I recommend you read through all of Chapter 1 first and then go back focusing on the text and on the questions and texts below.
דאמר עולא כל מקום ששמו ושם אביו בנביאות בידוע שהוא נביא בן נביא שמו ולא שם אביו בידוע שהוא נביא ולא בן נביא שמו ושם עירו מפורש בידוע שהוא מאותה העיר שמו ולא שם עירו בידוע שהוא מירושלים
Ulla said, "Wherever his [a prophet’s] name is given along with that of his father in prophecy, we know that he was a prophet son of a prophet. Where his own name is given but not that of his father, we know that he was a prophet but not the son of a prophet. Where his name and the name of his town are specified, we know that he came from that town. Where his name is given but not that of his town, we know that he was from Jerusalem."
Part 2 - When did Habakkuk write?
Review the Timeline of Judaean Kings and events in the 8th-6th centuries BCE
Seder Olam Rabbah (the Great Order of the World), is a Hebrew text from the 2nd century CE that describes the timeline of the world from creation. Seder Olam refers to the dating of Habakkuk as follows:
סדר עולם רבה (ליינר) פרק כ
יואל ונחום וחבקוק נתנבאו בימי מנשה, ומפני שלא היה מנשה כשר, לא נקראו על
שמו.
Seder Olam Rabbah
Joel, Nahum and Habakkuk prophesied in the days of Manasseh, and because Manasseh was not kasher [the word means ‘fit’, here probably meaning ‘pious’], they [the books] were not called by [did not mention] his name.
Question for discussion: Can you see any evidence in Chapter 1 that supports the idea that Habakkuk prophesied from 699–643, at least 30 years before the rise of Babylonian power?
In the Da’at Mikra Commentary, Menachem Bula considers two verses from Habakkuk, Chapter 1 to be of importance in setting Habakkuk’s date.
Question for discussion: Review verses five and six. What do you think they can tell us about when Habakkuk prophesied?
Part 3 - Understanding Chapter 1
Review Chapter 1, verses 1-4.
Question for discussion: What is Habakkuk’s central complaint? Is this a general or specific lament?
Why do you think JPS chooses to translate the word Torah in verse 4 as “decision”? See Radak’s commentary below for a different explanation.
רד"ק חבקוק פרק א פסוק ד
על כן - לפי שאין אתה עושה דין ברשעים תרפה התורה ותחלש כי רבים מרפים ידיהם ממנה ולפי שרואים הצלחת הרשעים ורעת הצדיקים:
Radak on verse 4
Therefore – Because You do not do justice with the wicked, Torah will weaken, because many will remove their hands from it because they see the success of the wicked and the bad things that happen to the righteous.
How does Radak’s interpretation of the word Torah in verse 4 differ from the JPS translation? Which do you think is the Pshat, plain meaning?
רש"י חבקוק פרק א פסוק ה
לא תאמינו כי יסופר - זאת לכם אשר אני מקים את הכשדים העם אשר לא היה כדאי להבראות כמו שנאמר (ישעיה כג : יג) זה העם לא היה הם אחד משלשה דברים שהקב"ה כביכול מתחרט על בריאתם ועתה יקום ויהיה מר ונמהר לרוץ וללכת למרחבי ארצות
Rashi on verse 5
You would not believe if it were told. This is for you that I am raising up the Chaldeans, a people who is was not worthwhile to create, as it is written in Isaiah 23:13, “Behold the land of Chaldea – this is a people that was not.” They are one of three things that the Holy Blessed One, as it were, regrets their creation, and now they will rise up and be a fierce, impetuous nation, who cross the earth’s wide spaces…
Rashi is basing himself here on Midrash found in the Babylonian Talmud, Sukkah 52b and in the Jerusalem Talmud Taanit Chapter 3, Halacha 4. The passages discuss four and three things, respectively, that G-d regrets creating.
Questions for discussion: How is Rashi’s comment supported by Habakkuk chapter 1, verses 5-11? Why might Hashem have regretted creating the Babylonians?
What else do learn about the Babylonians from verses 5-11? Is there anything surprising here? How does the nature of the Babylonians influence Habakkuk’s complaint?
Reviewing verses 12-13, is this a new complaint or a reprise of one that has already been stated? To which other verses of the chapter do these verses connect?
Reviewing verses 14-17, why do you think Habakkuk chooses the metaphor of fish in a net? What does this image convey to you? What aspect of the Babylonian conquest might it highlight?
Part 4 – Conclusion
Questions for discussion:
Reviewing what you have studied, what conclusions can you draw about Habakkuk?
How is his prophecy so far similar or different to what one would expect from a prophet?
What do you think will happen next in the book?
How do you think Habakkuk’s complaint might apply to our own time?