What do you do when God won't answer an urgent prayer request? And then, suppose God answers your prayer, but not nearly in the way that you were anticipating (i.e., in a way that happens to be beneficial to yourself). What should you do then?
These were questions which the prophet Habakkuk was forced to answer when the Southern Kingdom of Judah was fallen into sin. He prayed for months to God to stop it. But instead of bringing a revival, God told His prophet that He was going to send in the Babylonians to conquer them. When Habakkuk expresses his anguish to God over this, he resolves to wait upon the Lord.
What does the Lord tell him? What practical lessons can we learn from this little Old Testament book? And finally, what does this often neglected prophecy have to say about one of the greatest doctrines of Scripture, justification by faith alone?
Dr. John Currid answers these questions in his commentary on Habakkuk entitled "The Expectant Prophet." From the always-helpful Welwyn Commentary series, this book goes through Habakkuk's prophecy, verse by verse. Currid very ably deals with exegetical issues, and provides helpful illustrations to explain difficult passages (and some of them are very difficult!).
While "The Expectant Prophet" may not be as lengthy or detailed as other commentaries on Habakkuk (it's 137 pages in length), it is rich in content, and useful for both sermon preparation and personal devotional reading. I highly recommend it.
