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King James Version
Habakkuk 2:9
Bible Study Resources
Concordances:
- Nave'sDictionaries:
- AmericanEncyclopedias:
- InternationalParallel Translations
Woe to him who dishonestly makeswealth for his houseto place his nest on high,to escape the grasp of disaster!
Woe to him who gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
Woe to him that coueteth an euill couetousnesse to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that hee may be deliuered from the power of euill.
"Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!
"Woe to him who makes evil profit for his household, To put his nest on high, To be saved from the hand of catastrophe!
"How terrible it will be for the nation that becomes rich by doing wrong, thinking they will live in a safe place and escape harm.
"Woe (judgment is coming) to him who obtains wicked gain for his house [and thinks by so doing] To set his nest on high, That he may be rescued from the hand of evil.
Ho, he that coueteth an euil couetousnesse to his house, that he may set his nest on hie, to escape from the power of euil.
"Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house To put his nest on high, To be delivered from the hand of calamity!
"Woe to him who is greedy for evil gain for his houseTo put his nest on high,To be delivered from the hand of evil!
Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, to place his nest on high and escape the hand of disaster!
You're doomed! You made your family rich at the expense of others. You even said to yourself, "I'm above the law."
"‘Woe to him who seeks unjust gain for his household, putting his nest on the heights, in order to be safe from the reach of harm.
Woe to him that getteth iniquitous gain to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the grasp of evil!
"Look at you people! You get rich by cheating people, and it hurts your own family! You build your houses high on the cliffs to protect yourself from danger.
Woe to him who defrauds and heaps up evil for himself, who sets his nest on high that he may be delivered from evil!
You are doomed! You have made your family rich with what you took by violence, and have tried to make your own home safe from harm and danger!
Woe to him who obtains profit from evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be saved from the hand of misfortune!
Woe to him who robs evil booty for his house, to set his nest on high, to be snatched from the hand of evil!
Woe to him that getteth an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
A curse on him who gets evil profits for his family, so that he may put his resting-place on high and be safe from the hand of the wrongdoer!
Woe to him that gaineth evil gains for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!
Wo he that coueteth an euyll couetousnesse to his house, that he may set his nest on hie, to escape from the power of euyll.
Woe to him that covets an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evils.
Woe to him that getteth an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
Woe to him who gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
Wo to hym that gaderith yuel coueitise to his hous, that his nest be in hiy, and gessith hym for to be delyuered of the hond of yuel.
Woe to him that gets an evil gain for his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the hand of evil!
Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house, that he may set his nest on high, that he may be delivered from the power of evil!
The one who builds his house by unjust gain is as good as dead. He does this so he can build his nest way up high and escape the clutches of disaster.
"Woe to him who covets evil gain for his house, That he may set his nest on high, That he may be delivered from the power of disaster!
"What sorrow awaits you who build big houses with money gained dishonestly! You believe your wealth will buy security, putting your family's nest beyond the reach of danger.
"It is bad for him who builds his house by sinful ways, to put his nest in a high place to be safe from trouble!
"Alas for you who get evil gain for your house, setting your nest on high to be safe from the reach of harm!"
Alas! for him who extorteth an extortion of wrong for his own house, - that he may set on high his nest, that he may be delivered from the grasp of calamity.
Woe to him that gathereth together an evil covetousness to his house, that his nest may be on high, and thinketh he may be delivered out of the hand of evil.
Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!
Wo [to] him who is gaining evil gain for his house, To set on high his nest, To be delivered from the hand of evil,
Wo vnto him, that couetously gathereth euell gotten goodes in to his house: that he maye set his nest an hye, to escape from the power of mysfortune.
"Who do you think you are— recklessly grabbing and looting, Living it up, acting like king of the mountain, acting above it all, above trials and troubles? You've engineered the ruin of your own house. In ruining others you've ruined yourself. You've undermined your foundations, rotted out your own soul. The bricks of your house will speak up and accuse you. The woodwork will step forward with evidence.
Contextual Overview
Bible Verse Review
from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge
that coveteth an evil covetousness: or, that gaineth an evil gain, Genesis 13:10-13, Genesis 19:26-38, Deuteronomy 7:25, Deuteronomy 7:26, Joshua 7:21-26, 1 Kings 21:2-4, 1 Kings 21:19-24, 2 Kings 5:20-27, Job 20:19-28, Jeremiah 22:13-19, Zechariah 5:1-4, Acts 1:17-25, Jude 1:11
set: Psalms 10:3-6, Psalms 49:11, Psalms 52:7, Proverbs 18:11, Proverbs 18:12, Isaiah 28:15, Isaiah 47:7-9, Jeremiah 49:16, Obadiah 1:4
power of evil: Heb. palm of the hand
Reciprocal: Exodus 20:17 - thy neighbour's house Deuteronomy 5:21 - General 1 Samuel 15:19 - fly upon 1 Kings 21:4 - heavy Job 21:28 - Where Job 29:18 - I shall die Psalms 119:36 - and not to Proverbs 1:19 - every Proverbs 11:29 - that Proverbs 15:27 - He that is Proverbs 21:12 - wisely Isaiah 5:8 - them Isaiah 10:1 - Woe Jeremiah 5:27 - so are Jeremiah 22:23 - makest Jeremiah 51:13 - and the Micah 3:10 - build up Zion Zechariah 5:4 - and it shall remain Mark 10:24 - trust Luke 12:15 - Take Luke 12:21 - he Acts 8:20 - Thy
Cross-References
And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.
