Obadiah is a Minor Prophet of the Lord that wrote the shortest book of the Old Testament, just 21 verses. His message from the Lord is about the judgement of the Nation of Edom, the descendants of Esau. The first 16 verses outline the charges against Edom and their arrogance and cruelty towards Judah, the descendants of Jacob, his twin brother. We see the War that began in Heaven play out on earth as a real family feud. This has gone on for some time as we see in Numbers 20:14-21. The Edomites blocked the Children of Israel from entering the Promised Land. Now Obadiah recounts the other sins of the Edomites over time as they continue to harm God’s children and harden their hearts towards God. They acted as co-conspirators with enemies that invaded Judah and rejoiced with them upon the destruction in Jerusalem. They looted and stole from the defenseless city and blocked the escape of those fleeing the carnage.
There are key verses in these chapters:
Verse 3. “The pride of your heart has deceived you”
Verse 10. “For violence against your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off FOREVER.”
Verse 18. “And no survivor shall remain of the House of Esau. For the Lord has spoken.”
After this the judgement is pronounced on Edom and a blessing is pronounced as the lands of Edom are returned to the Lord’s people.
This is considered to be the strongest judgement revealed in the Old Testament and gives us a glimpse into how God will judge the whole earth in the end. What led to the downfall of Edom and what does that teach me? Is it pride in my own heart? What do I let harden my heart that would separate me or others from the Blessing of the Lord? Have I become a stumbling block or a stepping stone? Lord, help me to be humble, to prepare me to be a light unto others through study and prayer.
I close with a quick look and thoughts about Psalm 128, “Blessings Of Those Who Fear The Lord”. Verse 5: “The Lord bless you out of Zion and may you SEE the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life. 6. Yes, may you see your children's children. PEACE BE UPON ISRAEL”!
The message is clear, if we heed the Lord’s word and follow his leading HE WILL BLESS US!
BLESSED BE THE NAME OF THE LORD!
Jerry Richardson
and Marian live in Gresham. He is a retired Medical Technologist and Marian is a retired (mostly) Medical Transcriptionist/Office Assistant. We have two daughters that live in Vancouver, and a son that lives in Pennsylvania. Jerry enjoys walking, hiking, golf, and photography. He also enjoys the occasional Mission Trip and other volunteering ventures.
Obadiah 1
The Coming Judgment on Edom
1 The vision of Obadiah.
Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom
(We have heard a report from the Lord,
And a messenger has been sent among the nations, saying,
“Arise, and let us rise up against her for battle”):
2 “Behold, I will make you small among the nations;
You shall be greatly despised.
3 The pride of your heart has deceived you,
You who dwell in the clefts of the rock,
Whose habitation is high;
You who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’
4 Though you ascend as high as the eagle,
And though you set your nest among the stars,
From there I will bring you down,” says the Lord.
5 “If thieves had come to you,
If robbers by night—
Oh, how you will be cut off!—
Would they not have stolen till they had enough?
If grape-gatherers had come to you,
Would they not have left some gleanings?
6 “Oh, how Esau shall be searched out!
How his hidden treasures shall be sought after!
7 All the men in your confederacy
Shall force you to the border;
The men at peace with you
Shall deceive you and prevail against you.
Those who eat your bread shall lay a trap for you.
No one is aware of it.
8 “Will I not in that day,” says the Lord,
“Even destroy the wise men from Edom,
And understanding from the mountains of Esau?
9 Then your mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed,
To the end that everyone from the mountains of Esau
May be cut off by slaughter.
Edom Mistreated His Brother
10 “For violence against your brother Jacob,
Shame shall cover you,
And you shall be cut off forever.
11 In the day that you stood on the other side—
In the day that strangers carried captive his forces,
When foreigners entered his gates
And cast lots for Jerusalem—
Even you were as one of them.
12 “But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother
In the day of his captivity;
Nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah
In the day of their destruction;
Nor should you have spoken proudly
In the day of distress.
13 You should not have entered the gate of My people
In the day of their calamity.
Indeed, you should not have gazed on their affliction
In the day of their calamity,
Nor laid hands on their substance
In the day of their calamity.
14 You should not have stood at the crossroads
To cut off those among them who escaped;
Nor should you have delivered up those among them who remained
In the day of distress.
15 “For the day of the Lord upon all the nations is near;
As you have done, it shall be done to you;
Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.
16 For as you drank on My holy mountain,
So shall all the nations drink continually;
Yes, they shall drink, and swallow,
And they shall be as though they had never been.
Israel’s Final Triumph
17 “But on Mount Zion there shall be deliverance,
And there shall be holiness;
The house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.
18 The house of Jacob shall be a fire,
And the house of Joseph a flame;
But the house of Esau shall be stubble;
They shall kindle them and devour them,
And no survivor shall remain of the house of Esau,”
For the Lord has spoken.
19 The South shall possess the mountains of Esau,
And the Lowland shall possess Philistia.
They shall possess the fields of Ephraim
And the fields of Samaria.
Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20 And the captives of this host of the children of Israel
Shall possess the land of the Canaanites
As far as Zarephath.
The captives of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
Shall possess the cities of the South.
21 Then saviors shall come to Mount Zion
To judge the mountains of Esau,
And the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.
Psalm 128
Blessings of Those Who Fear the Lord
A Song of Ascents.
1 Blessed is every one who fears the Lord,
Who walks in His ways.
2 When you eat the labor of your hands,
You shall be happy, and it shall be well with you.
3 Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine
In the very heart of your house,
Your children like olive plants
All around your table.
4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed
Who fears the Lord.
5 The Lord bless you out of Zion,
And may you see the good of Jerusalem
All the days of your life.
6 Yes, may you see your children’s children.
Peace be upon Israel!