Obadiah is just one chapter in length and consists of a prophesy against the nation of Edom. Edom was a particularly unfriendly neighbor to the southeast of Israel.
Edom had a long history of hostility against Israel and it delighted in the devastation other foreign powers could bring upon the nation. However, their hostility to God's people would ultimately bring God's wrath. Obadiah's message to Edom was simply this: Edom will be destroyed but Israel will be delivered. God's kingdom will triumph.
What does it say?
Obadiah is a prophecy against Edom, Israel's neighbor to the southeast. Edom had been hostile toward Israel from the very beginning of Israel's existence. And since the Edomites were related to Israel through Esua (6-12), their hostility was especially objectionable. And not only had Edom exercised violence against Israel, but they had gloated over Israel's devastation by other foreign invaders.
In this little book, Obadiah announces the coming destruction of Edom for her arrogance and her ill-treatment of Israel. In the Day of the Lord, Edom as well as all of Israel's enemies will be judged and destroyed. There will be deliverance for Israel and God's kingdom will be established forever.
Faces & Places
The prophet behind this book is Obadiah, whose name means "servant (or worshiper) of the Lord." His prophecy is directed against the Edomites, those who populate the land of Edom across the southern border of Israel. Attention is drawn to Mount Zion in Jerusalem, which will be delivered through God's intervention.
Key Verses & Themes
Judgment of Edom:
Obadiah 10 "Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever."
Pride:
Obadiah 3 "The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, 'Who can bring me down to the ground?'"
The Kingdom of God:
Obadiah 21 "Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord's."
So what?
There are a surprising number of "So what's?" in such a small book written to a pagan nation thousands of years in the past. There is, for instance, a lesson about pride and deception in verse 3. Edom's heart was so proud that it did not have the humility required to look at itself and see the truth. Are you sometimes too proud to examine your life with full honesty?
Edom was self-absorbed, gloating over its high position and the low position of its neighbor. It found satisfaction in putting others down. Edom can become a picture of what God hates in human behavior.
And this little book of Obadiah reminds us that God will vindicate his own people at the coming Day of the Lord. This theme is echoed throughout the New Testament as we are instructed to wait patiently in the midst of trouble for our blessed hope from heaven. In one place Paul writes: "God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels. He will punish those who do not know God and do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the majesty of his power on the day he comes to be glorified in his holy people and to be marveled at among those who have believed. This includes you, because you believed our testimony to you." (2 Thessalonians 1:6-10)
