Today in our journey through the 66 books of the Bible we come to the minor prophet, Obadiah. I love the depiction of Obadiah above because I think I know what he is saying. I think he is saying: "Missed it by that much!" Do you remember Get Smart? More on that in a minute...
Author
This book carries the name of an otherwise unknown prophet. The name, Obadiah, means “slave/servant of Yah” (Yahweh). Obadiah was a common name. (See 1 Kings 18:3-16; 1 Chronicles 3:21; 7:3; 8:38; 9:16; 12:9; 27:19; 2 Chronicles 17:7; 34:12; Ezra 8:9; Nehemiah 10:5; 12:25.) The text states neither Obadiah’s father’s name nor his place of birth.
Date
The present book of Obadiah was composed in the post-monarchic period, as the references to the fall of Jerusalem, the exile, and the exilic community in Sardis (v. 20), make clear. Sardis is a city in modern Turkey that was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Lydia. Sardis is also referenced in the book of Revelation. The book of Obadiah is found in two of the ten Minor Prophet manuscripts among The Dead Sea Scrolls.
Themes
The title verse of Obadiah calls this book a “vision.” The word for “vision” is a special Hebrew word for what the prophets saw. The same word is used in Isaiah 1:1. However, the short book of Obadiah does not contain much in the way of visual imagery.
Obadiah is, in fact, the shortest book in the Old Testament. It contains only 291 Hebrew words. Nonetheless, like all prophetic books, it is meant to be read, read again, and studied. This book uses similar terminology to the better-known prophetic books. Its theology is also like that of the other prophets.
The book’s main topic is the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE, as well as the actions of Edom against Judah at that time. The Edomites were descendants of Esau, Jacob’s brother, and thus kin to the Israelites. Edom became a sort of symbol for the Jews of all the nations. The Jews later identified Edom with Rome and later still with Christendom. Of course, Christians do not view the book of Obadiah as a diatribe against them. Rather Christians, starting with Paul (Romans 9:6-13) view themselves as the true Israel, not Edom. For the Jews the book of Obadiah had to do not only with the destruction of Jerusalem but also with the future messianic era.
In addition to sins of violence, Edom is also proud and therefore will be “brought to the ground” (v. 3). Not only has Edom done violence against Judah but she also rejoiced when Judah was in distress and looted the land (v. 13). The judgment of Edom will not take place at the time of the writing of this prophecy. Rather, the judgment of Edom will happen on “the day of the Lord” (v. 15). This judgment will be based upon the ancient doctrine of retribution found in many of the old Semitic codes of law. (See Exodus 21:24-25 and Jeremiah 50:29.)
Just as Edom will get her just deserts so Judah will get her own by the possession of the various countries round about her. Did this ever happen? We do not know that it did. But the prophets are full of similar utopian predictions of the fall of the nations and the exaltation of Israel. (Compare Zephaniah 3:19 and Joel 3:19-21. Amos 9:12 has similar words to Obadiah 21.)
Intriguingly, there are clear similarities between Obadiah 1-7 and Jeremiah 49:7-22. According to some scholars, the author of Obadiah borrowed from Jeremiah. According to others, the influence worked the other way around. A third possibility is that both authors borrowed from a common text whose full length and precise wording are unknown.
Structure
The book of Obadiah divides neatly into two parts. Verses 1 through 14 contain an oracle against Edom. Verses 15 through 21 contain a utopian picture of the Judeans possessing the land of their neighbors. The first part belongs to a genre of prophecy called “oracles against the nations”. (See Isaiah 13-23; Jeremiah 46-51; Ezekiel 26-32.) The second part of the book lists an array of states that shall be dispossessed by Judah in an idealistic future. Each of these nations touch Judah on either the north, east, or south.
The structure of the book works out like this…
- Title and Introduction (1)
- Judgment on Edom (2-14)
- The Day of the Lord (15-21)
Key Concept: The Day of the Lord
Perhaps the key concept in Obadiah is best stated in verse 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.”
The phrase, “the day of the Lord”, appears 14 times in the Old Testament and 5 times in the New. So, it is not a dominant phrase in the Bible, and yet it is a very important concept developed first among the Jews and then in Christian theology.
By the time of the writing of the New Testament the Jewish idea had evolved to the point where Jews who believed in the new idea of resurrection held to a two-age worldview. There is this present age in which we live, but there is the age to come when all things will be made new. In between this age and the age to come, there will be “the day of the Lord”.
This two-age worldview is expressed in several places in the New Testament. In Matthew 12:32 Jesus says,
Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but anyone who speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.
