In Hebrew this verse is a title for the rest of the chapter, just as 1.1 serves as a title for chapters 1 and 2. Some psalms have a similar title (Psa 17; 86; 90; 102; 142), and translators may wish to treat this verse in the same way as they have treated the titles of those psalms. Good News Translation has made the verse into a full sentence, “This is a prayer…,” and many translators will need to follow this example. One may also translate “The prophet Habakkuk prayed this prayer.”

For notes on Habakkuk the prophet, see comments on 1.1.

The final words in Revised Standard Version, according to Shigionoth, are mentioned only in the footnote in Good News Translation. Shigionoth is just a transliteration of a Hebrew word whose meaning is unknown. The singular form of this word occurs in the heading of Psalm 7. Probably the word was intended as some kind of instruction about the music which should accompany the psalm. Some modern versions attempt to translate it. Moffatt has “in dithyrambic measure”; Jerusalem Bible has “tone as for dirges”; New American Bible has “To a plaintive tune”; but these are all guesses. It is better for translators to do as Good News Translation has done, that is, to omit the word and state in a footnote that its meaning is no longer known.

Quoted with permission from Clark, David J. & Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on the Book of Habakkuk. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1989. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .