The common name obadiah is the hebrew obadyah, literally meaning, a worshipper of yahweh. While primarily designed for those with a basic knowledge of biblical hebrew, all. The prophetic book of obadiah, though shortest in the hebrew portion of the bible, is no slouch in robust impact. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household 1 ki. Book of obadiah, the destruction of edom, judahs misfortune. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. David guzik commentary on obadiah 1 describes the vision the prophet. This book is wholly concerning edom, a nation nearly allied and near adjoining to israel, and yet an enemy to the seed of jacob, inheriting the enmity of their father esau to jacob. The animosity between edom and the israelites, and edoms punishment because of that, is the literal theme of the book of obadiah.
Obadiah verse 1 identifies the author of the book of obadiah as the prophet obadiah. Obadiah 1, new living translation nlt the bible app. Watch our overview video on the book of obadiah, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. The book of obadiah is based on a prophetic vision concerning the fall of edom, a mountain dwelling nation v. The problem of the date of obadiah has not been solved to the satisfaction of biblical students. Edom, which wasnt a giant empire like the assyrians or babylonians butaccording to obadiah, anywayhad helped one of these foreign invaders attack jerusalem. Its authorship is difficult to date but was possibly written about 853841 b. Their fortified cities included sela petra, teman and bozrah. The book is named after the prophet who received the vision 1. Obadiah free bible commentary in easy english easyenglish bible. Amid great spiritual degeneracy he maintained his fidelity to god, and interposed to protect the lords prophets, an hundred of whom he hid at great personal risk in a cave 4. Like a number of prophetic books, it is both a book of judgment and a book of hope. We have heard a rumour from the lord, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle. Obadiah, book ofcommentaries, commentaries old testament.
These approaches sometimes concur, but often contradict one another. Nothing in this book connects the author to any other biblical figure. With careful analysis and interpretation rooted in a study of hebrew, this addition to the hearing the message of scripture series tracks the flow of argument in the old testament book of obadiah, showing that how a biblical author says something is just as important as what they say. An envoy was sent to the nations to say,rise, let us go.
Pusey said, god has willed that his name alone and this brief prophecy should be known to the world. Obadiah exemplifies the classic israelite prophetic tradition. The animosity between the edomites and the israelites is one of the oldest examples of a discord in human relationships. The book of obadiah was likely written between 848 and 840 b. Obadiah 1 commentary, one of over 110 bible commentaries freely available, this commentary provides notes on all 66 books of the bible, and contain more than 7,000 pages of material. Since the edomites were descendants of jacobs brother, esau, this betrayal by edom was especially painful to gods people. The global message of obadiah obadiah in redemptive history. Obadiah chapter 1 verse by verse bible commentary matthew. The book closes with the promise of deliverance for zion. It is primarily speaking of the condemnation and destruction of edom from god. In hebrew the book is titled hydbu meaning servant of yahweh. Dating the book of obadiah accurately is nearly impossible due to the scant historical information contained in the book. However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. The book of obadiah meaning servant of the lord, a minor prophet in the old testament, is a prophecy written to the southern kingdom of judah and alternates to the nation of edom.
Obadiahs name, meaning worshipper of yahweh, offers an interesting counterpoint to the message of judgment he pronounced on edom, judahs neighbor to. The form of obadiahs name used in the septuagint is obdios. Obadiah is a a series of divine judgment poems against ancient edom. Yahweh will judge edom both historically through the nations and eschatologically through israel. The book of obadiah is a sustained denunciation of the edomites, melting into a vision of the future glories of zion when the arm of the lord should have wrought her deliverance and have repaid double upon her enemies. Book of obadiah overview insight for living ministries.
The jesus focus in the book of obadiah lifecoach4god. As brief as this book is, scholars raise many questions about it. The hebrew text of joel seems to have suffered little from scribal transmission, but is at a few points supplemented by the septuagint, syriac, and vulgate versions, or by conjectural emendation. Obadiah this is the shortest book of the old testament hebrew scriptures, being just 21 verses long. Who this obadiah was does not appear from any other scripture.
Although obadiah is the smallest book in the hebrew bible, its readers are confronted with a variety of challengeslinguistic, historical and hermeneutical. The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration. A discourse analysis of the hebrew bible zondervan exegetical commentary on the old testament block, daniel i. Edoms pride and downfall is disclosed in the book of obadiah. The questions as to the origin and interpretation of this, the shortest book of the ot, are numerous and difficult. While others of the prophetic books contain passages of judgment against edom and other nations. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is the pronouncement of doom against an ancient and longforgotten nation, the land of edom. Obadiah, part of the zondervan exegetical commentary on the old testament series, serves pastors and teachers by providing them with a careful analysis and interpretation of the hebrew text of the old testament book of obadiah, quickly allowing pastors to grasp the big idea of the passage and how it fits in its larger context. Zondervan exegetical commentary on the old testament zecot 9780310571537 by daniel i. There is also a strong tradition that he was a righteous convert from edom and that was how he was able to prophesy so strongly against edom. The book of obadiah begins with a promise to bring edom down from their mountain sier, and ends with the deliverers of israel ascending mount zion to judge edom. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household. A discourse analysis of the hebrew bible zondervan exegetical commentary on. An easyenglish bible version and commentary 2800 word vocabulary on the book of obadiah.
This allegorical interpretation was applied to the church by many church fathers. In the present volume the book of obadiah is approached from a variety of angles and reading strategies. Obadiah 17 the first step in the future successes of the jews is the recovery of what was previously their own speakers commentary. Obadiah is to be interpreted as prediction rather than history. The final verses, 15 through 21, speak of the day of the lord, which brings both judgment and salvation as well as the restoration of israel. Theme obadiah 10 gods vengeance god will avenge edoms mistreatment of israel. Most modern interpreters, however, see joel speaking of a literal locust plague given a prophetic apocalyptic interpretation.
