Obadiah 1:1-3
The Pride of Edom
Introduction
Before we consider our text tonight, I want to ask you some questions. What are some sins that are particularly offensive to you? What might be some sins that are offensive to a church? Can you name some sins or a sin that God finds particularly offensive? Tonight as we consider the first three verses of Obadiah, we are going to come face to face with a harsh reality – God doesn’t look at sin the way we do. There is a little verse that many of us like to use when someone doesn’t have much to offer in outward appearances. You remember when Samuel went to Jesse’s house looking for the next king and Samuel was confused that God didn’t want any of the first few sons? He was looking at their height and ability and so forth, then the Lord said, "I don’t see things the way you do. Man looks on the outward appearances, but I look on the heart."
Well listen, that works two ways. Sure God sees the good in people when we can’t see any, but He also sees the bad in people when we find none. Tonight we’re talking specifically about pride: the pride of Edom, and the existence of pride in our own lives, in the life of our church and even in our nation. We’re going to come back to this subject of pride, but let’s consider the rest of the text first.
"The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord God concerning Edom; We have heard a rumor from the Lord, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle. Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised. The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee…"
Now last week we identified Obadiah, the servant of the Lord. We considered three of the attributes of God: His sovereignty, His holiness and His love, but who is this Edom?
Edom
Since the book of Obadiah is a pronouncement of God’s judgment on this nation, it would help to know something about it. Let’s start with…
The People
In Genesis 25, we’re introduced to the man who would later have this nation named after him. You remember that Isaac and Rebekah had twins. The Bible says,
"And when her days to be delivered were fulfilled, behold, there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red, all over like an hairy garment; and they called his name Esau. And after that came his brother out, and his hand took hold on Esau’s heel: and his name was called Jacob…and the boys grew: and Esau was a cunning hunter, a man of the field; and Jacob was a plain man, dwelling in tents."
Now these two boys, twins we are told, were born and as they grew, they couldn’t have been much more different. They were different in appearance, in values, in ambitions, in likes and dislikes and in that which they loved. One son was daddy’s favorite, the other was a momma’s boy. While there’s no one thing that you could pin the problem on, it is obvious from the Bible record that there were years of tension between the two. We learn from the stories of the birthright that Esau sold to Jacob that Esau despised his birthright and all that went with it. We learn from the stolen blessing that Jacob was a deceptive man who was out for his own interests, even if it meant turning his back on family honor and honesty. The two fought bitterly and even had to separate themselves from one another.
In Genesis 28, we read that Isaac sent his son Jacob back to where his family was from to take a wife from among his own people. He sent him out with blessings and great hope. Esau knew about what was going on, so out of spite and anger, he chose to act out in retaliation. Genesis 28:6 says,
"When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padan-aram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; and that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padan-aram; and Esau, seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had…"
Over time, two nations developed from the families of the two boys. He two families were related by blood, but riven by everything else. Little love was lost between the two peoples, just as little love had been lost between the two brothers, and while the book of Genesis records for us that the two made an attempt at making amends, the fighting continued for years to come. It wasn’t fighting between brothers any more, it was now fighting between nations. We know that God changed Jacob’s name to Israel, but do you remember Esau? Genesis 36:1 says, "Now these are the generations of Esau, who is Edom." Verses 8 & 9 say, "Thus dwelt Esau in mount Seir: Esau is Edom. And these are the generations of Esau the father of the Edomites in mount Seir."
So, just who is Edom? Edom is the nation that grew out of a string of ungodly marriages by Esau to pagan wives that God had forbidden the Hebrews to marry.
The Geography
"So far as geography goes, Edom (also known in the Bible as Seir, Hor, and Esau) was the territory bordering Judah to the east and south. That is, it was to the east of the Jordan River and extended southward from the borders of Moab to the Gulf of Aqaba. On the eastern side Edom was bordered by the desert. It was approximately 20 to 30 miles wide and about 100 miles long.
