Obadiah 15–21

In verses 15–21 the prophet’s focus expands from Edom’s day of punishment to judgment on all nations on the “day of the LORD.” On that day, the Lord will repay evildoers according to their deeds (vv. 15–16). At the same time, he will provide a means of salvation for his people (v. 17a–b). Moreover, they will experience restoration from their weak and dispersed state (vv. 17c–20), led by deliverers under the kingship of the Lord (v. 21).

1. II. The Day of the Lord (vv. 15–21)
   1. A. Judgment upon All Nations (vv. 15–16)
   2. B. Deliverance on Mount Zion (v. 17a)
   3. C. Restoration of the People of God and a “New Conquest” (vv. 17b–20)
   4. D. The Rule of “Saviors” under the Kingship of the Lord (v. 21)

It is important that Obadiah’s promised restoration be understood in a proper biblical perspective. Some Christians would interpret its prophecies of a reclaimed Promised Land (vv. 17c–20) in a literal fashion, foretelling the establishment of the state of Israel in 1948. The full canon of Scripture indicates, however, that the Promised Land was a theological “type” pointing to something greater than itself. As the writer of Hebrews makes clear, Abraham faithfully obeyed the God who promised him land, looking forward to a “better country, that is, a heavenly one” (Heb. 11:16), and he sought not an earthly city but a “city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God” (Heb. 11:10). In the OT itself, the Promised Land is depicted in idyllic terms free from the effects of sin and the fall, such as illness and barrenness (e.g., Deut. 7:14–15). Such promises could truly be fulfilled only in a new heaven and earth, where death will be no more (Revelation 21–22). Thus, the defeat of evil and the promises of restoration in Obadiah 17c–20 will find their complete fulfillment when the “day of the LORD” ushers in the age to come, although in his justice and mercy the Lord causes intrusions of that day into the present age.

The certainty of judgment on all enemies who seek to harm God’s people, and the promise of the church’s ultimate restoration and renewal, provide an unshakable source of hope for the Christian, based not on wishful thinking but on the inerrant utterances of God. Paul mentions “hope” as one of the three cardinal virtues (1 Cor. 13:13), indicating its central importance to the Christian life. Despite the dire circumstances faced by God’s people in every generation, they always possess the promises of ultimate salvation.

This final section of Obadiah depicts God’s people as agents of divine destruction (Obad. 18), as Scripture does elsewhere (e.g., Ps. 149:6–9). To avoid misunderstanding or misapplying this biblical theme, it is vital to recall how Obadiah’s prophecy regarding Edom’s destruction came to fulfillment (cf. Introduction: Theology of Obadiah: Esau in Biblical Perspective). The church “destroys” or “consumes” her enemies not through violence but by winning them over to Christ: as people are “baptized into Christ” (Gal. 3:26–29), there is no longer Jew, Greek, Barbarian, Scythian, or, one might add, Edomite. While this involves a loss of one’s natural identity in one sense, an incomparably greater identity is found in Christ.

John Calvin’s prayer at the end of his commentary on Obadiah aptly sums up the message of the book:

Grant, Almighty God, that as we are so scattered in our pilgrimage in this world, that even a dreadful spectacle is presented to our eyes, when we see thy Church so miserably rent asunder, O grant, that being endued with the real power of thy Spirit, and gathered into one, we may so cultivate brotherly kindness among ourselves, that each may strive to help another, and at the same time keep our eyes fixed on Christ Jesus; and though hard contests may await us, may we yet be under his care and protection, and so exercise patience, that having finished our warfare, we may at last enjoy that blessed rest, which thou hast promised to us, and which is laid up for us in heaven, and which has also been purchased for us by the blood of Christ thy Son, one Lord. Amen.