Obadiah 1:10

Obadiah 1:10-11 . For thy violence against thy brother Jacob — Because of the injury thou hast done to the people of Judea, who are descended from Jacob, the brother of Esau, your progenitor: see note on Amos 1:11 . Shame shall cover thee — Contempt and reproach shall be cast upon thee by all that hear of thy conduct; and thou shalt be cut off for ever — So great a slaughter shall be made of thy inhabitants, that thou shalt never recover it; and at last thou shalt be quite dispossessed of thy country: see note on Ezekiel 35:7-9 . In the day that thou stoodest on the other side — Or, in the day that thou stoodest against him. That strangers carried away captive his forces — This may refer to the time when the Syrians spoiled Judea, overcame the Jewish forces, and made many captives of them. And foreigners entered into his gates — That is, into his cities. This seems to be spoken of the cities of Judea, which the Syrians took when they had spoiled the country, and laid siege to Jerusalem, as recorded in 2 Kings 16:5 . And cast lots upon Jerusalem — Either this means that the Syrians and Israelites, whose armies were joined together, cast lots which of them should make the first assault on that city: or else, they cast lots about the spoils of Jerusalem, before they had taken it, making themselves quite sure of it, though the event proved they were mistaken.

Or, as many learned men think, the taking of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar is here referred to; an event at which, as we learn from Psalms 137., the Edomites rejoiced: and then probably lots were cast what captives should fall to the share of each of the commanders. Thou wast as one of them — Thou, that wast a brother by birth, wast as cruel and injurious in thy actions as these strangers, and joined with them in every thing against thy brother.

For thy violence: though Idumeans were guilty of many other and great sins, they are here charged with this as the great crying sin, inhuman cruelty and perfidiousness; they did mercilessly spoil and basely betray the Jews, which will be particularly mentioned in the following verses. Against thy brother: Edomites, the posterity of Esau, and the Jews, the posterity of Jacob, are here called brothers, for that the fathers of both people were brothers, twins; and this nearness of blood should have been remembered, and kindness should have still run through the blood and kindred. It is a great sin to be cruel and false to any, but greatest sin to be so to a brother. Jacob ; put for his children. Shame shall cover thee; contempt and reproaches shall by all men be cast upon thee, and cover thee as a garment, or swallow thee up. God and man shall pour shame upon thee, thy memory shall be retained with condemnation to shame, and thy end shall be in shame too. Thou shalt be cut off for ever; never more be a nation or kingdom; which was in a very great degree fulfilled in the cutting them off by the sword of Nebuchadnezzar. See Isaiah 34:5,10 Eze 35:9 , threatens the like desolation.

10. against thy brother—This aggravates the sin of Esau, that it was against him who was his brother by birth and by circumcision. The posterity of Esau followed in the steps of their father's hatred to Jacob by violence against Jacob's seed (Ge 27:41). Jacob—not merely his own brother, but his twin brother; hence the name Jacob, not Israel, is here put emphatically. Compare De 23:7 for the opposite feeling which Jacob's seed was commanded to entertain towards Edom's. shame … cover thee—(Ps 35:26; 69:7). for ever—(Isa 34:10; Eze 35:9; Mal 1:4). Idumea, as a nation, should be "cut off for ever," though the land should be again inhabited.

Verses 10-14. - § 2. The cause of Edom's destruction . This punishment falls upon her as the result of the malice and unfriendliness which she has displayed to wards Israel in the time of calamity, in that she rejoiced at her sister's disaster and took part with her enemies. Verse 10. - For thy violence against thy brother Jacob. The special action to which Obadiah alludes, and which he particularizes in the following verses, occurred at the time of the invasion of Judaea by Philistines and Arabians during the reign of Jehoram, when the Edomites sided with the enemy, and acted as the prophet intimates ( 2 Chronicles 21:16 , etc.; see Introduction, § III.). The iniquity of such conduct is aggravated by the fact that the victim was the "brother Jacob," who was commanded not to hate the Edomites ( Deuteronomy 23:7 ). This enjoined friendship was not reciprocated by the descendants of Esau. Whether from envy at the superior privileges of Israel, or from other causes, the Edomites, from the time of Moses, had always been actively hostile to the Israelites. They had been subdued by David, but had lately rebelled and scoured their independence, and were always looking for an opportunity of revenging themselves on their conquerors (comp. Amos 1:11 ; Ezekiel 25:12 ; Ezekiel 35:5 ). Shame shall cover thee. Shame for the destruction that hath overtaken thee ( Micah 7:10 ). Thou shalt be cut off forever (comp. Malachi 1:4 ; see Introduction, § I.).

10-16.— THE DIVINE SENTENCE JUSTIFIED BY EDOM’S GUILT. This justification takes the form of a warning against a repetition of the crimes which have already called forth the sentence of Divine wrath against Edom. Various acts of hostility and treachery towards Israel are specified by the prophet, in a manner to lead to the feeling that though his tone is prohibitory, he is recalling instances of past malignity on Edom’s part, as types of what might be found in the future. (10) For thy violence . . .—Literally, for injury of thy brother Jacob, &c.; the genitive of the object, as in Joel 3:19. The crime was the more heinous because against the brother tribe. Probably the birth-name, Jacob, of the twin brother of Esau is used purposely to bring out the full wickedness of the descendants of Esau. In spite of all provocations, Israel long maintained the duty of a friendly feeling for the kindred race—maintained it as a religious duty (Deuteronomy 2:5; Deuteronomy 23:7). On the other hand, Edom from the first assumed a jealous and hostile attitude (Numbers 20:14, seqq.), never imitating the generous disposition of their great ancestor (Genesis 33:4). Shame shall cover thee.—Comp.

Micah 7:10; Jeremiah 3:25. (11) In the day . . .—Literally, In the day of thy standing over against, as if to particularise some one occasion; but instead of proceeding to state it, the prophet recalls other events of the same time, and sums up Edom’s offence in the charge, “thou, too, as one of them,” acting the part of an enemy instead of that of a friend, though probably in the base character of a neutral (comp. “My lovers and my friends stand aloof from my sore,” Psalm 38:11), ready to take the winning side. Forces.—It is difficult to choose between this and the marginal reading, substance. Shâvah is usually “to take prisoner,” but there are many instances of its use in the sense of carrying off booty (1Chronicles 5:21; 2Chronicles 21:17, where see marg., and 2Chronicles 14:14). And chayil, whose root-meaning is strength, while often meaning forces, has eleven times the meaning riches (Isaiah 8:4, &c.), and eight times substance (Job 5:5, &c.). The three clauses in this verse form a climax:—(1) The plunder of the open country; (2) entry into the gates of the cities; (3) casting lots for the spoil in the very capital itself. It is natural to regard this latter event as identical with that in Joel 3:3, the final destruction of Jerusalem and dispersion of its inhabitants into captivity.