The Meaning of Habakkuk 1:8 Explained

Habakkuk 1:8

KJV: Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat.

YLT: Swifter than leopards have been its horses, And sharper than evening wolves, And increased have its horsemen, Even its horsemen from afar come in, They fly as an eagle, hasting to consume.

Darby: And their horses are swifter than the leopards, and are more agile than the evening wolves; and their horsemen prance proudly, and their horsemen come from afar: they fly as an eagle that hasteth to devour.

ASV: Their horses also are swifter than leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves; and their horsemen press proudly on: yea, their horsemen come from far; they fly as an eagle that hasteth to devour.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

Their horses  also are swifter  than the leopards,  and are more fierce  than the evening  wolves:  and their horsemen  shall spread  themselves, and their horsemen  shall come  from far;  they shall fly  as the eagle  [that] hasteth  to eat. 

What does Habakkuk 1:8 Mean?

Verse Meaning

The military armaments of the Babylonians were state of the art. Their horses, implements of war in the ancient world, were the swiftest, faster even than leopards, one of the fastest animals in the cat family (hyperbole?). They were more eager to attack their enemies than wolves (cf. Jeremiah 5:6). Their mounted soldiers swooped down on their enemies as fast and unsuspected as an eagle (or vulture) plummeting from the sky to devour a small animal on the ground (cf. Jeremiah 5:17; Lamentations 4:19). All three of these animals that God used for comparison with the Babylonians were excellent hunters, fast and fierce.

Context Summary

Habakkuk 1:1-17 - The Apparent Prosperity Of The Wicked
Habakkuk probably lived toward the beginning of the reign of Jehoiakim, when the Chaldeans were preparing to invade the land. Jerusalem was filled with wickedness. Crimes of violence and lawlessness had become so numerous that the prophet was appalled at the sight. He could only point to the fate of other nations, which must also befall Judah unless the people repented. Paul quotes Habakkuk 1:5 in Acts 13:41. The Chaldeans are compared to the leopard, the evening wolf, and the east wind. The prophet turns to Jehovah in an agony of expostulation and entreaty. Was He not from everlasting? Was He not Israel's Rock? The prophet's solace is the reflection, "We shall not die." An ancient reading is, "Thou canst not die." We are reminded of Revelation 1:18. O thou undying, unchanging, life-giving Savior, we cling to thee amid the storms that sweep the world, as limpets to the rock. [source]

Chapter Summary: Habakkuk 1

1  Unto Habakkuk, complaining of the iniquity of the land,
5  is shown the fearful vengeance by the Chaldeans
12  He complains that vengeance should be executed by them who are far worse

What do the individual words in Habakkuk 1:8 mean?

And are swifter than leopards their horses and more fierce than wolves evening and charge ahead their chargers and their cavalry from afar comes they fly as the vulture [that] hastens to eat
וְקַלּ֨וּ מִנְּמֵרִ֜ים סוּסָ֗יו וְחַדּוּ֙ מִזְּאֵ֣בֵי עֶ֔רֶב וּפָ֖שׁוּ פָּֽרָשָׁ֑יו וּפָֽרָשָׁיו֙ מֵרָח֣וֹק יָבֹ֔אוּ יָעֻ֕פוּ כְּנֶ֖שֶׁר חָ֥שׁ לֶאֱכֽוֹל

וְקַלּ֨וּ  And  are  swifter 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: קָלַל  
Sense: to be slight, be swift, be trifling, be of little account, be light.
מִנְּמֵרִ֜ים  than  leopards 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural
Root: נָמֵר  
Sense: leopard.
סוּסָ֗יו  their  horses 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: סוּס 
Sense: swallow, swift.
וְחַדּוּ֙  and  more  fierce 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: חָדַד 
Sense: to be sharp, be alert, be keen.
מִזְּאֵ֣בֵי  than  wolves 
Parse: Preposition-m, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: זְאֵב  
Sense: wolf.
עֶ֔רֶב  evening 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: עֶרֶב  
Sense: evening, night, sunset.
וּפָ֖שׁוּ  and  charge  ahead 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Verb, Qal, Conjunctive perfect, third person common plural
Root: פּוּשׁ 
Sense: to spring about.
פָּֽרָשָׁ֑יו  their  chargers 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: פָּרָשׁ 
Sense: horse, steed, warhorse.
וּפָֽרָשָׁיו֙  and  their  cavalry 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Noun, masculine plural construct, third person masculine singular
Root: פָּרָשׁ 
Sense: horse, steed, warhorse.
מֵרָח֣וֹק  from  afar 
Parse: Preposition-m, Adjective, masculine singular
Root: רָחֹוק  
Sense: remote, far, distant, distant lands, distant ones.
יָבֹ֔אוּ  comes 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
יָעֻ֕פוּ  they  fly 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person masculine plural
Root: עוּף 
Sense: to fly, fly about, fly away.
כְּנֶ֖שֶׁר  as  the  vulture 
Parse: Preposition-k, Noun, masculine singular
Root: נֶשֶׁר  
Sense: eagle, vulture, griffon-vulture.
חָ֥שׁ  [that]  hastens 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Participle, masculine singular
Root: חוּשׁ 
Sense: to haste, make haste, hurry.
לֶאֱכֽוֹל  to  eat 
Parse: Preposition-l, Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: אָכַל  
Sense: to eat, devour, burn up, feed.