39 Obadiah

Now Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament, it only has 21 verses. What he was told was going to happened did happen though, same as what others predicted. What God says he will do, he does. Now you remember the brothers I told you about before, the twin brothers that were born to Isaac and Rebekka, And they have been at odds with each other their whole lives. So of course the people that hang around with them and follow them would be at odds with each other too. The people that hung with Esau, Jacobs brother were called the Edomites. They walked around with their chests stuck out thinking they were the greatest thing since sliced bread, well you know what I mean. This rivalry went on for over 1,000 years. God was not happy with these people and the way they were leading their lives….. They laughed at Jacob and his people all the time.. God said to them through Obadiah, "You should not look down on your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble." So otherwords he was saying, smarten up and stop doing what you are doing.. or else.. you will be destroyed.

Obadiah's message is final and it is sure: the kingdom of Edom, where all the Edomites lived, will be destroyed completely. Edom has been arrogant, gloating over Israel's misfortunes, and when enemy armies attack Israel, and the Israelites ask for help, the Edomites refuse and choose to fight against them, not for them. These sins of pride can be overlooked no longer. The book ends with the promise of the fulfillment and deliverance of Zion (Jesus) in the Last Days when the land will be restored to God's people as He rules over them.

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. And guess what……. They where literally whipped off the face of the earth and never to be seen again. So what is being told in this very short book is: God will overcome on our behalf if we will stay true to Him. Unlike Edom, we must be willing to help others in times of need. Pride is sin. We have nothing to be proud of except Jesus Christ and what He has done for us.