Read
Edom's Pride
1 The Lord God gave Obadiah
a message about Edom,
and this is what we heard:
“I, the Lord, have sent
a messenger
with orders for the nations
to attack Edom.”
2The Lord said to Edom:
I will make you the weakest
and most despised nation.
3You live in a mountain fortress,
because your pride
makes you feel safe from attack,
but you are mistaken.
4I will still bring you down,
even if you fly higher
than an eagle
or nest among the stars.
I, the Lord, have spoken!
5If thieves break in at night,
they steal
only what they want.
And people who harvest grapes
always leave some unpicked.
But, Edom, you are doomed!
6Everything you treasure most
will be taken from you.
7Your allies can't be trusted.
They will force you out
of your own country.
And your best friends
will trick and trap you,
even before you know it.
8Edom, when this happens,
I, the Lord, will destroy
all your marvelous wisdom.
9Warriors from the city of Teman
will be terrified,
and you descendants of Esau
will be wiped out.
The Lord Condemns
10You were cruel to your relatives,
the descendants of Jacob.
Now you will be destroyed,
disgraced forever.
11You stood there and watched
as foreigners entered Jerusalem
and took what they wanted.
In fact, you were no better
than those foreigners.
12Why did you celebrate
when such a dreadful disaster
struck your relatives?
Why were you so pleased
when everyone in Judah
was suffering?
13They are my people,
and you were cruel to them.
You went through their towns,
sneering and stealing
whatever was left.
14In their time of torment,
you ambushed refugees
and handed them over
to their attackers.
Reflect
Edom (“red”) was the place where Esau fled when his brother Jacob received the birthright in exchange for red soup (Genesis 25:30, 32:3). Family feuds run for generations, and there was continual hostility between the Edomites and the Israelites in the Old Testament.
The country lies immediately to the south of Judah and is sometimes known as “Seir.” It is mountainous and rocky. You may have seen pictures of Petra, with its buildings carved into the rock. Petra is in Edom.
When the Babylonians overran Jerusalem and carried the Jews into exile in 586 B.C. the Edomites, living in fortresses in the rocks, prided themselves that they would never be conquered. Their sin was made worse by the fact that these people, who traced their descent to Esau, should have acted as brothers to the Jews. Instead of that, the Edomites taunted them and looted Jerusalem and even collaborated with the Babylonians (vv 11-14).
Gloating over someone else’s suffering, whether individually or corporately, is a particularly ugly sin. So is holding a grudge that is centuries – or days – old. As Christians we need to listen to Jesus’ nearly impossible command: “Love your enemies and be good to them. Lend without expecting to be paid back. Then you will get a great reward, and you will be the true children of God in heaven. He is good even to people who are unthankful and cruel. Have pity on others, just as your Father has pity on you.” (Luke 6:35-36) How can we even begin to do that? With Jesus’ help and by reflecting on what he has done for us.
Respond
Father, forgive me for the times I am secretly glad when someone else suffers. I pray that you will make me like Jesus and help me love my enemy. Amen.
Annabel Robinson
Annabel was born in Kew, near London, England. She committed her life to Jesus Christ at a Scripture Union camp when she was 16, and immediately found joy and peace. At Oxford she was active in the Oxford Inter-Collegiate Christian Union, where she met her husband, Reid. They emigrated to Canada in 1965, where she taught Classics at the University of Regina until 2007. She has two children, Heather in Oslo and Alasdair in Calgary.