Nothing is known of the author, although his prophecy against edom, a neighbor and rival of israel, indicates a date of composition sometime after the babylonian destruction of jerusalem in 587 b. This works ended up being a thick work for a part of the bible thats only 21 verses. We do not know anything of the books author but his name obadiah servant or worshipper of jehovah. Book of obadiah overview insight for living ministries. However it is quoted in several places by the prophet joel and jeremiah. We do not know anything of the book s author but his name obadiah servant or worshipper of jehovah. In judaism and christianity, its authorship is attributed to a prophet who lived in. The people from edom were relatives of the people from israel. Obadiah niv obadiahs vision the vision of bible gateway. Obadiah is a biblical theophorical name, meaning servant or slave of. They debate its author and date of composition, and they point to the striking similarity between passages in obadiah and jeremiah to question whether obadiah. Obadiah, the shortest book in the old testament, is only 21 verses long. In latin it is translated as abdias while in arabic it is. Arise yee, and let vs rise vp against her in battell.
This obadiah is in the time of king ahab and elijah is not the same obadiah the prophet that wrote the book named after him. The book is named after the prophet who received the vision 1. The book consists of a single chapter that is divided into 21 verses. Dating the book of obadiah accurately is nearly impossible due to the scant historical information contained in the book. The author holds to the unity of the book of obadiah which might seem somewhat unusual to run across something like this for this bible commentary series, which dabble so heavily on historical critical method. The smallest old testament account, the book of obadiah is a vision written by the lords prophet known as obadiah, who prophesied against israels relative nation edom. Obadiah is a little book, but it is an example of an atomic bomb in the bible. The holy bible book 31 obadiah kjv dramatized audio. So obadiah is just a prophet who wrote one of the great prophecies of the scripture.
The date of his ministry is unclear due to certain historical ambiguities in the book bearing his name, but is believed to be around. The shortest book in the old testament and among all the writing prophets, obadiah provides an overview of the message presented in each of the writing prophets. The book of obadiah is the only one chapter book in the old testament. The only time markers we have in the book are the attack against jerusalem obadiah 1. Study scripture verses and use highlighting, underlining, and take notes in the bible. There are obadiahs in the old testament, and one of these may the obadiah who wrote this book. The book of obadiah introduction to the book of obadiah in the bible. Point of note this is one of the 7 old testament books that are not quoted in the nt. This is what the sovereign lord says about edomwe have heard a message from the lord. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins.
The book of obadiah obadiah chapter 1 from the original 1611 kjv king james bible. Obadiah is the shortest book in the ot and is not quoted in the nt. The metaphor drinking the cup of gods wrath occurs often in the bible. Obadiah announces edoms downfall to babylon, which is an image of how. Summary of the book of obadiah the story of the bible.
The text consists of a single chapter, divided into 21 verses, making it the shortest book in the hebrew bible. Its authorship is difficult to date but was possibly written about 853841 b. Book of obadiah, also spelled abdias, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, in the jewish canon treated as one book, the twelve. May 07, 2016 watch our overview video on the book of obadiah, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought. Obadiah, with only one chapter consisting of 21 verses, is the shortest of all old testament books and purports to be a record of the vision of. While several options have been proposed by scholars, the best argument places obadiah in the 840s bc, making him the earliest writing prophet, a few years prior to joel, and a contemporary of elisha. Author and date nothing is known for certain about the author. Study guide for obadiah by david guzik blue letter bible. Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins against both god and israel. This fact makes it difficult to date the time of writing. Some have thought that this is the same obadiah that was ahabs steward in 2 chronicles 17. Edoms pride and downfall is disclosed in the book of. This was created to assess how well you know the book. Watch our overview video on the book of obadiah, which breaks down the literary design of the book and its flow of thought.
The book is named after the prophet who received the vision. This is, in my opinion, the best and most beautiful. Introduction the author the author of the book is named obadiah which means servant of yahweh. This is the holy book of obadiah, known simply as obadiah.
Obadiahs prophecies, haughty edom to be brought low for violence against jacob. We have heard a rumour from the lord, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle. An envoy was sent to the nations to say,rise, let us. This was one of the most common names in the hebrew bible. Obadiah s name, meaning worshipper of yahweh, offers an interesting counterpoint to the message of judgment he pronounced on edom, judahs neighbor to the southeast. An envoy was sent to the nations to say, rise, let us go against her for battle.
