Mic 3:1

THEN I SAID: This second oracle begins like the first and third ones, with a summons to hear the prophet’s message (cp Mic 1:2; 6:1). The initial “And I said” ties this oracle to the preceding one and provides continuity.

LISTEN, YOU LEADERS OF JACOB, YOU RULERS OF THE HOUSE OF ISRAEL: Again, Jacob and Israel are synonyms for all 12 tribes (cp Mic 1:5; etc).

SHOULD YOU NOT KNOW JUSTICE?: Micah asked rhetorically if it was not proper for Israel’s rulers to practice justice (fairness, equity). It was not only proper, but it was essential.

Mic 3:2

YOU WHO HATE GOOD AND LOVE EVIL: Yet these rulers had stood justice on its head. They hated good and loved evil (cp Pro 8:13; Isa 1:16,17; Amos 5:15).

Mic 3:3

This graphically describes the rulers’ abuse of their victims for their own selfish ends. The figure is of a hunter, and the implication is that the rulers regarded and treated the ordinary citizens as mere animals rather than as human beings. The rich stripped the poor of their money and property and oppressed them unmercifully (cp Zep 3:3).

Mic 3:4

THEY WILL CRY OUT TO THE LORD, BUT HE WILL NOT ANSWER THEM: Because these rulers had turned deaf ears to the pleas of orphans and widows, they would eventually cry out to Yahweh in prayer asking Him for help. But He would not answer them (cp Psa 27:7-9; Pro 21:13; Jer 7:12-15).

AT THAT TIME HE WILL HIDE HIS FACE FROM THEM BECAUSE OF THE EVIL THEY HAVE DONE: When God chooses not to listen to cries for help from His people, it is because their behavior has alienated them from Him: cp Psa 18:41; Pro 1:28; Isa 1:15.

Mic 3:5

AS FOR THE PROPHETS WHO LEAD MY PEOPLE ASTRAY, IF ONE FEEDS THEM, THEY PROCLAIM ‘PEACE’; IF HE DOES NOT, THEY PREPARE TO WAGE WAR AGAINST HIM: The Lord also had a message concerning the false prophets who were misleading His people. The false prophets gave blessings to those who paid them, but people who did not give them anything received curses of doom and gloom (cp Lam 2:14; Jer 6:14). Self-interest motivated these prophets rather than the fear of the Lord (cp 2Ti 4:3).

“It was an ancient and respectable practice for a prophet to accept payment for services rendered to his clients. After all, as Jesus affirmed, ‘the worker is entitled to his wages’ (Luke 10:7). But with so apparently subjective a craft as prophecy there was ever a temptation. Why not make the message match the customer’s pocket?” (Allen).

Even today some “ministers” favor those who treat them well and neglect, or worse, those who do not.

Mic 3:6

THE SUN WILL SET FOR THE PROPHETS, AND THE DAY WILL GO DARK FOR THEM: Because of such abuses as described in v 5, the true prophets of Yahweh foretold a long spiritual “darkness”, or “drought” — a night or famine for the word through the prophets: cp Amos 8:11,12. This was true from Malachi until the revival under the time of John the Baptist.

Mic 3:7

THE SEERS WILL BE ASHAMED AND THE DIVINERS DISGRACED: The title “seer” is an old one describing a prophet (1Sa 9:9), but “diviners” sought knowledge of the future through illegitimate means and were outlawed in Israel (cp Deu 18:10). Thus these two titles were derogatory terms for the false prophets.

THEY WILL COVER THEIR FACES BECAUSE THERE IS NO ANSWER FROM GOD: Seers and diviners would suffer embarrassment because they would not be able to come up with any word from the Lord when the people asked for it. Covering the face was a sign of mourning (cp Lev 13:45; Eze 24:17,22).

Mic 3:8

BUT AS FOR ME, I AM FILLED WITH POWER, WITH THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD: In contrast to the false prophets who were full of greed (cp Acts 5:3), Micah claimed to be inspired by Yahweh, being full of spiritual power as a result of God’s Spirit.

AND WITH JUSTICE AND MIGHT, TO DECLARE TO JACOB HIS TRANSGRESSION, TO ISRAEL HIS SIN: Justice marked his pronouncements (cp vv 1-3,5) and courage his ministry (cp vv 4,6,7; cp Acts 4:13). He did not tailor his prophecies to his pay, or fear what people might withhold from him if his message was negative (cp 1Th 2:2-6). His ministry was to declare the sins of the Israelites (as well as their future hope), and he fulfilled it faithfully and boldly.

Mic 3:10

WHO BUILD ZION WITH BLOODSHED, AND JERUSALEM WITH WICKEDNESS: Micah further described his audience of leaders as those who built Zion or Jerusalem by sacrificing the lives of innocent people. That is, they built up their own little spiritual “kingdoms” and not God’s kingdom — their own niches of comfort and ease and wealth, with no regard for the spiritual welfare of their “sheep”!

How much this sounds like the lives of the “shepherds” of the organized Church, down through the ages!

