Lesson #97 (Week ending 04/01/12)

Obadiah

Background:

 The land of Edom was a small mountainous area east of the Dead Sea. Its people were descendants of Esau (Gen. 36).

Edom was noted in the Bible for its pride, treachery, greed, and violence (2 Chr. 20:10, 11; 25:14, 20; Jer. 49:16; Amos 1:9, 11; Obad. 3). Conflict between Israel and Edom was foreshadowed by conflict between the peoples’ progenitors, Jacob and Esau (Gen. 25:21–34; 27:34–45). The incident that initiated and fed the conflict occurred on Israel’s journey from Egypt to Canaan (Num. 20:14–21). Thus, Edom and Israel fought through most of their history (1 Sam. 14:47; 2 Sam. 8:14; 2 Kgs. 8:20–22; 14:7). But Edom made themselves especially odious to the Jews when Babylon conquered and plundered Jerusalem. When Nebuchadnezzar’s forces closed in on Jerusalem and the king of Judah attempted to flee (2 Kgs. 25:3–7), Edom apparently helped capture him. As a reward the Edomites were allowed to participate in the sack of Jerusalem (Ps. 137:7; Ezek. 25:12; 35:15; 36:5; Joel 3:19; Obad. 10–14).^[1]

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Obadiah 1-4:  Edom’s Sin

Ø  What does Obadiah say was Edom’s sin?

Ø  Is it possible to hide from God in the clefts of the rocks or at high altitudes?  Application for us?

Ø  What does Edom teach us about the consequences to sin and God’s timetable regarding those consequences?

Obadiah 5-14: Edom Will Reap What She Has Sown

Ø  Will the consequences of Edom’s sin be merely a slap on the wrist?

Ø  What is going to happen to the treasures that Edom has stored up?

Ø  What will happen to her borders?  Application for us?

Ø  What will happen to her wisdom?  Application for us?

Ø  Other than their pride, why was God so upset with Edom?  Application for us?

Obadiah 15-21:  The Day of the Lord

Ø  To what does “the day of the Lord refer”?

Ø  Will there be any survivors of Edom after the Lord finishes His judgment?

Ø  What else besides God’s judgment will happen during the day of the Lord?

Ø  Are there aspects of this prophecy that are yet to be fulfilled?  If so, what are they and how do they apply to us?

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^[1] Dockery, D. S., Butler, T. C., Church, C. L., Scott, L. L., Ellis Smith, M. A., White, J. E., & Holman Bible Publishers (Nashville, T. (1992). Holman Bible Handbook (476). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.