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Judgment for Edom and Obadiah

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[Obadiah 1:12]

You should not look down on 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.

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In the Bible, there is a nation called 'Edom'. The prophet Obadiah declares that this people of Edom will be judged by God. Why is the tribe of Edom judged by God?

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The ancestor of the tribe of Edom is Isaac's first son, Esau. And the kingdom of Isaac's second son, Jacob, is Judah. Edom and Judah are the tribes of Isaac's two sons.

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Deuteronomy contains the commands which the Israelites must obey. God directly told Israel how to deal with the tribe of Edom.

“Do not despise an Edomite, for the Edomites are related to you. Do not despise an Egyptian, because you resided as foreigners in their country.”(Dt 23:7)

The Edomites are brothers with them, so that they do not hate them and that they should be well.

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But God says that through the prophet Obadiah, there will be a great punishment in Edom. Then God said that the Edomites would be punished because they had done wrong? God said He would punish the pride of the Edomites.

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Edom was in a geographically safe place. Edom was surrounded by steep cliffs and rocks. So it was not easy for the enemy to attack.

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Edom believed in their geographical environment and made pride. Without God's help, they thought they could be safe. God was not pleased with their proud appearance.

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Through the prophet Obadiah, he proclaimed the calamity that would come upon the proud Edom, who did not recognize God.

“See, I will make you small among the nations; you will be utterly despised. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights, you who say to yourself, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’ Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down, declares the Lord.” (Ob 1:2~4)

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Our safety does not depend on a good environment. Nobody can be safe if God does not protect you. We must not forget that it is God who gives us safety, but we must humble God's glory in any circumstance.

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Obadiah then pointed to Edom's second mistake and proclaimed the judgment of God.

“Because of the violence against your brother Jacob, you will be covered with shame; you will be destroyed forever. 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.” (Ob 1:10~11)

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Judah, the brother of Edom, was destroyed by the invasion of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon. The people of Judah were greatly distressed by the Babylonian army.

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Edom looked at this Judah from a distance and laughed. Rather, they watched Judah, hoping that they would fall more clearly. They did not hurt when they saw the pain of Judah.

God hated this image of Edom.

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They even did worse evil. When the city of Jerusalem collapsed, the Edomites used the gaps to take the goods there, to take the people of Jerusalem and hand them over to Babylon. They not only betrayed the brotherhood, they also did worse things.

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Obadiah declares that not only Edom, but the nations that have done evil, will be judged as they did. When God's judgment day comes, none of them will survive.

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The prophet Obadiah prophesied of a new world after judgment.

“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. Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the Lord’s.”(Ob 1:20~21)

This is a promise to those who serve God until the end of the day when God's day will restore all the land God promised. As it is said, Judah has been restored after 70 years.

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This word of hope is also about the future world. It is the day when Jesus comes again to this land and judges, and we, the people of God, will live with Him forever. God's people are people who wait for this day of hope and believe.

May God be the one who keeps us in any circumstance and appreciate all the friends who live the life of keeping the Grace and the Word that He has given us.

(This is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)