When was Habakkuk written?

The book of Habakkuk is set in a time when the Babylonian army was threatening to attack the southern kingdom of Judah. In the opening passage, the prophet questions God about why He would allow such violence and injustice to prevail against Judah. God responds by declaring that He is raising up the Babylonians to bring judgment on the nation (Habakkuk 1:1–6). The prophet Habakkuk likely wrote the book just prior to Babylon’s conquest of Judah, around 615 to 605 BC.

As Habakkuk witnessed the growing threat of Babylon, he wrote, “I will stand at my watch and station myself on the ramparts; I will look to see what [God] will say to me, and what answer I am to give to this complaint” (Habakkuk 2:1). Historians believe Babylon began its invasions of Judah around the same time Habakkuk was writing. This is confirmed by other biblical accounts, including Jeremiah’s prophecy of Babylon’s rise (Jeremiah 25:1–11) and the record of its early campaigns against the kingdom in 2 Kings (2 Kings 24:1–2).

These invasions occurred in stages, beginning in 605 BC when King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon defeated Egypt at Carchemish. Shortly thereafter, he took control of Jerusalem, bringing it under Babylonian authority during the reign of King Jehoiakim (see Daniel 1:1). This was the first of three major campaigns Babylon launched against Judah. Later, in 586 BC, Nebuchadnezzar returned to Judah during the reign of King Zedekiah and completed the conquest (2 Kings 25:1, 9).

In 605 BC, the Babylonians defeated Egypt at Carchemish. Jeremiah mentions this event: “Concerning Egypt: This is the message against the army of Pharaoh Necho king of Egypt, which was defeated at Carchemish on the Euphrates River by Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon” (Jeremiah 46:2). After winning this battle, Babylon turned its focus to Judah. This supports the timing of Habakkuk’s prophecy.

Life in Judah was difficult during the reign of Jehoiakim, and Habakkuk describes the conditions of that time. In his opening prayer, he cries, “Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrongdoing? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds” (Habakkuk 1:3). According to Jeremiah 22:13–19, after Josiah died in 609 BC, Jehoiakim turned away from the positive reforms his father had made. While Josiah “did what was right and just,” Jehoiakim was different. His heart was “set only on dishonest gain, on shedding innocent blood and on oppression and extortion” (Jeremiah 22:15–17).

Despite God’s revelation that He would not stop the invasion, allowing Babylon’s conquest of Judah, Habakkuk remained faithful. He trusted God even in the face of such devastation. Even though his nation was about to be conquered, he proclaimed, “Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior” (Habakkuk 3:18). While so much around him was unstable, he reflected on the security he had in God. He wrote, “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights” (Habakkuk 3:19). Habakkuk’s setting reminds readers that, even in suffering, God is worthy of trust and praise.