Obadiah is a prophet of god who uses this opportunity to condemn edom for sins against both. The nwt study bible is complete with cross references, maps, and an accurate bible dictionary. We have heard news from yahweh, and an ambassador is sent among the nations, saying, arise, and lets rise up against her in. The canonical book of obadiah, a book in the christian old testament, is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration of israel. Welcome to the study of the shortest book in the word. Obadiah, book of international standard bible encyclopedia. Obadiah means servant of the lord or one who serves shortest book in the old testament. Obadiah 1, new international version niv the bible app.
Therefore, while twelve other men named obadiah appear in scripture, old testament scholars cannot identify with certainty any of them as the author of this book. This is the vision that the sovereign lord revealed to obadiah concerning the land of edom. The smallest old testament account, the book of obadiah is a vision written by the lords prophet known as obadiah, who. There is no additional information about this prophet, even though the name obadiah is frequently found in the old testament, identifying at least a dozen different persons. An envoy was sent to the nations to say, rise, let us go against her for. The book of obadiah was likely written between 848 and 840 b. The authors name is obadiah, which means servant or worshiper of the lord. Obadiah is viewed throughout christianity as an old testament minor prophet who wrote the book of obadiah. Go and present yourself to ahab, and i will send rain on the land. Gods judgment on the unbelieving gentiles who opposed god. The purpose of obadiah is to show that god will judge all those who are against his children, his chosen people.
Obadiah king ahabs servant hid one hundred prophets. The hebrew name obadiah means worshipper of yahweh or servant of yahweh. It is comprised of a single oracle, spoken by a prophet of that name. Obadiah means servant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the old testament, referring to many other old testament individuals. An easyenglish bible version and commentary 2800 word vocabulary on the book of obadiah. This book of the bible consists of one chapter, concerning edom, its impending doom, and the restoration of israel. This book, the shortest among the twelve minor prophets, is a single. The edomites are descendants of esau and the israelites are descendants of his twin brother, jacob.
Book of obadiah, the fourth of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets, in the jewish canon treated as one book, the twelve. This summary of the book of obadiah provides information about the title, authors, date of writing, chronology, theme, theology, outline, a brief overview, and the chapters of the book of obadiah. The book of obadiah meditative bible readings youtube. As brief as this book is, scholars raise many questions about it. Obadiah verse 1 identifies the author of the book of obadiah as the prophet obadiah. The book of the prophet obadiah is the shortest book of the ot with 21 verses only. Obadiah is the shortest book in the old testament and is not quoted in the new testament. Obadiah meansservant of the lord and occurs 20 times in the ot, referring to at least 20 other ot individuals. The book of obadiah is an oracle concerning the divine judgment of edom and the restoration of israel. Wee haue heard a rumour from the lord, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen. A word list at the end explains words with a star by them. But the inhabitants of edom refused to help when the people from israel suffered.
Pusey said, god has willed that his name alone and this brief prophecy should be known to the world. Edoms pride and downfall is disclosed in the book of obadiah. This is the central message of the bible so clearly presented in the little book penned by an ancient prophet named obadiah. The translated bible text has been through advanced checking. Obadiah niv obadiah s vision the vision of bible gateway obadiah s vision the vision of obadiah. Obadiah, with only one chapter consisting of 21 verses, is the shortest of all old testament books and purports to be a record of the vision of obadiah. The book of obadiah is a book of prophetic oracles. Consequent upon the overthrow of edom is the enlargement of the borders of judah and the establishment of the kingship of yahweh. This is what the sovereign lord says about edom we have heard a message from the lord. This book, the shortest among the twelve minor prophets, is a single twentyoneverse oracle against edom. The recording is dramatized, from the king james bible. Obadiah has the dubious distinction of being the shortest book in the old testament.
Gods judgment on the unbelieving gentiles who opposed gods chosen people israel, and gods grace and ultimate deliverance of the believing israel. Obadiah announces edoms downfall to babylon, which is an image of how god will bring down all arrogant and violent nations. More than ten persons of the ot bear the same name but none of them is identical with the prophet. Obadiah 1, new living translation nlt the bible app.