"The northern and eastern areas of this territory contained parts fit for cultivation, but these were not what gave importance to the land. The real importance of Edom was due to two factors. First, it was situated along the great trade routes between Syria and Egypt and could profit from this trade. Trade brought business, and the inhabitants grew rich on tolls extracted from the many caravans. The second factor was Edom’s natural strength and security. The central area is characterized by red sandstone cliffs that rise to heights of more than 5,000 feet above sea level. These are easily fortified. As a result of having made their home within this natural fortress, the people of Edom were free to wage war and levy tribute on others while themselves being relatively free of outside interference."
The History
It is unclear now how Esau or the Edomites came to possess the land they inhabited. In Genesis 14, we find that a small nation known as the Horites possessed the land. The Horites were one of the five nations that attacked Sodom and Gomorrah and kidnapped Lot. However, by the time we get to Genesis 32, Esau possesses the land called Seir, or Edom. You remember that Jacob was returning from his uncle’s ranch, and he had a lot of cattle and flocks and family with him, and along the way Esau came out and the servants told Jacob about it. Jacob got scared and split everyone up, then spent the night wrestling with God. The next day, Jacob thought that Esau would kill him, but the two were kind to one another, then in Genesis 33 Esau returned to the land of Edom.
"Still later, Edom appears in the story of the Exodus of the people of Israel from Egypt. When the people had come out of Egypt into the Sinai and wanted to pass on to the Promised Land through Edom, the Edomites refused to give them passage even though Moses promised to harm nothing and even pay for whatever water the people and their herds should drink (Num. 20:14-21)."
Do you remember the story about David running from Saul to the prophet’s house? This was after Jonathan found out of his father’s plans to kill David. David went to Ahimelech the priest and ate the hallowed bread and took Goliath’s sword before going into hiding. If you remember, there was a man present in the city that day who was loyal to King Saul and against David. His name was Doeg the Edomite. Saul took Doeg and some others to the home of the prophets, where he instructed one of his soldiers to kill the prophets. The soldier wouldn’t do it because these were priests of God, but Doeg gladly killed them, eighty-five in all, killed by Doeg the Edomite.
"David conquered the Edomites in a great battle recorded in 2 Samuel 8:13-14, and from that time on through the reign of Solomon the Edomites were subject to the descendants of Jacob. One writer notes: ’Until this time Edom must have been thought of as Israel’s elder brother in being stronger, older, and more developed. By this battle the elder was supplanted by the younger in clear historical analogy to the Jacob-Esau parallel in Genesis. From this point on one can trace the bitter rivalry which is documented in the prophecy of Obadiah."
During Solomon’s reign the Lord used an Edomite to punish Solomon for his worship of false gods, and who was it that tried to kill Christ as an infant? It was none other than Herod, an Edomite.
The beginning and history of the nation of Edom is very fascinating, but I want you to look now at the last book of the Old Testament and notice something God says that is very interesting. Read with me Malachi 1:1-3.
"The burden of the word of the Lord to Israel by Malachi. I have loved you, saith the Lord. Yet ye say, Wherein hast thou loved us? Was not Esau Jacob’s brother? saith the Lord: yet I loved Jacob, and I hated Esau, and laid his mountains and his heritage waste for the dragons of the wilderness."
Now you might look at that and wonder about the Lord. Remember that He is the Sovereign Lord and King, and this is not the only time in Scripture where the Lord expresses His hatred of a people. The important thing to ask now is this: Why did God hate Edom? The answer to that question is found in verse 3.
The Pride of Edom
Our book of Obadiah is the only place in Scripture where we find an explanation of why God hated Esau. It was because of pride. "The pride of your heart has deceived you." God hated Edom’s pride so much that He pronounced and carried out complete destruction on the nation. It’s not there today, and it won’t be coming back because God carried out His judgment on the sin of pride.
"Most people today do not consider pride all that bad, certainly not something for which (in our judgment) God would destroy an entire nation. But this says more about our light views of sin than it does about God’s workings."
In fact, most Christians today would argue that pride is even a sin worth fussing over. Was that all God was upset about? Pride is bad, but it’s not that bad, is it?
Let me illustrate to you how we today have things all out of proportion concerning sin.
· Suppose that I knew of a certain Christian who was drinking very heavily and that I came to ask your advice as to what this church should do with him. What would you say?
