Prinsloo, Gert Thomas Marthinus2019-10-252019-10-252018Gert Prinsloo, “Inner-Biblical Allusion in Habakkuk’s משא (Hab 1:1-2:20) and Utterances Concerning Babylon in Isaiah 13-23 (Isa 13:1-14:23; 21:1-10),” Old Testament Essays 31 no. 3 (2018): 663-691. https://DOI.org/ 10.17159/2312-3621/2018/v31n3a15.1010-9919 (print)2312-3621 (online)10.17159/2312-3621/2018/v31n3a15http://hdl.handle.net/2263/72006Inner-biblical allusions in Habakkuk’s משא (Hab 1:1-2:20) and משאות concerning Babylon in Isaiah 13-23 (Isa 13:1-14:23; 21:1-10) suggest a shared circle of tradition and the reinterpretation of prophetic messages in developing social and political circumstances. Habakkuk’s משא condemns violent behaviour (1:5-11, 12-17; 2:5-20), but with the exception of הכשדים (“the Chaldeans”) in 1:5, shows a surprising reluctance to name the perpetrators of violence overtly. An analysis of inner-biblical allusions in Hab 1:1-2:20 and Isa 13:1-14:23; 21:1-10 – where Babylonian arrogance is overtly condemned – facilitates a contextual interpretation of both prophetic corpora, throws light on the identity of “the wicked” in Habakkuk, and makes an (original) exilic setting for Hab 1-2 a distinct possibility. Habakkuk’s משא might be deliberately vague about the identity of the wicked because of their ominous presence in the concrete living conditions of its audience.en© Old Testament Society of South Africa (OTSSA)HabakkukIsaiahInner-biblical allusionBabylonProphetic traditionHumanities articles SDG-10SDG-10: Reduced inequalitiesArticle