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The Prophet said: (Hab. 1:1) vision (τ o λήμμα), as seen by Habakkuk the Prophet, immediately after this he added: Hab.1:2. How long, Lord, will I call and you will not hear? When we cry to You we will offend, and will You not deliver? Hab.1:3. What kind of labor and illness did you show me, look at passion and wickedness? Vision (λήμμα) refers to the admiration of the mind, and the transition from human affairs to Divine revelation. Therefore, if the Prophet spoke the above through the action of the Spirit; - then, obviously, it was not he himself who suffered from bewilderment, but he exposes the scab of those suffering from it, and applies healing. Therefore he adds to what has been said and says: There will be a trial against me, and the judge will take me down, that is, those who judge sell justice for money, and do not take any care to preserve the laws. This is what the Prophet expressed in the adjunct. Hab.1:4. For this reason the law is destroyed, and judgment is not carried out: for the wicked will overthrow the righteous, for this reason judgment will come forth corrupted. He said this about those who do wrong in Jerusalem; because Israel, enslaved by the Assyrians, was already living in a foreign land. Thus, having first stated what the distressed person says, he offers a divine answer in healing. Hab.1:5. You see with contempt, and look, and wonder, and see miracles, and disappear: for the work I do in your days, you will not believe it, even if someone confesses it to you. God calls those who fearlessly break the law and those who suffer from insensibility despicable. He commands them to heed what is predicted, to be horrified, and to fear the threat. As before, He knew everything with clarity, He knew that they would not believe what was being said, and until tested in reality, what was said about this would be considered false; however, as a good and truthful person, he does not want to judge by foreknowledge alone; but He also addresses His prophecies to unbelievers, and imposes punishment on those who do not accept medicine. Hab.1:6. Before you, I raise up the Chaldeans, a bitter and greyhound tongue that walks across the breadths of the earth, whose villages are not theirs to inherit. Against you, who live in untruth and lawlessness, for whose sake those who do not know the laws of Providence are upset, I will bring the cruel and uncontrollable Chaldeans, who, out of greed for the things of others, take up arms against all nations. Hab.1:7. He is terrible and revealed; from him will be his judgment, and from him will his taking come. This people is noble, and with their glory alone they can intimidate. He judges, not following the laws of others, but turns into law what comes to his mind. Symmachus expressed this more clearly: he will judge by himself and fulfill his command. Hab.1:8. And his horses will gallop faster than lynxes, and faster than the wolves of Arabia: and his cavalry will ride, and rush from afar, and fly like an eagle ready to bite. With all this the Prophet depicted their strength, courage and speed. For such is the eagle among the birds, to whom he likened the riders; Such are the animals of the lynx and the Arabian wolves, the speed of which is likened to the speed of horses. Hab.1:9. The end of the wicked will come to those who resist their faces. They will bring final destruction to the wicked, and, moreover, to those who attempt to wage war with them and take up arms against them. And Symmachus expressed this more clearly: everything will become the prey of covetousness, the appearance of their faces is like a scorching wind. Just as the Prophet depicted the speed of horses and riders in likenesses, so he likened the brutality of faces to the scorching wind; for just as this wind scorches naked bodies, so one sight of the Chaldeans is enough for all that is brilliant to fade away in those who see them. And he will gather captives like sand. Hab.1:10. And the one will laugh at the kings, and the tormentors of his game, and the one will mock at every stronghold, and will surround the rampart, and will prevail over it. By playing more than by making any effort, he will destroy both legal kingdoms and illegal dominions; by encircling the trenches and using battering guns, he will destroy every strong stronghold to the ground. But the good Lord, seeing such his fury, will have mercy on those who fell into these disasters. Hab.1:11. Then his spirit will change, and he will go away and pray; because, having changed anger to compassion, he will be merciful and stop sorrow. Therefore, the Prophet, extremely amazed at God’s love for mankind, cried out: To you alone, Lord, belongs the power to punish as you please, and to change punishment for mercy. Hab.1:12. Do You bring it from time immemorial, O Lord God, my Holy One: and we will not die. Having realized that You are the Master and Lord from the beginning, the highest of all things, we accept salvation from You. Lord, you brought him to judgment, and created me to expose his punishment. For this, says the Prophet, in the beginning You brought me into existence to convict those who sinned and to predict the punishments imposed. Hab.1:13. Thy eye is pure and cannot see evil, and cannot look upon labors: Why dost thou regard the despicable? Are you silent when the wicked devours the righteous? Hab.1:14. And thou shalt make men like fish of the sea, and like creeping things that have no elders. The Prophet suggested the bewilderment presented at the beginning of the prophecy because of those who acted lawlessly in Jerusalem, predicting what kind of punishment they would suffer during the invasion of the Chaldeans, and, knowing that about this, many would have a question: why did God hand over those who sinned in many ways to more wicked people? – The Prophet now offers what he said not because he himself is inquisitively exploring Divine Providence (is this possible for someone who said about himself that he was created to expose others?); but because it depicts the thoughts of those who go into such research; and says: I know that you abhor all vice; because You are the source of truth; But I want to know why you allow those who are arrogant and suffer from insensibility to prosper, and ignore the fact that it is not so much the wicked who suffer insults from the wicked. For here the Prophet called righteous not the one who is righteous in everything, but who is comparatively more righteous than the one who does injustice. This is how Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion translated: you remain silent when the wicked devours one who is more truthful than himself. If this continues, the human race will be no different from the dumb ones who live in the waters, who have neither legislators nor judges, and the weakest are left as food to the strongest. This one, who uses his dominion for evil, is similar to them, meaning the king of Babylon. Hab.1:15. Delight him with the end of his fish, and draw him with your deep water, and gather him with your nets: for this reason he will rejoice, and his heart will rejoice: Hab.1:16. For this reason, he will devour his own waste, and cast down his net, as with these he will indulge his portion, and his chosen food. He is gifted with such strength that, as if with some kind of net and fishing rod, he catches entire nations, and delights in this prey. But, from this, having fallen into the passion of arrogance, he considers his own power to be the reason for what is done, and commands that Divine honor be given to it. The divine Daniel revealed this to us more clearly, saying that the king of Babylon built a golden image and forced the entire multitude of subjects, in addition to their subordinates and superiors, to bow to him. And the divine Isaiah, depicting his arrogance, and at the same time the punishment for it, and making his thoughts known, says: I will lift up the clouds above, I will set my throne above the stars of heaven (Is. 14:13, 14), I will embrace the world like a nest, and like an abandoned egg I will take (Is. 10:14), and suddenly adds: they will lay a bed under you rottenness, and your covering is a worm (Isaiah 14:11). And the blessed Prophet Habakkuk says: he will devour his own waste, and cast down his net, as with these he will indulge his portion, and his chosen food. Hab.1:17. For this reason he will cut his teeth, and he will lash out tongues forever, and will not spare. Because he will succeed in everything without difficulty, catching whomever he wants, and without experiencing any evil, he will attack other nations, and will not stop spreading his power, like a kind of net.