Book of obadiah background

Book of obadiah overview insight for living ministries. Its authorship is difficult to date but was possibly written about 853841 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. Watch our overview video on the book of obadiah, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Esau and his descendants were proud, rebellious, defiant, and their end was ultimate destruction. As brief as this book is, scholars raise many questions about it. The prophet obadiah is otherwise unknown and nothing of his family or background is given in his prophecy. Book of obadiah encyclopedia of the bible bible gateway. The nation of edom was a long time enemy of gods people. Obadiah 1, new international version niv the bible app.

Some believe obadiah may have been a contemporary of elisha. Obadiah is a little book, but it is an example of an atomic bomb in the bible. Like a number of prophetic books, it is both a book of judgment and a book of hope. Obadiah means servant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the old testament, referring to many other old testament individuals.

Throughout most of the history of judah, edom was controlled absolutely from jerusalem as a vassal state. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the whole. Intro to obadiah biblica the international bible society. A summary, synopsis or recap is a shortened version of the original. Nothing is known historically about the author from the book or from other background materials iii.

There is insufficient historical data in the book to identify its historical setting. 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. Historical background in general, the background for the book of obadiah is the relationship between israel and edom. 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.

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. Obadiah 1 commentary matthew henry commentary on the. For more background information see the bible dictionary, obadiah p. One of the major reasons for which obadiah proclaims judgement on this pagan nation because of its pride. 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. 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. 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. Like joel, we know almost nothing about the prophet obadiah. Obadiah, book of, servant of yah, the shortest ot book, stands fourth among the minor prophets in the mt, but fifth in the lxx. May you discover him as you read his letter to you. 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. A jewish tradition links him with obadiah, the servant of wicked king ahab. The authors name is obadiah, which means servant or worshiper of the lord.

The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration of israel. And ahab called obadiah, which was the governor of his house. The book of obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament, the 4th book of the twelve minor prophets. Some of the ancients imagined him to be the same with that obadiah that was steward to ahabs household. If for no other reason, this book is important because it is part of the inspired bible ii timothy 3. Obadiah verse 1 identifies the author of the book of obadiah as the prophet obadiah. Obadiah announces edoms downfall to babylon, which is an image of how god will bring down all arrogant and violent nations. Nothing is known historically about the author from the book or from other background materials. Author and date nothing is known for certain about the author. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is the pronouncement of doom against an ancient and longforgotten nation, the land of edom. Other ot references to men of this name do not appear to be referring to this prophet. The book is named after the prophet who received the vision 1. Welcome to the study of the shortest book in the word.

Pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of obadiah. Obadiah 1114 establishes the background for the book in the events of 587 b. Dating the book of obadiah accurately is nearly impossible due to the scant historical information contained in the book. Background and setting the edomites trace their origin to esau, the firstborn twin. This book of obadiah is only one chapter long, with 21 verses in the king james version.

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. Pusey said, god has willed that his name alone and this brief prophecy should be known to the world. In this, the shortest book of the old testament, it seems the prophet obadiah. Esau and his descendants were proud, rebellious, defiant, and. Obadiah probably lived in the southern kingdom of judah. This book, the shortest among the twelve minor prophets, is a single twentyoneverse oracle against edom.

The only thing known about this prophet is his name. If it is, surely it cannot be very important because it only has 21 verses which is the shortest book in the old testament. The book of obadiah is a prophetic book of the hebrew bible and the christian old. Ahabs steward who met elijah 1 kings 18 was so named. Our present form of the hebrew scriptures is not a chronological arrangement. 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 form of obadiahs name used in the septuagint is obdios. The name obadiah means servant of yahweh literally one who serves or worships jehovah. 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. The book of obadiah is a favorite study of modern jews. Esau is in the foreground of the book of obadiah, and jacob is in the background. Dating the prophecy is mainly a matter of relatingvv. Obadiah is the shortest book in the ot and is not quoted in the nt. Insights on where the text came from and an analysis of the.

Pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of. Yahweh will judge edom both historically through the nations and eschatologically through israel. This may have been a popular name as with ahabs steward who met elijah cf. Oct 07, 20 pastor paul leboutiller of calvary chapel ontario oregon teaches through the book of obadiah. 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 jerusalem was attacked by the philistines and the arabs. Book of obadiah, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, in the jewish canon treated as one book, the twelve. Obadiahs message was that the lord would send his judgments against edom, and the nation would be destroyed. The book was probably written in the first half of the babylonian exile, after 586 b. The name means servant of yahweh and so would be a popular one. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is only 21 verses long. Obadiah s message was that the lord would send his judgments against edom, and the nation would be destroyed. In hebrew the book is titled hydbu meaning servant of yahweh. The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration.

Who this obadiah was does not appear from any other scripture. Jacob and his descendants passed through suffering and chastisement, and their ultimate destiny is restoration and usefulness. Insights on where the text came from and an analysis of the original text used for translation would be great info. This prophecy has the distinction of being the shortest book in the ot. 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. The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the hebrew bible. Their fortified cities included sela petra, teman and. Edoms pride and downfall is disclosed in the book of. Rather, it is an outgrowth of the old hebrew arrangement that was topical. The nation of edom, which eventually disappeared into history, remains one of. Their fortified cities included sela petra, teman and bozrah. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins against both god and israel. Whenever the word withholds background information on one of the lords. The book of obadiah is a book of prophetic oracles.

The smallest old testament account, the book of obadiah is a vision written by the lords prophet known as obadiah, who prophesied against israels relative nation edom. 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. 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. 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. The purpose of obadiah is to show that god will judge all those who are against his children, his chosen people. Frank shallieu in 1992 and circa 1970 before actually commencing the study, we would like to consider some historical background that is essential for understanding verse 1. This relationship began with the two sons of isaac and rebecca, jacob and esau. Though the babylonians are not mentioned by name in obadiah, the description of the day of their calamity v. The book of obadiah records a prophetic vision given by the lord to a man named obadiah. So obadiah is just a prophet who wrote one of the great prophecies of the scripture. In it they read the future of their own people and of christendom. The short book of obadiah the shortest in the ot is an oracle against the nation of edom. Book of obadiah, the destruction of edom, judahs misfortune. An envoy was sent to the nations to say,rise, let us go.

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. This is what the sovereign lord says about edomwe have heard a message from the lord. In greek the book is titled obdiou, a transliteration of the hebrew name and title. The name obadiah means servant of the lord or servant of jehovah. Obadiah intro to obadiah biblica the international bible society. Obadiah summary we have detailed a brief summary of the book of obadiah for bible study or sunday school lessons. Book of obadiah, also spelled abdias, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, in the jewish canon treated as one book, the twelve. Edoms pride and downfall is disclosed in the book of obadiah. Discover the basics of the book of obadiah with the esv study bible from crossway, video from the bible project, audio from mark dever, and more. The name obadiah means servant or worshiper of jehovah.