The author was obadiah, whose name means the servant of the eternal. Historical background in general, the background for the book of obadiah is the relationship between israel and edom. Oct 07, 20 pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of obadiah. Southwest of the dead sea lived a group of people called the edomites. Obadiah means servant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the old testament, referring to many other old testament individuals. He comes and does his work and fades into the background. Book of obadiah, the destruction of edom, judahs misfortune.
The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the hebrew bible in judaism and christianity, its authorship is attributed to a prophet who lived in the assyrian period and named himself in the first verse, obadiah. Obadiah, with only one chapter consisting of 21 verses, is the shortest of all old testament books and purports to be a record of the vision of. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is only 21 verses long. Obadiah is a little book, but it is an example of an atomic bomb in the bible. Who this obadiah was does not appear from any other scripture. The book of obadiah is the only one chapter book in the old testament. I must point out that there is doubt surrounding this date as there is dispute over whether obadiah is referring to the sacking of jerusalem by nebuchadnezzar in 586 bc or in fact referring to 845 bc when. In hebrew the book is titled hydbu meaning servant of yahweh. The authors name is obadiah, which means servant or worshiper of the lord. Jacob and his descendants passed through suffering and chastisement, and their ultimate destiny is restoration and usefulness. Obadiah verse 1 identifies the author of the book of obadiah as the prophet obadiah.
The book was probably written in the first half of the babylonian exile, after 586 b. The book of obadiah home new christian bible study. The book closes with the promise of deliverance for zion. Nothing is known historically about the author from the book or from other background materials iii. May you discover him as you read his letter to you. Some believe obadiah may have been a contemporary of elisha. Yet, all the prophecies of obadiah have been fulfilled with the exception of vs 21 that is yet to be completely fulfilled. The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the hebrew bible.
Like a number of prophetic books, it is both a book of judgment and a book of hope. If for no other reason, this book is important because it is part of the inspired bible ii timothy 3. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins against both god and israel. Other ot references to men of this name do not appear to be referring to this prophet. Nevertheless, i believe that the prophesy occurred sometime immediately after 586 b.
Insights on where the text came from and an analysis of the original text used for translation would be great info. It is quoted from or alluded to only once in the new testament. This book of obadiah is only one chapter long, with 21 verses in the king james version. The scriptures have that beautiful faculty of appearing to be one thing on the surface, but on a deeper level, yielding rich and mighty treasures.
The prophecy is largely concerned with the condemnation of edom descendants of esau for treachery toward their brother israel descendants of jacob and the resultant punishment. Though the babylonians are not mentioned by name in obadiah, the description of the day of their calamity v. Nothing is known of the author, although his prophecy against edom, a neighbor and rival of israel, indicates a date of composition sometime after the babylonian destruction of jerusalem in 587 b. Their fortified cities included sela petra, teman and. Esau and his descendants were proud, rebellious, defiant, and. Dating the book of obadiah accurately is nearly impossible due to the scant historical information contained in the book. An obadiah was an officer in king ahab of israels court and hid gods prophets in a cave 1 kings 18. Obadiahs message was that the lord would send his judgments against edom, and the nation would be destroyed. The book is named after the prophet who received the vision 1.
The book of obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament, the 4th book of the twelve minor prophets. So obadiah is just a prophet who wrote one of the great prophecies of the scripture. Much of this prophecy was fulfilled when the jews returned to their own land. As brief as this book is, scholars raise many questions about it. Obadiah probably lived in the southern kingdom of judah.
Study obadiah 1 using matthew henrys bible commentary concise to better understand scripture with full outline and verse meaning. The nation of edom, which eventually disappeared into history, remains one of. Obadiah 1114 establishes the background for the book in the events of 587 b. The name means servant of yahweh and so would be a popular one. Obadiah 17 the first step in the future successes of the jews is the recovery of what was previously their own speakers commentary.
Obadiahs repeated twofold theme, the sin of and judgment upon edom serves as a background, explaining the prophet malachis strange work. Obadiah is not only the shortest prophecy, but also the shortest book of the old testament. People still chafe under injustices in this world, and yearn for a day when things will be as they should be. If it is, surely it cannot be very important because it only has 21 verses which is the shortest book in the old testament. This may have been a popular name as with ahabs steward who met elijah cf. Author and date nothing is known for certain about the author. There are twelve different individuals in the ot with this name a very common name, but no indication that any of these other individuals are to be identified with this particular prophet.
Esau is in the foreground of the book of obadiah, and jacob is in the background. Remember that many of the minor prophets are of supreme importance in understanding scripture and prophecy in particular. The nation of edom was a long time enemy of gods people. In their concluding comments on the book of obadiah, authors william lasor, david hubbard and frederic bush state. We have heard a rumour from the lord, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle. Obadiah 1, new international version niv the bible app. This summary of the book of obadiah provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of obadiah. Obadiah is the shortest book in the ot and is not quoted in the nt. The name obadiah means servant of the lord or servant of jehovah. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is the pronouncement of doom against an ancient and longforgotten nation, the land of edom.
