Reflection on Obadiah

The book of Obadiah expresses the wonderful observation that God will go to great extents to protect and defend his people. Because of their violence done to Jacob, Edom would receive the punishment of God. God would call shame down upon them and cut them off forever. It goes further. The passage warns that Edom shall not even gloat over the Day of the Lord falling on Jerusalem. Obadiah proclaims at the end of the book that the remnant would once again rule over Edom.

This oracle provides me hope on two fronts. First, Yahweh will defend his church. As the church is maligned and persecuted, Yahweh will keep a record of the abuses against his church and judge the nations for those abuses. Matthew 5 makes clear that the church is blessed when it is persecuted. I look at events such as the hurricane relief after Katrina. The church responded. Government did not. The media completely ignores this fact, rather it maligns the church. Yahweh will not allow these events to go unnoticed.

Second, this message makes me hopeful for our nation. Judgment on a nation falls on the nation in proportion to its abuse of other nations. Edom had plundered and not helped Judah in its day of judgment. How does America fare on this front? The fifth verse of the Battle Hymn of the Republic reads as follows:

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in His bosom that transfigures you and me:
As He died to make men holy, let us live to make men free;
[originally …let us die to make men free]
While God is marching on.
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Hallelujah! While God is marching on.

What other nation has ever had a motto like this? What other nation has ever used its military to liberate rather than conquer another nation? America is not perfect by any means, but it is helpful to reflect on history. World War I and II were conflicts over seas to combat totalitarianism. When our military goes to the middle east, it builds schools and infrastructure. It sets up independent free governments for the people. No other nation can make such claims. I don’t know what Yahweh has in store for this nation, but we must remember our heritage and continue to communicate God’s desire to bless the nations.

We must remember that on of the church's primary purposes is to bless the nations. We must also remember our heritage. This message must be communicated in our church and in our nation.