When we
consider the wicked nations mentioned throughout Scripture we have a very long
list to choose from. Yet the one nation that is continually set forth as a
symbol for absolute godlessness and worldliness is the nation of Edom. Who were
these people? Genesis 36:8-9 tells us, “So
Esau settled in the hill country of Seir. (Esau is Edom). These are the
generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in the hill country of Seir.”
When we discuss the people of Edom we’re talking
about those who descended from Esau. Of all the nations of the earth, Edom was
the brother nation to Jacob. While brothers should love and care for one
another, the relationship between Jacob and Esau could never be described in
that way. In fact, their animosity for one another appears to have begun within Rebekah’s womb. Genesis 25:22-23
says, “The children struggled together
within her, and she said, ‘If it is thus, why is this happening to me?’ So she
went to inquire of the Lord. And the Lord said to her, ‘Two nations are in your
womb, and the two peoples from within you shall be divided; the one shall be
stronger than the other, the older shall serve the younger.”
As the
brothers advanced in age Esau became a hunter. On one particular day when Esau
was weary and famished he demanded some stew from Jacob. Jacob agreed on one
condition, found in Genesis 25:31-34. “Jacob
said, ‘Sell me your birthright now.’ Esau said, ‘ I am about to die; of what
use is a birthright to me?’ Jacob said, ‘Swear to me now.’ So he swore to him
and sold his birthright to Jacob. Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew,
and he ate and drank and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his
birthright.”
The birthright
of Esau would have included the wonderful promises made to Abraham. Included in
those promises was the wonderful spiritual promise that all the nations of the
earth would be blessed through the seed of Abraham, a reference to Jesus Christ
(Genesis 12:3; Galatians 3:16). Thus, very early on in our introduction to
Esau, we see that he possessed a very dismissive and cavalier attitude toward
spiritual considerations. This is also seen in his taking Canaanite wives
(Genesis 26:34-35), a choice that greatly hurt his parents.
If Esau is
considered a profane or unholy person (Hebrews 12:16), then the nation who came
from him took his ungodliness to another level entirely. You may be surprised
to learn that Esau and/or Edom are mentioned 187 times in the Scripture. Even
more surprising is the fact that 21 of the Old Testament books have something
to say about them. However, most noteworthy of all is that not a single mention
of this nation is positive. Without fail they are set forth as an
extraordinarily wicked and godless people (Isaiah 34, etc).
The first
recorded meeting between the brother nations immediately paves the way for the
sort of relationship they were going to have as the years progressed (Numbers
20:14-21). Having escaped Egyptian captivity and seeking to pass through the
lands belonging to his brother Edom, Israel was rebuffed. Asking again with a
promise to pay for whatever may be eaten or taken on the journey, Israel was
again refused admittance with a pugnacious show of force.
Things would
not improve between the brother nations. As the years progressed Edom’s hatred
of Jacob only intensified. Finally, a prophet arose whose sole mission was to speak
God’s judgment upon Edom. In fact, this man’s entire prophecy was about God’s
wrath being poured out upon Edom. The prophet’s name was Obadiah and his
message was a terrible one for the nation that had become almost unbelievably
wicked and hateful.
In the next six posts we shall consider God’s judgment upon Edom as set forth in Obadiah’s prophecy. In
so doing we will find many lessons for our lives today. Eventually,
those of Edom who were not destroyed were absorbed by the nations until they
ceased to exist as a distinct people altogether. Obadiah tells us exactly why
it happened.
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