Habakkuk 2:6
“Shall not all these take up a parable against him, and a taunting proverb against him, and say, Woe to him that increaseth that which is not his! how long? and to him that ladeth himself with thick clay!”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →The plundered nations will mock the conqueror with a taunt: woe to him who piles up what is not his and loads himself with pledged goods.
What Does Habakkuk 2:6 Mean?
Now the tables begin to turn. The very nations Babylon plundered will one day take up a mocking proverb against it, opening the first of five woes. The taunt strikes at theft on a massive scale: woe to the one who heaps up what was never his, and "how long" will he weigh himself down with goods seized by force?
The image of loading oneself with "thick clay" suggests heavy debt or pledged plunder — ill-gotten gain that becomes a crushing burden rather than a treasure. What was stolen does not enrich; it weighs the thief down toward his fall. This is the divine irony running through the woes: the means of Babylon's pride become the means of its ruin. Gain taken unjustly always carries within it the seed of judgment.
In the Original Language
hoy (הוֹי), 'woe' — a sharp cry of grief and warning, announcing doom over the one it names.