Jacob and Esau Come to Terms

Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to Sabbath Services. It is a treat to be here with you again. On this Sabbath day, we're in town to do a couple of things. First of all, it's an opportunity for my parents to meet my sons in-laws for the first time, to meet the Zimmerman's and all their family. So that's a treat. And we're in town too for the boys' Winter Family Weekend basketball team practice. Maybe that's the more important part of the weekend, huh? Try and make sure that the boys are able to take away a championship cup again at the Winter Family Weekend. So glad to be with you. Here's a newspaper story about sibling rivalry. That's from the Associated Press a number of years ago, 2002 actually. The Associated Press reports, Dennis Cleary, a representative in the Connecticut General Assembly, is running for his seventh term, but he's running without the support of his own family. Relatives have taken out a newspaper ad noting, We are tired of Dennis, are you? Family spokesman Jude Cleary says his brother is a corrupt and self-serving politician, who has lost touch with his own family, let alone the people of the district. Cleary has dismissed the family's wobble as a mere sibling rivalry. But his sister says their mother isn't voting for him either. Even mum won't vote for him. Jude is urging people to vote for Dennis' opponent, even though he doesn't know anything about him. I think just about anybody would have to have more integrity than my own brother, he says. And so you can see quite some conflict in that family. Well, let's go back to Genesis chapter 25 and look at a story of sibling rivalry. And of course, this story of sibling rivalry goes back quite a ways. Genesis chapter 25, beginning in verse 21. Genesis 25, 21. Now Isaac pleaded with the Lord for his wife because she was barren, and the Lord granted his plea, and Rebekah, his wife, conceived. Verse 22, but the children struggled within her. So she was going to have twins, as we see. The twins struggled within her, and she said, if all is well, why am I like this? So she went to inquire of the Lord. Verse 23, the Lord said to her, Two nations are in your womb. Two people shall be separated from your body.

One people shall be stronger than the other, and the older shall serve the younger. So when her days were fulfilled for her to give birth, indeed there were twins in her womb. And the first came out red. He was like a hairy garment all over, so they called his name Esau. Esau means red. Verse 26, afterward his brother came out, and his hand took hold of Esau's heel. So his name was called Jacob, and Isaac was 60 years old when she bore them. Now this all happened about 1815 BC. 1815 BC. Verse 27, so the boys grew, and Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field, but Jacob was a mild man, dwelling in tents.

Verse 28, Isaac loved Esau because the aid of his game, but Rebekah loved Jacob. Verse 29, now Jacob cooked a stew, and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to Jacob, Please feed me with that same red stew, for I am weary. And therefore his name was also called Edom. So Esau and Edom very much the same name, meaning red.

Verse 31, but Jacob said, Sell me your birthright as of this day. And Esau said, Look, I'm about to die, so what is this birthright to me? And Jacob said, swear to me as of this day. So Esau swore to him and sold his birthright to Jacob. So these guys were fighting in the womb, and the fighting didn't end there. Now later in their lives, Jacob deceitfully received the blessing from Isaac, his father, which angered Esau greatly. Esau had promised it to Jacob when he sold his birthright, but later on it was cemented. Genesis 27, let's go over to Genesis chapter 27. Read verse 36. Genesis 27 and verse 36. Esau said, Is he not rightly named Jacob? Jacob meaning the supplanter. For he has supplanted me now two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has even taken away my blessing. And he said, Have you not reserved a blessing for me? He's pleading with his dad. Have you not reserved a blessing for me? Verse 41. So Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing with which his father blessed him. And Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my father are at hand, then after that I'm going to kill my brother Jacob. And so, here we have the story of Jacob and Esau, and the rivalry between them. I do have a handout for us today, if those can be passed down the aisle. They should be enough for everybody to have one. Hopefully they've made their way down. Looks like they have. Good. About 400 years after this, what we just read in Genesis, Jacob's descendants, the nations of Israel, wanted to pass through the kingdom of Edom. I'm not going to go ahead and read this particular passage right now. But Israel wanted to pass through the kingdom of Edom during their journey through the wilderness.

