Charles Ellicott Commentary Habakkuk 1:11

"Then shall he sweep by [as] a wind, and shall pass over, and be guilty, [even] he whose might is his god." — Habakkuk 1:11 (ASV)

Then his mind will change... A better translation is: Then he sweeps by like a wind and passes. But he is guilty, making this strength of his, his god. By an abrupt transition, the latter half of the verse diverts our attention from the human view of the world-conqueror to his appearance in God’s sight. Men only see an irresistible force sweeping over the face of the earth like a whirlwind; here today, and tomorrow nothing but devastation and ruin testifies to its visit. And men are dazzled by this mighty display of power. But, even as Daniel at Belshazzar’s feast, Habakkuk pronounces the oppressor’s doom in the very hour of triumph.

The description of the irresistible invader drops into the sudden depths of anti-climax: “But he is (counted) guilty.” His guilt consists precisely in what men consider so glorious: his self-reliant, irresponsible pursuit of grandeur. The brute force of armaments is the supreme deity of the Chaldean. His sword and spear are, as it were, his idols .

God, in whose hands his breath is and whose are all his ways, he has not glorified . Therefore, God will bring ruin and ignominy on him, and the very nations that have marveled at his prowess will taunt and despise him (Habakkuk 2:6). Here, then, is the keynote of so much of the second canto (2 Timothy 2:0; 2 Timothy 2:0 and following) as it relates to the downfall of the invader.