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I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction: and the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble.
Habakkuk 3:7 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction. The dwellings of the land of Midian trembled.
  • BSB I saw the tents of Cushan in distress; the curtains of Midian were trembling.
  • NKJV I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction; The curtains of the land of Midian trembled.
  • NASB I saw the tents of Cushan under distress, The tent curtains of the land of Midian were trembling.
  • NLT I see the people of Cushan in distress, and the nation of Midian trembling in terror.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The prophet sees distant peoples like Cushan and Midian trembling in distress at God's approach. It shows the nations shaken with fear before the advancing God.

Overview

Cushan and Midian, peoples associated with the wilderness regions, are pictured in anguish as God draws near. Their trembling testifies to the universal dread that God's glorious coming inspires. This portrait of the nations in fear underlines God's sovereignty over all peoples and assures Israel that the powers arrayed against them cannot stand before their God.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 9

  • Exod 15:14–16The people shall hear, and be afraid: sorrow shall take hold on the inhabitants of Palestina.
  • Num 31:2–12Avenge the children of Israel of the Midianites: afterward shalt thou be gathered unto thy people.
  • Judg 7:24–25And Gideon sent messengers throughout all mount Ephraim, saying, Come down against the Midianites, and take before them the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan. Then all the men of Ephraim gathered themselves together, and took the waters unto Bethbarah and Jordan.
  • Josh 2:10For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other side Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom ye utterly destroyed.
  • Josh 9:24And they answered Joshua, and said, Because it was certainly told thy servants, how that the LORD thy God commanded his servant Moses to give you all the land, and to destroy all the inhabitants of the land from before you, therefore we were sore afraid of our lives because of you, and have done this thing.
  • Gen 10:6–7And the sons of Ham; Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan.
  • Gen 25:1–4Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah.
  • Num 22:3–4And Moab was sore afraid of the people, because they were many: and Moab was distressed because of the children of Israel.
  • Ps 83:5–10For they have consulted together with one consent: they are confederate against thee:

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Habakkuk videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Habakkuk 3:7YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on HabakkukMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

'The righteous shall live by his faith' (2:4) becomes a cornerstone of the gospel in Romans, Galatians, and Hebrews — the faith that lays hold of Christ.

How Habakkuk 3:7 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.