When Israel was coming out of Egypt, but their old sibling rivalry was not dead then either. 400 years later. And you can read about it in Numbers chapter 20. But Edom refused to let Israel pass through when Israel was coming out of Egypt. Over the centuries, conflict continued between these two brothers. And this is all a bit of background for the subject today. We're going to be looking at just 21 verses of a prophetic passage. In fact, these 21 verses are an entire book in the Bible. And as you may have guessed, the subject is that of Esau. And a bit of Jacob along the way. But the prophecy is primarily about Esau. And the topic of the split sermon today is, Jacob and Esau come to terms. They're not friendly terms. Jacob and Esau come to terms. It's a study of the book of Obadiah. And in some ways, it's a bit of a Bible study, this sermon, really. But I think you'll find it a fascinating journey, these 21 verses in Obadiah. And so you'll want to keep your finger in the page for Obadiah in your Bible as we turn to some other passages as well. But as I said, I've got a handout here for you today. And what you'll find on one side are the rules and prophets of Israel and Judah. And this list begins after Israel split into two kingdoms. So you've got Israel on the left, Judah on the right. So it's after Israel split in two, the northern kingdom and the southern kingdom. But you will notice in the prophets column in the middle, you'll see where Obadiah falls on the timeline.

You might refer to that again in a little while. On the other side are two maps. One is modern-day Middle East with Israel and Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, and you'll see Egypt there. And on the right is how the land was divided up in the 830s BC, the 9th century BC, which we believe is probably the time that Obadiah wrote. And you'll see how the kingdoms were divided during the 9th century BC. So we'll refer to this as we go along, but it's a good reference as we read the verses of Obadiah to help understand where we are in time and space at that point. So let's go to Obadiah and begin with verse 1 here in a moment. But let me give you some background if you're taking any notes.

Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament, and it is never quoted in the New Testament.

Obadiah is classified as one of the minor prophets and is written to Edom, the location of the very strong city Petra.

Obadiah means servant of the Lord or servant of God.

That's what his name Obadiah means. And Obadiah was probably from the tribe of Judah.

And Edom, as I've said, means red region.

Now, there are two times given as to when Obadiah was probably written.

Some say it was written after the fall of Jerusalem in 586 BC.

And some say, though, that it was written in the 9th century BC.

And for today, we're going to go with the 9th century date, as it is here on the timeline that I gave you on the chart.

From a Church of God perspective, we tend to believe that it was probably the 9th century date, not the 586 BC date, that was most likely written. And as we go along, you might see some reasons why for that.

Now, the theme of the book of Obadiah is dealing with Edom.

Dealing with Edom.

And it's a sub-theme of the day of the Lord is coming upon all. Not just Edom, but upon all.

There's also a minor theme of don't rejoice at other people's calamities.

Don't rejoice at other's calamities.

Now, nothing is known of the prophet Obadiah beyond the words of his prophecy. It's very difficult to go through other works and manuscripts and archaeological finds to find anything out about Obadiah, other than what we find written here in his prophecy.

And his name, meaning servant of the Lord, may have been a name, or maybe it was a title given to him, we're not sure.

But as for the date when he lived and preached, many modern scholars do date his book to the time immediately following the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC. But here's an interesting quote from the Nelson Study Bible about Obadiah. It's a very interesting example. Nelson says, some scholars date the book very early, in the mid-ninth century BC, following raids by the Philistines and Arabian tribes during the period of King Jehoram of Judah.

And if so, this date would make the book of Obadiah the earliest of the prophetic books.

And that is pretty much what we teach in the United Church of God, and our Bible reading program concurs with that, most likely putting it in the mid-ninth century BC.

Despite when the date may be, when this book is analyzed will come to see that it doesn't matter a whole lot because there are prophecies here for the end time as well, which are yet to occur and yet to happen.

Who is Edom today?

We read the story of Jacob and Esau, Edom.

Who is Edom today?

Well, as we read in Genesis at the beginning, Edom is another name for Esau.

And Esau and his descendants originally lived in the region of Mount Seir, S-E-I-R, southeast of Judah.

And what is now, today, southern Jordan, the country of Jordan, around the city of Petra.

The Greeks and Romans called this area near Petra Edomia, which comes from the word Edom.

So the Greeks and Romans called it Edom.