The purpose of obadiah is to show that god will judge all those who are against his children, his chosen people. This is the vision that the sovereign lord revealed to obadiah concerning the land of edom. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. Calvin took a literal interpretation of chapter 1, but allegorical view of chapter 2, a position echoed by some modern interpreters. Obadiah summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of obadiah for bible study or sunday school lessons. Our choice must be between a very early date circa 845 and a date shortly after 587, with the scales almost evenly balanced.
Obadiah means servant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the old testament, referring to many other old testament individuals. The kingship belongs to yhwh hearing the message of. Commentary on the book of obadiah by yair davidiy some say that obadiah prophesied at an early date, others say that he prophesied after the destruction of the first temple. This may have been a popular name as with ahabs steward who met elijah cf. And the house of jacob shall possess their possessions. The smallest old testament account, the book of obadiah is a vision written by the lords prophet known as obadiah, who prophesied against israels relative nation edom. Although destruction is vital to understanding obadiah, it is of note to understand the destruction being a consequence of action. Home faq books of the bible obadiah questions about obadiah. Obadiah 1, new international version niv the bible app. Summary of the book of obadiah the story of the bible. The title of this book, in the hebrew copies, is usually sepher obadiah, the book of obadiah. Obadiah was used by jehovah to prophecy the destruction of the ancient nation of edom a prophecy that was fulfilled, as edom no longer exists.
Readers will find help in drawing out the meaning of the hebrew for interpretation. Because of the violence done to your brother jacob, shame shall cover you, and you shall be. They debate its author and date of composition, and they point to the striking similarity between passages in obadiah and jeremiah to question whether obadiah. Obadiah means servant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the old testament, referring. Obadiah is a little book, but it is an example of an atomic bomb in the bible. The herods of the new testament are of edomite heritage. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is only 21 verses long. The translated bible text has been through advanced checking.
Zondervan exegetical commentary on the old testament. This is what the sovereign lord says about edomwe have heard a message from the lord. Although obadiahs prophecy represents the smallest book in the old testament, interpretation raises some difficult questions. The book begins by calling itself a vision which is an indication also shared by isaiah 1.
Under the word vision in prophetic language is included, not only what the seer saw, the mental picture presented to his inner senses, but also. Obadiah, book of international standard bible encyclopedia. The tiny book of obadiah introduces itself as a message from god, in the same way as nahum, isaiah, and micah. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins against both god and israel. The majority of the book pronounces judgment on the foreign nation of edom, making obadiah one of only three prophets who pronounced judgment primarily on other nations nahum and habakkuk are the others. Norris says, if angels were to write books, we should have few folios. Book of obadiah, also spelled abdias, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, in the jewish canon treated as one book, the twelve. While it sure does sound like obadiah was talking about the babylonians, the book itself doesnt bother to give the invaders a name. Obadiah overview john gills exposition on the whole bible. Obadiah, book of, servant of yah, the shortest ot book, stands fourth among the minor prophets in the mt, but fifth in the lxx. Murrell an anonymous british engraving, london 1676. Obadiahs vision of saviors on mount zion religious. An israelite who was chief in the household of king ahab 1 kings 18. What are the most commonly asked questions about the book of obadiah.
In this post, the bible project breaks down the book into digestible pieces so we can understand and apply its truths. Book of obadiah encyclopedia of the bible bible gateway. This is the title of the book, declaring from whom and through whom the revelation comes. His name signifies a servant or worshipper of the lord. The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration of israel.
Obadiah chapter 1 explained discover the 66 books of the. Its lengthy, packed full of characters, and sometimes difficult to tie into daily life. Reading the bible through the jesus lens in obadiah from biblical book to biblical hook charts adapted from dr. Obadiah is one of the commonest of hebrew names, and occurs both before and after the exile. Welcome to the study of the shortest book in the word. Obadiah announces edoms downfall to babylon, which is an image of how god will bring down all arrogant and violent nations. The scriptures have that beautiful faculty of appearing to be one thing on the surface, but on a deeper level, yielding rich and mighty treasures. Obadiah, with only one chapter consisting of 21 verses, is the shortest of all old testament books and purports to be a record of the vision of obadiah. The masoretic text places joel between hosea and amos the order inherited by the tanakh and old testament, while the septuagint order is hoseaamosmicahjoelobadiahjonah. A word list at the end explains words with a star by them. So obadiah is just a prophet who wrote one of the great prophecies of the scripture. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Bible commentaries john gills exposition of the whole bible obadiah.
Ovadyahu, or in modern hebrew ovadyah is a biblical theophorical name, meaning servant of god or worshipper of yah. Study obadiah 1 using matthew henrys bible commentary concise to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. The book of obadiah is a book of prophetic oracles. While several options have been proposed by scholars, the best argument places obadiah in the 840s bc, making him the earliest writing prophet, a few years prior to joel, and a contemporary of elisha. Obadiah is the shortest book of the old testament, and the fourthshortest book of the bible after third john, second john, and philemon. The short book of obadiah the shortest in the ot is an oracle against the nation of edom. To digest it properly, it may prove helpful to read it a number of times, from several different translations, asking the lord for insight. The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the hebrew bible. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household 1 kgs. Book of obadiah bible survey what are the major prophets and minor prophets. Obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament and is not quoted in the new testament. Only 21 verses, it can be read in just a few minutes.
1167 488 1015 977 891 254 559 174 1036 1322 189 1517 1132 209 366 1230 1284 794 1210 808 706 683 495 1198 426 1383 1351 887 4 146 1074 1223