Obadiah

About Obadiah

Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament, a single searing message against Edom, Israel's neighbor and relative. When Jerusalem fell, Edom gloated, looted, and handed over survivors, and Obadiah declares that God saw it all. The nation that stood by while its brother bled will reap what it sowed, but Zion will be delivered. In the Bible's story, Obadiah insists that no nation's cruelty escapes God, and the kingdom belongs to the LORD.

Written by

The book presents a vision of a prophet named Obadiah, about whom nothing else is known.

When

Most scholars place it shortly after Babylon destroyed Jerusalem in 586 BC, when Edom's betrayal was fresh, though some argue for an earlier crisis.

Themes

• Pride comes before a fall
• You reap what you sow
• Betrayal of a brother
• The day of the LORD for all nations
• The kingdom belongs to the LORD

Key verses

• Obadiah 1:15For 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.
• Obadiah 1:21And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’s.