Our Deeds toward Others

In this section God is not only condemning the attitudes of the Edomites as in the previous section, but also the deeds. We begin this section with the attitude of the Edomites - putting down Israel in their thoughts. We will see how this attitude of feeling superior toward others led to the wicked deeds described in the next verses.

It is a sad commentary, but it seems to be human nature to feel good about other’s misfortune. In verse 12 the people of Edom began thinking bad thoughts about Israel. These are attitudes that God does not want to see in our lives any more than he wanted to see them in Edom. They looked down at Israel, they rejoiced in Israel’s misery, and they boasted of their own safety.

It may make some people feel superior to put others down, but Christians are not to act this way. Paul wrote in Romans 12:15, "Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn." Let us learn to have empathy for others and for what they are going through. When God blesses someone else with abundant material goods, instead of being envious of what they have, let us rejoice with them for God’s blessings. When others are going through a difficult time, instead of rejoicing in their misery, let us mourn with them. Christians are called to a higher standard.

Adam Clark comments, "It shows a malevolent heart to rejoice in the miseries of those who have acted unkindly or wickedly toward us. If a man have acted cruelly toward us, and God punish him for this cruelty, and we rejoice in it, we make his crime our own; and then, as we have done, so shall it be done unto us...."

13 You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor look down on them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster.

Verse 13 shows us the evil deeds that Edom began to do. Notice that the evil thoughts in verse 12 led to the evil deeds in verse 13. When we allow our minds to dwell on negative thoughts, it doesn’t take long for those bad thoughts to result in negative actions.

Here we see that Edom is condemned for taking advantage of Israel. They walked into the destroyed city, looked down with contempt on the people, and seized the wealth and possessions that were now unprotected.

Christians are not to take advantage of others. We are to be a help and an encouragement. We must be willing to reach out to people in their hour of need. That is what God wants to see from us. That’s what needs to be in our heart.

14 You should not wait at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble.

Verse 14 shows how progressively worst the Edomites were becoming. Whereas in verse 13 they were capturing the city to seize their wealth, in verse 14 they go out of their way to cut down the fugitives and hand over the survivors to the enemy. Remember that this progressive decline into wicked behavior all began with thinking the bad thoughts in verse 12.

Too often Christians tend to harm others. And sometimes the ones we hurt the most are the ones to whom we are closest - the ones in our immediate family. We must learn to realize how harsh words or unthinking actions can be very harmful. Our family members, our church family, and our community should see the love of God in our lives. If we have come to the point where we are often harming others, let us remember the lessons from these verses 12-14. Let us not allow those thoughts of anger, bitterness, or hurt fester in our minds. And let us not allow our emotions to cause us to take actions that will harm others. God condemned Edom for doing this. God has not changed. It was wrong for Edom then, and it is wrong for us today. Let us learn to be the kind of loving, compassionate, and caring Christian that God wants us to be.

15 The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head.
16 Just as you drank on my holy hill, so all the nations will drink continually; they will drink and drink and be as if they had never been.

Remember, in the Introduction, I called verse 15 "Obadiah’s Golden Rule." This is very similar to the Golden Rule that Jesus taught in Matthew 7:12, "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you...." Obadiah tells us, "As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head." This is kind of another way of looking at Christ’s Golden Rule. Jesus taught us to match our actions to how we would want to be treated. But Obadiah says we will be treated the same as our actions toward others. In fact, he adds the emphatic phrase, "your deeds will return upon your own head"! It seems this is an important rule to remember.

We will be judged by our deeds and by our actions more than our words. We may say all the right things and have the God-language down. We may sound very compassionate and very holy. But our true self is displayed not by our words or even our intentions. Our true self is displayed by our actions. We may think we have good intentions and we may say that we care, but what do our actions say? Our deeds reveal our true beliefs. We may say we love to spend time in prayer to God, and we may have every good intention to pray every day. But when we go weeks without prayer, we should realize that prayer is not really that important to us. Our deeds, not our words, display what we really believe.

