a mountain or range of hills (sometimes used figurative… · noun, common masculine plural absolute
saw
רָא֤וּךָra.'U.kha
H7200
to see · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person common plural + pronominal suffix, 2nd person masculine singular
trembled
יָחִ֙ילוּ֙ya.Chi.lu
H2342
properly · verb, qal imperfect, 3rd person masculine plural
overflowing
זֶ֥רֶםZe.rem
H2230
a gush of water · noun, common masculine singular construct
water
מַ֖יִםMa.yim
H4325
water · noun, common masculine plural absolute
by
עָבָ֑ר'a.Var
H5674
to cross over · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
deep
תְּהוֹם֙te.hOm
H8415
an abyss (as a surging mass of water) · noun, common feminine singular absolute
uttered
נָתַ֤ןna.Tan
H5414
to give · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
voice
קוֹל֔וֹko.Lo
H6963
a voice or sound · noun, common masculine singular construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
up
נָשָֽׂאna.Sa'
H5375
to lift · verb, qal perfect, 3rd person masculine singular
hands
יָדֵ֥יהוּya.Dei.hu
H3027
a hand (the open one (indicating power · noun, common both genders dual construct + pronominal suffix, 3rd person masculine singular
high
ר֖וֹםRom
H7315
elevation · noun, common both genders singular construct
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Joshua 4:23-24 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, whi…
Psalms 93:3 The floods have lifted up, O LORD, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their waves.
Psalms 98:7-8 Let the sea roar, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein.
Isaiah 43:20 The beast of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the owls: because I give waters in the wilderness, and rivers in the desert, to give…
Jeremiah 4:24 I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly.
Joshua 4:18 And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the LORD were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles o…
Hebrews 11:29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned.
Exodus 19:16-18 And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voic…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Habakkuk 3:3-15
It has been the usual practice of God's people, when they have been in distress and ready to fall into despair, to help themselves by recollecting their experiences, and reviving them, considering the days of old, and the years of ancient times (Psa 77:5), and pleading with God in prayer, as he is pleased sometimes to plead them with himself. Isa 63:11, Then he remembered the days of old. This is that which the prophet does here, and he looks as far back as the first forming of them into a people, when they were brought by miracles out of Egypt, a house of bondage, through the wilderness, a land of drought, into Canaan, then possessed by mighty nations. He that thus brought them at first int…
The mountains--repetition with increased emphasis of some of the tremendous phenomena mentioned in Hab 3:6.
overflowing of the water passed by--namely, of the Red Sea; and again, of the Jordan. God marked His favor to His people in all the elements, causing every obstacle, whether mountains or waters, which impeded their progress, to "pass away" [CALVIN]. MAURER, not so well, translates, "torrents (rains) of water rush down."
lifted . . . hands on high--namely, its billows lifted on high by the tempest. Personification. As men signify by voice or gesture of hand that they will do what they are commanded, so these parts of nature testified their obedience to God's will (Exo 14:22; Jos 3:1…
The mountains saw thee - This is the continued answer to the questions in Hab 3:8. These are figures highly poetic, to show with what ease God accomplished the most arduous tasks in behalf of his people. As soon as the mountains saw him, they trembled, they were in pangs. When he appeared, the sea fled to right and left, to give him a passage. "It uttered its voice." The separation of the waters occasioned a terrible noise. "And it lifted up its hands on high." Its waters, being separated, stood in heaps on the right hand and left. These heaps or waves are poetically represented here as the hands of the sea.
The Church Fathers
LXX: Disperse the waters of the journey. There are different types of waters: some eternal, others temporary. Concerning the eternal waters, and those that flow from the fountains of Israel, it is said: The land will be split by rivers. Concerning the sudden and temporary ones: All streams flow into the sea. The end of such waters is destruction. Therefore, God will disperse all waters that have been trampled upon by perverse doctrines, when He has dissipated the plans of the rulers and the wisdom of this world. If ever you see that a heresy has briefly flourished and then, by the grace of God, has been dissipated, say that it is complete: you will scatter the waters of the journey. However, what is said, 'of the journey,' can be understood as 'of the devil,' so that the meaning is: The waters which the devil has trampled upon, and which have provided a pathway for many, that is, have made many errors possible, the Lord will divide and scatter. Hence, other interpreters, wanting to describe heretical madness, have translated it as: Mockery, or the onslaught of waters will pass. For they are said to rush headlong in the course of eloquence, and to drag along with them whoever they come across, light and easy.
