Godless and Arrogant | Obadiah
By Rev. Jeremiah Cheung
From Obadiah 1:9-21
1:9 Your warriors, Teman, will be terrified, and everyone in Esau’s mountains will be cut down in the slaughter. 10 Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever. 11 On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them. 12 You should not gloat over your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble. 13 You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor gloat over them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster. 14 You should not wait at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble.
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. 17 But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy, and Jacob will possess his inheritance. 18 Jacob will be a fire and Joseph a flame; Esau will be stubble, and they will set him on fire and destroy him. There will be no survivors from Esau.” The Lord has spoken.
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. 21 Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.
Through the prophet Obadiah, the Lord rebuked the Edomites because they were arrogant and proud. If we were to describe them with one word, it would be “godless” for they thought of themselves as God. As a result, the Edomites feared no man. The Lord rebuked their injustice and unrighteousness through the prophet. From verses 12-14, the prophet used the phrase “you should not” eight times.
- v12: “You should not gloat over your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble.”
- v13: “You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor gloat over them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster.”
- v1:14: “You should not wait at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble.” “You should not” means it is wrong to do such things. Because Edom was godless, the people would not acknowledge anyone before them and assumed they would not be called into account for what they’ve done.
But in verse 15, the Lord said, “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.” The Lord will do to you as you have done. The Lord will treat you as you have treated others. Verses 16-20 reveal that the Lord’s hand was against the Edomites and they were completely wiped out in the end. Those who belong to the Lord, however, are recipients of the grace and mercy that He bestows. Verse 21 says, “Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.”
Paul tells us in Galatians we will reap whatever we have sown. This is an unchanging law. Let us be careful to examine our lives.
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心中無神、目中無人 | 俄巴底亞書
張國強牧師
俄巴底亞書 1:9-21
1:9 提幔哪, 你的勇士必驚惶, 甚至以掃山的人, 都被殺戮剪除。10 因你向兄弟雅各行強暴, 羞愧必遮蓋你, 你也必永遠斷絕。11 當外人擄掠雅各的財物, 外邦人進入他的城門, 為耶路撒冷拈鬮的日子, 你竟站在一旁, 像與他們同夥。12 你兄弟遭難的日子, 你不當瞪眼看著, 猶大人被滅的日子, 你不當因此歡樂, 他們遭難的日子, 你不當說狂傲的話。13 我民遭災的日子, 你不當進他們的城門, 他們遭災的日子, 你不當瞪眼看著他們受苦, 他們遭災的日子, 你不當伸手搶他們的財物。14 你不當站在岔路口, 剪除他們中間逃脫的, 他們遭難的日子, 你不當將他們剩下的人交付仇敵。
15 耶和華降罰的日子臨近萬國, 你怎樣行, 他也必照樣向你行, 你的報應必歸到你上。16 你們猶大人在我聖山怎樣喝了苦杯, 萬國也必照樣常常地喝, 且喝且咽, 他們就歸於無有。17 在錫安山必有逃脫的人, 那山也必成聖, 雅各家必得原有的產業。18 雅各家必成為大火, 約瑟家必為火焰, 以掃家必如碎秸, 火必將他燒著吞滅, 以掃家必無餘剩的, 這是耶和華說的。
19 南地的人必得以掃山, 高原的人必得非利士地, 也得以法蓮地和撒瑪利亞地, 便雅憫人必得基列。20 在迦南人中被擄的以色列眾人, 必得地直到撒勒法, 在西法拉中被擄的耶路撒冷人, 必得南地的城邑。21 必有拯救者上到錫安山, 審判以掃山, 國度就歸耶和華了。
神藉著先何俄巴底亞責備以東人, 因為她自傲自大, 用一句話來形容她, 她心中無神, 因為她以為她就是神, 結果帶出來是目中無人; 神藉先知責備她的不公不義。從 12-14節裡, 先知先後用了八次「不當」; 1:12 你兄弟遭難的日子, 你「不當」瞪眼看著, 猶大人被滅的日子, 你「不當」因此歡樂, 他們遭難的日子, 你「不當」說狂傲的話。1:13 我民遭災的日子, 你「不當」進他們的城門, 他們遭災的日子, 你「不當」瞪眼看著他們受苦, 他們遭災的日子, 你「不當」伸手搶他們的財物。1:14 你「不當」站在岔路口, 剪除他們中間逃脫的, 他們遭難的日子, 你「不當」將他們剩下的人交付仇敵。不當就是不應該, 她作錯了, 因為她心裡沒有神, 她眼中根本看不見人, 她所作的一切都以為不會有報應。
但在15節, 神說: 耶和華降罰的日子臨近萬國, 你怎樣行, 他也必照樣向你行, 你的報應必歸到你上。你怎樣行, 神也必照樣向你行。你怎樣對人, 神怎樣對你。不單如此，16-20節我們看見神的手加在她的身上, 最後完全歸於無人。但對屬神的人, 神總留下恩典與憐憫, 21節說: 「必有拯救者上到錫安山, 審判以掃山, 國度就歸耶和華了。」保羅在加拉太書告訴我們, 種什麼? 收什麼? 這是千古不變的定律, 我們要好好省察我們的行為。