The style of this prophet has been always much admired. Lowth (De Poesi llebroor. p. 287) says : Poeticus est Habaccuci stylus ; sed maxime in ocla, inter absolutissimas in eo genere merito numerari potest.' Eichhorn, De Wette, and Ro senmiiller are loud in their praise of Habakkuk's style ; the first giving a detailed and animated analysis of the construction of bis prophecies (Rini ei tuns in das A. T., iii. p. 333). He equals the most eminent prophets of the O. T.—Joel, Amos, Nahum, Isaiah ; and the ode in ch. iii. may be placed in competition with Ps. xviii. and lxviii. for originality and sublimity. His figures are all great, happily chosen, and properly drawn out. His de nunciations are terrible, his derision bitter, his con solation cheering. Instances occur of borrowed ideas (ch. iii. 19, comp. Ps, xviii. 33 ; ch. ii. 6, comp. Is. xiv. 4 ; ch. ii. 14, comp. Is. xi. 9) ; but he makes them his own in drawing then) out in his peculiar manner. With all the boldness and fer vour of his imagination, his language is pure and his verse melodious. Eichhorn, indeed, gives a considerable number of words which he considers to be peculiar to this prophet, and supposes him to have formed new words, or altered existing ones, to sound more energetic or soft, as the sentiments to be expressed might require ; but his list needs sifting, as De Wette observes (Einleitzing, p. 339) ; indeed j7'lz, ch. r6, is the only unexception able instance. The ancient catalog-ues of canoni cal books of the O. T. do not mention Habakkuk
by name ; but they must have counted him in the twelve minor prophets, whose number would otherwise not be full. In the N. T. some expres. sions of his are introduced, but his name is not added (Rom. i. 17 ; Gal. iii. ; Heb. x. 38, comp. IIab. ii. 4 ; Acts xiii. 40, 41, comp. flab.
5).
1. Introductory works : T. C. Friederich, His torisch-kritischer Versuch iiber flab. Zeitaltor and Sehriften, in Eichhorn's Allg. a'es Bibl. Lit. x. 379-400; A. C. Ranitz, introductio in Hab. Viztieinza, 1808 ; Hanlein, Symb. Grit. ad Interp. Vaticin. flab., Erlangx 1795.
2. General commentaries : Abarhanel, liabbizzi cas Comment. in Hab. Latine redditus a Dia'erico Sprechero, Helmst. 179o; D. Chytri, Leetioues in .Proph. flab. in his Opp. t. ; Kofod, Comnzenta rius crit. algae exeget., Gotting. et. Lips. 1792 ; I. A. Tingstadii Auimadv. phi/. et. era, Upsal. 1795; Delitzsch, Der Prophet Habakkuk azzsgelegt, Leipzig 1853.
3. Translations with notes, explanatory and criti cal : S. F. G. Wahl (Hanover, 1790), G. C. Horst (Gotha, 1798), and K. AL Justi (Leipzig 1721).
4. Commentaries on single chapters :—The first and second chapters are interpreted by G. A. Ru perti in the Commentate. Theol. ed. Velthusen, Kuinoel et Ruperti, 405, sy. The third chaptet is explained by G. Perschke (Frankfort 1777), G. A. Schroeder (Gronin, r78r), Ob. F. Schnurrer (Tiib. 1786; also in his'Dissertat. phi era?. p. 342) and by Moerner (Upsaloe 179r).—J. v. H.