Bible Strands
Habakkuk 1:16
Therefore he sacrifices to his dragnet and burns incense to his fishing net, for by these things his portion is sumptuous and his food is rich.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — The prophet describes the Chaldean invader immediately after detailing his military conquests in the preceding verses. The statement captures the conqueror’s posture right after his victories, before the rhetorical question in Habakkuk 1:17.
The words — The Hebrew יְזַבֵּ֣חַ (ye.za.Be.ach) means "he sacrifices" and וִֽ/יקַטֵּ֖ר (vi./ka.Ter) means "he burns incense." These ritual actions are directed toward his dragnet (חֶרְמִתּוֹ) and fishing net (מִכְמַרְתּוֹ), with the conjunction כִּ֤י (ki) introducing the reason: his portion is fat and his food rich.
The thread — The text links this weapon-worship to Deuteronomy 8:17, where self-attributed wealth replaces reverence for God, and to Daniel 4:30, where a ruler credits his own power for building a city. Ezekiel 28:3 is cited here for its emphasis on human wisdom and hidden knowledge rather than divine reliance.
Why it lands — The passage states that the conqueror treats his instruments of violence as the source of his prosperity. It requires the reader to identify any systems, skills, or resources they credit for their success instead of acknowledging God as the true provider.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
Therefore they sacrifice unto their net, and burn incense unto their drag; because by them their portion is fat, and their meat plenteous.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 8:17 You might say in your heart, “The power and strength of my hands have made this wealth for me.”
- Ezekiel 28:3 Behold, you are wiser than Daniel; no secret is hidden from you!
- Daniel 4:30 the king exclaimed, “Is this not Babylon the Great, which I myself have built as a royal residence by the might of my power and for the glory of my majesty?”
- Habakkuk 1:11 Then they sweep by like the wind and pass through. They are guilty; their own strength is their god.”
- Isaiah 10:13 For he says: ‘By the strength of my hand I have done this, and by my wisdom, for I am clever. I have removed the boundaries of nations and plundered their treasures; like a mighty one I subdued their rulers.
- Isaiah 37:24 Through your servants you have taunted the Lord, and you have said: “With my many chariots I have ascended to the heights of the mountains, to the remote peaks of Lebanon. I have cut down its tallest cedars, the finest of its cypresses. I have reached its farthest heights, the densest of its forests.
- Ezekiel 29:3 Speak to him and tell him that this is what the Lord GOD says: Behold, I am against you, O Pharaoh king of Egypt, O great monster who lies among his rivers, who says, ‘The Nile is mine; I made it myself.’
- Daniel 5:23 Instead, you have exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven. The vessels from His house were brought to you, and as you drank wine from them with your nobles, wives, and concubines, you praised your gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or understand. But you have failed to glorify the God who holds in His hand your very breath and all your ways.