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Obadiah
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1 Obadiah's vision. This is what the Lord says about the land of Edom. We have heard from the Lord that a messenger was sent to tell the nations: Get ready! Let's go to war against Edom!
2 I will make you*The Lord is speaking about Edom, though Obadiah was addressing the people of Judah. insignificant among the nations. You will be totally despised. 3 Your heart's pride has deceived you—you who live in a secure fortress of rock in the high mountains, saying to yourselves, “Who can ever bring us down?” 4 But even though you soar like an eagle, even though you make your nest among the stars, I will bring you down from there, declares the Lord.
5 You will be completely destroyed! If thieves came to you, if robbers came at night, wouldn't they steal only what they wanted? If those who harvest grapes came to you, wouldn't they leave some behind? 6 But how Esau†Esau was the father of the Edomites. will be plundered and their hidden treasures looted! 7 All your allies will drive you out, past the borders of your land. Those who were at peace with you will deceive you, and conquer you. Those who ate with you have ambushed you. You don't understand a thing!
8 On that day, declares the Lord, I will destroy the wise men of Edom—there will be no more wisdom in the mountains of Esau.‡“Mountains of Esau”: another way of saying the kingdom of Edom. 9 Teman, §Teman was one of the major towns of Edom, and is used here to represent the whole country. your fighting men will be terrified, so that everyone of the mountains of Esau will be cut down in the massacre. 10 Because of the violence you committed against your brothers, the descendants of Jacob, you will be totally ashamed of yourselves, and destroyed forever. 11 On that day*When Israel was attacked. you stood aside, on that day strangers plundered their wealth and foreigners entered their gates, and divided up Jerusalem by casting lots—and you were like one of them.
12 You should not have gloated over your brother's day of disaster. You should not have rejoiced over the day of destruction of the sons of Judah. You should not have boasted over the day of their distress. 13 You should not have marched through the city gates of my people on their day of disaster. You should not have gloated over them on the day of their disaster. You should not have looted their wealth on the day of their disaster. 14 You should not have stood at the crossroads, cutting down those trying to escape. You should not have handed over†To the foreign invaders. those who survived on the day of their distress.
15 For the day of the Lord‡The day of the Lord refers to the time of judgment. is near for all nations. What you have done will be done to you; your actions will fall back on your own heads. 16 For as you drank on my holy mountain, so will all the nations continually drink, and swallow, and they shall be as if they never existed.
17 But on Mount Zion there will be a place of escape, a holy place, and the descendants of Jacob will reclaim their inheritance. 18 The descendants of Jacob will become a fire, and the descendants of Joseph a flame, and they shall burn up the descendants of Esau like stubble, consuming them completely, so that there will be not a single survivor of the descendants of Esau. For the Lord has spoken.
19 Those living in the Negev will occupy the mountains of Esau; those from the foothills of Judah§Literally, “Shephelah.” will occupy the land of the Philistines, and possess the fields of Ephraim and Samaria; those from the tribe of Benjamin will occupy Gilead. 20 The army of exiles of the people of Israel shall possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, and the exiles of Jerusalem from Sepharad*Sepharad: Possibly the town of Sardis in Asia Minor. shall possess the cities of the Negev. 21 Those who have been saved will go up Mount Zion and rule the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom shall be the Lord's.

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*1:2 The Lord is speaking about Edom, though Obadiah was addressing the people of Judah.

†1:6 Esau was the father of the Edomites.

‡1:8 “Mountains of Esau”: another way of saying the kingdom of Edom.

§1:9 Teman was one of the major towns of Edom, and is used here to represent the whole country.

*1:11 When Israel was attacked.

†1:14 To the foreign invaders.

‡1:15 The day of the Lord refers to the time of judgment.

§1:19 Literally, “Shephelah.”

*1:20 Sepharad: Possibly the town of Sardis in Asia Minor.

© 2018 Dr. Jonathan Gallagher