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Notes The Book of Obadiah
Obadiah
1:1-4 - The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord GOD
concerning Edom; We have heard a rumour from the LORD, and an
ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise
up against her in battle. Behold, I have made thee small among
the heathen: thou art greatly despised. The pride of thine heart
hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the
rock, whose habitation [is] high; that saith in his heart, Who
shall bring me down to the ground? Though thou exalt [thyself]
as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars,
thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.
Obadiah
1:10-14 - For [thy] violence against thy brother Jacob shame
shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever. In the day
that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the
strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners
entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou
[wast] as one of them. But thou shouldest not have looked on the
day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither
shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the
day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken
proudly in the day of distress. Thou shouldest not have entered
into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea,
thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of
their calamity, nor have laid [hands] on their substance in the
day of their calamity; Neither shouldest thou have stood in the
crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither
shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in
the day of distress.
The Old Testament - A Brief Overview
Bible Survey - Obadiah
Hebrew Name - Ovahd'Yah
"Servant of Yahweh"
Greek Name - Avdiou (Greek form of the Hebrew)
Author - Obadiah (According to Tradition)
Date - 587 BC Approximately
Theme - The Destruction of Edom
Types and Shadows - In Obadiah Jesus is the One whose kingdom it is.
Summary of The Book of Obadiah
The prophet Obadiah prophesied judgment upon the nation of Edom for taking
pleasure in the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians, and they also
attacked Judah during this invasion. Obadiah pleads that Edom should've helped
Judah and should not have participated in their calamity. The Edomites were
brothers of the Hebrews, they were descendents of Esau the brother of Jacob.
They have always opposed their brothers, and even though their mountain
stronghold in the gorges of the Petra region seemed impregnable, Obadiah
predicted the Edomites doom. Edom was destroyed by the Babylonians in 582 BC,
the same army that they helped in the siege of Jerusalem. Later during New
Testament times Herod the Great was an Idumaen Edomite and after the destruction
of Herod's Temple in 70 AD the Edomites disappeared from history.
- The above text is © Rusty
Russell - Bible History Online and must be sourced for use on a
website.
The book of Obadiah contains only one chapter and is the
shortest book of the whole Old Testament. Obadiah's name means
"servant of Yahweh", and he delivered a message regarding the
Edomites who had helped the Babylonians in their conquest of
Jerusalem in 586 BC during the reign of King Zedekiah of Judah.
The Edomites were the brothers of the Jews having descended from
Esau the twin brother of Jacob, but they were always opposing
the Jews and therefore there was always enmity between them. The
Edomites lived in the mountainous rocky range in the southern
portion of the Dead Sea region, and they had built "impregnable
fortresses" in the canyons and gorges of these mountains. The
ruins at the rock city of Petra are truly magnificent to behold,
and they attest to the greatness of the once flourishing
Edomites.
The prophecy of Obadiah reveals the sins of Edom and God's
denunciation of their actions against Jerusalem. In 582 BC, only
four years after the destruction of Jerusalem Edom was conquered
by the Babylonians, the same army that they helped in defeating
Jerusalem. In New Testament times the Herodian Dynasty was an
Edomite family but after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 AD
the Edomites disappeared from history. The prophet Obadiah said
that the Edomites would be "cut off forever" and "be as though
they had not been." (Obadiah 1:10-18)
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. 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. "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.
Obadiah 1:13-15
The last verses of the book of Obadiah reveals that Judah
will be saved and the kingdom shall be the Lord's.
Outline of the Book of Obadiah
The contents of the book may be analyzed further as follows:
1 - Obadiah's prophecy of the doom of Edom
1:21 - The kingdom shall be the LORD's
Obadiah Resources
The Divided Kingdom
The
Northern Kingdom of Israel
The
Southern Kingdom of Judah
The Assyrian Captivity
The Babylonian Captivity
The Return From Babylon
The Prophets
The Messiah
The Book of Obadiah
More About the Book of
Obadiah
Obadiah in the Picture
Study Bible
Chart of the Prophets of Israel and Judah
Timeline of the Ancient
World
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