Obadiah chapter 1
English Standard Version
New International Version
1The vision of Obadiah. This is what the Sovereign Lord says about Edom— We have heard a message from the Lord: An envoy was sent to the nations to say, "Rise, let us go against her for battle"— 2"See, I will make you small among the nations; you will be utterly despised. 3The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ 4Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down," declares the Lord. 5"If thieves came to you, if robbers in the night— oh, what a disaster awaits you!— would they not steal only as much as they wanted? If grape pickers came to you, would they not leave a few grapes? 6But how Esau will be ransacked, his hidden treasures pillaged!
7All your allies will force you to the border; your friends will deceive and overpower you; those who eat your bread will set a trap for you, but you will not detect it. 8"In that day," declares the Lord, "will I not destroy the wise men of Edom, those of understanding in the mountains of Esau? 9Your warriors, Teman, will be terrified, and everyone in Esau’s mountains will be cut down in the slaughter. 10Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever. 11On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them. 12You should not gloat over 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. 13You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor gloat over them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster.
14You should not wait at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble. 15"The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head. 16Just as you drank on my holy hill, so all the nations will drink continually; they will drink and drink and be as if they had never been. 17But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy, and Jacob will possess his inheritance.
18Jacob will be a fire and Joseph a flame; Esau will be stubble, and they will set him on fire and destroy him. There will be no survivors from Esau." The Lord has spoken. 19People from the Negev will occupy the mountains of Esau, and people from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead. 20This company of Israelite exiles who are in Canaan will possess the land as far as Zarephath; the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev. 21Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.
New American Standard Bible
2'Behold, I will make you small among the nations; You are greatly despised. 3The arrogance of your heart has deceived you, The one who lives in the clefts of the rock, On the height of his dwelling place, Who says in his heart, ‘Who will bring me down to earth?’ 4Though you make your home high like the eagle, Though you set your nest among the stars, From there I will bring you down,' declares the Lord. 5'If thieves came to you, If robbers by night— Oh how you will be ruined!— Would they not steal only until they had enough? If grape-pickers came to you, Would they not leave some gleanings? 6Oh how Esau will be searched, And his hidden treasures searched out! 7All the people allied with you Will send you to the border, And the people at peace with you Will deceive you and overpower you. They who eat your bread Will set an ambush for you. (There is no understanding in him.) 8Will I not on that day,' declares the Lord, 'Eliminate wise men from Edom, And understanding from the mountain of Esau? 9Then your warriors will be filled with terror, Teman, So that everyone will be eliminated from the mountain of Esau by murder. 10'Because of violence to your brother Jacob, Shame will cover you, And you will be eliminated forever. 11On the day that you stood aloof, On the day that strangers carried off his wealth, And foreigners entered his gate And cast lots for Jerusalem— You too were as one of them. 12Do not gloat over your brother’s day, The day of his misfortune. And do not rejoice over the sons of Judah On the day of their destruction; Yes, do not boast On the day of their distress. 13Do not enter the gate of My people On the day of their disaster. You indeed, do not gloat over their catastrophe On the day of their disaster. And do not lay a hand on their wealth On the day of their disaster. 14Do not stand at the crossroads To eliminate their survivors; And do not hand over their refugees On the day of their distress. 15'For the day of the Lord is near for all the nations. Just as you have done, it will be done to you. Your dealings will return on your own head. 16For just as you drank on My holy mountain, All the nations will drink continually. They will drink to the last drop, And become as if they had never existed. 17But on Mount Zion there will be those who escape, And it will be holy. And the house of Jacob will possess their property. 18Then the house of Jacob will be a fire, And the house of Joseph a flame; But the house of Esau will be like stubble. And they will set them on fire and consume them, So that there will be no survivor of the house of Esau,' For the Lord has spoken. 19Then those of the Negev will possess the mountain of Esau, And those of the Shephelah the Philistine plain; Also, they will possess the territory of Ephraim and the territory of Samaria, And Benjamin the territory of Gilead. 20And the exiles of this army of the sons of Israel, Who are among the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, And the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad, Will possess the cities of the Negev. 21 The deliverers will ascend Mount Zion To judge the mountain of Esau, And the kingdom will be the Lord’S.
