Habakkuk 2:4 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Behold, his soul, &c.— Behold, if any one draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him, &c. Houbigant however renders it, But if any one shall withdraw himself, his soul shall not overcome: but he who shall be constant [or firm in his reliance] shall live by his faith. It is the same admonition which we frequently read in Jeremiah, that if any one upon the taking of Jerusalem should withdraw himself and flee into Egypt, to escape the Chaldeans, it should not turn out prosperously to him; while they should be in safety, who, after the destruction of Jerusalem, should remain in Judaea, and continue to cultivate the lands. See Houbigant. When we come to the Epistle to the Hebrews, we shall examine in what sense this passage is quoted there.