LXX: They shall see you and be sorrowful, whether the peoples are in labor; for it signifies both. Consequently, when the earth is broken and the rivers flow, the peoples who have drunk from the rivers of God shall see God and be in labor. For from the very fact that they see God, they immediately conceive and say with God's word: We have conceived and given birth in the womb from your fear, O Lord, and have brought forth and given birth; we shall make the spirit of your salvation upon the earth. Blessed, says He, are the pure in heart, for they shall see God (Matthew 5:8). These people, therefore, cleansed by the rivers, have not yet seen, but they will see God: and when they see, they will conceive, so that they may bear the fruits of teachings. But because they are called people, and it is not possible for the people to see the face of God, although the prayer may be extended to the future, they will see and bear: however, according to the allegory it is more Hebraic to follow, where it is said: They have seen You, and the mountains have given birth: for it is the mountains' task to see God and bear children, whom they conceived from the word of God.
The waters shall see you, and the nations shall mourn. Indeed, the hearts of sinners, broken to the acknowledgment and confession of the truth by the frequent exhortation of teachers, as if by the flood of frequent torrents, see God for now through faith, and lament that they have been separated from Him for so long by their guilt; yet when their sorrow of repentance is ended, they see Him more fully in the future by sight, and rejoice forever in the blessed vision of Him. It can also be understood in this way that it is said the earth will be split by rivers, as if it were said that the earth is to be split so that newly formed rivers might arise from it—a phenomenon often recounted in ancient histories, namely, that, when an earthquake occurs, rivers that were not there appear. Whoever understands prudently does not doubt that this can happen, because the earth is as full of countless water veins as the human body is full of blood veins; according to this perception, the earth is split by rivers when a carnal conscience, broken to repentance, progresses so much over time with the help of divine grace that it can also bring forth streams of doctrines to others, watering the parched hearts of others with its example or words to bear the fruits of virtues.
Dictionary and topics
Poetry — Has been well defined as “the measured language of emotion.” Hebrew poetry deals almost exclusively with the great question of man’s relation to God. “Guilt, condemnation, punishment, pardon,…
Psalms — The psalms are the production of various authors. “Only a portion of the Book of Psalms claims David as its author. Other inspired poets in successive generations added now one now another…
Mountains · God: Causes, to tremble — God: Causes, to tremble
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
John Gill on Habakkuk 3:10
The mountains saw thee, and they trembled,.... At the power and presence of God, as Sinai of old; See Gill on Habakkuk 3:6 by which are signified mighty people and nations, kings and great men, struck with terror at the amazing providence of God in the world, on the behalf of his own people, and against their enemies; see Revelation 6:14,
the overflowing of the water passed by; which is usually referred to the overflowing of the river Jordan at the time of the passage of the Israelites through it, when the waters above stood and rose up as a heap, and those below failed, and were cut off, and passed away into the salt sea, Joshua 3:15 but perhaps it may refer to the times of David, when he…
Habakkuk 3:10
10. The mountains saw thee, and they trembled: the overflowing of the water passed by: the deep uttered his voice, and lifted up his hands on high.
10. Viderunt me, timuerunt montes; inundatio (vel, gurges) aquarum transivit; dedit abyssus vocen suam; in altum manus suas sustulit (vel, altitudo, [mvr]; potest tam in casu nominandi legi quam in accusative.)
Habakkuk proceeds with the history of the people's redemption. We have said what his object was, even this that the people, though in an extreme state of calamity, might yet entertain hope of God's favor; for he became not a Redeemer to the race of Abraham for one time, but that he might continue the same favor to them to…
"The mountains see Thee, they writhe: a shower of waters passes along: the abyss lifts up its voice, it lifts up its hands on high. Hab 3:11. Sun, moon, enter into their habitation at the light of Thine arrows which shoot by, at the shining of the lightning of Thy spear." The effect of the coming of God upon the mountains was already referred to in Hab 3:6. There they crumbled into ruins, here they writhe with terror. This difference is to be explained from the fact that there (Hab 3:6) the general effect of the omnipotence of God upon nature was intended, whereas here (Hab 3:10, Hab 3:11) the special effect is described, which is produced upon nature by the judgment about to be executed by…
waters: See study note on 3:8; see also Exod 15:1-18.
Rashi on Habakkuk 3:10
Mountains saw You and quaked The mountains of the streams of Arnon that cleft to one another.
A stream of water passed When they crossed the Jordan, the water was “completely cut off,” and the flow of the stream of water passed downstream; the water “which came down from above stood and rose up.”
The deep gave forth its voice The inhabitants of the land praised Him.
The heaven raised up its thanks The host of the heaven thanked Him.