Obadiah 18

Now that the prophecy about Edom has been delivered, Obadiah turns to his own people and announces three divine promises.

God will deliver you (vv. 17–18). God did deliver His people from Babylonian captivity, and He will again deliver them in the last days and establish His kingdom. Mount Zion will be consecrated to the Lord and all defilement removed. “Jacob” refers to the southern kingdom and “Joseph” the northern kingdom. They will be united into one nation and enter the messianic mingdom together, possessing the inheritance promised to them. It appears from Isaiah 11:10–16, a parallel passage, that Moab and Edom will be restored as nations in the last days, but the Jews will burn them as stubble. (See Ex. 15:7; Isa. 10:17; and Matt. 3: for parallels.)

God will defeat your enemies (vv. 19–20). Israel will reclaim the land formerly inhabited by the Edomites (the Negev), the Philistines (the Shephelah), and the Samaritans (Ephraim). The Jews have been struggling to possess their inheritance for centuries, but other powers have always stood in the way. The Jews will “possess their possessions” without the help of any nation, but only through the help of the Lord their God. Israel has returned to their land in unbelief, and the nation was established in 1948. However, one day they shall see their Messiah and believe on Him, and the nation will be “born in a day” (Isa. 66:8; Zech. 12:10–13:1; 14:1–9).

God will establish the kingdom (v. 21). The Lord will reign from Mount Zion, where His temple will stand, “and all the nations will stream to it” (Isa. 2: nasb). It’s interesting to note that King Messiah will have “deliverers” (“saviors” kjv) assist Him in His rule over the nations. This fact should be studied with reference to our Lord’s promises to His apostles (Matt. 19:27–30) and those who are faithful to Him today (24:42–51; 25:14–30; Luke 19:11–27). Jesus teaches that faithfulness to Him today will mean reigning with Him in the kingdom.

All of God’s children look forward to the day when the kingdoms of this world will become the kingdom of our Lord, and He shall reign forever and ever (Rev. 11:15). Then every knee shall bow to Him and every tongue confess that He is Lord of all.

J O N A HMeanwhile, God’s people must do all they can to get the gospel out to the billions of people in this world who have never had the opportunity to hear the name of Jesus or learn how to trust Him and be saved. When the great and terrible day of the Lord dawns, the nations of the world will be judged for the way they have treated one another and the nation of Israel. Until that day dawns, God’s church must keep praying “Thy kingdom come” and seek to obey His command to take the gospel to the whole world.

Jonah in His Time Those who consider the Book of Jonah an allegory or a parable should note that 2 Kings 14: identifies Jonah as a real person, a Jewish prophet from Gath Hepher in Zebulun who ministered in the northern kingdom of Israel during the reign of Jeroboam II (793–753 BC). They should also note that our Lord considered Jonah a historic person and pointed to him as a type of His own death, burial, and resurrection (Matt. 12:42; Luke 11:32).

The reign of Jeroboam II was a time of great prosperity in Israel; the nation regained lost territory and expanded both its boundaries and influence. But it was a time of moral and spiritual decay as the nation rapidly moved away from God and into idolatry. Jonah’s contemporaries, Hosea and Amos, both courageously denounced the wickedness of the rulers, priests, and people. It’s worth noting that Hosea and Amos also showed God’s concern for other nations, which is one of the major themes of Jonah.

While Jonah had a ministry to Nineveh, a leading city in Assyria, he also had a ministry to Israel through this little book. He discovered God’s compassion for those outside Israel, even those who were their enemies. God had called His people to be a blessing to the Gentiles (Gen. 12:1–3), but, like Jonah, the Jews refused to obey. And, like Jonah, they had to be disciplined; for Assyria would conquer Israel and Babylon would take Judah into captivity. Jonah’s book magnifies the sovereignty of God as well as the love and mercy of God. Jehovah is the “God of the second chance,” even for rebellious prophets.