Intro to obadiah biblica the international bible society. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household 1 ki. Ahabs steward who met elijah 1 kings 18 was so named. There are twelve different individuals in the ot with this name a very common name, but no indication that any of these other individuals are to be. They debate its author and date of composition, and they point to the striking similarity between passages in obadiah and jeremiah to question whether obadiah.
The authors name is obadiah, which meansservant or worshiper of the lord. Obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament, only 21 verses long. The agelong controversy between esau and jacob will be resolved in jacobs favor in keeping with the sovereign choice of god in which it was declared that the. Pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of obadiah. One of the major reasons for which obadiah proclaims judgment on this pagan nation is because of what. Obadiah, book of, servant of yah, the shortest ot book, stands fourth among the minor prophets in the mt, but fifth in the lxx. The purpose of obadiah is to show that god will judge all those who are against his children, his chosen people. Book of obadiah encyclopedia of the bible bible gateway.
Obadiah intro to obadiah biblica the international bible society. A jewish tradition links him with obadiah, the servant of wicked king ahab. Summary of the book of obadiah the story of the bible. The hebrew name obadiah means worshipper of yahweh or servant of yahweh. Background and setting the edomites trace their origin to esau, the firstborn twin. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins. This is what the sovereign lord says about edomwe have heard a message from the lord. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. Thus says the lord god concerning edom we have heard a report from the lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations, saying, arise, and let us rise up against her for battle. The book of obadiah was likely written between 848 and 840 b. The book of obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament. There is insufficient historical data in the book to identify its historical setting.
Book of obadiah, also spelled abdias, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the. Apart from the fact that obadiah was a prophet in the southern kingdom of judah, we do not know anything about his background or ministry. Its authorship is difficult to date but was possibly written about 853841 b. The name obadiah means servant of yahweh literally one who serves or worships jehovah. The only thing known about this prophet is his name.
Obadiah overview and outline reasons for hope jesus. I propose that a good topic for obadiahs historical background should be insights on how it was canonized in various bibles, such as the tanakh, old testament and septuagint. Whenever the word withholds background information on one of the lords. God gave these children to rebecca and told her before they were born that the elder shall serve the younger. In this, the shortest book of the old testament, it seems the prophet obadiah. The book of obadiah records a prophetic vision given by the lord to a man named obadiah. And ahab called obadiah, which was the governor of his house. It is our sincere hope that this outline of obadiah will aid you in your study of gods holy word. Amos testified boldly at bethel, a main worship center of the northern kingdom, until amaziah, chief priest at bethel, reported him to jeroboam ii as a traitor. Pusey said, god has willed that his name alone and this brief prophecy should be known to the world. The prophesy is entirely against edom, the descendants of esau, the brother to jacob who was the father of the. The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration of israel. Human intervention, crucial though it is, is not the ultimate answer to this cry for justice.
The blue letter bible ministry and the blb institute hold to the historical, conservative christian faith, which includes a firm belief in the inerrancy of scripture. Their fortified cities included sela petra, teman and bozrah. The book of obadiah is a book of prophetic oracles. In greek the book is titled obdiou, a transliteration of the hebrew name and title. The prophet obadiah is otherwise unknown and nothing of his family or background is given in his prophecy. The date of composition is disputed among scholars and is difficult to determine due to the lack of personal. Welcome to the study of the shortest book in the word. And that is about all we know about the man behind this book.
An obadiah was an officer in king ahab of israels court and hid gods prophets in a. Pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of. Book of obadiah overview insight for living ministries. This relationship began with the two sons of isaac and rebecca, jacob and esau gen.
The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration. This prophecy has the distinction of being the shortest book in the ot. This book, the shortest among the twelve minor prophets, is a single twentyoneverse oracle against edom. The book of obadiah introduction to the book of obadiah in the bible. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. An envoy was sent to the nations to say,rise, let us go. Obadiah predicts the coming of the day of the lord and the establishment of. Throughout most of the history of judah, edom was controlled absolutely from jerusalem as a vassal state. And the house of jacob shall possess their possessions. Esau and his descendants were proud, rebellious, defiant, and their end was ultimate destruction. Like joel, we know almost nothing about the prophet obadiah. The short book of obadiah the shortest in the ot is an oracle against the nation of edom.
They were the descendants of esau who lived around 2000 b. While several options have been proposed by scholars, the best argument places obadiah in the 840s bc, making him the earliest writing prophet, a few years prior to joel, and a contemporary of elisha. Introduction from the niv study bible go to obadiah. This may have been done because obadiah was thought of as an expansion of the short prediction against edom at the end of amos 9.
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