take time now to open it up for any questions or corrections or other words to edify this morning. It's actually used in Numbers 14, just as Israel had a spot on land, and they decide, no, it's too much trouble, try to take it. And in that context, God's saying, hey, go back to what it was. But he gives that phrase, kind of as they're going into another time, some judgment, or some tribulation. But just throughout to me there, because we see it here again, as Christ and Israel is going into another time, and God's going to be judging these people. There's a long end to that promise. All right, I'll turn it over to Matt.