“O LORD, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not hear? Or cry to you ‘Violence!’ and you will not save?” (Habakkuk 1:2 ESV).
Habakkuk, a prophet of Judah, wrote during a time when God’s covenant people were marked by corruption, injustice, and violence. Though the nation was called by the LORD’s name, its life was marked by disregard for His law.. Habakkuk addressed God directly, using His covenant name, YHWH, which is shown in the English translation by all caps “LORD.” Using God’s covenant name showed that the prophet trusted God’s character even as he questioned God’s timing. His repeated cry, “How long,” reflected not unbelief but anguish over God’s apparent delay in acting against evil. Habakkuk was not asking whether God was righteous; he was wrestling with why God’s righteous justice seemed postponed. He believed that God saw the violence, hated the injustice, and would ultimately act in accordance with His covenant promises. The prophet’s questioning lament introduced a dialogue in which God would later reveal that He was already at work, though in ways Habakkuk did not yet understand.
We often find ourselves asking the same question when we look at a world that seems increasingly hostile to God’s truth and filled with sin, violence, and injustice. We cry out, “How long, Lord?” when prayers seem unanswered and righteousness appears delayed. Yet like Habakkuk, we do not question whether God is just; we struggle with waiting for His justice to be revealed. We must remember that God’s delays are not denials and that evil, no matter how entrenched it seems, is temporary under God’s sovereign rule. When we lament, we are not abandoning faith, we are exercising it. We appeal to God on the basis of His character and promises, trusting that He will act at the right time and in the right way. As we wait, we can learn to anchor our hearts in confidence that God is still righteous, still reigning, and still faithful. In our waiting, we echo the cry of faith found in our title: “How long, O LORD?”
PRAYER: Dear Father, we come before You with honest hearts, confessing that we often grow weary as we wait for Your justice to be revealed. Help us trust Your timing when revival seems delayed. Strengthen our faith to remember that You see all things and that You will act according to Your timing. Teach us to wait with hope, humility, and perseverance, confident in Your perfect plan. In Jesus’ name, amen.