Christian Standard Bible
1The vision of Obadiah. This is what the Lord God has said about Edom: We have heard a message from the Lord; an envoy has been sent among the nations: "Rise up, and let us go to war against her." 2Look, I will make you insignificant among the nations; you will be deeply despised. 3Your arrogant heart has deceived you, you who live in clefts of the rock in your home on the heights, who say to yourself, "Who can bring me down to the ground?"
4Though you seem to soar like an eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down. This is the Lord’s declaration. 5If thieves came to you, if marauders by night— how ravaged you would be!— wouldn’t they steal only what they wanted? If grape pickers came to you, wouldn’t they leave some grapes? 6How Esau will be pillaged, his hidden treasures searched out! 7Everyone who has a treaty with you will drive you to the border; everyone at peace with you will deceive and conquer you. Those who eat your bread will set a trap for you. He will be unaware of it.
8In that day— this is the Lord’s declaration— will I not eliminate the wise ones of Edom and those who understand from the hill country of Esau? 9Teman, your warriors will be terrified so that everyone from the hill country of Esau will be destroyed by slaughter. 10You will be covered with shame and destroyed forever because of violence done to your brother Jacob. 11On the day you stood aloof, on the day strangers captured his wealth, while foreigners entered his city gate and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were just like one of them. 12Do not gloat over your brother in the day of his calamity; do not rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction; do not boastfully mock in the day of distress. 13Do not enter my people’s city gate in the day of their disaster. Yes, you—do not gloat over their misery in the day of their disaster, and do not appropriate their possessions in the day of their disaster. 14Do not stand at the crossroads to cut off their fugitives, and do not hand over their survivors in the day of distress. 15For the day of the Lord is near, against all the nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; what you deserve will return on your own head. 16As you have drunk on my holy mountain, so all the nations will drink continually. They will drink and gulp down and be as though they had never been. 17But there will be a deliverance on Mount Zion, and it will be holy; the house of Jacob will dispossess those who dispossessed them. 18Then the house of Jacob will be a blazing fire, and the house of Joseph, a burning flame, but the house of Esau will be stubble; Jacob will set them on fire and consume Edom. Therefore no survivor will remain of the house of Esau, for the Lord has spoken. 19People from the Negev will possess the hill country of Esau; those from the Judean foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They will possess the territories of Ephraim and Samaria, while Benjamin will possess Gilead. 20The exiles of the Israelites who are in Halah and who are among the Canaanites as far as Zarephath as well as the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the cities of the Negev. 21Saviors will ascend Mount Zion to rule over the hill country of Esau, but the kingdom will be the Lord’s.
New Living Translation
2The Lord says to Edom, 'I will cut you down to size among the nations; you will be greatly despised. 3You have been deceived by your own pride because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. ‘Who can ever reach us way up here?’ you ask boastfully. 4But even if you soar as high as eagles and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you crashing down,' says the Lord.
5'If thieves came at night and robbed you (what a disaster awaits you!), they would not take everything. Those who harvest grapes always leave a few for the poor. But your enemies will wipe you out completely! 6Every nook and cranny of Edom will be searched and looted. Every treasure will be found and taken.
7'All your allies will turn against you. They will help to chase you from your land. They will promise you peace while plotting to deceive and destroy you. Your trusted friends will set traps for you, and you won’t even know about it. 8At that time not a single wise person will be left in the whole land of Edom,' says the Lord. 'For on the mountains of Edom I will destroy everyone who has understanding. 9The mightiest warriors of Teman will be terrified, and everyone on the mountains of Edom will be cut down in the slaughter.
