Obadiah 1: 5-9

⁵"If thieves came to you, if robbers by night--
O how you will be ruined!--
Would they not steal only until they had enough?
If grape gatherers came to you,would they not leave some gleanings?
⁶"O how Esau will be ransacked, and his hidden treasures searched out!
⁷"All the men allied with you will send you forth to the border,
And the men at peace with you will deceive you and overpower you.
They who eat your bread will set an ambush for you.
(There is no understanding in him.)
⁸"Will I not on that day," declares the LORD, "Destroy wise men from Edom
And understanding from the mountain of Esau?
⁹"Then your mighty men will be dismayed, O Teman,
So that everyone may be cut off from the mountain of Esau by slaughter.

As we continue with God's humbling words to Edom, the nation learns about the vicious nature of the attack to come. "Robbers by night" says verse 5. Remember the location of Edom, high in the craggy mountains. Robbers did not have flashlights and night-vision goggles to make entering such a place by night very easy. Yet this was a heist orchestrated by God, and going by night would make the perfect foil for this self-preserving people.

Not only would these robbers steal the basic wares, but they would take everything! Love the power in the metaphor in this verse: "If grape gatherers came to you, would they not leave some gleanings?" No, not even a skin! Brings to mind the hideous Grinch taking everything from the last Who Christmas ball to the roast beast. Even the "hidden treasures" would be pillaged.

As if knowing the nature of the attack wasn't enough bad news, the Edomites then hear that the "enemy" is actually their friend. "All of the men allied with you," reads verse 7, literally translated men "of your covenant."

That is a thought to ponder, and a characteristic of God that folks may find confusing. Why would God use nations who followed Edom's covenant for this work? Why didn't He raise up His people, like Israel, for instance, to come in and destroy Edom? They would seem to have earned the right! But, that is why God's ways are higher than Edom's ways, and our ways. Israel upheld God's Word in not attacking the Edomites; He would not bring them into the picture. The battle belonged to the Lord!

"'Vengeance is Mine, and retribution,
In due time their foot will slip;
For the day of their calamity is near,
And the impending things are hastening upon them.'"

--Deuteronomy 32:5

I enjoy reading Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Bible (which you can find online and through BibleGateway). Why the friends of the Edomites? Why would they suspects the ones who followed them and their ways? Here's what Henry says: "The God of our covenant will never deceive us: but if we trust men with whom we join ourselves, it may prove to us a wound and dishonour. God will justly deny those understanding to keep out of danger, who will not use their understandings to keep out of sin." That's good stuff!

God wanted Edom to be confused. This was a nation rich in wise men (verse 8). Would it make sense for their friends--the men at peace with them, who ate of their bread (verse 7)--to suddenly oppose them? "Ambush," is what God said. Edom was to be stunned, their mighty wisdom left for stupidity. Note the parenthetical thought: "There is no understanding in him [of it]."

The Lord makes it clear that it is He who is leading the charge. It is He who will remove the foolishness that the Edomites called wisdom. "Your mighty men will be dismayed, O Teman." (verse 9) Dismayed? The English root means "deprived of strength." God would tear them down from the inside and the outside, and the people would no longer be able to climb the mountain to know Him.

A note on Teman: This refers to an area in the northern part of Edom. The name stems from a descendant of Esau's. Specifically, Esau's firstborn son was named Eliphaz--who was one of Job's friends!--and Teman was one of the sons of Eliphaz.

Next time, God recounts the sins against Jacob. 'Til next Wednesday!




Photo: http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Travel/Pix/pictures/2007/06/28/GrapePicking460.jpg

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Next week: Obadiah 1: 10-14

Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.

I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).

Obadiah 1:1-4

Edom Will Be Humbled

¹The vision of Obadiah.
Thus says the Lord GOD concerning Edom--
We have heard a report from the LORD,
And an envoy has been sent among the nations saying,
"Arise and let us go against her for battle"--
²"Behold, I will make you small among the nations; You are greatly despised.
³"The arrogance of your heart has deceived you,
You who live in the clefts of the rock, In the loftiness of your dwelling place,
Who say in your heart, 'Who will bring me down to earth?'
⁴"Though you build high like the eagle, Though you set your nest among the stars,
From there I will bring you down," declares the LORD.

The section summary says, "Edom will be humbled," so you already know, if you have done any reading or heard any Scripture, that what follows is not going to be pretty. [Interesting to note that Jeremiah 49: 14-17 echoes these very passages of Obadiah.]

Obadiah has received a vision from God, and he emphasizes the source of his speech through his use of "Thus says the Lord God...."

An envoy, or messenger, brings news to the nations that they should rise up against Edom. Why? Did other nations have something against Edom? Sure, every nation has enemies. But to go to battle...right now? Truly, God was the one who had something against Edom, and He was the one with the sovereign power to control the situation (i.e., convicting Edom's enemies that "now is the time").

God turns His focus directly to Edom in verse 2: "I will make you small among the nations...." Small. The King James Version says "small among the heathen," which refers to Gentile nations. God said He despised Edom. The roots for the English word despise come from roots that mean "to look down upon" and to look upon as a "spectacle." As we continue to read through this short book (and the words from the other prophets) and discover what happened to Edom, we will see clearly that God chose His words with great intent.

