Many Prophetic Books contain prophecies against several nations, but the book of Obadiah focuses exclusively on the nation of Edom. Obadiah's short message centers on the approaching day of the Lord and the promise that Israel will possess the land of Edom.
"Thus saith the Lord God concerning Edom . . . 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" (v v. 1,3,4).
Circumstances of Writing
Author: Presumably Obadiah (v. 1) was the author of this book, but nothing else is known about him. His common Hebrew name, denoting "servant of the Lord," is shared by at least a dozen persons in the Old Testament.
Background: The time of writing of Obadiah is disputed, with a wide variety of proposed dates from the tenth to the fifth centuries b.c., depending on when the invasion and plunder of Jerusalem (vv. 11-14) occurred. The two most popular views are during the reign of King Jehoram of Judah (ca 848–841 b.c.) and shortly after the final destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians (587/586 b.c.).
The former date (ca 845 b.c.) was when the Philistines and Arabs plundered Judah (2 Chron. 21:16-17) and the Edomites revolted (2 Kings 8:20), presumably then becoming allies of the invaders. Since the text does not explicitly indicate the cooperation of the Edomites with the Philistines and Arabs, the latter date (mid-sixth or even fifth century b.c.) fits the biblical data better, including Obad. 20 (the dispersed exiles of the Israelites and of Jerusalem to be restored), as opposed to dates before the dispersion of Israel (by 722 b.c.) or of Judah (605–586 b.c.). This postexilic view is also supported by the mention of Edomite involvement in Jerusalem's downfall (Obad. 10-14, gloating over the fall of Jerusalem, as in other sixth-century b.c. texts—Lam. 4:21a; Ezek. 35:15; cp. Lam. 2:15-17—and participating in the plunder) which would result in the Lord's promised justice ("as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head" Obad. 15).
Message and Purpose
Judgment on Edom's arrogant presumption: Jehovah's judgment was predicted for Edom because of her arrogance in trusting geographical security (vv. 3-5), diplomatic treaties (v. 7), and the counsel of her famed wise men (v. 8; Jer. 49:7) instead of the true God of Israel. Edom was doubly deceived, depending on their own human understanding (Obad. 3,8) and believing in the loyalty of their human allies (v. 7). Thus God would bring them down from the lofty cliffs and caves of their mountains. He would cover the Edomites with shame because of their arrogant gloating and gleeful participation in the downfall of their brother Jacob, the nation of Judah (vv. 10-14).
The day of the Lord: Obadiah spoke of the nearness of the day of the Lord (Isa. 13:6; Joel 1:15; 2:1; Zeph. 1:7,14), focusing on the darkness and gloom of the Lord's wrath (Isa. 13:6-13; Joel 1:15; 2:1-3,10-11,31; Zeph. 1:7-18; 2:2; Mal. 4:1-3,5). He emphasized the dual nature of the day of the Lord in bringing retributive judgment on the historical nation Edom and on "Edom" as symbolic of Israel's archenemies (payback on their heads; Obad. 15) while, at the same time, bringing salvation (or restoration) for the nation of Israel (Joel 2:30-32; Zeph. 2:1-10; 3:8-16). In the OT, Edom was a historical entity whose people may have been completely wiped out by a.d. 70 (see notes at Obad. 3,10,18). This historical entity blends with "Edom," a symbol for Israel's end-time enemies (cp. vv. 15-16; Isa. 63:1-6; Ezek. 35; 36:2,5—the context of the Day of Lord against all the nations).
Israel's repossession of the land (vv. 17-21): In a second conquest motif, the Hebrew word meaning "possess by dispossessing" is used five times: four times of Israel (both north and south) dispossessing (v. 17) the inhabitants of the promised land (vv. 19-20) and once the same root (v. 17) describes those enemies (including "Esau") who had dispossessed them. Reminiscent of the conquest of Canaan, this Hebrew word was often used in Deuteronomy of God's instructions for conquering the promised land (Deut. 1:8,21,39; 4:5,14,26) and also in Joshua (Josh. 24:8). Thus as in Jer. 49:2 (expected second conquest of Ammon in the last days), a second conquest motif (see usage of "Canaanites" in Obad. 20) appears in Israel's possession of the hill country of "Edom" and the territories of other enemies (vv. 17-20).
Contribution to the Bible
Like the book of Revelation, which proclaims the downfall of the persecuting Roman Empire, the book of Obadiah sustains faith in God's moral government and hope in the eventual triumph of His just will. It brings a pastoral message to aching hearts that God is on His throne and He cares for His own.
Structure
The text declares the book of Obadiah is a prophetic "vision" from the Lord which also appears to be a war oracle (v. 1) communicating Jehovah's imminent judgment upon Edom (vv. 2-9). As a subtype of the prophetic "oracle against foreign nations" (Isa. 13–23; Jer. 46–51; Ezek. 25–32; Amos 1–2; Zeph. 2:4-15), it is typical in announcing judgment on a foreign power (specifically Edom; see also Lam. 4:21-22) to bring deliverance for Judah (Obad. 17-20; see Jer. 46:25-28; Nah. 1:1-15; Zeph. 3:14-20). Yet it, like Nahum and Jonah, is atypical in focusing solely on judgment for a foreign nation, rather than specifying judgment for Israel as well.
This shortest OT book comprises several parts. A war oracle from the Lord announces certain judgment on Edom for their arrogant presumption and self-deception that they were immune from divine intervention (vv. 1-9). Next is an explanation of the further cause for coming judgment on Edom (vv. 10-14)—a lack of brotherly commitment (vv. 10-11) in gloating over the day of disaster for God's people Judah (vv. 12-13) and cooperating with Judah's enemies in her destruction (vv. 10-11,13-14). Then the text focuses on the day of the Lord (vv. 15-21) in which imminent judgment on the historical nation of Edom (vv. 15-16), followed by ultimate judgment on "Edom" as representative of Israel's end-time enemies (v. 16), would result in the deliverance of both Judah and Israel (vv. 17-21).