THE BOOK OF OBADIAH - OVERVIEW ABOUT THE BOOK

• WHERE DOES IT FIT INTO THE : • It is the fourth of 12 books in the Minor Prophets of the Christian canon. • It is in the Nevi'im (Prophets) of the Tanach (the 2nd section of the Jewish canon).The Minor Prophets are in a single book, The Twelve, in the Jewish canon. • LANGUAGE: It is written in Hebrew. ABOUT THE BOOK

• WHO WAS THE BOOK WRITTEN TO: The book is an oracle addressing the 2 brother races – Edom and Israel. It prophesies the divine judgment of Edom (Esau) and the restoration of Israel (). DATE

• The date of composition is difficult to determine due to limited personal information about Obadiah. It must be determined based on the prophecy itself. • Edom is to be destroyed due to its lack of defence for its brother nation, Israel, when it was under attack. There are two major historical contexts within which the Edomites could have committed such an act. * 1. 853 – 841 BC: when was invaded by Philistines and Arabs during the reign of Jehoram of Judah (cf. 2 Kings 8:20–22) 2. 607 – 586 BC: when Jerusalem was attacked by Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon, leading to the exile of Israel to Babylon. * https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Book_of_Obadiah LATE DATE

• Those who hold to the later date see the setting being at the time of the sacking of Jerusalem (597 BC) by Nebuchadnezzar II. They believe that the Edomites had encouraged the Babylonians. • Ps 137:7 (ESV) Remember, O LORD, against the Edomites the day of Jerusalem, how they said, “Lay it bare, lay it bare, down to its foundations!” • This psalm refers to the Babylonian exile: • Ps 137:1 (ESV) By the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept, when we remembered . .Ezekiel, who prophesied at the time of the Babylonia exile, also prophesies against Edom: AUTHOR

• WHERE DID THE BOOK GET ITS NAME FROM: The book is named after the prophet Obadiah who delivers this short oracle. • AUTHOR: The author was a prophet Obadiah. • Obad 1:1 (ESV) The vision of Obadiah. Thus says the Lord… • Obadiah was a Hebrew prophet whose name means “servant or slave of Yahweh” or “worshiper of Yahweh.” • The later date makes him a contemporary of Jeremiah. AUTHOR

• The earlier date is favoured by identifying him with Obadiah, a servant of mentioned in 1 Kings 18:4 – making him an Israelite (Northern kingdom) prophet. Jewish rabbinic tradition, * the tradition of the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Churches ** hold this view. • 1 Kings 18:3-4 (NIV) and Ahab had summoned Obadiah, his palace administrator. (Obadiah was a devout believer in the Lord. While Jezebel was killing off the Lord’s prophets, Obadiah had taken a hundred prophets and hidden them in two caves, fifty in each, and had supplied them with food and water.) • As Ahab’s administrator, Obadiah would have lived in the capital of in the famous ivory palace. * Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 39b ** Pseudo-Epiphanius • In 1 Kings 18, during the famine predicted by Elijah, Ahab had sent Obadiah to scout for food to keep the horses and mules alive. He is familiar with and respects Elijah. • 1 Kings 18:7 (NIV) As Obadiah was walking along, Elijah met him. Obadiah recognized him, bowed down to the ground, and said, “Is it really you, my lord Elijah?” “Yes,” he replied. “Go tell your master, ‘Elijah is here.’ ” BROAD OUTLINE

• Obadiah, the shortest book in the OT, is only 21 verses long. • Two primary themes are in the book of Obadiah: a) 1:1-14 Condemnation for turning away from a neighbour in need (Judah), gloating over their misfortune, and helping their enemies. b) 1:15-21 Promise of punishment, both by their Gentile “allies” and later by Judah. • Overall major theme: Pride deceives a person and a nation (1:3) and “As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head.” (1:15, NIV) BROAD OUTLINE

• Obadiah's message is final, and it is sure: the kingdom of Edom will be destroyed completely. Edom has been arrogant, gloating over Israel's misfortunes, and when enemy armies attack Israel and the Israelites ask for help, the Edomites refuse and choose to fight against them, not for them. These sins of pride can be overlooked no longer. * • Obadiah suggests that the Edomites should have remembered that the Israelites were their brother race. • Obadiah 1:12 (ESV) But do not gloat over the day of your brother in the day of his misfortune; do not rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their ruin; do not boast in the day of distress. * https:// www.gotquestions.org/ Book-of-Obadiah.html BROAD OUTLINE

