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Devotionals
As personally elusive as the prophet JO-EL, Obadiah steps out of the woodwork, announces his brief (but scathing) message against Esau/Edom and then disappears into thin air. The meaning of his name is our only clue concerning his ancestry. Someone (probably his father) cared enough to name him "servant and worshipper of Yahweh." Whoever his daddy was may those of his tribe increase. The prophecy of God came to Obadiah in a vision. This prophetic word was a stiff rebuke against Esau/Edom, the mountainous country located in the UN-promised land southeast of the Dead Sea. These folks were descendants of Esau/Edom: the twin brother of Jacob. Esau/Edom: the one who sold his birthright and lost his blessing. Esau/Edom: the country that said to Moses and the wilderness wanderers: "No, you can’t pass through our land, you’ll just have to go around..." (Numbers 20:14-21). Obadiah seems to be looking backward to the fateful day when Judah (Jacob) was taken captive. He also seems to be looking forward to the day when Esau/Edom would be judged for their participation in the victory and success of that capture. They stood by and watched while Babylon marched in and hauled away a whole nation of their brethren in 586 BC. They held their brothers as prisoners while they were in transit to exile. Afterward, they helped themselves to their abandoned treasures and gloated over their misfortune. Esau/Edom surely thought: "They must not know who I am!" Obadiah came to say: "But you forgot Who is I AM!" Those who fly on their own strength will not fly long. Those who prey on the people of God will become prey themselves. The arrogance and pride of there own hearts had deceived them. This pride would be their downfall. DAILY and SIN, PIT and PRIDE, LIE and DIE, HIS and GUIDE...THESE WORDS HAVE ONE THING IN COMMON, "I" IS IN THE MIDDLE OF |