The Bible refers to end time Jordan as Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon.

If you look on the ancient map, you see Ammon and Moab and Edom, those tribes, those nations.

And that is pretty much all of Jordan and a little bit of Syria today.

When the king of the north in the end time crushes the king of the south in battle, which we read about in the book of Daniel, the people of the area of Jordan appear to escape.

If you'll just turn quickly with me to Daniel 11, we'll read verse 41. Daniel 11 and 41.

Here we see a prophecy yet to happen of the future king of the north. It says in Daniel 11, verse 41, He, talking of the king of the north, shall enter the glorious land, which of course being the area of the Middle East surrounding Jerusalem, and many countries shall be overthrown. But these ones shall escape from his hand, and it lists Edom, Moab, and the prominent people of Ammon.

And of course, as you look on the chart and compare to the new map of today, you see that those three countries are predominantly the area of Jordan today, that appears will escape the wrath of the king of the north when the king of the north comes down to attack the king of the south, as Daniel points out.

Many Edomites must still live there in southern Jordan today, and should also be noted that Edomia extended into southern Judah.

Unger's Bible dictionary states, the Edomites were gradually pushed into the southern half of Judea, including the region around Hebron, an area which the Greeks later called Edomia. That's from Unger's Bible dictionary.

Also, it's interesting that the biblical king Herod the Great was an Edomian.

Herod the Great was an Edomite.

And so those tribes going all the way back to Jacob and Esau still dwelt in that area of the Middle East.

One of Esau's grandsons and a tribal chief was Amalek.

The grandson of Esau, one of them was Amalek, who became the father of the Amalekites.

And some rabbinical schools in Israel teach that the Palestinian Arabs today, the most fervent adversaries of the modern Israeli state, are Amalekites, descendants from Esau.

You may recall that when the Israelites fought the Amalekites at Raphidim, you may remember that Aaron and her had to hold up Moses' arms.

And then Joshua was down with the troops fighting the Amalekites.

And as long as Moses' arms were held up, Joshua and the Israelites prevailed.

But when Moses couldn't keep his arms up any longer, then the Amalekites would win.

And so Aaron and her held up Moses' arms so that Joshua and the Israelites would win the battle.

That was a fight against the Amalekites, descendants of Esau.

And there's been this rivalry for a thousand years, ever since their birth.

Let's turn to, well, I'll just mention it maybe for the sake of time, Exodus 17 verse 16.

There's a quote made after that battle, after the Israelites finally defeated the Amalekites.

Here's what is said in Exodus 17 verse 16.

Because the Lord has sworn, the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

God has not been happy with the Amalekites over the years, and at one point ordered them all to be destroyed, but they weren't.

And even to this day, this portion of the Middle East is overcome with the descendants of ancient Israel, primarily the tribe of Judah today, being attacked daily by non-Jews. And it's in the news all the time.

And there may be some validity to this Esau Edom Amalek, Amalekite identification. Jordan's population today is heavily Palestinian, and many of the Palestinians in Jordan and Israel are evidently Edomite by descent, come from Esau. Well, getting back to the book of Obadiah, it's split into three main sections. And the first section, the first nine verses, talk about the ruin of Edom. The ruin of Edom is section 1. Then section 2, verses 10 through 14, explains Edom's sin. What did Edom do? Edom's sin. And then the third part is retribution or payment upon Edom and the restoring of Israel.

And then there is a sub-theme at the end of the day of the Lord is coming upon all. So you've got the ruin of Edom, Edom's sin, and then the retribution upon Edom. So let's start with section 1 of the book of Obadiah, which are the first nine verses. And it is the ruin of Edom.

Obadiah, verse 1, here we read, The vision of Obadiah thus says the Lord God concerning Edom. We have heard a report from the Lord, and a messenger has been sent among the nations, saying, Arise and let us rise up against her for battle. Verse 2, Behold, I will make you small among the nations you shall be greatly despised. And verse 3, The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high, you who say in your heart, Who will bring me down to the ground?

