1:
Habakkuk — embrace, the eighth of the twelve minor prophets. Of his personal history we have no reliable information. He was probably a member of the Levitical choir. He was contemporary with Jeremiah and Zephaniah.
Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
2:
HABAKKUK (Person) Author of the eighth book of the Minor Prophets. The meaning of Habakkuk’s name is uncertain. It was probably derived from a Hebrew word meaning “to embrace.”
Nothing is known about Habakkuk apart from what can be inferred from his book. Several legends purporting to give accounts of his life are generally regarded as untrustworthy. The apocryphal book Bel and the Dragon describes a miraculous transporting of Habakkuk to Daniel while Daniel was in the den of lions. A Jewish legend makes Habakkuk the son of the Shunammite woman mentioned in 2 Kings 4:8–37. That legend apparently is based on the tradition that she would “embrace” a son. Chronological difficulties make both accounts unlikely.
Habakkuk lived in the period during the rise of the Chaldeans (Hb 1:6), that is, during the reigns of the Judean kings Josiah and Jehoiakim. The dates 612–589 bc delineate the probable period of his prophetic activity.
The book of Habakkuk reveals a man of great sensitivity. His deep concern about injustice and his prayer (Hb 3) show that Habakkuk was characterized by profound religious conviction and social awareness.
See also Habakkuk, Book of; Prophet, Prophetess.
Elwell, W. A., & Comfort, P. W. (2001). Tyndale Bible dictionary. Tyndale reference library (557). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.
3:
HABAK´KUK (ha-bakʹūk; “embrace,” or perhaps the name of a plant, cf. Akkad. hambakuku). The eighth in order of the twelve minor prophets. Nothing certain is known as to the circumstances of Habakkuk’s life, as we have only apocryphal and conflicting accounts. In the headings to his book (1:1; 3:1) Habakkuk is simply described as a man who held the office of prophet. From the conclusion to the psalm in chap. 3, “For the choir director, on my stringed instruments” (v. 19), we learn that he was officially qualified to take part in the liturgical singing of the Temple and therefore belonged to one of the Levitical families who were charged with the maintenance of the Temple music, and, like the prophets Jeremiah and Ezekiel, who sprang from priestly households, belonged to the tribe of Levi. This is supported by the superscription of the apocryphon of Bel and the Dragon, “Habakkuk the son of Joshua of the tribe of Levi” (K. & D., Com.).
Unger, M. F., Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., & Unger, M. F. (1988). The new Unger's Bible dictionary. Revision of: Unger's Bible dictionary. 3rd ed. c1966. (Rev. and updated ed.). Chicago: Moody Press.