Verse 3 brings us, literally, to the heart of the matter--"Arrogance of the heart." Pride. Edom had built up its own sense of security. It was located in a very high and rocky place. Rock climbers with gear might reach the city of Petra (which means rock), but Edom was otherwise its own impenetrable fortress. It took the luxury of its physical position for granted and its blossoming self-reliance led it to sacrifice any reliance upon God in the process.

Pride is not one of those things God takes lightly. Note Proverbs 16:18--"Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall." Edom was one of the worst offenders. The people who proclaimed, "Who will bring me down?", not expecting an answer.

But God answered, through Obadiah, that He looked down upon Edom--literally, figuratively and in every other way! The bird of prey with its aerie in the starry skies--no match for the God who created them and everything else.

As we read on, God unveils His plans for the destruction of Edom. 'Til next Wednesday!

A mighty fortress is our God,
a bulwark never failing....
Did we in our own strength confide,
Our striving would be losing....
Lord Sabaoth, his name,
From age to age the same,
and He must win the battle.

--from "A Mighty Fortress is Our God," Martin Luther

Photo: blog.bibleplaces.com/2006/12/visiting-jordan.html

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Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.

I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).

Obadiah: An Introduction

In beginning this long-term study of the Old Testament prophets, I've chosen to begin with the book of the Bible that records the earliest written prophecy and move forward in time from there. This brings us to Obadiah, a man whose name means "servant of the Lord" and yet about whom little is known.

What the Biblical scholars have said is that Obadiah likely lived in the southern kingdom (as opposed to the northern kingdom--with Israel, etc.). He shares a message from God to the Edomites, a people who stem from roots in Genesis but would cease to be by God's own hand.

Edom is a less common name for the twin brother we know as Esau (twin to Jacob). Edom means red and refers to the story of how Esau sold his birthright to his brother for some red stew. Esau rejected the ways of God and settled into a rocky region that came to be known as Edom.

If you remember the story of Esau and Jacob, you'll remember the Bible's talking about their wrestling ("But the children struggled together within her...." Genesis 25: 22). God had a very determined path for each:

"Two nations are in your womb;
And two peoples will be separated from your body;
And one people shall be stronger than the other;
And the older shall serve the younger." (Genesis 25: 23)

Esau, the older, would foolishly give up his birthright and be, in a sense, exiled from his brother Jacob, who is also referred to as Israel--the other nation, the stronger people, God's chosen people.

These two nations would tangle again as Moses tried to lead his people through Edom, promising not to disturb anything on the land. (Numbers 20: 17). Edom refused multiple times and sent troops to physically destroy Israel. But, per God's command ("You will not detest an Edomite..." Deuteronomy 23:7), Israel retreated. God's anger would burn against Edom, however, and Obadiah came with news of God's wrath to come upon them.

An interesting side note in my study Bible is that Edom had successes and failures in many battles, ultimately moving the people in an area of southern Palestine which became known as Idumeans. Herod the Great, the same Herod who sought the newborn Messiah, was an Idumean who became king of Judah. The tracings of Esau's line can be seen well beyond his time; it's a battle that surely continues today, on land and in the heart.

With that introduction, we begin to look at the words Obadiah shared with the Edomites. Note the study schedule on the right, if you want to read with me. Otherwise, I look forward to your contributions, especially as you see Old Testament prophecy intersecting with your Biblical reading and our world today.

'Til Wednesday!



Photo: http://static.artbible.info/large/obadja_tissot.jpg

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Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.

I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).

A New Look; A New Focus

Very shortly, I will be launching the 3rd iteration of my blog, "In-between Time."

I first heard the phrase "in between time" when my former church was going through a time of transition in between pastors. We brought aboard an interim minister who was truly a minister of the process of change and transformation. He used the phrase "in between time" to be the time period when the church would reflect upon its past and think about its future, all the while continuing on with its work of serving God. It was a rich time of study, reflection, process and application.

On this blog, "in between time" referred to the time in between Mothers of Preschoolers meetings, so this then-Mentor Mom could keep the MOPS spiritually fed even as we weren't meeting. Last summer, the "in between time" was time in between formal Bible studies. I perused the book of Proverbs with a host of bloggy friends (see the archives for entries).

Within days, I begin a new and long-term commitment to studying and writing about the books of the prophets. As the blog explanation says, there was a 400-year period between the time of Malachi's last prophecy and the coming of Jesus Christ during which God did not formally speak to mankind through prophets. So what did these men of God say? Why then? Why are these words still important now?

This is not a book study, but an exploration of the Scriptures. I am not a scholar much less a Sunday School teacher, but I claim the verse below as my validation for writing, the Holy Spirit being my Guide!

I hope you will step along on the journey from time to time. I will post a schedule of verses to be examined along with the first post--beginning with the earliest recorded prophecy of Obadiah.



Photo: http://static.artbible.info/large/obadja_tissot.jpg

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Note: I read from the New American Standard Bible translation,
specifically, The MacArthur Study Bible (NASB).
I will quote other sources if used in a post.

I also use Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
(with notes from the King James Version).