The Book of Obadiah
The Book of Obadiah is very unique in the Bible in that it is the shortest book in the Old Testament and its main message is devoted to Edom, a neighboring nation to the Southeast of Israel whose origin is traced to Esau, the brother of Jacob (Gen. 35:1, 9). Nothing is known about Obadiah, although the Babylonian Talmud said he was the palace administrator of Ahab (1 Ki. 18:3-16), but most biblical scholars consider it as pure speculation. His name may either mean “worshipper of the Lord” or “servant of the Lord”, depending on whether one follows the Masoretic vocalization or the source on which the LXX translator based.
The setting or background of Obadiah is also uncertain, but I believe it is safe to follow those scholars who consider that the “most satisfying setting is shortly after the fall of Jerusalem in 587 BC, when refugees were captured in mid-flight (2 Ki. 25:4-6)" (TOTC, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, 23).
(1) V. 1 amounts to a declaration of war, except that it is made by the Lord and He calls on the nations to go against Edom. How does this affect our view on all the battles, especially battles against Israel and/or its neighbors in the past, present and future?
(2) Edom was not exactly a small country, laying south and east of the Dead Sea, running south from the Dead Sea all the way to the Gulf of Aqabah, but the Lord pronounces His judgment to make it small and despised. What does v. 3 point out as its source of pride? (See Note below).
a. How does each of the analogies in v. 4 bring out the spirit of pride in a person (or a nation)?
b. What does Proverbs 16:18 say about the proud?
c. Why is God so against the sin of pride? (Read God’s rebuke against Tyre in Ezek. 28, especially v. 6 and v. 17.)
(3) What do the two rhetorical questions in v. 5 seek to reveal about the impending judgment of Edom?
(4) Why does the Lord purposely make mention of Edom’s allies, friends and those “who eat your bread”?
(5) What might be the reason that Edom has to face such treachery and betrayal? (See Num. 20:14, 21; Amos 1:11)
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
Note:
The eastern part of Edom (now occupied by Jordan) was “rocky and mountainous, at times reaching c.1070 meters in elevation. Through it passed two major traffic routes, the King’s Highway and the road along the Arabah. Its control over much of the north-south trade fed its coffers…” (TOTC, 21). You may wish to consult the maps in your Bible to see the actual location of Edom
“Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down.” (Obad. 4)
In order to understand the message of Obadiah, perhaps it is helpful to give a biblical account of the origin of Edom and its history with the nation of Israel.
The Bible makes it very clear that Edomites are the descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob (Gen. 36:1, 9). Because of this blood relation, the Lord expects Edom to treat Israel differently than other nations, but such was not the case:
First, during the time of Exodus, when Israel in its wandering state needed to take a shorter passage through Edom, they were denied. Read these humble words of Moses:
“Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, saying: ‘This is what your brother Israel says: You know about all the hardships that have come on us…We will not go through any field or vineyard or drink water from any well'." (Num. 20:14, 17).
But the king of Edom replied,
“You may not pass through here, if you try, we will march out and attack you with the sword.” (Num. 20:18)
Ever since that incident, Israel and Edom were at odds:
- Saul fought with Edom and inflicted punishment on them (1 Sam. 14:47);
- David conquered Edom for a time (2 Sam. 8:13-14; 1 Ki. 11:15-16);
- Solomon used Edom to build its fleet, but also faced opposition from them (1 Ki. 9:26-28; 1 Ki. 11:14-22);
- During Jehoshaphat’s reign, Edom allied with other nations and raided Judah (2 Chr. 20:1-2);
- During the reign of Joram, Edom rebelled and gained freedom from Israel for some 40 years (2 Ki. 8:20-22; 2 Chr. 21:9-10);
- Then under Amaziah, king of Judah, Edom was recaptured with a great slaughter (2 Ki. 14:7; 2 Chr. 25:11-12);
- However, under the reign of Ahaz, Edom raided Judah and even took some into captivity (2 Chr. 28:17);
- Since then Edom was free from Israel and when Jerusalem fell to Nebuchadnezzar, Edom added salt to the wounds as attested by the following biblical accounts:
“This is what the Sovereign Lord says: While the whole earth rejoices, I will make you desolate. Because you rejoiced when the inheritance of Israel became desolate…” (Ezek. 35:14-15)
“Remember, Lord, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. ‘Tear it down,’ they cried, ‘tear it down to its foundations!’.” (Ps. 137:7)
And the Apocryphal book, 1 Esdras 4:45 says of the temple in Jerusalem as the one “the Edomites burned when Judea was made desolate by the Chaldees” (LXX).
Such is the background of Obadiah and the sins of Edom. After AD 70, Edom, as a nation, disappeared from the face of the earth.
It will be helpful to read yesterday’s meditative article about Edom, if you have not done so:
(1) Based on the impact of the judgment mentioned in vv. 8-9, what do we know about what Edom was known for? (See also Jer. 49:7; Ezek. 32:29)
(2) Of all Israel’s neighbors, Edom was the only nation that God specially appointed a prophet to prophesy against their sins and pronounce their judgment. From the reading of this particular section, what is the core reason for such a treatment by the Lord?
(3) In citing the sins of Edom one by one, see how you may categorize their sins:
a. V. 11: Standing aloof when a foreigner ransacked Israel. What kind of sin was it and what should Edom have done?
b. V. 12: Why did Edom gloat and rejoice at his brother’s misfortune? What should he do instead?
c. V. 13: What was the sin described in this verse?
d. V. 14: What kind of sin did they commit in this verse? Why would they do that?
