Up to this point in our study of the Prophets, we have been looking at messages brought to both the Northern and Southern Kingdoms of Israel. But Obadiah is called by God to bring a message of judgment to another country, a country that lay to the east of Judah, namely Edom. Now it’s time for a little of the back-story.

Remember the twins, Esau and Jacob, who were born to Isaac and Rebekah? And do you remember Jacob stealing both the birthright and the blessing from his older brother, the first-born twin, Esau? And do you remember that Jacob was chosen to be the father of the 12 tribes of Israel, and not Esau? Even though Esau and Jacob reconciled over 20 years later, animosity on the part of Esau’s descendants continued through the years. While Jacob and his sons settled in Israel, Esau and his family settled to the east of the Jordan and the Dead Sea in Edom, holding a strategic military location at Mt. Seir.  

And remember that it was the Israelites who went into captivity in Egypt, and not the Edomites? And then over 400 years later when Moses brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and attempted to enter the Promised Land, the Edomites (the descendants of Esau), prevented them from passing through their land and also refused to join with them when they prepared to conquer the land (Num. 29:14-21). So, what does Obadiah do? Like a modern district attorney, he lists their crimes and tries their case, and then he moves behind the bench and pronounces their sentence – destruction.

Obadiah does not provide any definitive historical clues as to the time in which he prophesied. We do know that Obadiah condemned Edom during a time when Israel (specifically Jerusalem) was invaded by a surrounding nation, which actually occurred on three different occasions prior to the invasion and total destruction by Nebuchadnezzar in 586 B.C. However, most scholars lean toward an invasion during the reign of Jehoram (848-841 B.C.) in which the Philistines and Arabians invaded Judah and looted the Palace (2 Chron. 21:16-17). Just look how Obadiah rails against the Edomites,

“Because of the violence to your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame and be cut off forever. On the day that you stood aloof, on the day that strangers carried off his wealth, and foreigners entered his gate and cast lots for Jerusalem – You too were as one of them. Do not gloat over your brother’s misfortune, and do not rejoice over the sons of Judah in the day of their destruction; yes, do not boast in the day of her distress” (Obad. vss. 10-12).

Obadiah speaks of the coming “Day of the Lord,” which in Scripture, is not a day of “joy” or “blessing,” but a day of “judgment.” Obadiah continues,

“For the Day of the Lord draws near on all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you. Your dealings will return on your own head…Then the house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame; But the house of Esau will be as stubble, and they will set them on fire and consume them, so that there will be no survivor of the house of Esau” (Obad. vss. 15-18).

Just a bit more history regarding the Edomites. Hundreds of years later, they became known as the Idumeans, and Herod the Great was an Idumean, and became king under Rome’s rule in 37 B.C. Now you can see why Herod (an Edomite/Idumean) was so bent on destroying Jesus (an Israelite from the tribe of Judah) after His birth, and that’s when he ordered the slaughter of the infants in Bethlehem. However, just over 70 years later, the Idumeans actually joined forces with the Israelites to defend Jerusalem against the Roman onslaught in AD 70. Of course, the nation was destroyed during the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70, and we have not heard from the Idumeans/Edomites since that time.

There are a couple of important messages we can learn from Obadiah:

1) We must never hold grudges or seek revenge on others who have wronged us. Remember what Paul reminded us of, “Never pay back evil for evil…Never take your own revenge…for it is written, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord’” (Rom. 12:17-19).

2) We must never wish evil to come on others because of the wrongs they have done to us; nor should we rejoice over the misfortunes of others who have wronged us. This is contrary to love, which Paul reminds us “is not arrogant nor takes into account a wrong suffered, nor does it rejoice in unrighteousness” (I Cor. 13:4-7).

3) We must always forgive others for the wrongs they have inflicted upon us. Let’s remember Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount that “unless we forgive others, we cannot be forgiven by God” (Mt. 6:14-15).

Let’s keep in mind this week the accusations that Obadiah levied against the Edomites, and make sure that we are not guilty of doing the same as the Edomites did in our relationships with others. Blessings to all of you.