Obadiah

Definition and Meaning

Obadiah is the thirty-first of the thirty-nine books of the Old Testament. It belongs to the Minor Prophets (the shorter prophetic books), the collection of twelve books from Hosea to Malachi. Consisting of a single chapter of twenty-one verses, it is the shortest book in the Old Testament. The book takes its name from the prophet, whose Hebrew name is understood to mean "servant of the LORD" or "one who serves the LORD." The New Korean Revised Version abbreviates the book as "옵" (Ob), and some translations render the name in other forms, such as "Obadiyah."

Biblical and Historical Background

Edom is the people traditionally regarded as the descendants of Esau, the elder brother of Jacob. The conflict between Israel and Edom begins with the story of Jacob and Esau in Genesis and continues in Numbers 20, where Edom refuses to let Israel pass through its territory. Obadiah indicts Edom for what it did on the day Jerusalem was invaded: Edom stood aloof and looked on, plundered the city's wealth, and handed over the people of Judah who were trying to escape (Obadiah 1:10-14). The prophet then proclaims that the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations (1:15), and the book closes with a word of restoration: "the kingdom shall be the LORD's" (1:21).

Nothing is known of the life of the prophet Obadiah. A Jewish tradition identifies him with Obadiah, the official of King Ahab mentioned in 1 Kings 18, but he is generally regarded as a different person. Opinions also differ on the date of composition. Many scholars set the book against the background of the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. Some propose an earlier date, taking as its background the invasion by the Philistines and Arabians during the reign of King Jehoram (2 Chronicles 21:16-17). The wording of Obadiah 1:1-5 closely resembles the prophecy against Edom in Jeremiah 49. Judgment on Edom also appears in Psalm 137:7 and Amos 1:11-12.

Use in the Korean Church

Because of its brevity, Obadiah is rarely used as a text for Sunday sermons. In whole-Bible reading programs, it is treated as a book that can be read in a single sitting. Preaching on the book typically emphasizes two warnings. The first is a warning against pride, drawn from "The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee" (1:3); the second is a warning against indifference, drawn from Edom's disregard for its brother's suffering (1:11-12). The declaration of restoration in 1:21 is also sometimes interpreted in connection with the kingdom of God.

No significant denominational differences in the interpretation of this book are known. Korean Protestant denominations, including the Presbyterian, Methodist, Holiness, Baptist, Full Gospel, and Anglican churches, all read it within the same thirty-nine-book Old Testament canon.