Obadiah 1

1 Obadiah's vision. This is what the Lord says about the land of Edom. We have heard from the Lord that a messenger was sent to tell the nations: Get ready! Let's go to war against Edom!

The vision of Obdias. Thus says the Lord God to Idumea; I have heard a report from the Lord, and he has sent forth a message to the nations.

2 I will make you insignificant among the nations. You will be totally despised.

Arise you, and let us rise up against her to war.

3 Your heart's pride has deceived you—you who live in a secure fortress of rock in the high mountains, saying to yourselves, “Who can ever bring us down?”

Behold, I have made you small amongst the Gentiles: you are greatly dishonoured. The pride of your heart has elated you, dwelling [as you do] in the holes of the rocks, [as one that] exalts his habitation, saying in his heart, Who will bring me down to the ground?

4 But even though you soar like an eagle, even though you make your nest among the stars, I will bring you down from there, declares the Lord.

If you should mount up as the eagle, and if you should make your nest amongst the stars, thence will I bring you down, says the Lord.

5 You will be completely destroyed! If thieves came to you, if robbers came at night, wouldn't they steal only what they wanted? If those who harvest grapes came to you, wouldn't they leave some behind?

If thieves came in to you, or robbers by night, where would you have been cast away? would they not have stolen [just] enough for themselves? and if grape gatherers went in to you, would they not leave a gleaning?

6 But how Esau will be plundered and their hidden treasures looted!

How has Esau been searched out, and [how] have his hidden things been detected?

7 All your allies will drive you out, past the borders of your land. Those who were at peace with you will deceive you, and conquer you. Those who ate with you have ambushed you. You don't understand a thing!

They sent you to your coasts: all the men of your covenant have withstood you; your allies have prevailed against you, they have set snares under you: they have no understanding.

8 On that day, declares the Lord, I will destroy the wise men of Edom—there will be no more wisdom in the mountains of Esau.

In that day, says the Lord, I will destroy the wise men out of Idumea, and understanding out of the mount of Esau.

9 Teman, your fighting men will be terrified, so that everyone of the mountains of Esau will be cut down in the massacre.

And your warriors from Thaeman shall be dismayed, to the end that man may be cut off from the mount of Esau.

10 Because of the violence you committed against your brothers, the descendants of Jacob, you will be totally ashamed of yourselves, and destroyed forever.

Because of the slaughter and the sin [committed against] your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you, and you shall be cut off for ever.

11 On that day you stood aside, on that day strangers plundered their wealth and foreigners entered their gates, and divided up Jerusalem by casting lots—and you were like one of them.

From the day that you stood in opposition [to him], in the days when foreigners were taking captive his forces, and strangers entered into his gates, and cast lots on Jerusalem, you also was as one of them.

12 You should not have gloated over your brother's day of disaster. You should not have rejoiced over the day of destruction of the sons of Judah. You should not have boasted over the day of their distress.

And you should not have looked on the day of your brother in the day of strangers; nor should you have rejoiced against the children of Juda in the day of their destruction; neither should you have boasted in the day of [their] affliction.

13 You should not have marched through the city gates of my people on their day of disaster. You should not have gloated over them on the day of their disaster. You should not have looted their wealth on the day of their disaster.

Neither should you have gone into the gates of the people in the day of their troubles; nor yet should you have looked upon their gathering in the day of their destruction, nor should you have attacked their host in the day of their perishing.

14 You should not have stood at the crossroads, cutting down those trying to escape. You should not have handed over those who survived on the day of their distress.

Neither should you have stood at the opening of their passages, to destroy utterly those of them that were escaping; neither should you have shut up his fugitives in the day of affliction.

15 For the day of the Lord is near for all nations. What you have done will be done to you; your actions will fall back on your own heads.

For the day of the Lord is near upon all the Gentiles: as you have done, so shall it be [done] to you: your recompense shall be returned on your [own] head.

16 For as you drank on my holy mountain, so will all the nations continually drink, and swallow, and they shall be as if they never existed.

For as you have drunk upon my holy mountain, [so] shall all the nations drink wine; they shall drink, and go down, and be as if they were not.

17 But on Mount Zion there will be a place of escape, a holy place, and the descendants of Jacob will reclaim their inheritance.

But on mount Sion there shall be deliverance, and there shall be a sanctuary; and the house of Jacob shall take for an inheritance those that took them for an inheritance.

18 The descendants of Jacob will become a fire, and the descendants of Joseph a flame, and they shall burn up the descendants of Esau like stubble, consuming them completely, so that there will be not a single survivor of the descendants of Esau. For the Lord has spoken.

And the house of Jacob shall be fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau [shall be] for stubble; and [Israel] shall flame forth against them, and shall devour them, and there shall not be a corn-field [left] to the house of Esau; because the Lord has spoken.

19 Those living in the Negev will occupy the mountains of Esau; those from the foothills of Judah will occupy the land of the Philistines, and possess the fields of Ephraim and Samaria; those from the tribe of Benjamin will occupy Gilead.

And they [that dwell] in the south shall inherit the mount of Esau, and they in the plain the Philistines: and they shall inherit the mount of Ephraim, and the plain of Samaria, and Benjamin, and the land of Galaad.

20 The army of exiles of the people of Israel shall possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, and the exiles of Jerusalem from Sepharad shall possess the cities of the Negev.

And this [shall be] the domain of the captivity of the children of Israel, the land of the Chananites as far as Sarepta; and the captives of Jerusalem [shall inherit] as far as Ephratha; they shall inherit the cities of the south.

21 Those who have been saved will go up Mount Zion and rule the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom shall be the Lord's.

And they that escape shall come up from mount Sion, to take vengeance on the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the Lord's.