A message against Edom
The vision of Obadiah. This is what the Lord God says about Edom. We've heard a message from the Lord: an envoy was sent to the nations, saying, “Up. Let's go to war against her.” “Look — I'll make you small among the nations. You'll be utterly despised. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks, high up on the heights. You say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to earth?’ But though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I'll bring you down,” says the Lord.
The vision of Obadiah. This is what the Lord God says about Edom. We've heard a message from the Lord: an envoy was sent to the nations, saying, “Up. Let's go to war against her.”
“Look — I'll make you small among the nations. You'll be utterly despised.
The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks, high up on the heights. You say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to earth?’
But though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I'll bring you down,” says the Lord.
Picked clean
“If thieves came to you, if robbers came in the night — wouldn't they steal only as much as they wanted? If grape pickers came to you, wouldn't they leave a few behind? But you — how you'll be ruined. How Esau will be ransacked, his hidden treasures looted. All your allies will drive you to the border. Your friends will deceive and overpower you. Those who eat your bread will set a trap for you — and you won't see it coming. On that day,” says the Lord, “won't I destroy the wise men of Edom, the men of understanding in the mountains of Esau? Your warriors, Teman, will be terrified, and everyone in Esau's mountains will be cut down in the slaughter.
“If thieves came to you, if robbers came in the night — wouldn't they steal only as much as they wanted? If grape pickers came to you, wouldn't they leave a few behind? But you — how you'll be ruined.
How Esau will be ransacked, his hidden treasures looted.
All your allies will drive you to the border. Your friends will deceive and overpower you. Those who eat your bread will set a trap for you — and you won't see it coming.
On that day,” says the Lord, “won't I destroy the wise men of Edom, the men of understanding in the mountains of Esau?
Your warriors, Teman, will be terrified, and everyone in Esau's mountains will be cut down in the slaughter.
The day you stood by
Because of the violence you did to your brother Jacob, you'll be covered with shame. You'll be destroyed forever. On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem — you were just like one of them. You shouldn't have gloated over your brother on the day of his misfortune, or rejoiced over the people of Judah on the day of their ruin, or boasted so much on the day of their trouble. You shouldn't have marched through the gates of my people on the day of their disaster, or gloated over them in their calamity, or seized their wealth on the day of their disaster. You shouldn't have waited at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, or handed over their survivors on the day of their trouble.
Because of the violence you did to your brother Jacob, you'll be covered with shame. You'll be destroyed forever.
On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem — you were just like one of them.
You shouldn't have gloated over your brother on the day of his misfortune, or rejoiced over the people of Judah on the day of their ruin, or boasted so much on the day of their trouble.
You shouldn't have marched through the gates of my people on the day of their disaster, or gloated over them in their calamity, or seized their wealth on the day of their disaster.
You shouldn't have waited at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, or handed over their survivors on the day of their trouble.
The day of the Lord
The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you've done, it'll be done to you. Your deeds will come back on your own head. Just as you drank on my holy hill, so all the nations will drink and drink — they'll drink and stagger, and be as if they'd never been. But on Mount Zion there'll be deliverance. It'll be holy, and the house of Jacob will take back what's theirs. The house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame. The house of Esau will be stubble, and they'll set it alight and burn it up. There'll be no survivors from the house of Esau.” The Lord has spoken.
The day of the Lord is near for all nations. As you've done, it'll be done to you. Your deeds will come back on your own head.
Just as you drank on my holy hill, so all the nations will drink and drink — they'll drink and stagger, and be as if they'd never been.
But on Mount Zion there'll be deliverance. It'll be holy, and the house of Jacob will take back what's theirs.
The house of Jacob will be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame. The house of Esau will be stubble, and they'll set it alight and burn it up. There'll be no survivors from the house of Esau.” The Lord has spoken.
The kingdom will be the Lord's
People from the Negev will take over the mountains of Esau, and people from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They'll take over the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead. This company of Israelite exiles will possess the land as far as Zarephath. The exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev. Deliverers will go up onto Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord's.
People from the Negev will take over the mountains of Esau, and people from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines. They'll take over the fields of Ephraim and Samaria, and Benjamin will possess Gilead.
This company of Israelite exiles will possess the land as far as Zarephath. The exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev.
Deliverers will go up onto Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord's.