Lessons from Obadiah

We do not know much about the prophet Obadiah. But this short book of Obadiah contains great lessons everyone needs to remember – God’s unending love for His people and His sovereignty over all nations.

Isaac had two sons – Jacob and Esau. The Israelites are the descendants of Jacob and the Edomites, of Esau. They are brothers. But the Edom rejoiced when Jerusalem fell in 587 BC. Edom did not help his ‘brother Jacob.’

Therefore, the LORD said to Edom, “For the slaughter and violence done to your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off forever. On the day that you stood aside, on the day that strangers carried off his wealth, and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you too were like one of them. But you should not have gloated over your brother on the day of his misfortune; you should not have rejoiced over the people of Judah on the day of their ruin; you should not have boasted on the day of distress. You should not have entered the gate of my people on the day of their calamity; you should not have joined in the gloating over Judah’s disaster on the day of his calamity; you should not have looted his goods on the day of his calamity. You should not have stood at the crossings to cut off his fugitives; you should not have handed over his survivors on the day of distress. For the day of the Lord is near against all the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head” (Ob. 11-15).

This prophecy against Edom looks similar to Ezekiel 25 where pronouncements against Ammon, Moab, Edom and the Philistines were made.

As prophesied, Babylon attacked Edom in 553 BC and was laid to waste. As such, the book of Obadiah can be understood to have been written between 587 BC (the fall of Jerusalem) and 553 BC (the fall of Edom).

Let us look at two lessons from this book:

Firstly, even if the people of God were suffering, the LORD stood by them and for them. I may punish my child to discipline him. But if someone else offered to beat him um, I would never agree. Likewise, though the Israelites suffered, the LORD could never tolerate all the ridicules heaped upon His people. Edom did just that, and they were punished. The LORD always stands by His people. Today, the LORD still stands for His people.

Secondly, the LORD is sovereign. God is not the God of only the Israelites. He is also the God of all nations. He rules over all the earth and beyond. He is in control of everything. Just because other nations did not worship Him does not make Him not God over them. He is God above everything. He judges them and will judge all nations, “for the day of the LORD is near against all the nations” (Ob. 15).