So there's a lot of arrogance here that's going to be brought down. And despite the self-imagined greatness and pride, God says He will make the Edomites small and despised among the nations. And their dwelling in the clefts of the rock, we read here in verse 3, may refer to the rock-hewn city of Petra in southern Jordan today. And the word for rock in Hebrew is Selah, which is equivalent to the Greek word Petra. Edom may have had other rock fortresses as well as Petra. And high above Petra and on other mountains of Edom were high places for pagan worship. And they were also lookouts and a place for refuge.

Verse 4 in Obadiah, Though you ascend as high as the eagle, and though you set your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down, says the Eternal, says the Lord. The Nelson study Bible says here of Obadiah, verse 3, Some of the mountain peaks of Edom reach over 6,000 feet. Jerusalem, by comparison, is about 2,300 feet above sea level. And so, where the Edomites dwell was in altitude three times as high as Jerusalem in many places.

And so they felt secure up there in their mountains, up in the mountaintops and in Petra. Yet, the Edomites would be brought down from their lofty places, not just physically, but figuratively as well, from their prideful arrogance. Verse 5 in Obadiah, If thieves had come to you, if robbers had come by night, O how well you will be cut off! But would they not have stolen till they had had enough? If great gatherers had come to you, would they not have left some gleanings?

You see, the first nine verses in the book foretell total destruction in the land of Edom at the hand of God. But Obadiah writes here that this destruction will be so complete that it would be even worse than having a thief come at the night and steal all your stuff. Because not even a thief would destroy everything. There'd be something left. But not here for Edom. Everything will be gone. That'd be worse than if you'd been invaded or taken apart by a thief in the night.

In verse 5, God says that great gatherers, or even thieves, would take merely their fill. Not everything. But God will go way beyond this. Edom will be utterly laid bare, completely plundered of everything and everyone. Notice verse 6. O, how Esau shall be searched out, how his hidden treasures shall be sought after. You have to ask, why? What did Esau do to deserve this? Total destruction where nothing is left. Why? Let's turn to Jeremiah 49 for a moment and read something that sounds very similar to what we just read in Obadiah.

Under inspiration, the prophet Jeremiah later utilizes some of Obadiah's prophecy, in his own prophecy, against Edom. The fact that Jeremiah repeats something very similar means that Obadiah probably was written earlier, in something like the 9th century, not in the 500s BC. Jeremiah 49 verse 7. See if this doesn't sound familiar to what we just read in Obadiah. Against Edom, thus says the Lord of Hosts, is wisdom no more in Timan? By the way, the chief tribe of Edom was the tribe of Timan, one of Esau's sons. Has counsel perished from the prudent? Has their wisdom, has their cunning vanished? Verse 8. Flee turned back, dwell in the depths of inhabitants of Dedan, and Dedan is most likely a city found in Saudi Arabia today, south of the kingdom of Edom here. For I will bring the calamity of Esau upon him, the time that I will punish him. Verse 13 of Jeremiah 49. For I have sworn by myself, says the Lord, that Bosra shall become a desolation. And a little bit later on, we're going to identify Bosra. But Bosra shall become a desolation, a reproach, a waste, and a curse. And all its cities shall be perpetual wastes. Verse 16. Your fierceness has deceived you. The pride of your heart are you who dwell in the clefts of the rocks, who hold the height of the hill. Though you make your nest as high as the eagle, I will bring you down from there, says the Lord. Verse 17. Edom also shall be an astonishment. Everyone who goes by it will be astonished and will hiss at all its plagues. Verse 18. As in the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, and their neighbors, says the Lord, no one shall remain there, nor shall a son of man dwell in it. Here in Jeremiah 49, do you see some of the similarities between Jeremiah's prophecy and Obadiah's? It's another prophecy of the destruction and the fall of Esau or Edom. Moving on in verse 7 of Obadiah, let's go back to Obadiah and move on to verse 7. Here we see Edom in a confederacy, an alliance. We see that the Edomites' allies, though, will turn on them. They thought they were safe, but no, they're not going to get away with their sin. Strangely, the Edomites don't see it. They don't see it coming. Their wisdom, their cunning, and their understanding will not reveal it, as God will confound them. Obadiah, verse 7, All the men in your confederacy shall force you to the border. The men at peace with you shall suddenly deceive you and prevail against you. Those who eat your bread shall lay a trap for you, but no one is aware of it.