· Suppose I told you of a Sunday school teacher who was caught by the police the other night in one of the local stores breaking into the register or safe. What would we do to that teacher?
· Suppose I told you that one of your deacons was addicted to pornography. How would you respond?
· Suppose though that I told you that I knew of a certain church member who was filled with pride, who was one of the proudest persons I had ever met. I dare say that our response would be very different.
Listen, while we might not find pride to be such a terrible thing, the Bible says that pride is the sin of sins and is the most damning. One writer said, "How difficult it is to awaken even Christian people to an understanding of the real nature of pride!" Another rightly said,
"One may stand before a congregation and hold their breathless interest by a recountal of dramatic stories of lives ruined by drink and other carnal sins. But try to expound a text such as this from Obadiah…and there is a marked difference in attention and response. The reason is the fact that the true nature of pride is so little understood.
"Look at it this way. Here are two statements, each of which might fall from the lips of some well-meaning church member. Referring to another person, someone says, ’He is a good man but proud.’ Such a remark hardly strikes our ears as inappropriate or shocking. We are all too willing to admit that goodness and pride may be companions within the same life. But consider this remark, ’He is a good man but a thief.’ Immediately our moral sensibilities are outraged."
Is this fair or right to say that someone can be both good and proud and not be good and a thief? Again, what does the Bible say? It says in Proverbs 6:16 that the Lord hates pride. It says in Proverbs 16:18 that "Pride goeth…before a fall." It says in Proverbs 16:5 that "Everyone that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord…" Again in Proverbs 29:23 we find, "A man’s pride shall bring him low."
In God’s sight, pride is worse than drunkenness. It is worse than stealing. It is worse than a lot of things that we so often condemn. It is the sin of sins. It is one of the worst sins of all. Do you remember where pride began? It was with Satan – the father of all sin, the father of pride. It was pride that caused him to rebel against God and try to usurp God’s authority and position. It is and always has been pride that lies at the heart of the problems of the human race. Pride, when you get right down to it is nothing more than man saying, "I will be like the Most High God," or what amounts to the same thing, "I can do without God."
What is pride? In his commentary on Obadiah, J. Vernon McGee defines it as "the attitude of life that declares its ability to live without God." Billy Graham said this about pride,
"The pride that God loathes is not self-respect or a legitimate sense of personal dignity. It is a haughty, undue self-esteem out of all proportion to our actual worth. It is that repugnant egotism which is repulsive to both man and God. It is that revolting conceit which swaggers before men and struts in the presence of the Almighty. God hates it. It is an abomination unto Him, which means that it makes Him shudder. God has said in Psalm 101:5, ’Him that hath a high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.’ God cannot stand or endure pride. He hates it!"
Conclusion
Now, the Edomites were proud for several reasons that we’re going to deal with later, but before we get to all of that I hope that you’ll allow God to search your heart for any hints of pride in your own life. You’ve no doubt heard of the lady who was aboard the Titanic and asked a crewman if the ship really was unsinkable. The crewman responded, "God Himself could not sink this ship." A similar spirit prevailed in Edom. Believing that God Himself could not bring them low, they were deceived by their pride.
None of us probably considers ourselves to be anti-God. I don’t know of anyone who would readily say that they don’t need God in their lives, but how often do our decisions and actions and attitudes reflect spirits of pride? A great many children of God have pride of race. Many are prideful in their looks or money. Some are proud of superior intellect or Bible knowledge. Others are prideful of superior talent or ability. It is even possible for believers to be proud they have been saved by grace! Salvation is not something to make you proud, it is not even something to brag about. It is something about which to glorify God, and it is something that should humble you.
If you’ll look one more time at Obadiah 1:1-2, you’ll see that even while Obadiah was pronouncing God’s message, armies were already preparing to go to battle against Edom, and all the while they never realized that it was God working behind the scenes in judgment against the one sin He hates above all the others.
James said that God resists the proud, but He gives grace to the humble. Do you wrestle with pride? Is it possible that your pride has you deceived and now you can’t even see it? If so, you need to repent of your pride and your prideful ways. Humble yourselves before God, and He will life you up! Ignore your pride or continue in it, and you may find yourself suffering a fate similar to Edom’s.
