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The Message from Obadiah
Obadiah, the shortest book in the Old Testament, is only 21 verses long (comparable to the book of Jude in the New Testament). The name Obadiah can mean either "Servant of Yahweh" or "Worshipper of Yahweh". Nothing is known about his life, background or personality but as the servant of God he paid more attention to the message of God itself rather his own existence. By beginning his book with the words, “The vision of Obadiah", he emphasized that the whole book of Obadiah was based on the revelation he had received from God.
The Historical Background
Behind the Book of Obadiah is a long history of enmity between Edom and Israel. The sad thing is that the two nations originated out of two brothers—Esau and Jacob. The tension began, as the Bible puts it, from the time the twins Jacob and Esau "struggled together" within the womb of Rebekah (Gen. 25:22). In the next verse the Lord tells her, "Two nations are in your womb." As they grew into adults, their hostility climaxed over the issue of birthright (Gen. 25:27-34). Conflict between the two nations Edom (of Esau) and Israel (of Jacob) began at the time of the Exodus from Egypt when Edom refused to let the people of Israel pass through their region on the way to the promised land (Numbers 20:14-21). The people of Edom were continually filled with animosity toward Israel(I Samuel 14:47, II Samuel 8:13-14, I king 11:14, 22:47; II Chronicles 25:11-12, 28:17) Even In New Testament, during the trial of Jesus Christ we see the final confrontation -- Jesus(a descendant of Jacob) stood before King Herod (a descendant of Esau). During the time of Obadiah it centered around trade routes. The King’s Highway ran all the way from Damascus to Egypt. Whoever controlled the highway, controlled the flow of goods and became wealthy.
The structure of the book of Obadiah
1. God will judge Edomites for their pride (Vs 1-9)
A) The summons to the nations; destruction is at hand (1:1-2)
The Lord has spoken, so it is certain. Destruction is coming.
B) Pride of geological condition of Edom(Vs 3-4)
One of the famous cities of the Edomites was Petra. This ancient city carved from the face of the cliffs. This was one of the strongholds of the Edomites. They believed no army could get to them. Edom felt so secure. They thought they were safe. They forget the greatness of God.
C) The high degree of devastation (Vs 5-6)
Thieves that picked grapes would leave some for the foreigners and poor people (Deuteronomy 24:21). But the prophet interrupts his prophecy with a cry of great fear. Then he declares that other people will completely destroy Edom. Nobody and nothing will remain there.
D) Pride of allies (Vs 7)
Edomites believed that their friends (allies) would help them. But in fact, their friends turned against them.(Deuteronomy 28:29)
E) Pride of wisdom (Vs 8-9)
Edomites had become wise in their own eyes. Edom had a reputation for being wise (Jeremiah 49:7). They had all the answers; They needed nothing; they thought that they had greater wisdom than anyone else. Eliphaz, who tried to advise Job, was from Teman of Edom. (Job 4:1.) In the Old Testament there is no mention of any religion of the Edomites or any Edomites gods. So many scholars believed that Edomites were so self-sufficient that they became arrogant.
2. The Reason for Destruction of Edom (Vs 10-14)
They did nothing to help Judah. They laughed at Judah’s destruction.
A) The Underlying Sin: Violence to His Brother Judah (Vs10)
These two nations began with Jacob and Esau. They should have been allies whenever foreign nations attacked one or the other, but Edom’s response was against God's law of love.
B) The Specific Actions: (Vs 11-14)
Obadiah explains how Edom failed to show love for Judah.
1) Indifference to Judah's troubles (11)
When Judah was being attacked by Gentiles, Edom should have come to help his brother, but he stood aloof. He condoned the evil that was taking place. “The one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it is sinning” (James 4:17).
2) Rejoicing over Judah's troubles (12)
They weren’t just indifferent, they were glad that Judah was in trouble.
3) Looting Judah's possessions (13)
They were guilty of taking advantage of another's calamity.
4) Oppressing Judah's people (14)
When the Israelites fled from their enemies and headed to the south, Edom was there to capture the fugitives and then they sold the survivors as slaves.
3. God will rescue His people ultimately (Vs 15-21)
A) The judgment for all nations (Vs 15-16)
The day of the Lord which is the Day of Judgment, is near for all nations.(Vs 15) This is the essential message of Obadiah. Using Edom as a symbolic image Obadiah warns all nations and people who go against God’s purposes.
B) The salvation of God's people and the restoration of the nations (Vs 17-21)
God will rescue those that call on him for help. He will keep them safe forever. They will enjoy all the blessings that God has promised them.
Obadiah starts his message with the destruction of Edom, but he concluded his message with very hopeful and joyful message for the salvation and restoration of nations.
The message of Obadiah for us today
Obadiah is a difficult book to understand. However, the message is very important for today.
(1) Pride deceives and leads to more sin.
(2) God will keep His word.
(3) God will punish sin. God sees all peoples and nations and judges them according to their actions. It shows us that God is in control.
(4) God will protect His own. God is good and He loves us and will take care of us.
These last two ideas,that God is in control and that God is good are extremely important to living the Christian life.
Prophecy is not just a whip to threaten us so we can know what God did and will do in the future. Prophecy is good for our hearts because it helps us see that God is in control and that God is going to preserve His people.
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