The Esau Edom feels very safe in its stronghold, in the mountaintops, in the clasts of the rocks, in their desert fortresses. But they're not going to see a calamity coming upon them, and even those who they thought were their friends are going to turn on them. Those who they had an alliance with will turn on them.

Now, this alliance may refer to a prophetic end-time alliance as well. Keep your finger there, but turn to Psalm 83 for a moment. Let's turn to Psalm 83, and notice the first eight verses. Because this confederacy may be the same one prophesied in Psalm 83.

It could even portend a future King of the North end-time confederacy. You see, why is it that Daniel said that the area of Jordan would escape the wrath of the King of the North? Is it because there's a confederacy? Is it because the King of the North is letting Jordan off the hook for some reason?

Look at Psalm 83, verse 1.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Some of the new stories we hear today, Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Some of the new stories we hear today about people wanting to totally destroy Israel.

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Some of the new stories we hear today about people wanting to totally destroy Israel. Of course, the big Satan and the little Satan, the little Satan being the nation of Israel today, They want that name to be heard no more. Verse 5, So who is forming this confederacy against Israel?

The tents of Edom and the Ishmaelites, Moab and the Hagrites, Gebel, Ammon and Amalek, Philistia with the inhabitants of Tyre, Assyria also is joined with them. They have helped the children of Lot. You see, there is going to be an end-time confederacy against Israel. And it's interesting to see the list of nations here that are part of that enemy of Israel. An enemy that says they want Israel to be wiped off the map. Something we read in the news today. Going back to Obadiah, verse 8, We find that that confederacy is going to be destroyed. And that Edom is going to be surprised when they suddenly find out they don't have the friends they thought they had.

They might be in confederacy with the king of the north, and escape that initial battle as the king of the north battles the king of the south. But it won't last forever. Obadiah, verse 8, Will I not in that day, says the Lord, even destroy wise men from Edom? And understanding from the mountains of Esau. Remember that area of Edom, and Esau has some very large mountain ranges.

Verse 9, Then your mighty men, O tea-men, shall be dismayed, and the end that everyone from the mountain of Esau may be cut off by slaughter. Timon was a grandson of Esau. Where we see here in verse 9, Timon being mentioned. The chief tribe of Edom was Timan. And the rocky plateaus of Persia and Turkestan, eventually became known as the land of Timani. And in Turkestan, in Central Asia, was a city called Amalek. A-M-A-L-I-K. Seemingly named after Amalek and the Amalekites. The name of Timan appears to have come down to us in the form of the name Ottoman.

That is, the Ottoman Turks. Only the vowels and spelling being changed over the centuries. And while the Turks appear to be a somewhat mixed people today, it does seem that a large number of Turks are Edomites from the tribe of Timan, or Ottoman.

And so, this leads us to the end of section 1, the ruin of Edom. The first nine verses. So, part 2, Edom's sin. Verses 10 through 14 here talk about Edom's sin. What did they do? Why is God going to utterly destroy them? Verse 10, For violence against your brother Jacob. Shame shall cover you and you shall be cut off forever. Verses 10 through 14 explain that when Israel was attacked, Edom refused to help them, acting like an enemy. What is even worse is that Edom and Israel share a common bloodline through their founders who were brothers. They were twin brothers, Jacob and Esau.

Because of this gross neglect of a close relative, Edom will be covered with shame and destroyed forever. Verse 11, In the day that you stood on the other side, in the day that strangers carried captive his forces, Jacob, when foreigners entered Jacob's gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, even you were as one of them. You cheered them on. Verse 12, But you should not have gazed on the day of your brother in the day of his captivity, nor should you have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor should you have spoken proudly in the day of distress.

This day of destruction being talked of here could have been a prophecy about the invasion of Judah by Babylon in 586 BC. Because when the Babylonians came and took the Jews captive, Edom didn't help Judah. They helped the Babylonians, in fact. But as we'll see, this can also be a prophecy of the end time. A prophecy about the King of the North overtaking the Middle East and enslaving modern-day Israelites.