And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.
But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.
But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.
And it shall be our righteousness, if we observe to do all these commandments before the Lord our God, as he hath commanded us.
She is a tree of life to them that lay hold upon her: and happy is every one that retaineth her.
The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise.
That frustrateth the tokens of the liars, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish;
For thou hast trusted in thy wickedness: thou hast said, None seeth me. Thy wisdom and thy knowledge, it hath perverted thee; and thou hast said in thine heart, I am, and none else beside me.
I made the nations to shake at the sound of his fall, when I cast him down to hell with them that descend into the pit: and all the trees of Eden, the choice and best of Lebanon, all that drink water, shall be comforted in the nether parts of the earth.
Gill's Notes on the Bible
Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house,.... The bishops of Rome, being enriched by the donations of Constantine, were not satisfied, but coveted more; these are the greedy dogs Isaiah speaks of, that could never have enough, Isaiah 56:11 but were still seeking and gaping after more for themselves and families, and for their own house or church; which, from the time of their apostasy, became their own house, in distinction from, and in opposition to, the house or true church of God; and of those covetous bishops, or Rome Papal, are these and the following words to Habakkuk 2:9 to be understood:
that he may set his nest on high: in allusion to birds, especially the eagle, which builds its nest in high places, that it may be secure from any that would otherwise disturb it, or take it away: so these covetous and ambitious bishops, getting great wealth and riches, and large dominions into their hands, secular power and authority, as well as ecclesiastical, set themselves up, and advanced their see and seat, not only above all other bishops, but even above the kings and princes of the earth, above all that are called gods, 2 Thessalonians 2:4 and by such means endeavoured to gain their point, the main thing they had in view:
that he may be delivered from the power of evil; that they might be safe and secure against all worldly power, and be out of the jurisdiction of the princes of the earth, and in no danger of being dispossessed or crushed by them.
Barnes' Notes on the Bible
Woe to him that coveteth an evil covetousness to his house - (or, with accents, “that coveteth covetousness or unjust gain, an evil to his house.”) What man coveteth seems gain, but is evil “to his house” after him, destroying both himself and his whole family or race with him . “That he may set his nest on high,” as an eagle, to which he had likened the Chaldee (Habakkuk 1:8. Compare Jeremiah 20:16). A pagan called “strongholds, the nests of tyrants.” The nest was placed “on high” which means also “heaven,” as it is said, Obadiah 1:4, “though thou set thy nest among the stars;” and the tower of Babel was to “reach unto heaven” Genesis 11:4; and the antichrist, whose symbol the King of Babylon is, Isaiah 14:13 says, “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God.” Babylon lying in a large plain, on the sides of the Euphrates, the image of its eagle’s-nest on high must be taken, not from any natural eminence, but wholly from the works of man.
Its walls, and its hanging gardens were among “the seven wonders of the world.” Eye-witnesses speak of its walls, encompassing at least 100 square miles , “and as large as the land-graviat of Hesse Homberg;” those walls, 335, or 330 feet high, and 85 feet broad ; a fortified palace, nearly 7 miles in circumference; gardens, 400 Greek feet square, supporting at an artificial height arch upon arch, of “at least 75 feet,” forest trees; a temple to its god, said to have been at least 600 feet high.
If we, creatures of a day, had no one above us, Nebuchadnezzars boast had been true Daniel 4:30, “Is not this great Babylon that I have built for the house of the Kingdom by the might of my power and for the honor of my majesty?” He had built an eagle’s nest, which no human arm could reach, encircled by walls which laughed its invaders to scorn, which, at that time, no skill could scale or shatter or mine. Even as one sees in a picture the vast mounds which still remain , one can hardly imagine that they were, brick upon brick, wholly the work of man.
To be delivered from the hand (grasp) of evil - that it should not be able to reach him. Evil is spoken of as a living power , which would seize him, whose grasp he would defy. It was indeed a living power, since it was the will of Almighty God, whose servant and instrument Cyrus was, to chasten Babylon, when its sins were full. Such was the counsel, what the result? The evil covetousness which he worked, brought upon him the evil, from which, in that nest built by the hard toil of his captives, he thought to deliver himself.
Clarke's Notes on the Bible
Verse 9. An evil covetousness to his house — Nebuchadnezzar wished to aggrandize his family, and make his empire permanent: but both family and empire were soon cut off by the death of his son Belshazzar, and the consequent destruction of the Chaldean empire.
