Who are Edom and Esau in this passage, and how are they related to Jacob?

Edom is the nation that came from Esau, while Israel came from Jacob. Esau and Jacob were twin brothers, so their descendants were relatives. In this passage, Edom is called “the mount of Esau” and Jacob is linked with Judah and Israel. God treats Edom’s actions as violence against a brother. Instead of helping when foreign armies attacked Jerusalem, Edom stood by, joined in, looted, and blocked refugees. This family link makes their betrayal worse, and it explains why God speaks so sharply about their sin and shame.

What does it mean that the pride of Edom’s heart deceived them?

The passage says Edom lived in the high rocks and felt safe, like an eagle’s nest among the stars. Because of their strong position, wealth, wisdom, and allies, they thought no one could bring them down. That self-confidence is called the pride of their heart. It blinded them to their real weakness before God. They trusted their own strength instead of fearing God. God answers that even if they go as high as the eagle, He Himself will bring them down, showing how empty human pride is when it ignores Him.

Why is God’s judgment on Edom described as so complete and severe?

The judgment is pictured as more thorough than what thieves or grape pickers do. Thieves usually take what they want and leave the rest. Grape pickers normally leave a few grapes. But here, God says Edom’s treasures and hidden things will be completely searched out. Their allies will betray them, their wise men will be destroyed, and their mighty men will be dismayed. This happens because of their long-standing pride and their harsh treatment of Israel in a time of calamity. The message is that God sees injustice and will fully repay it.

What did Edom do to Jacob that brought this judgment on them?

The passage lists several wrongs. When strangers attacked Jerusalem and carried people away, Edom stood on the other side instead of helping. They watched Israel’s disaster, they rejoiced over Judah’s fall, and they spoke proudly. They entered the city in its calamity, looked on their brother’s trouble, stole their goods, blocked escape routes, and handed over survivors. God says they acted as if they were one of the attackers. Because of this violence and gloating over a brother’s pain, shame would cover them and they would be cut off.

What is the day of the Lord in this passage, and how does it relate to all nations?

Here the day of the Lord means a time when God steps in to judge. It is first spoken against Edom, but the verse says it is near upon all the nations. The principle is, “As thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee.” What they poured out on others will come back on their own heads. Edom had “drunk” on God’s holy mountain in arrogant joy, but now all nations that oppose God and His people will drink the cup of judgment and be as though they had not been. It shows God’s justice reaches beyond just one nation.

What does it mean that upon Mount Zion shall be deliverance and holiness?

While Edom faces ruin, God promises that on Mount Zion there will be deliverance and holiness. Mount Zion here stands for God’s chosen place and His people gathered there. Deliverance means rescue from enemies and from the disasters they faced. Holiness means that the place and the people are set apart to God, cleansed from what is unclean. Instead of being trampled, the house of Jacob will again possess their possessions. So side by side, the passage shows judgment for the proud and refuge for those whom God restores.

How should believers today think about the warning given to Edom?

This passage warns against pride, gloating over others’ pain, and taking advantage when someone falls, especially when it is a brother or sister. Edom’s example shows that God notices how we treat people who are weak, troubled, or under judgment. Trust in strength, wisdom, or alliances is empty if we ignore God and act without mercy. For believers, this calls for humility, care toward those who suffer, and confidence that God will deal with injustice in His time, even when it looks like the proud are winning for a season.

What does it mean that the house of Jacob is a fire and the house of Esau is stubble?

This picture shows how complete the change will be. The house of Jacob and the house of Joseph are called a fire and a flame, while the house of Esau is like dry stubble. Fire easily consumes stubble, so the image points to Edom’s defeat and the triumph of God’s people, by God’s power. It does not mean Israel is strong on its own, but that God will use His people as the means of judgment on their enemies. The final word is that there will not remain any of the house of Esau, because the Lord has spoken it.

What does the line “saviours shall come up on mount Zion” mean?

The passage ends by saying that saviours, or deliverers, will come up on Mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s. These saviours are leaders God raises up to rescue and rule His people and to carry out His judgment on their enemies. They are not independent heroes, but servants through whom God acts. The focus is on the outcome: God’s people are defended, their enemies are judged, and in the end the rule does not belong to any human nation, but to the Lord Himself.

Obad.1.1

Obadiah 1:1

KJV

The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord God concerning Edom; 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.

The Destruction of Edom

1 The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord God concerning Edom; 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.

2 Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.

3 ¶ The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?

4 Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.

5 If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough? if the grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes?

6 How are the things of Esau searched out! how are his hidden things sought up!

7 All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him.

8 Shall I not in that day, saith the Lord, even destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?

9 And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter.

10 ¶ For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.

11 In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.

12 But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.

13 Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;

14 Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.

The Deliverance of Israel

15 For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.

16 For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.

17 ¶ But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.

18 And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for the Lord hath spoken it.

19 And they of the south shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the plain the Philistines: and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim, and the fields of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.

20 And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel shall possess that of the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south.

21 And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord’S.

Cross References

No cross references available for this verse.