1   A prayer of the prophet Habakkuk. ^note

2   O Lord, I have heard tell of thy deeds;
I have seen, ^note O Lord, thy work. ^note
  In the midst of the years thou didst make thyself known,
and in thy wrath thou didst remember mercy.


3   God comes from Teman,
  the Holy One from Mount Paran;
his radiance overspreads the skies,
and his splendour fills the earth.
   4   He rises ^note like the dawn,
  with twin rays starting forth at his side;
the skies are ^note the hiding-place of his majesty,
and the everlasting ^note ways are for ^note his swift flight. ^note
5   Pestilence stalks before him,
and plague comes forth behind.

A prayer for mercy
6   He stands still and shakes the earth,
he looks and makes the nations tremble;
  the eternal mountains are riven,
  the everlasting ^note hills subside,
   7   the tents of Cushan are snatched away, ^note
  the tent-curtains of Midian flutter.
   8   Art thou angry with the streams? ^note
  Is thy wrath against the sea, O Lord?
  When thou dost mount thy horses,
  thy riding is to victory.
9   Thou dost draw thy bow from its case ^note
and charge thy quiver with shafts. ^note
Thou cleavest the earth with rivers;
10    11   the mountains see thee and writhe with fear.
The torrent of water rushes by,
and the deep sea thunders aloud.
The sun forgets to turn in his course, ^note
and the moon stands still at her zenith,
at the gleam of thy speeding arrows
  and the glance of thy flashing spear.
12   With threats thou dost bestride the earth
and trample down the nations in anger.
   13   Thou goest forth to save thy people,
  thou comest ^note to save thy anointed;
thou dost shatter the wicked man's house from the roof down, ^note
uncovering ^note its foundations to the bare rock. ^note
14   Thou piercest their ^note chiefs with thy ^note shafts,
and their leaders are torn from them by the whirlwind,
  as they open ^note their jaws
to devour their wretched victims in secret.


15   When thou dost tread the sea with thy horses
  the mighty waters boil.
16   I hear, and my belly quakes;
my lips quiver at the sound;
trembling comes over my bones,
and my feet ^note totter in their tracks;

A prayer for mercy
  I sigh for the day of distress
to dawn over my ^note assailants.
   17   Although the fig-tree does not burgeon,
  the vines bear no fruit,
  the olive-crop fails,
the orchards yield no food,
the fold is bereft of its flock
  and there are no cattle in the stalls,
18   yet I will exult in the Lord
  and rejoice in the God of my deliverance.
19   The Lord God is my strength,
who makes my feet nimble as a hind's
  and sets me to range the ^note heights.

Previous section