Habakkuk 3:14

"Thou didst pierce with his own staves the head of his warriors: They came as a whirlwind to scatter me; Their rejoicing was to devour the poor secretly."

"Thou didst pierce with his own staves the head of his warriors ..." In a passage like this, the evidence of the larger and ultimate meaning is overwhelming. The bruising of Satan's head was mentioned in the previous verse, and here the manner of Christ's slaying the devil is clearly indicated "He through death (Satan's weapon) slew him that had the power of death, that is, the devil" (Hebrews 2:14).

To be sure, there were examples of that same phenomenon in the history of Israel. David, it will be recalled, slew Goliath with Goliath's own sword. We do not know if Habakkuk had any intimation of the ultimate fulfillment of his words or not; but in all probability, he might have believed that he was merely referring to historical instances in the history of Israel. However, it was God who spoke these words through Habakkuk; hence, the message is for all generations, as well as for those who first heard it.

Barnes pointed out a number of instances in which sinners perished in the very devices they had intended to use against others.

"Pharaoh perished in the very Red Sea to which he had driven the children of Israel. Daniel's accusers perished in the den of lions where they had contrived to throw Daniel. Haman was hanged on the very gallows he had erected upon which to hang Mordecai."[32]

There can be no wonder then that it was written in the Psalms, "The nations are sunk down in the pit that they made: in the net which they hid is their own foot taken." (Psalms 9:15).