• When was the prophecy regarding Edom fulfilled? • If the later date is correct, the most likely fulfilment was in the 6th century BC. • Archaeological investigation showed that the country flourished between the 13th and the 8th century BC and was destroyed after a period of decline in the 6th century BC by the Babylonians. * • Ironically it was the Babylonians – who had been supported by Edom against Judah – who were the vehicle of their destruction. • Obad 1:7 (NIV) All your allies will force you to the border; your friends will deceive and overpower you; those who eat your bread will set a trap for you, but you will not detect it. * https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Edom BROAD OUTLINE

• The book ends with the promise of the fulfilment and deliverance of Zion in the Last Days when the land will be restored to God's people as he rules over them. * • Obad 1:20 (ESV) … and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad shall possess the cities of the Negeb. • NOTE: The term “Sepharad” comes from the Hebrew word for Spain.

* Ibid. PURPOSE OF WRITING

• Obadiah is a prophet of God who uses this opportunity to condemn Edom for sins against both God and Israel. The Edomites are descendants of Esau, and the Israelites are descendants of his twin brother, Jacob. A quarrel between the brothers has affected their descendants for over 1,000 years. This division caused the Edomites to forbid Israel to cross their land during the Israelites' Exodus from Egypt. Edom's sins of pride now require a strong word of judgment from the Lord. * • PRACTICAL APPLICATION: God will overcome in our behalf if we will stay true to Him. Unlike Edom, we must be willing to help others in times of need. Pride is sin. We have nothing to be proud of except Christ and what He has done for us.*

* Ibid. KEY VERSES

• Obadiah 1:4 (ESV) Though you soar aloft like the eagle, though your nest is set among the stars, from there I will bring you down, declares the LORD. • Obadiah 1:15 (ESV) For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations. As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head. THE - OVERVIEW ABOUT THE BOOK

• WHERE DID THE BOOK GET ITS NAME FROM: The book is named after the Hebrew prophet Jonah who is sent by God to prophesy the destruction of Nineveh but tries to escape the divine mission. • WHERE DOES IT FIT INTO THE BIBLE: It is found in the Nevi'im (Prophets) of the Tanach (the 2nd section of the Jewish canon) and is the fifth book among the Minor Prophets in the Christian Old Testament canon. • LANGUAGE: It is written in Hebrew. Unlike the other Prophets, the book of Jonah is almost entirely narrative, with the exception of the poem in chapter 2. The actual prophetic word against Nineveh is given only in passing through the narrative. * * https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ Book_of_Jonah AUTHOR

• :1 (ESV) Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the son of Amittai… • This lineage identifies the main character of the book with Jonah Ben-Amittai who prophesied during the reign of Jeroboam II (786–746 BC). He was a prophet from -hepher in the northern kingdom of Israel. • 2 Kings 14:25 (ESV) He (Jeroboam) restored the border of Israel from Lebo-hamath as far as the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the LORD, the God of Israel, which he spoke by his servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet, who was from Gath-hepher. AUTHOR

• CONSERVATIVE VIEW: Although the book is written in the third person, “Jonah is the author of the book, and there is no persuasive reason to theorize about an unknown author.” * • LIBERAL VIEW: An “anonymous author” who seized upon an “obscure prophet from 2 Kings and used him as the basis for the fictional character of Jonah,” although some have contended that Jonah himself “is entirely legendary.” **

* https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Jonah.html ** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Jonah DATE & AUDIENCE

• DATE: • CONSERVATIVE VIEW: Written between 793 and 758 BC. * • LIBERAL VIEW: Set in the reign of Jeroboam II but written in the post-exilic some time between the late 5th to early 4th century BC ** • WHO WAS THE BOOK WRITTEN TO: The book was initially written to the inhabitants of the northern kingdom of Israel.

