Habakkuk 2 16

Habakkuk 2:16 kjv

Thou art filled with shame for glory: drink thou also, and let thy foreskin be uncovered: the cup of the LORD's right hand shall be turned unto thee, and shameful spewing shall be on thy glory.

Habakkuk 2:16 nkjv

You are filled with shame instead of glory. You also?drink! And be exposed as uncircumcised! The cup of the LORD's right hand will be turned against you, And utter shame will be on your glory.

Habakkuk 2:16 niv

You will be filled with shame instead of glory. Now it is your turn! Drink and let your nakedness be exposed! The cup from the LORD's right hand is coming around to you, and disgrace will cover your glory.

Habakkuk 2:16 esv

You will have your fill of shame instead of glory. Drink, yourself, and show your uncircumcision! The cup in the LORD's right hand will come around to you, and utter shame will come upon your glory!

Habakkuk 2:16 nlt

But soon it will be your turn to be disgraced.
Come, drink and be exposed!
Drink from the cup of the LORD's judgment,
and all your glory will be turned to shame.

Habakkuk 2 16 Cross References

| Verse | Text | Reference ||---|---|---|| Jer 25:15-17 | "Take this cup of the wine of My wrath... and make all the nations... drink it." | God's cup of judgment || Isa 51:17 | "Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk... the cup of staggering..." | Israel drank cup, now Babylon's turn || Rev 14:10 | "He himself shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God..." | Eschatological cup of wrath || Psa 75:8 | "For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup... and He pours it out." | Divine judgment and cup || Ezek 23:31-34 | "You have walked in the way of your sister; therefore I will give her cup into your hand... the cup of horror and desolation." | Shameful judgment for Israel/Babylon || Jer 49:12 | "If those who did not deserve to drink the cup must drink it... surely you will not remain unpunished." | Universal judgment || Lam 4:21 | "Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom, dwelling in the land of Uz; The cup shall also pass over to you..." | Edom's judgment || Mk 14:36 | "Remove this cup from Me..." | Cup as suffering/judgment for Christ || Jn 18:11 | "Shall I not drink the cup which My Father has given Me?" | Acceptance of the divine cup || Rev 16:19 | "And the great city was divided... Babylon the great was remembered... to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath." | Ultimate judgment on Babylon || Rev 18:6 | "Render to her just as she rendered to you... In the cup which she has mixed, mix double for her." | Poetic justice || Hos 4:7 | "The more they increased, the more they sinned against Me; I will change their glory into shame." | Glory replaced by shame || Isa 3:24-25 | "Instead of a sweet smell, there will be a stench... and burning instead of beauty... Your men shall fall by the sword." | Reversal of pride into decay || Isa 47:1-3 | "Come down... sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babylon... I will take vengeance..." | Babylon's humiliation || Mic 2:9-10 | "You drive my people's women from their pleasant homes... Arise and depart..." | Consequences of unjust oppression || Rom 6:21 | "What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed?" | Shame as fruit of sin || Phil 3:19 | "whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame..." | Misplaced glory || Isa 28:7-8 | "But they also have erred through wine... they are out of the way... all tables are full of vomit..." | Spiritual/literal staggering from excess || Jer 13:13 | "I will fill all the inhabitants... with drunkenness." | Metaphorical drunkenness of judgment || Obadiah 1:15 | "As you have done, it will be done to you..." | Retribution principle || Gal 6:7 | "For whatever a man sows, that he will also reap." | Divine recompense || Psa 94:23 | "He has brought on them their own iniquity, And will cut them off in their own wickedness." | Justice in judgment |

Habakkuk 2 verses

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Habakkuk 2 16 Meaning

Habakkuk 2:16 is a divine pronouncement of judgment against the oppressor, Babylon. It declares an ironic reversal of their perceived glory into profound shame and utter disgrace. Just as Babylon forced other nations to drink a cup of their intoxicating wrath, so too will they be compelled by the Lord to drink a cup of divine judgment, which will lead to their public humiliation and complete stripping away of their boasted honor, replaced by overwhelming contempt.

Habakkuk 2 16 Context

Habakkuk prophesied during a turbulent time, likely just before or during the initial rise of the Neo-Babylonian (Chaldean) empire in the late 7th century BCE. The book presents a dialogue between the prophet and God. Habakkuk cries out about the injustice within Judah, and God responds by stating He will use the Chaldeans to punish Judah. This prompts Habakkuk's second lament, questioning why a nation more wicked than Judah should be used as God's instrument. Habakkuk 2:16 is part of God's extensive reply (chapter 2), which outlines five "woes" (condemnations) against the Chaldeans, affirming that despite their power and temporary success, divine judgment awaits them for their sins of greed, violence, oppression, and idolatry. Verse 16 falls within the fourth woe, which denounces the Chaldean habit of disgracing and shaming conquered nations for their own glory and profit.

Habakkuk 2 16 Word analysis

  • "You are filled": Hebrew: שָׂבַעְתָּ (sava'ta). This word implies being sated or drunk to the point of excess. It conveys a sense of overindulgence and satiation, but here it is ironic, indicating being overfilled with something utterly undesirable – shame.
  • "with shame": Hebrew: קָלוֹן (qalon). This signifies deep disgrace, dishonor, or ignominy. It is the antithesis of glory, highlighting the drastic reversal of fate.
  • "instead of glory!": Hebrew: כָּבוֹד (kavod). This term denotes weightiness, honor, splendor, and renown. The Chaldeans pursued kavod through conquest and humiliation of others, but God declares that what they will receive is qalon in its place. This emphasizes the poetic justice.
  • "Drink—you also—": Hebrew: שְׁתֵה גַם־אַתָּה (sh'teh gam-atta). An imperative command, it is a direct, mocking challenge from God, mirroring Babylon's actions of forcing others to drink the cup of their oppressive wrath (cf. Hab 2:15).
  • "and stagger!": Hebrew: וְהֵרָגַל (v'heragal). This is a challenging word. It can be linked to "stagger" like a drunk, suggesting an inability to maintain control or dignity. However, a strong interpretation links it to the root עָרַל (aral), meaning "to be uncircumcised," hence "to be exposed nakedly" or "to reveal shameful nakedness." In this context, it depicts being disgracefully exposed, like a drunk person stripped of all decorum, signifying profound public humiliation and impurity.
  • "The cup of the LORD's right hand": Hebrew: כּוֹס יְהוָה יְמִינָהּ (kos YHWH yemina). The "cup" is a powerful biblical metaphor for a decreed portion or experience, often judgment. "The LORD's right hand" symbolizes divine power, authority, and decisive action. It emphasizes that this is not a random occurrence but a direct, divinely administered judgment.
  • "will come around to you": Signifies the inevitability and inescapability of divine retribution. It implies that the wheel of justice turns, bringing back upon the oppressor what they have meted out to others.
  • "and utter shame will cover your glory!": Hebrew: וְקִיאלוֹן עַל כְּבוֹדֶךָ (v'qiylown al kvodkha).קִיאלוֹן(qiylown) is a more intense form of shame or disgrace, sometimes even implying "vomit" or "that which is vomited," further intensifying the imagery of repulsion and abject humiliation. "Cover" implies an overwhelming deluge that entirely obliterates any remnant of previous honor, leaving only a pervasive disgrace.
  • "You are filled with shame instead of glory!" and "and utter shame will cover your glory!": These phrases form a powerful literary device of chiasmus (shame-glory, glory-shame) and emphatic repetition. The double mention of "shame" (qalon and qiylown) juxtaposed with "glory" (kavod`) creates an inescapable pronouncement of utter disgrace replacing any boast or honor Babylon possessed. It highlights a complete and devastating reversal of status brought about by divine decree.

Habakkuk 2 16 Bonus section

The phrase "shame instead of glory" functions as a powerful declaration of an ironic and divinely orchestrated reversal. Babylon sought glory through exploitation, treating their victims with contempt. The Lord ensures that their very methods become the instrument of their own downfall. This principle underscores that true and lasting glory belongs only to God, and any glory attained by human wickedness will ultimately be revealed as mere pretense, replaced by true shame. The intense and vivid imagery of physical debasement (staggering, exposed nakedness, being covered with vile shame) ensures that the message of judgment is visceral and undeniable, symbolizing not just a loss of power but a complete moral and social disintegration.

Habakkuk 2 16 Commentary

Habakkuk 2:16 encapsulates the divine principle of retribution and poetic justice. Babylon, proud in its perceived "glory" derived from violence, conquest, and the forced debasement of other nations (forcing them to drink from a cup of their intoxicating wrath and be publicly shamed), is here promised the exact opposite from the Lord. Their satiety will not be with victory but with a shameful, defiling disgrace. The "cup of the LORD's right hand" is the antithesis of their own oppressive cup; it is a cup of consuming judgment, indicating divine authority and irresistible power. This cup will strip Babylon of all dignity, making them "stagger" and "expose" their inner corruption and shameful state before all, their boasts turning into an utterly repulsive spectacle. It teaches that human systems built on injustice, pride, and violence are ultimately unstable and subject to the sovereign God's reversal, where boasted power becomes humiliating weakness and honor turns to ignominy.