“You should not look down on your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of her destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble.”
~ Obadiah 12
Hi James and Ellen,
Are you paying attention to the news? Are your dad and/or ma paying attention to the news? If you are paying attention to the news, you will often hear Israel mentioned. Why do you think that Israel is so often mentioned in the news? Palestinian suicide bombers over the past numbers of years have killed guys, gals and kids who are living in Israel. Why do you think that a guy or gal would be willing to kill himself or herself while at the same time killing guys, gals and kids? God over 4000 years ago promised Abraham that his extended family would always live in the land area where Abraham was living. This land area today is Israel. Ever since God made His promise to Abraham, this strip of land called Israel has seen a lot of death from famines, sieges, wars and now from suicide bombings. Why do you think that guys are always fighting over Israel’s land area? After God promised Abraham that the land where he was living would always stay in his extended family, Abraham and Sarah had a son. Abraham and Sarah named their kid Isaac. Isaac was also told by God that the land where he was born would always be lived in by his extended family. Isaac and Rebecca had twin boys. Isaac and Rebecca named their twin kids Esau and Jacob. Esau was born seconds before Jacob was born giving Esau the right to his dad’s birthright. Getting a birthright was a big deal. Esau was to get double of what his dad had when his dad died. Esau one day came home famished after having gone on a hunting trip. Esau asked his bro Jacob to give him some of the stew that he had fixed. Jacob told Esau that he would give him some of the stew if Esau would give him the right to their dad’s birthright. Because Esau was so hungry, Esau did not care that he had the right to the birthright so . . . when Isaac was blind, old and about ready to die, Jacob – with the help of his ma Rebekah, was given the birthright blessing by his dad. When Esau found out that he did not get the birthright blessing from his dad, how do you think that Esau felt? Esau was one really upset guy. Esau left from where his dad and ma were living to live in an area of craggy, rocky cliffs that are located fifty miles or so from the Dead Sea’s southern tip. This region of rugged crags where Esau went to became known as Edom.
It is now about 1400 years later. Abraham’s extended family beginning with the descendants of Isaac and then Jacob – whose name was changed by God to Israel, are now back in the land that God had told Abraham and Isaac that their extended families would always have to live in as their very own land. This land area has been known as Canaan, Israel and Palestine. Edom became the home of guys, gals and kids who lived in caves. After the Israelite people group’s guys and gals became unfaithful to God when they stopped obeying the laws that God had given His specially chosen guys and gals to obey, God prepared an enemy to go against His specially chosen guys and gals to teach them a lesson. The lesson that God wanted to teach His specially chosen guys and gals was that if they were not always obedient to Him that . . . the guys who lived in Edom’s land area became mightier and mightier while God’s specially chosen guys became weaker and weaker. The guys and gals who lived in Edom’s land area had a special dislike or hate for God’s specially chosen guys and gals. The guys and gals who lived in Edom’s land area knew the story of what had taken place between Esau and Jacob. The guys and gals who lived in Edom’s land area probably had internalized that they had been robbed of being able to live in a land area where about anything would grow because of Jacob having tricked Esau out of the family birthright. The guys, gals and kids who lived in Edom’s land area, had to live like eagles or goats because where they lived had high, steep cliffs that were difficult to climb.
When the guys who were living in Edom’s land area saw that the guys who were living in Judah’s land area were getting weaker, Edom’s guys began to make noises about . . . Jeremiah at this time was telling God’s specially chosen guys and gals who were living in Judah’s land area to turn back to worshipping God or . . . your grandpaa believes that there was another prophet living at this time. This prophet’s name is Obadiah. Obadiah had a vision that became a one chapter book in the Old Testament. Obadiah’s vision from God was a warning that Obadiah was to pass on to the guys and gals who were living in Edom. When your grandpaa was living in Bolivia, your grandmaa and grandpaa implemented a rural resident leadership training center in Concepción, Ñuflo de Chávez. The training center’s program was taught in thirteen week trimesters with a month break between each trimester for the students to go back to their homes. When the classes began the first of each year, your grandpaa would give to the incoming Bible training center students a Bible knowledge quiz. The Bible knowledge quiz that your grandpaa would give had 120 questions. Your grandpaa wanted to know how well each guy knew the Bible. Your grandpaa also gave a Bible comprehension quiz at this same time. Your grandpaa used the Obadiah Book for this comprehension quiz. Your grandpaa would give the new training center students ten minutes to read Obadiah. Once the ten minutes were up, your grandpaa would ask the training center students to answer ten questions about Obadiah’s vision. Your grandpaa wanted to know how well the training center students could remember what they had just read. Whose side do you think that God wants guys and gals to be on when it affects His specially chosen guys and gals – The Israelite people group’s guys and gals. Obadiah wrote in verse 12 what God told him in his vision “You should not look down on your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of her destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble.” If you always stay on Israel’s side, you will always be on God’s side.
Obadiah (263)