* https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Jonah.html ** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Jonah BROAD OUTLINE

• JONAH FLEES HIS MISSION (CH 1–2)  Jonah’s commission and flight (1:1–3)  The endangered sailors cry to their gods (1:4–6)  Jonah’s disobedience exposed (1:7–10)  Jonah's punishment and deliverance (1:11–2:1;2:10)  His prayer of thanksgiving (2:2–9) • JONAH RELUCTANTLY FULFILS HIS MISSION (CH 3–4)  Jonah’s renewed commission and obedience (3:1–4)  The endangered Ninevites’ repentant appeal to the Lord (3:4–9)  The Ninevites’ repentance acknowledged (3:10–4:4)  Jonah’s deliverance and rebuke (4:5–11) CRITICS

• The debate over the credibility of the miracle of Jonah surviving in the belly of a whale is not simply a modern one. Around 409 AD, Augustine writes to Deogratias : • The last question proposed is concerning Jonah, and it is put as if it were not from Porphyry, but as being a standing subject of ridicule among the Pagans; for his words are: “In the next place, what are we to believe concerning Jonah, who is said to have been three days in a whale's belly? The thing is utterly improbable and incredible, that a man swallowed with his clothes on should have existed in the inside of a fish. If, however, the story is figurative, be pleased to explain it … Questions such as these I have seen discussed by Pagans amidst loud laughter, and with great scorn. * * Letter CII, Section 30 THE USUAL OBJECTIONS

1. Though it is often called a whale, in Jonah 1:17 the original Hebrew text is “dag gadol” which literally means “big fish.” • The Hebrew, as throughout scripture, refers to no species in particular. Animals were classified based on their environment: sea, sky or land: • Gen 1:28 (NIV) “… Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” • While the Greek Aristotle (384-322 BC) also differentiated between fish and whales, ** the classification of a whale as a mammal was only made by Linnaeus in the 18th century. ** “Very extensive genera of animals, into which other subdivisions fall, are the following: one, of birds; one, of fishes; and another, of cetaceans.” (“History of Animals”, Book I, Section 6) Aristotle uses the term translated as “cetaceans” to include whales, dolphins and porpoises. THE USUAL OBJECTIONS

• The translates this phrase into Greek as “ketos megas” (huge fish) but in Greek mythology the term was associated with sea monsters, including sea serpents. * 2. A whale's throat is too small to for a man's body to pass through. • The food of sperm-whales consists mainly of squid and cuttlefish, but also comprises fish of considerable size. ** • It is physically possible for a sperm whale to swallow a human whole, as they are known to swallow giant squid whole. ***

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah ** The Encyclopaedia Britannica, 13th Edition *** “Could a Whale Accidentally Swallow You? It Is Possible | Smart News | Smithsonian”. Smithsonianmag.com. 2013-02-25. Retrieved 2018-08-14. THE USUAL OBJECTIONS

3. Whales are not found in the Mediterranean waters. • Sperm whales have demonstrated the ability to swallow people and they do reside in the Mediterranean Sea. * 4. The account of the whale vomiting out Jonah is unbelievable.. • Marshall Jenkins, was swallowed by a Sperm Whale in the South Seas. The Boston Post Boy, 14 Oct 1771, reported that an Edgartown (USA) whaling vessel struck a whale, and that after the whale had bitten one of the boats in two, it took Jenkins in its mouth and went under the water with him. After returning to the surface, the whale vomited him on to the wreckage of the broken boat, “much bruised but not seriously injured.” **

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah ** Ambrose John Wilson, “The Sign of the Prophet Jonah and Its Modern Confirmations,” The Princeton Theological Review 25 (1927): pp. 636- 637. THE USUAL OBJECTIONS

5. If swallowed, the victim would quickly succumb from lack of air, or from the attack by the gastric juices of the whale upon his flesh. • The case of James Bartley (1870–1909) seems to refute this. Apparently during a whaling expedition off the Falkland Islands in 1891, Bartley's boat was attacked by a sperm whale and he ended up inside the whale's mouth. He survived the ordeal and was carved out of the stomach by his peers when they caught and began skinning the whale. It was claimed that he was in the whale for 36 hours, his skin had been bleached by the gastric juices, and that he was blind the rest of his life. He died years later and his tombstone read, “James Bartley- a modern day Jonah.” * * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Bartley THE USUAL OBJECTIONS

• However, historian Edward B. Davis has contested the historicity of the Bartley account, claiming that it had several inconsistencies. • According to Davis the ship named in the story is The Star of the East. While a British ship of that name existed and sailed during the time in which the incident allegedly occurred and could have been near the Falklands at the right time, it was not a whaling vessel and its crew list did not include a James Bartley. Moreover Mrs. John Killam, the wife of the Captain, wrote a letter stating that "there is not one word of truth in the whale story. *

* https:// en.wikipedia.org/ wiki/ James_Bartley, A Whale of a Tale: Fundamentalist Fish Stories. Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 43 (1991): 224-37 CRITICS

• Other alternative literal interpretations: • Some believers claim that God, being omnipotent, simply altered things as needed and sustained Jonah - the same as in other miraculous accounts in the Hebrew scriptures. * • Others claim that Jonah died in the belly of the whale and was then resurrected by God - since Jesus himself associated this event in Jonah's life with his own death and resurrection.

* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonah BROAD OUTLINE

• God commands Jonah to go to Nineveh to preach repentance to the people as “their wickedness is come up before me.” (1:2) Jonah does not wish to go to Nineveh to preach repentance because he considers the inhabitants to be his enemies. He attempts to run from God, probably hoping that God carry out his threat to destroy the city. So he boards a ship for Tarshish, which is in the opposite direction. • A raging storm breaks out causing the crew to cast lots and determine that Jonah is the problem. • They throw him overboard, and he is swallowed by a great fish (probably a whale). • In its belly for 3 days and 3 nights, Jonah repents of his sin to God, and the whale vomits him up on dry land.

• But the prophet is displeased instead of being thankful when Nineveh repents. • God teaches Jonah a lesson using a wind, a gourd, and a worm to show him that God is merciful and would rather have sinners repent – than face judgement and destruction.. KEY VERSES

• Jonah 1:17 (ESV) And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow up Jonah. And Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. • :2 (ESV) “I called out to the LORD, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.” • :10 (ESV) When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it. FORESHADOWINGS

• Jonah was in the belly of the whale but was delivered on the third day. Jesus himself indicated that the ordeal of Jonah was typical of his death and resurrection. – Matt 12:40 (KJV) For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale’s belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. FORESHADOWINGS

• While Jonah metaphorically declared, “out of the belly of Sheol I cried,” (2:2) Jesus literally went into the belly of Sheol. • Rom 10:7 (ESV) “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). • Jesus goes on to use the repentant Ninevites as an indictment against those in his own unbelieving generation who would not repent in the face of one who was far greater than Jonah. Jesus would fulfil his role as a type of Jonah, however his generation failed to fulfil its role as a type of Nineveh. • Matt 12:41 (NIV) “The men of Nineveh will stand up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and now something greater than Jonah is here”. PRACTICAL APPLICATION

• Judaism: it is read during the afternoon of Yom Kippur to instil reflection on God's willingness to forgive those who repent. • : We cannot hide from God. What He wishes to accomplish through us will come to pass, despite all our objections and foot-dragging … How much easier it would be if we, unlike Jonah, would submit to Him without delay! God’s love manifests itself in His accessibility to all, regardless of our reputation, nationality or race. The free offer of the Gospel is for all people in all times. Our task as Christians is to be the means by which God tells the world of the offer and to rejoice in the salvation of others. This is an experience God wants us to share with Him, not being jealous or resentful of those who come to Christ in “last-minute conversions” or who come through circumstances dissimilar to our own. * * https:// www.gotquestions.org/ Book-of-Jonah.html THE BOOK OF - OVERVIEW ABOUT THE BOOK

• WHERE DID THE BOOK GET ITS NAME FROM: The book is named after the prophet Micah who delivers this prophecy. • WHERE DOES IT FIT INTO THE BIBLE: It is found in the Nevi'im (Prophets) of the Tanach (the 2nd section of the Jewish canon) and is the sixth book of the Minor Prophets in the Christian Old Testament canon. • WHO WAS THE BOOK WRITTEN TO: The book is written to the people of the Southern . LANGUAGE & DATE

• LANGUAGE: It is written in Hebrew. • DATE: The was likely written between 735 and 700 BC. * Micah covers a period of 40 years. He prophesied during the last half of the 8th century BC, during the Southern kingdom reigns of: • Jotham (750–735), • (735–715), and • (715–686). • It is set in the Northern kingdom reigns of Pekahiah, Pekah and Hoshea: but no kings of the Northern Kingdom are mentioned.

