Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Evening Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/ev/ev20091206.htm

THRU THE BIBLE EXPOSITION
Obadiah: God's Lesson On Handling Animosities From Relatives
(Obadiah 1-21)
  1. Introduction
    1. A sad but common trial even believers face is animosity between them and their blood relatives.
    2. Obadiah's prophecy provides a great lesson from God on facing such animosity (as follows):
  2. God's Lesson On Handling Animosities From Relatives, Obadiah 1-21.
    1. Obadiah's prophecy is God's message for Edom (Obadiah 1a) given to condemn its proud rejoicing over Jerusalem's adversity when the Edomites, relatives of Israel, should have had a brotherly love for her, Obadiah 10; Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, 1978 ed., p. 1275, "Introduction to the Book of Obadiah."
    2. As such, the prophecy contains a huge application on properly dealing with animosity from one's relatives:
      1. The Edomites had harbored hatred for Israel ever since Israel's ancestor, Jacob, had cheated Edom's ancestor, Jacob's brother, Esau, out of his birthright, Bible Know. Com., O. T., p. 1454; Gen. 25:21-26.
      2. That hatred had been expressed by vices performed by Edom, vices God promised to judge:
        1. The Edomites had exalted themselves, an attitude leading them to harbor arrogance against Israel's people (Obadiah 3, 10), so God promised to let other nations conquer Edom, Obadiah 2, 4-9.
        2. The Edomites had been violent toward the people of Israel for centuries, so God promised to shame Edom in causing her to be defeated and permanently end her existence as a nation, Obadiah 10.
        3. The Edomites had approvingly watched her relatives, the people of Israel, be harmed and looted by invaders without helping Israel (Obadiah 11), so the same fate would befall Edom, Obadiah 15.
        4. The Edomites had proudly rejoiced when Israel's invaders had afflicted her (Obadiah 12a), so the same fate would befall Edom, Obadiah 15.
        5. The Edomites had boasted of their superiority over Israel in the day of Israel's trouble (Obadiah 12b), so the same fate would befall Edom at the hands of her invaders, Obadiah 15.
        6. The Edomites had joined Israel's invaders to march through Israel's gates, gloat in seeing Israel's affliction and loot the city (Obadiah 13), so the same fate would befall Edom, Obadiah 15.
        7. The Edomites had even cornered fleeing Jews who were chased their way by their invaders and delivered survivors to the invaders (Obadiah 14 NIV), so that fate would befall Edom, Obadiah 15.
      3. The Edomites had become so brazen in venting their hatred for Israel that they had even become drunk on God's holy Mount Zion to celebrate Jerusalem's fall (Obadiah 16a), but this was offensive to God in that it reflected negatively on Him, so He promised intense judgment on Edom, Obadiah 16b-21:
        1. For arrogantly getting drunk on Mount Zion, Edom and all other foes of Judah and thus of God would forever drink of God's cup of wrath, ceasing to exist as nations, Obadiah 16b; Ibid., p. 1458.
        2. God promised to reverse the fortunes of Israel and Edom, to make His Mount Zion not a place for Israel's enemies to celebrate with a drunken party over Jerusalem's fall and to a negative reflection on God, but a place of God's deliverance of Israel and not of Edom or Israel's other foes, Ob. 17.
        3. Israel would become a fire and Esau's descendants its stubble that Israel would burn up, Obadiah 18.
        4. Indeed, people in southern Israel, in the Negev wilderness of Judah, would occupy Edom, those in Israel's foothills would occupy the land of the Philistines, the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, those in Benjamin would occupy Gilead, and Israel's exiles in Canaan would possess land as far north as Zarephath in Sidon, and Jews exiled from Jerusalem would dwell in the Negev, Obadiah 19-20.
        5. In the end, Israel's deliverers from Mount Zion in Jerusalem where the Edomites had held their drunken party would come down to Edom and rule over Edom as part of God's kingdom, Ob. 21!
Lesson: For proud, violent, vindictive, looting, gloating, boasting and ambushing mistreatment of Israel, her relative nation, especially topped off by a drunken party on Mount Zion that reflected negatively on God, Edom would suffer His fitting severe judgment, and cease to exist as a nation!

Application: (1) May we never mistreat our relatives, but out of our accountability to God, treat them graciously. (2) If they remain hostile to us, we should keep heeding God, for this will eventually lead to their crossing paths with the God we serve as in Edom's case, and He will intervene, Romans 12:17-21!