The King of the North is going to come down and take over what today is Israel and Jerusalem. It's going to enter what's called the glorious land in Daniel as it comes through to fight the King of the South. And it's possible that Jordan will cheer it on. Jordan may cheer the destruction of Israel today, the modern-day Edomites. Let's turn to Ezekiel 25 for a moment. Ezekiel 25 verse 12. Ezekiel 25 verse 12, Ezekiel writes, Thus says the Lord God, Because of what Edom did against the house of Judah, By taking vengeance, and as greatly offended by avenging itself on them, Therefore says the Lord God, I will also stretch out my hand against Edom.

Cut off man and beast from it, and make it desolate from T-Man, And Dedan shall fall by the sword. Verse 14, I will lay my vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, That they may do in Edom according to my anger and according to my fury, And they shall know my vengeance, says the Lord God.

And so, because Edom cheers on the destruction of Judah, Edom is going to pay big time. Proverbs 24 verse 17 says, Do not rejoice when your enemy falls, And do not let your heart be glad when he stumbles. And a comparison of that principle with Erbadiya verses 12 through 14, Shows one of the major reasons God will be angry with Edom. In past invasions of Israel, and in past invasions of Judah, Edom has often cheered it on and even participated.

As can be seen actually in other verses of the Bible. Amos chapter 1 is another prophecy of Edom, and it's mentioned in Amos chapter 1 as well. And apparently the Edomites of the end time will continue in the same pattern as this. Cutting off the escape of Israelites, which would be mostly Jews today.

Contributing to their devastation and turning them over to the enemy. Ezekiel 35 verse 15, just turn 4-10 chapters to Ezekiel chapter 35 verse 15. Here once again Edom is chastised. Ezekiel writes, As you rejoiced, because the inheritance of the house of Israel was desolate, So I will do to you, you shall be desolate, O Mount Seir, As well as all of Edom, all of it, then they shall know that I am the Lord.

And Judah was taken captivity by the Babylonians in 586 BC, But there is also an end time fulfillment of this, by the King of the North, the Beast power of the future. Over there verse 13 now, as we will lead the last two verses of section 2. Over there verse 13, You should not have entered the gate of my people in the day of their calamity. Indeed, you should not have gazed on their affliction in the day of their calamity, Nor laid hands on their substance, stealing their stuff in the day of calamity. Verse 14, You should not have stood at the crossroads to cut off those among them who escaped, Nor should you have delivered up those among them who remained in the day of distress.

So in verse 14, we see that those Israelites were trying to escape from Jerusalem, They cut them off and stopped them at the pass, And any that were remaining, they turned them in as prisoners. And so this leads us to the end of section 2, which is Edom's sin. And the sin is the way they treated their brother Jacob. So section 3 is retribution upon Edom and the restoring of Israel. And the sub-theme is that the day of the Lord is coming. But the day of the Lord is not just coming upon Edom, but upon everyone. And this is where we start to fit into the theme here as we move forward.

Open to verse 15, For the day of the Lord upon all the nations is near. So now we're not just talking about the Middle East, we're talking about the world as a whole. The day of the Lord upon all nations is near. As you have done, it shall be done to you. Your reprisal shall return upon your own head. This now points to prophecies against Edom directly into end-time scenarios and to the day of the Lord. And we can surely see that this prophetic book is a lot more, is about a lot more, than just the fall of Judah in 586 B.C.

Open to verse 16, then. For as you drank on my holy mountain, so shall all the nations drink continually. All the nations. Yes, they shall drink and swallow, and they shall be as though they had never been. Yes, Edom will pay dearly, as will all nations that have dealt maliciously with God's people. And we understand who the descendants of ancient Israel are today. It's not just the Jews in the Middle East. It's not just the modern nation of Israel. The descendants of Jacob go far beyond the Middle East today. And God's people will be treated badly in the end-time. And so not only will Edom pay, but the nations that hurt the descendants of Israel will also pay dearly.

So this stretches beyond the Middle East now as we get to the end of the book of Obadiah. It will be particularly bad for Edom, yes. At the time of Christ's return, Obadiah tells us the land of Edom will be destroyed. And it appears from verse 18 that at that time none of the physical descendants of Esau will survive. In Jeremiah 49, verse 18, it says almost exactly the same thing. No one from Edom will survive when Christ returns during the day of the Lord.

