1:12. Wast thou not from the beginning, O Lord my God, my holy one, and we shall not die? Lord, thou hast appointed him for judgment: and made him strong for correction. 1:13. Thy eyes are too pure to behold evil, and thou canst not look on iniquity. Why lookest thou upon them that do unjust things, and holdest thy peace when the wicked devoureth the man that is more just than himself? 1:14. And thou wilt make men as the fishes of the sea, and as the creeping things that have no ruler. 1:15. He lifted up all them with his hook, he drew them in his drag, and gathered them into his net: for this he will be glad and rejoice. 1:16. Therefore will he offer victims to his drag, and he will sacrifice to his net: because through them his portion is made fat, and his meat dainty. 1:17. For this cause therefore he spreadeth his net, and will not spare continually to slay the nations. Habacuc Chapter 2 The prophet is admonished to wait with faith. The enemies of God's people shall assuredly be punished. 2:1. I will stand upon my watch, and fix my foot upon the tower: and I will watch, to see what will be said to me, and what I may answer to him that reproveth me. Will stand, etc... Waiting to see what the Lord will answer to my complaint, viz., that the Chaldeans, who are worse than the Jews, and who attribute all their success to their own strength, or to their idols, should nevertheless prevail over the people of the Lord. The Lord's answer is, that the prophet must wait with patience and faith: that all should be set right in due time; and the enemies of God and his people punished according to their deserts. 2:2. And the Lord answered me, and said: Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables: that he that readeth it may run over it. 2:3. For as yet the vision is far off, and it shall appear at the end, and shall notlie: if it make any delay, wait for it: for it shall surely come, and it shall not be slack. 2:4. Behold, he that is unbelieving, his soul shall not be right in himself: but the just shall live in his faith. 2:5. And as wine deceiveth him that drinketh it: so shall the proud man be, and he shall not be honoured: who hath enlarged his desire like hell: and is himself like death, and he is never satisfied: but will gather together unto him all nations, and heap together unto him all people. As wine deceiveth, etc... Viz., by affording only a short passing pleasure; followed by the evils and disgrace that are the usual consequences of drunkenness; so shall it be with the proud enemies of the people of God; whose success affordeth them only a momentary pleasure, followed by innumerable and everlasting evils. 2:6. Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a dark speech concerning him: and it shall be said: Woe to him that heapeth together that which is not his own? how long also doth he load himself with thick clay? Thick clay... Ill-gotten goods, that, like mire, both burden and defile the soul.