Habakkuk 2:9 "Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, setting his nest on high to escape the clutches of ruin!

◄ Habakkuk 2:9 ►

Parallel Verses

New International Version
"Woe to him who builds his house by unjust gain, setting his nest on high to escape the clutches of ruin!

English Standard Version
“Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house, to set his nest on high, to be safe from the reach of harm!

New American Standard Bible
"Woe to him who gets evil gain for his house To put his nest on high, To be delivered from the hand of calamity!

King James Bible
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!

Holman Christian Standard Bible
Woe to him who dishonestly makes wealth for his house to place his nest on high, to escape from the reach of disaster!

International Standard Version
"Woe to the one who amasses profit upon unjust profit in order to establish his household, so he can establish a secure place on the heights and escape from the power of evil.

American Standard Version
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!

Douay-Rheims Bible
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.

Darby Bible Translation
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!

Young's Literal Translation
Woe to him who is gaining evil gain for his house, To set on high his nest, To be delivered from the hand of evil,

Cross References

Isaiah 5:8
Woe to them that join house to house, that lay field to field, till there be no place, that they may be placed alone in the middle of the earth!

Jeremiah 22:13
Woe to him that builds his house by unrighteousness, and his chambers by wrong; that uses his neighbor's service without wages, and gives him not for his work;

Jeremiah 49:16
Your terribleness has deceived you, and the pride of your heart, O you that dwell in the clefts of the rock, that hold the height of the hill: though you should make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, said the LORD.

Jeremiah 51:13
O you that dwell on many waters, abundant in treasures, your end is come, and the measure of your covetousness.

Ezekiel 22:27
Her princes in the middle thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain.

Obadiah 1:4
Though you exalt yourself as the eagle, and though you set your nest among the stars, there will I bring you down, said the LORD.

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Commentaries

Matthew Henry's Commentary

2:5-14 The prophet reads the doom of all proud and oppressive powers that bear hard upon God's people. The lusts of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life, are the entangling snares of men; and we find him that led Israel captive, himself led captive by each of these. No more of what we have is to be reckoned ours, than what we come honestly by. Riches are but clay, thick clay; what are gold and silver but white and yellow earth? Those who travel through thick clay, are hindered and dirtied in their journey; so are those who go through the world in the midst of abundance of wealth. And what fools are those that burden themselves with continual care about it; with a great deal of guilt in getting, saving, and spending it, and with a heavy account which they must give another day! They overload themselves with this thick clay, and so sink themselves down into destruction and perdition. See what will be the end hereof; what is gotten by violence from others, others shall take away by violence. Covetousness brings disquiet and uneasiness into a family; he that is greedy of gain troubles his own house; what is worse, it brings the curse of God upon all the affairs of it. There is a lawful gain, which, by the blessing of God, may be a comfort to a house; but what is got by fraud and injustice, will bring poverty and ruin upon a family. Yet that is not the worst; Thou hast sinned against thine own soul, hast endangered it. Those who wrong their neighbours, do much greater wrong to their own souls. If the sinner thinks he has managed his frauds and violence with art and contrivance, the riches and possessions he heaped together will witness against him. There are not greater drudges in the world than those who are slaves to mere wordly pursuits. And what comes of it? They find themselves disappointed of it, and disappointed in it; they will own it is worse than vanity, it is vexation of spirit. By staining and sinking earthly glory, God manifests and magnifies his own glory, and fills the earth with the knowledge of it, as plentifully as waters cover the sea, which are deep, and spread far and wide.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown

9. coveteth an evil covetousness—that is, a covetousness so surpassingly evil as to be fatal to himself.

to his house—greedily seizing enormous wealth, not merely for himself, but for his family, to which it is destined to be fatal. The very same "evil covetousness" that was the cause of Jehoiakim's being given up to the Chaldean oppressor (Jer 22:13) shall be the cause of the Chaldean's own destruction.

set his nest on high—(Nu 24:21; Jer 49:16; Ob 4). The image is from an eagle (Job 39:27). The royal citadel is meant. The Chaldean built high towers, like the Babel founders, to "be delivered from the power of evil" (Ge 11:4).