Vv. 15-16—Their judgment
(4) To whom is the “Day of the Lord” meant for?
(5) The allusion of drinking on the holy hill likely refers to the rejoicing of Edom at the misfortune of Jerusalem. However the result will be that they, together with all the nations will drink a cup of a different kind. Read Jeremiah 25:15 and Revelation 16:19 to see what they will drink on the “Day of the Lord”.
(6) What is the main message to you today and how may you apply it to your life?
“On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them.” (Obad. 11)
The charges that the Lord brings against Edom through Obadiah remind me of both the parable of the Good Samaritan and the resulting Good Samaritan Laws used in many countries.
The sins of Edom against Israel are compounded by the fact that their ancestor Esau was the brother of Jacob, the ancestor of Israel; thus the charge laid against Edom is their “violence against your brother Jacob” (v. 10). However, upon reading the “evidences” presented to support this charge, apart from the seizing of wealth and the cutting down of their fugitives, the rest would point to a person’s basic duties toward his neighbors:
V. 11 accuses Edom of their inaction to the plight of Israel;
V. 12 accuses Edom of their passing judgment on Israel — kind of like saying, “You deserve it”; and
V. 13 accuses Edom of marching through their gates in the day of their disaster—an act of total indifference.
Such indifference, inaction and lack of compassion is clearly condemned by our Lord Jesus (Luke 10:25-37) and has contributed to the establishment of what has become the Good Samaritan Laws in many countries. Although the Good Samaritan Laws exist to give legal protection to “Good Samaritans”, the laws originated from the legal obligation to rescue a helpless person:
“An example of the obligation to help a person is the Argentinian law on ‘abandonment of persons’, Articles 106-108 of the Argentine Penal Code, which includes the provision in Article 106 that ‘a person who endangers the life or health of another, either by putting a person in jeopardy or abandoning to their fate a person unable to cope alone who must be cared for ... will be imprisoned for between 2 and 6 years.’” (Argentine Penal Code laws regarding crimes against the person, translated by Wikipedia)
The last part of this short prophecy changes its focus to Israel and the glorious hope of the coming of the Kingdom of God:
(1) Mount Zion stands for the whole of Israel and the seat of the throne of God:
a. What is the deliverance (which can also be translated as salvation, LXX) being prophesied and how will the seat of the throne of God be made holy? (See Dan. 9:24)
b. What is Jacob’s inheritance? (See Exod. 15:17 and Matt. 25:34)
(2) Jacob and Joseph (the two divided kingdoms are now mentioned as one) are used as metaphor: How appropriate is this metaphor of fire to depict both the mistake of Edom in opposing Israel and its consequence?
(3) The final proclamation of restoration appears to be split into two parts
- V. 19 addresses the residents on the southern and western perimeters of Israel: They shall occupy the eastern (Esau) and northwestern part of Canaan: and
- V. 20 addresses the people already carried away as exiles: They will occupy the land from south of Sidon to the far south of Canaan.
The idea seems to be that the re-occupation will far exceed the original land of promise. However, the restoration is framed within the final ushering into the “Kingdom of the Lord” in v. 21:
a. Could these unnamed residents in v. 19 refer to the Gentiles of those lands?
b. Would the “possession” refer to beyond the physical Land of Promise?
c. What will happen to Esau upon the establishment of the Kingdom of the Lord? (Esau, with its prideful sins, is likely used as a representative of all Gentile nations that oppose the people of God.)
(4) Pause and reflect on the messages of this short book of prophecy and see what might be the main message to you. How may you apply it to your life?
“Jacob will be fire and Joseph a flame; Esau will be stubble, and they will set him on fire and destroy him. There will be no survivors from Esau.” (Obad. 18)
In pronouncing the judgment on Edom, the Lord likens Jacob and Joseph as fire that consumes Esau like stubble to the point that “there will be no survivors from Esau”. We know historically, by the time Edom vanished from the face of the earth as a nation, that Israel as a nation had vanished as well (only to be restored as prophesied at the End-times). In other words, while Edom would not be destroyed by the hands of Israel, their destruction was caused by their sin against Israel.
Indeed, anyone who opposes the people of God is like playing with fire! In spite of the sins of Israel, and the fact that God uses many nations to chastise him, Israel remains His people; in fact, Israel remains the apple of His eye. As a result, the prophet Zechariah says, “whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye” (Zech. 2:8).
Today, we are the spiritual Israel, and more than that, we are His children (Rom. 8:15-16). Therefore we have the same assurance that whoever touches us touches the apple of His eye. Therefore, at the end of reading the message of Obadiah, let’s pray this prayer of Calvin based on his message on Obadiah:
“Grant, Almighty God, that as Thou seest us to be on every side at this day beset by so many enemies, even by those who constantly devise means to destroy us, while we are so very weak and feeble — O grant, that we may learn to look up to Thee, and that our trust may so recumb on Thee, that however exposed we maybe to all kinds of danger according to what appears to the flesh, we may not yet doubt that Thou art ever armed with sufficient power to terrify our enemies, so that we may quietly live even amidst all dangers, and never cease to call on Thy name, as Thou hast promised to be sure and faithful defender of our safety in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.”
(Calvin’s Commentaries, Vol. XIV, 427)