I AM GOING TO DO SOMETHING / HABAKKUK 1:5-11

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When God Does the Unbelievable: Wrestling with Habakkuk 1:5-11

We have all been there. We look around at the injustice, the chaos, and the brokenness of our world, and we cry out to God, “Why aren’t you doing anything?”

That is exactly where the prophet Habakkuk found himself. He looked at his own nation of Judah, saw rampant sin, violence, and corruption, and pleaded for God to intervene.

But when God finally replied, His answer was not what the prophet expected. In fact, it was utterly shocking.

In Habakkuk 1:5, God issues a startling wake-up call:

“Look at the nations and watch—and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.”

A Shocking Instrument of Judgment

We often read the phrase “I am going to do something” and think of an upcoming blessing, a miraculous breakthrough, or a wave of revival. But for Judah, the “something” God was preparing was a devastating wake-up call. God revealed that He already had plans to punish Judah for its sins, but His chosen instrument of judgment was the Chaldeans—the Babylonians.

To Habakkuk, this made absolutely no sense. The Babylonians were completely unmerciful, ruthless, and ungodly. Having gained their independence from Assyria in 626 B.C., they rapidly rose to dominance, completely destroying Assyrian power between 612 and 605 B.C.

God describes their terrifying nature in Habakkuk 1:6–11:

Legendary Speed: Their horses were swifter than leopards, their cavalry charging from afar like eagles swooping down to devour (Habakkuk 1:8).
Total Terror: They were a law unto themselves, sweeping through the earth to seize dwelling places that were not their own (Habakkuk 1:7).
Ruthless Exile: They mocked kings, laughed at fortresses, and swept people into exile like scooping up handfuls of sand (Habakkuk 1:9).

The ultimate tragedy of the Babylonians was their pride: their own strength was their god (Habakkuk 1:11).

The Crisis of Faith

The thought that a holy, righteous God would use a nation far more wicked and ungodly than Judah to carry out His judgment was unbelievable to the people and deeply distressing to the prophet. It created a massive crisis of faith. How could God remain silent while the wicked swallowed up those more righteous than themselves?

Habakkuk reminds us that God’s ways are truly not our ways, and His thoughts are not our thoughts. Sometimes, God’s methods of refining us, correcting us, or working in history look entirely different from what we would choose. He is not limited by our understanding, nor does He conform to our expectations of how history should unfold.

When we cannot trace His hand, we have to learn to trust His heart. God was still sovereignly in control, even when using a pagan empire to accomplish His long-term purposes. He was pruning His people, forcing them to look back to Him.

Are We Willing to Watch?

Today, God is still at work in ways we might find hard to believe. When our prayers aren’t answered the way we envision, or when world events take turns that leave us bewildered, Habakkuk challenges us to change our posture. Instead of panicking or walking away, we are called to look, watch, and remain utterly amazed by the baseline truth that God is still on His throne.

He is moving. He is sovereign. Even when He does the unbelievable.

Closing Prayer

Heavenly Father,

We confess that we often try to box You into our own limited understanding. We want Your answers to match our timelines and our methods. Forgive us for the times we doubt Your goodness or Your sovereignty just because we cannot see what You are doing behind the scenes.

Lord, when the world around us feels chaotic, and when Your steps seem terrifying or confusing, help us to stand on the firm foundation of Your character. Give us the faith of Habakkuk to bring our honest questions to You, but also the grace to surrender to Your higher ways. Remind us that even when You use the unexpected to shake our world, Your ultimate plan is always our refinement and Your glory.

We choose to look at the world today not with fear, but with awe, trusting that You are sovereignly working out Your perfect purposes.

In Jesus’ name, Amen.

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