God’s Heart Toward Us

Starting with verse 17, we see a real change in the focus of Obadiah. Israel is now told of God’s promise of deliverance. I have labeled this last section "God’s Heart Toward Us." In spite of the destruction and turmoil that Israel had gone through, the nation was promised God’s deliverance. They would be restored and God would dwell on Mount Zion once again.

And in spite of what others may think about us or even the harm they might do to us, God promises us deliverance. No matter what you are going through, whether it’s inner turmoil or outward persecution, God has promised you deliverance.

God can even deliver you from the negative thoughts and evil deeds we discussed earlier in this study. God can cleanse you from bad thoughts and help you gain control of your temper and desire to harm others. No matter what wicked impulses you may be struggling with, God is the great deliverer. Allow the Lord to minister to you his holiness.

Israel was promised that they would possess their inheritance. The Christian’s inheritance is not only eternal life, but it also is forgiveness, peace of the soul, and a joy of the spirit. God promises that you will possess that inheritance.

18 The house of Jacob will be a fire and the house of Joseph a flame; the house of Esau will be stubble, and they will set it on fire and consume it. There will be no survivors from the house of Esau. The Lord has spoken.

In this verse the house of Jacob is compared with a fire and a flame. In Israel’s day, a fire would warm and give heat, whereas a flame would give light. Light and heat and warmth are basic necessities for survival. Today God gives us the same things both physically and spiritually. First, God takes care of our physical needs. Just as the nation of Israel, we are given warmth over the chilling cold, and we are promised light over the darkness.

But we are also promised spiritual warmth and light. The fire God gives us is the presence and warmth of the Holy Spirit in our life to teach us, comfort us and help us. The flame God gives us is the light of his word guiding us and revealing the dark areas of our life.

No matter how bitter or cold or lonely the surrounding darkness may appear, it’s important to remember that we have the warmth and the light of God with us. God will comfort us and show us his way.

19 People from the Negev will occupy the mountains of Esau, and people from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead.
20 This company of Israelite exiles who are in Canaan will possess [the land] as far as Zarephath; the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev.

God promised the Israelites that they would once again possess the land that had been taken from them. In the same way, God will restore your life. What have you lost, or what has been taken away from you? God promises that it will be restored. Trust God’s promises and feel defeated no longer. With Christ we have the victory.

Below is a map of the area that is described. Not all of these areas are exactly known, and the location of Sepharad is a matter of conjecture. It may have been in Asia Minor where the exiles had been sent from Jerusalem. On the map, notice that many of the sites mentioned in these two verses are now in present-day Israel. God has restored Israel to its land. God will restore his blessings on our life.

Robinson comments, "The people of God never doubted that Jehovah was ruling as King...but they awaited the full expression and acknowledgment of His sovereign rule. ...the people of God still rejoice in the assurance that ‘the kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his Christ: and he shall reign for ever and ever’."

21 Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.

These deliverers could be referring to the end time when Israel is restored, but it could refer to a historical conquest by one the kings of Judah, by Nebuchadnezzar, by Simon of Gerasa, or by some other conquest of Edom. It is known that there was no trace of any Edomites after the first century A.D. Whether it’s Jesus re-establishing his kingdom in the end-time or one of the historical leaders, we do know that God promised that deliverers would come. The last phrase in this verse is, "And the kingdom will be the Lord’s." God is the deliverer of Israel.

It’s important to remember that we are also part of God’s kingdom. Just as God delivered Israel, he also will deliver us. Whatever crisis or despair you may be facing, know that God will deliver you. God will set you free from physical illness and deprivation, from emotional turmoil and sorrow, from mental anguish and confusion, and from spiritual darkness and uncertainty. God will not leave us defeated, but will come and deliver us since we are part of the heavenly kingdom.

 Map of places mentioned in Obadiah 19-20

This study of Obadiah 12-21 © 2000 by David Humpal, all rights reserved.
All scriptures unless otherwise noted are from the New International Version © 1971, Zondervan Bible Publishers

Adam Clark’s Commentary, electronic version © 1996, Biblesoft

Robinson: The New Bible Commentary pg. 713, 1954 edition, William B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company