10'Because of the violence you did to your close relatives in Israel, you will be filled with shame and destroyed forever. 11When they were invaded, you stood aloof, refusing to help them. Foreign invaders carried off their wealth and cast lots to divide up Jerusalem, but you acted like one of Israel’s enemies.
12'You should not have gloated when they exiled your relatives to distant lands. You should not have rejoiced when the people of Judah suffered such misfortune. You should not have spoken arrogantly in that terrible time of trouble. 13You should not have plundered the land of Israel when they were suffering such calamity. You should not have gloated over their destruction when they were suffering such calamity. You should not have seized their wealth when they were suffering such calamity. 14You should not have stood at the crossroads, killing those who tried to escape. You should not have captured the survivors and handed them over in their terrible time of trouble.
15'The day is near when I, the Lord, will judge all godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. 16Just as you swallowed up my people on my holy mountain, so you and the surrounding nations will swallow the punishment I pour out on you. Yes, all you nations will drink and stagger and disappear from history.
17'But Jerusalem will become a refuge for those who escape; it will be a holy place. And the people of Israel will come back to reclaim their inheritance. 18The people of Israel will be a raging fire, and Edom a field of dry stubble. The descendants of Joseph will be a flame roaring across the field, devouring everything. There will be no survivors in Edom. I, the Lord, have spoken!
19'Then my people living in the Negev will occupy the mountains of Edom. Those living in the foothills of Judah will possess the Philistine plains and take over the fields of Ephraim and Samaria. And the people of Benjamin will occupy the land of Gilead. 20The exiles of Israel will return to their land and occupy the Phoenician coast as far north as Zarephath. The captives from Jerusalem exiled in the north will return home and resettle the towns of the Negev. 21Those who have been rescued will go up to Mount Zion in Jerusalem to rule over the mountains of Edom. And the Lord himself will be king!'
King James Version
9And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter. 10For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.
14Neither 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. 15For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
New King James Version
1The vision of Obadiah. Thus says the Lord God concerning Edom (We have heard a report from the Lord, And a messenger has been sent among the nations, saying, “Arise, and let us rise up against her for battle”): 2“Behold, I will make you small among the nations; You shall be greatly despised. 3The pride of your heart has deceived you, You who dwell in the clefts of the rock, Whose habitation is high; You who say in your heart, ‘Who will bring me down to the ground?’ 4 Though you ascend as high as the eagle, And though you set your nest among the stars, From there I will bring you down,” says the Lord. 5“If thieves had come to you, If robbers by night— Oh, how you will be cut off!— Would they not have stolen till they had enough? If grape-gatherers had come to you, Would they not have left some gleanings? 6“Oh, how Esau shall be searched out! How his hidden treasures shall be sought after! 7All the men in your confederacy Shall force you to the border; The men at peace with you Shall deceive you and prevail against you. Those who eat your bread shall lay a trap for you. No one is aware of it. 8“Will I not in that day,” says the Lord, “Even destroy the wise men from Edom, And understanding from the mountains of Esau? 9Then your mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, To the end that everyone from the mountains of Esau May be cut off by slaughter. 10“For violence against your brother Jacob, Shame shall cover you, And you shall be cut off forever. 11In the day that you stood on the other side— In the day that strangers carried captive his forces, When foreigners entered his gates And cast lots for Jerusalem— Even you were as one of them. 12“But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother In the day of his captivity; Nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah In the day of their destruction; Nor should you have spoken proudly In the day of distress. 13You 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. 14You 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. 15“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. 16 For as you drank on My holy mountain, So shall all the nations drink continually; Yes, they shall drink, and swallow, And they shall be as though they had never been. 17“But on Mount Zion there shall be deliverance, And there shall be holiness; The house of Jacob shall possess their possessions. 18The house of Jacob shall be a fire, And the house of Joseph a flame; But the house of Esau shall be stubble; They shall kindle them and devour them, And no survivor shall remain of the house of Esau,” For the Lord has spoken. 19The South shall possess the mountains of Esau, And the Lowland shall possess Philistia. They shall possess the fields of Ephraim And the fields of Samaria. Benjamin shall possess Gilead. 20And the captives of this host of the children of Israel Shall possess the land of the Canaanites As far as Zarephath. The captives of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad Shall possess the cities of the South. 21Then saviors shall come to Mount Zion To judge the mountains of Esau, And the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.
