Obadiah 1
1
Proud Edom Will Be Brought Low
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:
“Rise up! Let us rise against it for battle!”
2I will surely make you least among the nations;
you shall be utterly despised.
3Your proud heart has deceived you,
you that live in the clefts of the rock,#1.3 Or clefts of Sela
whose dwelling is in the heights.
You say in your heart,
“Who will bring me down to the ground?”
4Though you soar aloft like the eagle,
though your nest is set among the stars,
from there I will bring you down,
says the Lord.
Pillage and Slaughter Will Repay Edom's Cruelty
5If thieves came to you,
if plunderers by night
—how you have been destroyed!—
would they not steal only what they wanted?
If grape-gatherers came to you,
would they not leave gleanings?
6How Esau has been pillaged,
his treasures searched out!
7All your allies have deceived you,
they have driven you to the border;
your confederates have prevailed against you;
those who ate#1.7 Cn: Heb lacks those who ate your bread have set a trap for you—
there is no understanding of it.
8On that day, says the Lord,
I will destroy the wise out of Edom,
and understanding out of Mount Esau.
9Your warriors shall be shattered, O Teman,
so that everyone from Mount Esau will be cut off.
Edom Mistreated His Brother
10For the slaughter and violence done to your brother Jacob,
shame shall cover you,
and you shall be cut off forever.
11On 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.
12But you should not have gloated#1.12 Heb But do not gloat (and similarly through verse 14) over#1.12 Heb on the day of 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.
13You 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#1.13 Heb his disaster
on the day of his calamity;
you should not have looted his goods
on the day of his calamity.
14You 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.
15For 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.
16For as you have drunk on my holy mountain,
all the nations around you shall drink;
they shall drink and gulp down,#1.16 Meaning of Heb uncertain
and shall be as though they had never been.
Israel's Final Triumph
17But on Mount Zion there shall be those that escape,
and it shall be holy;
and the house of Jacob shall take possession of those who dispossessed them.
18The house of Jacob shall be a fire,
the house of Joseph a flame,
and the house of Esau stubble;
they shall burn them and consume them,
and there shall be no survivor of the house of Esau;
for the Lord has spoken.
19Those of the Negeb shall possess Mount Esau,
and those of the Shephelah the land of the Philistines;
they shall possess the land of Ephraim and the land of Samaria,
and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20The exiles of the Israelites who are in Halah#1.20 Cn: Heb in this army
shall possess#1.20 Cn: Meaning of Heb uncertain Phoenicia as far as Zarephath;
and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
shall possess the towns of the Negeb.
21Those who have been saved#1.21 Or Saviors shall go up to Mount Zion
to rule Mount Esau;
and the kingdom shall be the Lord's.
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Obadiah 1: NRSV
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New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Obadiah 1
1
Edom Will Be Punished
1This is the vision of Obadiah. This is what the Lord GOD says about Edom:
We heard a report from the Lord.
A messenger was sent to the nations.
He said, “Let’s go fight against Edom.”
The Lord Speaks to Edom
2“Edom, I will make you the smallest nation.
Everyone will hate you very much.
3Your pride has fooled you.
You live in those caves high on the cliff.
Your home is high in the hills.
So you say to yourself,
‘No one can bring me to the ground.’”
Edom Will Be Brought Low
4This is what the Lord says:
“Even though you fly high like the eagle
and put your nest among the stars,
I will bring you down from there.
5You really will be ruined!
Thieves will come to you.
Robbers will come in the night,
and they will take all they want.
When workers gather grapes in your vineyards,
they will leave a few grapes behind.
6But the enemy will search hard for Esau’s hidden treasures,
and they will find them all.
7All those who are your friends
will force you out of the land.
Those who were at peace with you will trick you,
and they will defeat you.
The soldiers who fought by your side
are planning a trap for you.
They say, ‘He doesn’t expect a thing!’”
8The Lord says, “On that day
I will destroy the wise people from Edom.
I will destroy the intelligent people from the mountain of Esau.#1:8 mountain of Esau That is, Mount Seir.
9Teman, your brave soldiers will be afraid.
Everyone will be destroyed from the mountain of Esau.
Many people will be killed.
10You will be covered with shame
because you were very cruel to your brother Jacob.
So you will be destroyed completely.
11You joined the enemies of Israel.
Strangers carried Israel’s treasures away.
Foreigners entered Israel’s city gate.
They threw lots to decide what part of Jerusalem they would get.
And you were right there with them, waiting to get your share.
12You should not have laughed#1:12 laughed Literally, “looked.” Also in verse 13.
at your brother’s trouble.
You should not have been happy
when they destroyed Judah.
You should not have bragged#1:12 bragged Literally, “made your mouth big.”
at the time of their trouble.
13You should not have entered the city gate of my people
and laughed at their problems.
You should not have taken their treasures
in the time of their trouble.
14You should not have stood where the roads cross
and destroyed those who were trying to escape.
You should not have captured those who escaped alive.
15The Day of the Lord is coming soon
to all the nations.
And the evil you did to others will happen to you.
The same bad things will fall down on your own head.
16You spilled#1:16 spilled Literally, “drank.” blood on my holy mountain,#1:16 holy mountain One of the mountains Jerusalem was built on. Sometimes Zion is used to mean Jerusalem itself. Also in verses 17, 21.
so other nations will spill your blood.#1:16 spill your blood Literally, “drink and swallow.”
You will be finished.
It will be as if you never existed.
17But there will be survivors on Mount Zion.
They will be my special people.
The nation of Jacob#1:17 nation of Jacob Literally, “the house of Jacob.” This could mean the people of Israel or only its leaders. will take back
what belongs to it.
18The family of Jacob will be like a fire.
The nation of Joseph will be like a flame.
But the nation of Esau#1:18 nation of Esau Literally, “the house of Esau.” will be like ashes.
The people of Judah will burn Edom,
and they will destroy it.
Then there will be no survivors in the nation of Esau.”
This will happen because the Lord said it would.
19Then people from the Negev will live on the mountain of Esau.
And people from the foothills will take the Philistine lands.
They will live in the land of Ephraim and Samaria.
Gilead will belong to Benjamin.
20People from Israel were forced to leave their homes,
but they will take back the land of Canaan, all the way to Zarephath.
People from Judah were forced to leave Jerusalem and live in Sepharad.#1:20 Sepharad This is probably Spain.
But they will take back the cities of the Negev.
21The winners#1:21 winners Or “saviors.” Those who led their people to victory in war. will go up on Mount Zion
to rule the people who live on Esau’s mountain.
And the kingdom will belong to the Lord.
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