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 Obadiah. This is what the Lord GOD says about Edom. We have heard news from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent amongst the nations, saying, “Arise, and let’s rise up against her in battle.

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

Behold, I have made you small amongst the nations. You are greatly despised.

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?”

The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high, who says 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.

Though you mount on high as the eagle, and though your nest is set amongst the stars, I will bring you down from there,” 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 to you, if robbers by night—oh, what disaster awaits you—wouldn’t they only steal until they had enough? If grape pickers came to you, wouldn’t they leave some gleaning grapes?

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

How Esau will be ransacked! How his hidden treasures are sought out!

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!

All the men of your alliance have brought you on your way, even to the border. The men who were at peace with you have deceived you, and prevailed against you. Friends who eat your bread lay a snare under you. There is no understanding in him.”

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.

“Won’t I in that day”, says the LORD, “destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mountain 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.

Your mighty men, Teman, will be dismayed, to the end that everyone may be cut off from the mountain of Esau by slaughter.

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

For the violence done to your brother Jacob, shame will cover you, and you will be cut off forever.

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.

In the day that you stood on the other side, in the day that strangers carried away his substance and foreigners entered into his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, even you were like 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.

But don’t look down on your brother in the day of his disaster, and don’t rejoice over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction. Don’t speak proudly in the day of distress.

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.

Don’t enter into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity. Don’t look down on their affliction in the day of their calamity, neither seize their wealth on the day of their calamity.

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.

Don’t stand in the crossroads to cut off those of his who escape. Don’t deliver up those of his who remain in the day of distress.

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 all the nations! As you have done, it will be done to you. Your deeds will return upon 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 on my holy mountain, so all the nations will drink continually. Yes, they will drink, swallow down, and will be as though they had not been.

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 in Mount Zion, there will be those who escape, and it will be holy. The house of Jacob will possess their possessions.

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.

The house of Jacob will be a fire, the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble. They will burn amongst them and devour them. There will not be any remaining to the house of Esau.” Indeed, 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.

Those of the South will possess the mountain of Esau, and those of the lowland, the Philistines. They will possess the field of Ephraim, and the field of Samaria. Benjamin will possess Gilead.

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.

The captives of this army of the children of Israel, who are amongst the Canaanites, will possess even to Zarephath; and the captives of Jerusalem, who are in Sepharad, will possess the cities of the Negev.

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.

Saviours will go up on Mount Zion to judge the mountains of Esau, and the kingdom will be the LORD’s.