In Mark 10:29-30 Jesus says,
Truly I tell you, no one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for me and the gospel will fail to receive a hundred times as much in this present age: homes, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and fields—along with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. (See also Luke 18:30.)
In Luke 20:35-36 Jesus says,
But those who are considered worthy of taking part in the age to come and in the resurrection from the dead will neither marry nor be given in marriage, and they can no longer die; for they are like the angels. They are God’s children, since they are children of the resurrection.
And Paul also uses the language of two ages. For example, in Ephesians 1:20-21 he says that God has seated Christ…
…far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. (See also 1 Corinthians 10:11.)
So, returning to the Old Testament we see that these ideas of “the day of the Lord” and “two ages” have not been as fully developed as they will become. In Obadiah, the day of the Lord sounds like a fearful day to me, at least a fearful day for anyone who is not perfect. Perhaps some Jews harbored the idea that the day of the Lord would be a day of judgment only for the nations, not for Israel. But, as we have seen, the prophets tried to disabuse their people of this idea. Last week we heard Amos saying to Israel…
Woe to you who long
for the day of the Lord!
Why do you long for the day of the Lord?
That day will be darkness, not light.
This raises a question. If the day of the Lord will be a day of judgment for all people, without exception, and if we will receive from the Lord according to what we have done in this life, who will be able to survive such a judgment? Joel asked this very question. He said, “The day of the Lord is great; it is dreadful. Who can endure it?”
It seems to me, the answer is: “No one.” At least, we cannot endure the day of the Lord in and of ourselves. As Paul says in Romans 3:23, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” And in Romans 6:23 he says, “For the wages of sin is death.” So, where then is any reason for hope?
Our only hope is in Christ. We need to remember the totality of what Paul says in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.”
Jesus puts it this way in John 5:24,
Very truly I tell you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life and will not be judged but has crossed over from death to life.
So then, how does this idea of “the day of the Lord” play out in the New Testament? I’m so glad you asked!
Paul says in 1 Corinthians 1:8, “He [God] will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Then, in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11, Paul gives his most extensive treatment of the subject. He writes…
Now, brothers and sisters, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.
But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. You are all children of the light and children of the day. We do not belong to the night or to the darkness. So then, let us not be like others, who are asleep, but let us be awake and sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
So, we learn at least three things in this important passage from Paul. First, the day of the Lord is going to come suddenly, unexpectedly. Some people will not be prepared for it. They will be caught unaware. But, secondly, followers of Jesus do not have to be in that category. We can be prepared for the day of the Lord as we put on faith and love like a breastplate and the hope of salvation as a helmet. Thirdly, we can be sure that God did not appoint us to suffer wrath, but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus died for us so that we might live for him in this life and together with him forevermore.
People have wondered for at least two thousand years or more, when is the day of the Lord going to come? Paul makes it clear that we cannot know exactly when it will happen. Apparently, there were some Christians in Thessalonica who were saying that the day of the Lord had already come. Paul tells them in his second letter…
… not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a prophecy or by word of mouth or by letter—asserting that the day of the Lord has already come. (2 Thessalonians 2:2)
So, if the day of the Lord is not a fearful thing for Jesus followers, what should be our attitude towards it? In a sense, Paul answers this question in 2 Timothy 4:8 when he says…
Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
As followers of Jesus, we can look forward to the day of the Lord as the day on which we will receive the crown of righteousness, not our own righteousness, but the righteousness of Christ. Paul makes it clear that this is not just his personal hope, but that all who long for the appearing of Christ, that is Jesus’ second coming, all will receive the crown of righteousness.
Paul’s teaching about the day of the Lord seems very complete. But was Paul the only one in the New Testament who taught about this? No. We get a similar teaching in 2 Peter 3:8-18. And this passage, which I would like to read for you in full, answers the question, “How could Obadiah say that the day of the Lord was near?” After all, 2500 years have come and gone, and the day of the Lord has still not arrived. Well, here is what Peter has to say about that…
But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead, he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.
But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything done in it will be laid bare.
Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness dwells.
So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction.
Therefore, dear friends, since you have been forewarned, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of the lawless and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever! Amen.
Well, there is a lot in this passage that is deserving of an entire sermon, but we are at the end of our time for today. In summary, what can we say about the day of the Lord?
We can say that the day of the Lord will mean (1) the end of this age, and the ushering in of a whole new age in which not only our bodies, but the whole universe will be made new. (2) “The day of the Lord” is a day we can look forward to as we put our trust in Christ because he has born the judgment for our sins on the cross, that we might one day receive the crown of righteousness. God is not going to say to us, "Missed it by that much!" So (3) how are we to live in the meantime? We are called to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Comments