What does Obadiah chapter 1 mean?
The tiny book of Obadiah introduces itself as a message from God, in the same way as Nahum, Isaiah, and Micah: this is a "vision." The common name "Obadiah" is the Hebrew 'Obadyah, literally meaning, "a worshipper of Yahweh." Nothing in this book connects the author to any other biblical figure.Obadiah is unique in several ways. It is the shortest book in the Old Testament, at only 21 verses. Unlike most prophets, Obadiah does not speak to Israel. Instead, he gives his message to one of Israel's hated enemies: the nation of Edom. Despite being so short, and directed at a foreign people, it still covers all of the basic themes of Old Testament prophecy. If the prophets of Israel had spoken through movies, instead of writings, Obadiah would be a teaser trailer!
Since the book is so short, the historical context is critical. The father of the nation of Israel, Jacob, had a rocky relationship with his brother, Esau (Genesis 27:41). Esau's descendants became the Edomites, who settled in the mountains of Seir, southeast of the Dead Sea. References to Esau, Mount Esau, Mount Seir, and so forth are all references to the people of Edom. For centuries prior to Obadiah's prophecy, Edom had harassed Israel. They blocked Israel's Exodus from Egypt (Numbers 20:17–21), and warred with Israel off and on under many different kings (2 Samuel 8:14; 2 Kings 8:20–22). Partly because of their constant hostility, no other nation is threatened with judgment in the Old Testament as often as Edom.
The nation of Edom was blessed with terrain, resources, and trade. The mountains and cliffs made for easy defense. Abundant minerals meant there was plenty of mining for wealth. Edom was also located along major trade routes, so they had friendly relations with many of the surrounding nations. This success seems to have gone to the Edomites' heads: they are often accused of arrogance and pride, as well as treachery and violence.
Obadiah's prophecy was probably written around 586 BC, during an especially dark time for Israel. Around 588 or 587 BC, the Babylonian empire, under Nebuchadnezzar, attacked for the third time in as many decades (Daniel 1:1–4; 2 Kings 24:8–20; 2 Kings 25:1–7). This time, they not only took many of the people as captives, they also sacked Jerusalem and burnt the temple. Edom did not come to help their "brother" nation. In fact, they actually helped the Babylonians. Edom blocked the road and caught Jewish fugitives, handing them over to Babylon. In payment, they were allowed to loot Jerusalem along with the other invaders. Most of the specific accusations made in the book of Obadiah revolve around this incident.
Unfortunately for Edom, Obadiah's prophecy would be fulfilled fairly quickly. Not long after, one of Edom's supposed allies, the Nabateans, sprang a trap. While supposedly attending a banquet, the Nabateans surprised the Edomite soldiers and routed them. The nation which had been so strong, and laughed at Israel's misery, was suddenly destitute and driven from their homes. The book of Malachi, written after Israel had returned home from the Babylonian captivity, describes the cities of Edom as ghost towns (Malachi 1:2–5).
Edomites who survived this invasion settled south of Hebron, where they faded into obscurity. Known later as Idumeans, they were bullied by most other nations, including Israel, and later Rome. Herod the Great, who tried to have Jesus killed as an infant (Matthew 2:16–18), was Idumean—an Edomite. The remaining Edomites joined with Jews in rebellion against Rome in AD 70, and were essentially obliterated. As a nation, they became extinct.
The very end of Obadiah includes predictions which look forward to the end times, when the territory of Edom will be occupied by Israel, and ruled directly by God.