* https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Micah.html AUTHOR

• The author was the prophet Micah (1:1), a prophet from the village of Moresheth in Judah. • His name Mikayahu means “Who is like Yahweh?” • When the Assyrians attacked Judah in 701 they did so via the Philistine coast and the Shephelah, the border region which included Micah's village of Moresheth, as well as Lachish, Judah's second largest city. This in turn forms the background to verses 1:8–16, in which Micah warns the towns of the coming disaster (Lachish is singled out for special mention, accused of the corrupt practices of both Samaria and Jerusalem). *

* https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Micah BROAD OUTLINE

• The book has 3 major divisions, chapters 1–2, 3–5 and 6–7, each introduced by the word “Hear,” with alternating announcements of doom and expressions of hope within each division. 1. WARNING MESSAGE: Judgment Is Coming (1:1 — 2:13) A. The Judge appears — 1:1–5 B. The nations are judged — 1:6–16  Judgment on Samaria — 1:6–9  Judgment on Judah — 1:10–16 C. Why judgment is coming — 2:1–11  Because of covetousness — 2:1–5  Because of false prophets — 2:6–11 D. Hope for the remnant — 2:12–13 BROAD OUTLINE

2. PROMISE MESSAGE: A Deliverer Is Coming (3:1 — 5:15) A. The sins of the leaders — 3:1–12 B. The future of the nation — 4:1–13 C. The coming of Messiah — 5:1–5 D. The defeat of the enemy — 5:6–15 3. CHALLENGE MESSAGE: Trust The Lord Now (6:1 — 7:20) A. In spite of the indictment — 6:1–8 B. In spite of the sentence — 6:9 — 7:6 C. Because of the Lord’s mercies — 7:7–20 PURPOSE OF WRITING

• Micah reproaches unjust leaders, defends the rights of the poor against the rich and powerful; while looking forward to a world at peace centred on Zion under the leadership of a new Davidic monarch. * • The message of the Book of Micah is a complex mixture of judgment and hope. On the one hand, the prophecies announce judgment upon Israel for social evils, corrupt leadership and idolatry. This judgment was expected to culminate in the destruction of Samaria and Jerusalem. On the other hand, the book proclaims not merely the restoration of the nation, but the transformation and exaltation of Israel and Jerusalem. ** • The restoration and transformation occur after judgment. * https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Book_of_Micah ** https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Micah.html FORESHADOWINGS

• :2 is a Messianic prophecy quoted when the Magi were searching for the king born in (Matthew 2:6). These kings from the East were told that from the tiny village of Bethlehem would come forth the Prince of Peace, the Light of the world. Micah’s message of sin, repentance, and restoration finds its ultimate fulfilment in Jesus Christ who is the propitiation for our sins (Romans 3:24-25) and the only way to God (John 14:6). * • Micah 5:2 (ESV) But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.

* Ibid. • The Jewish leaders quote Micah 5:2 when Herod asks where the Messiah will be born. • Matt 2:4–6 (ESV) and assembling all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Christ was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of , for so it is written by the prophet: “‘And you, O Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for from you shall come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’” • Jesus quotes Micah when he warns of families being divided by the gospel: • :6 (NKJV) For son dishonours father, Daughter rises against her mother, Daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; A man’s enemies are the men of his own household. • Matt 10:35-36 (NKJV) For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in- law against her mother-in- law’; and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ OTHER KEY VERSES

• :8 (NKJV) He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God? • Micah 7:18-19 (ESV) Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love. He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. PRACTICAL APPLICATION

• God gives warnings so we will not have to suffer His wrath. Judgment is certain if God’s warnings are not heeded and His provision for sin in the sacrifice of His Son is rejected. * • For the believer in Christ, God will discipline us—not from hate— but because He loves us. He knows that sin destroys and He wants us to be whole. This wholeness which is the promise of restoration awaits those who remain obedient to Him. *

* https://www.gotquestions.org/Book-of-Micah.html AUTHOR: Gavin Paynter  For more sermon downloads: https://agfbrakpan.com  For more sermon downloads by Gavin Paynter: https://agfbrakpan.com/free -sermon-downloads-by- speaker/Gavin%20Paynter COPYRIGHT INFORMATION  NOTE 1: Biblical illustrations by Jim Padgett, courtesy of http:// sweetpublishing.com  NOTE 2: Illustration from http:// www.freebibleimages.org  Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from the NIV: THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.  Scripture quotations taken from the NASB: New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation Used by permission. (http:// www.Lockman.org)  Scripture quotations are taken from the ESV: Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.