Now notice verse 17 of Obadiah. But on Mount Zion, in God's country, there shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness. The house of Jacob shall possess their possessions. So the tables are going to turn on Edom. And the house of Jacob will possess their possessions. Verse 18, the house of Jacob shall be a fire. And the house of Joseph, and of course Joseph was a father of Ephraim and Manasseh, a flame. But the house of Esau shall be stubble. They shall kindle them and devour them. And no survivor shall remain of the house of Esau, for the Lord has spoken. Now, this does not mean, however, that none of the Edomites will ever be in the kingdom of God.

As we know, everybody will be given a chance in the Second Resurrection to have salvation offered to them in the Great White Throne Judgment. But physically, the Edomites will be destroyed until a much later time. None of them will be left. And those of us in the First Resurrection, at Christ's return, will be there to help guide those who will be raised in that Second Resurrection later. Notice verse 19. Here we see the land being redistributed again back to Joseph and to Jacob. The South shall possess the mountains of Esau, and the Lowland shall possess Phyllistia. They shall possess the fields of Ephraim and the fields of Samaria, and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.

So as you read verse 19 here, you see this outline of various tribes being restored to their land. And it's very interesting. An identification of the modern-day Palestinians becomes clearer from a careful reading of Urbadaiah verse 19. It is speaking of territories that those who control particular territories in the Holy Land will come to possess additional territories there. And in context, we can see that Israelites in this verse are retaking areas that the Edomites have stolen. Israel is getting them back. And fascinatingly, the areas listed in verse 19 as doing the taking here are areas that are today populated by Jews.

The areas being taken back, being restored to Israel, are now populated by Palestinians. Thus apparently identifying the Palestinians as Edomites, at least in large measure. You notice, as you read verse 19, the south, which is the Negev area now held by the Israelis, shall possess the mountains of Esau, the mountains of Esau, southern Jordan, and the area of Hebron today. And the West Bank area, now populated by Palestinians. And the lowland, which is the lower hills between the central hill country to the east and the coastal plains of the west, now populated by Jews today, shall possess Philistia. We read in verse 19. Most of which is now the Gaza Strip, territory now held by the Palestinians. These areas are going to be given back to Israel. And they, the Jewish lower hills inhabitants, shall possess the fields of Ephraim and the fields of Samaria. And Samaria is a northern West Bank today, now occupied by Palestinians. And it says, Benjamin, the area around Jerusalem presently held by the Israelis, shall possess Gilead. And Gilead is northern Jordan. And so you see a restoring of Esau territory back to Israel. I would just like to read a couple of things as we get close, try and leave some time for my father here in the second split sermon. An interesting quote from our own Bible reading program, the Church's Bible reading program. Edom's descendants may be found elsewhere as well, not just the Middle East, besides the Mount Seer region. Some of them appear to have become nomadic, ranging over vast areas, as early as patriarchal times. Here's what the Bible reading program explains. A text from the ancient city of Ugarit on the northern Syrian coast mentions the well-watered land of Edom. So that's up into Syria, which is evidently in some proximity. Later in the sixth century BC, Nebuchadnezzar carried many Edomites of the Mount Seer region, that were captive to Babylon and other Babylonian territories. And perhaps this is why we find the city of Basra in Iraq. Remember earlier we read about one of Edomites' descendants, Basra? Well, in Iraq today is a city called Basra. So no doubt the Edomites have expanded quite a ways out from their original territories. And so the Bible reading program says it is likely that there are still Edomites in Iraq and scattered throughout the Middle East. And during the laxity of Persian rule, Edomite wanderings appeared to have resumed. And it is also interesting, maybe surprising, to find that elements of Edom may be found in Europe. One of the prophecies is against Assyria, and Edom is mentioned with Assyria. And we believe that some Assyrians may be in Europe today, as are perhaps some Edomites. Now, the Jewish Talmud says that Edomites settled very early on in southern Italy. It is believed by many Jews that the people of Edom became dominant among the early Romans, establishing themselves as the ruling elite among them and later among the Germans. So there may be some truth to this. As Isaiah 34 and 63 described the ultimate destruction of end-time Babylon, a power block known as the end-time Roman Empire, or the King of the North, or the Beast, as the destruction of Edom and the capital of Bosra, when talking about the destruction of the Beast. So they're all kind of related there. However, the Edomites in Europe would make up a small part of the population. Let's now finish with verse 20 and 21. Verse 20 of Obadiah, And the captives of this host of the children of Israel shall possess the land of the Canaanites, as far as Zarephath. The captives of Jerusalem, who are in Sephirad, shall possess the cities of the south.

