Revival (1)

The prayer of Habakkuk has been re-echoed down through the years which have intervened since his day from the hearts of godly men and women.

0 LORD, revive Thy work in the midst of the years, In the midst of the years ,iwke it known (3:2).

The prophet is sorely perplexed. Will God's work die or live? "Revive Thy work" he cries. Revive means to preserve alive, to quicken - Hebrew chayah, to live. A form of this word is found in Exodus 1:18 used of the Hebrew women when the midwives said to Pharaoh, "The Hebrew women are not as the Egyptian women; for they are lively (diayeh)", which meant, they were vigorous, robust, full of life. Such were the mothers of a race, who,~when they were delivered from Egypt, were strong, vigorous people:

He brought them forth ~i'ith silver and go/d:

And there was not one feeble person aflwng His tribes

(Ps. 105:37).

When the Israelites were delivered from Egypt they were a strong, virile race, which is traceable back to their vigorous mothers. Such a mother was Jochebed, the mother of Moses. Think of the vigour and ingenuity of that woman, after bearing her son, hiding him from the Egyptian authorities in strong faith in God; then when to hide him longer at home was impossible, she sought still to find a shelter for him amongst the flags by the river Nile. There was no wood or forest in Egypt where she might shield him from Pharaoh's cruel law. The only apparent shelter was amongst the reeds by the Nile's brink. In such hearts as these, hearts torn and tried, was seen the beginning of a movement and a deliverance the like of which the world had never seen. Well might the prophet long for an evidence of divine power as in those days of old!

What was wrong in Habakkuk's day? The answer is the state of the people. For long years they had been bent on back-sliding from God. The voices of the prophets were unheeded. The lack of revival did not lie with God, but with His people and many weary days of captivity lay ahead for them.

J. Miller

Extracted from Needed Truth 1952

unknown | Apr 1993
Voices From The Past