Habakkuk 2 · Verse 20

Habakkuk 2:20

But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.
Habakkuk 2:20, King James Version

Habakkuk 2:20 in other translations

BSBBut the LORD is in His holy temple; let all the earth be silent before Him.
WEBBut the LORD is in his holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before him!”
ASVBut Jehovah is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.
YLTAnd Jehovah is in His holy temple, Be silent before Him, all the earth!
DARBYBut Jehovah is in his holy temple. Let all the earth keep silence before him!
BBEBut the Lord is in his holy Temple: let all the earth be quiet before him.
WebsterBut the LORD is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.

What does Habakkuk 2:20 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
20. But the Lord--Jehovah; in striking contrast with the idols. in his holy temple--"His place" (Is 26:21); heaven (Psa 11:4; Jon 2:7; Mi 1:2). The temple at Jerusalem is a type of it, and there God is to be worshipped. He does not lie hid under gold and silver, as the idols of Babylon, but reigns in heaven and fills heaven, and thence succors His people. keep silence--in token of reverent submission and subjection to His judgments (Job 40:4; Psa 76:8; Zep 1:7; Zec 2:13).

Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown, 1871 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 20 The Lord is in his holy temple - Jehovah has his temple, the place where he is to be worshipped; but there there is no image. Oracles, however, are given forth; and every word of them is truth, and is fulfilled in its season. And this temple and its worship are holy; no abomination can be practiced there, and every thing in it leads to holiness of heart and life. Let all the earth keep silence before him - Let all be dumb. Let none of them dare to open their mouths in the presence of Jehovah. He alone is Sovereign. He alone is the arbiter of life and death. Let all hear his commands with the deepest respect, obey them with the promptest diligence, and worship him with the most profound reverence. When an Asiatic sovereign goes to the mosque on any of the eastern festivals, such as the Bairham, the deepest silence reigns among all his retinue, viziers, foreign ambassadors, etc. They all bow respectfully before him; but no word is spoken, no sound uttered. It is to this species of reverence that the prophet alludes, and with this he concludes the prophetic part of this book. What God has threatened or promised, that he will fulfill. Let every soul bow before him, and submit to his authority.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Habakkuk 2:15-20

A severe woe is pronounced against drunkenness; it is very fearful against all who are guilty of drunkenness at any time, and in any place, from the stately palace to the paltry ale-house. To give one drink who is in want, who is thirsty and poor, or a weary traveller, or ready to perish, is charity; but to give a neighbour drink, that he may expose himself, may disclose secret concerns, or be drawn into a bad…

Read the full comment on Habakkuk 2:15-20 →

Habakkuk 2:20 in the original Hebrew

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

וַֽיהוָ֖הva.Yah.wehand YahwehH3068
בְּהֵיכַ֣לbe.hei.Khal[is] in [the] temple ofH1964
קָדְשׁ֑וֹka.de.Shoholiness hisH6944
הַ֥סhashush!H2013
מִפָּנָ֖יוmi.pa.Navfrom before himH6440
כָּל\־kol-allH3605
הָאָֽרֶץ\׃\ \פha.'A.retzthe earthH776

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Habakkuk 2:20

  • Zechariah 2:13

    Be silent, O all flesh, before the Lord: for he is raised up out of his holy habitation.

  • Zephaniah 1:7

    Hold thy peace at the presence of the Lord God: for the day of the Lord is at hand: for the Lord hath prepared a sacrifice, he hath bid his guests.

  • Psalms 46:10

    Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

  • Psalms 11:4

    The Lord is in his holy temple, the Lord’s throne is in heaven: his eyes behold, his eyelids try, the children of men.

  • Isaiah 6:1

    In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple.

  • Jonah 2:7

    When my soul fainted within me I remembered the Lord: and my prayer came in unto thee, into thine holy temple.

  • Micah 1:2

    Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple.

  • Psalms 76:8-9

    Thou didst cause judgment to be heard from heaven; the earth feared, and was still, When God arose to judgment, to save all the meek of the earth. Selah.

  • Psalms 132:13-14

    For the Lord hath chosen Zion; he hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest for ever: here will I dwell; for I have desired it.

  • Ephesians 2:21-22

    In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit.

  • Psalms 115:3

    But our God is in the heavens: he hath done whatsoever he hath pleased.

  • Isaiah 66:1

    Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the Lord.
Ps 11:4; 115:3; 132:13,14; Isa 6:1; 66:1,6; Jon 2:4,7; Eph 2:21,22
let all the earth keep silence before him. Heb. be silent allthe earth before him.
Ps 46:10; 76:8,9; Zep 1:7; Zec 2:13

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Habakkuk 2:19

    Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, Arise, it shall teach! Behold, it is laid over with gold and silver, and there is no breath at all in the midst of it.

  • Habakkuk 2:20

    But the Lord is in his holy temple: let all the earth keep silence before him.

Read all of Habakkuk 2

Habakkuk 2:20 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Mas Jehová está en su santo templo: calle delante de él toda la tierra.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		L’ Éternel est dans le palais de sa sainteté:… que toute la terre fasse silence devant lui!
German
Elberfelder 1871		Aber Jehova ist in seinem heiligen Palast-schweige vor ihm, ganze Erde!
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Dominus autem in templo sancto suo: sileat a facie ejus omnis terra!