So as we've seen, Obadiah evidently concerns the Israelites retaking Palestinian territories at the return of Christ. And verse 20 then concerns the redistribution of the land to all of Israel and Judah returning from captivity. Let's turn to verse 21 here now in Obadiah, skipping over some interesting information I have about Edomites even being as far away as Spain. But anyway, moving to verse 21. Then saviors shall come to Mount Zion to judge the mountains of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the lords.

What are saviors? Saviors shall come, it says. Saviors are those who rescue from harm, those who rescue from danger and injury. Who are these saviors? Who are these deliverers who come and even judge? Describing the time of Jesus Christ's return, Daniel 7.22 says, Judgment was given to the saints of the Most High, and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom. Who are these saviors who will judge in the Middle East upon Christ's return? The saints of the Most High. Yes, God's saints, you, those who are partakers of the divine nature, will be given the privilege of playing a part in saving Israel and the rest of mankind. This is our awesome future. Right here at the end of Obadiah, we see all of the calamity upon Edom. We see Israel being restored and Edom being punished. But verse 21 talks about the saviors that will be involved, those who will be judging and helping and bringing people back. The saviors will be the saints of the Most High, as Daniel points out. And we didn't turn there right now.

I'd like to turn to a final passage in Isaiah 35 and verse 4. Isaiah 35 and verse 4. Isaiah writes, Say to those who are fearful-hearted, Be strong, do not fear. Behold, your God will come with vengeance. And we've read about that in Obadiah. Christ will come, there will be vengeance, there will be punishment on those who have done wrong. With the recompense of God, He will come and save you. See, in the end time, after the Day of the Lord, this world will be saved. And the saints will be a part of restoring God's kingdom to this earth after Satan is banished. And so, regarding the closing words of the prophecy in Obadiah, The kingdom shall be the Lord's. Finally, the kingdoms of this world shall be put down, and the kingdom shall be the Lord's. The Nelson Bible study says this about verse 21. Here's our conclusion on verse 21 from the Nelson study Bible. These were Obadiah's last words against all human arrogance, pride, and rebellion. Edom had thought itself indestructible, but the Lord humbled that nation and restored the fallen Judah, and will do so in a far greater way for Israel in the future. Many people attempted to consider themselves beyond the reach of God. But God will bring them low, just as He will lift those who humble themselves before Him. And one great day, He will establish His just rule over all. And so this leads us to the end of section 3 in Obadiah, retribution upon Edom and the restoring of Israel during the day of the Lord. It's an end time prophecy. So I hope that the chart is helpful. I like to kind of see where the kings are, where the prophets fall on the timeline. I keep this in the back of my Bible now. And then the chart shows modern day Israel compared to where Edom and Moab and Ammon were in the past. As you go through some of the prophecies in the Old Testament, it helps you figure out what the prophets were talking about. And maybe this will give you a bit more of a glimpse into how end time events will unfold in the Middle East. We haven't gone over all of the pieces of the end time puzzle, obviously. There's quite a bit here in the book of Obadiah that helps us put one more piece of the puzzle in place. Jacob and Esau come to terms. Jesus Christ will return and peace will prevail. And despite what we see happening in the Middle East today, we can know that eventually the problem will be solved. Israel will not be wiped off the map. But there will be a terrible time for them as part of end time scenarios. So hopefully these 21 verses are interesting and helpful. We don't get into the book of Obadiah very often and look at it. Yes, God's saints, glorified as divine kings and priests, will be given the privilege of playing a part in saving Israel when Christ returns. And not just saving Israel in the Middle East, but helping to restore the rest of mankind after the Day of the Lord. And so all this in Obadiah is a part of our awesome future too.