Mic 3:11

HER LEADERS JUDGE FOR A BRIBE, HER PRIESTS TEACH FOR A PRICE, AND HER PROPHETS TELL FORTUNES FOR MONEY: The judges gave favorable verdicts to those who bribed them (cp Exo 23:8; Deu 27:25), and the priests only taught those who would pay them. The prophets likewise only prophesied for a price (cp Deu 16:19).

YET THEY LEAN UPON THE LORD AND SAY, “IS NOT THE LORD AMONG US? NO DISASTER WILL COME UPON US”: Yet they all claimed to trust in the Lord and encouraged themselves with the false hope that since Yahweh was among them He would allow no evil to overtake them (cp Psa 46:4,5; Jer 7:4).

Mic 3:12

ZION WILL BE PLOWED LIKE A FIELD, JERUSALEM WILL BECOME A HEAP OF RUBBLE, THE TEMPLE HILL A MOUND OVERGROWN WITH THICKETS: Micah announced a wholly different future for the Israelites. God would plow up (overthrow) Jerusalem like a field and tear down its buildings until they were only ruins (cp Mic 1:5,6). Even the temple mount, the most holy place in all Israel, would become like a hilltop in a forest, overgrown and neglected.

Jeremiah, who lived a century later, quoted this portion of Micah’s prophecy to assure the Jerusalemites of his day that the doom of their city was certain (Jer 26:18). Jeremiah prefaced this quotation with, “Thus the LORD of hosts has said.” He viewed Micah’s prophecy as inspired of God (cp 2Ti 3:16).

“Micah’s words, remembered for their shocking severity a hundred years later, deserve to be taken to heart by each generation of God’s people. They challenge every attempt to misuse the service of God for one’s own glory and profit. They are a dire warning against the complacency that can take God’s love and reject his lordship. They are a passionate plea for consistency between creed and conduct. The LORD is content with nothing less” (Allen).

These words were spoken to Hezekiah (Jer 26:18). This is an example of a very specific prophecy which was NOT fulfilled — the delay was brought about by the repentance of the king. Cp Jonah’s prophecy against Nineveh, which was turned aside by their repentance.

Time: 735 – 700 BC.

Summary: Micah was contemporary with Isaiah and was to the southern kingdom of Judah what Amos was previously to the northern kingdom of Israel. Both were fierce critics of the rich and powerful who exploited the poor. Micah’s leading ideas are the regeneration of Israel’s remnant through judgment, the establishment of the kingdom of God in the line of David, and the conversion of the nations through that kingdom. The conclusion of his prophecy is a triumphant expression of faith, seen in its true quality against the background of the materialism and the corruption of the reign of Ahaz.

“Micah’s message is proclaimed with no uncertain sound, as with passionate forthrightness he attacks the social evils of his day. His stubborn refusal to float on the tide of his social environment, and his courageous stand for his convictions of God’s truth, must commend Micah to believers in every age” (Allen).

Key verses: “In the last days the mountain of the Lord’s temple will be established as chief among the mountains; it will be raised above the hills, and peoples will stream to it” (Mic 4:1)

Outline

1. Judgment against Israel and Judah: Mic 1:1 — 3:12

a) Introduction: Mic 1:1-2 b) Predicted destruction: Mic 1:3-7 c) Lamentation for the destruction: Mic 1:8-16 d) Corruption in Micah’s society: Mic 2:1-11 e) Hope in the midst of gloom: Mic 2:12-13 f) The leaders condemned: Mic 3:1-12

2. Hope for Israel and Judah: Mic 4:1 — 5:15

a) The coming Kingdom: Mic 4:1 — 5:1 b) The coming king: Mic 5:2-15

3. The Lord’s case against Israel: Mic 6:1-16

a) The Lord’s accusation: Mic 6:1-8 b) The coming judgement: Mic 6:9-16

4. Gloom turns to triumph: Mic 7:1-20

a) Micah laments the corruption of his society: Mic 7:1-7 b) A bright future for God’s people: Mic 7:8-20

---

Jon 3:1

THEN THE WORD OF THE LORD CAME TO JONAH A SECOND TIME: The writer did not clarify exactly when this second commission came to Jonah. It may have been immediately after Jonah reached dry land or it may have been sometime later. God does not always give His servants a second chance to obey Him when they refuse to do so initially.

Jon 3:2

GO TO THE GREAT CITY OF NINEVEH: Which was about 600 miles to the northeast. Roland de Vaux — noted archaeologist — has estimated that Israel’s largest city, Samaria, had a population of about 30,000 at this time. Nineveh was at least four times larger (Jon 4:11).

Jon 3:3

A VERY IMPORTANT CITY: “There is a lovely double entendre about the description given here of Nineveh as ‘an exceeding great city’, for literally this is: ‘a city great unto God’ (an example of the occasional use of Elohim to emphasize the extraordinary, eg 1Sa 14:15; Acts 7: 20; Gen 23: 6)” (WJon).

A VISIT REQUIRED THREE DAYS: Nineveh was an important administrative center. Based on an old Bedouin custom: one must spend a minimum of 3 days and 2 nights when visiting such a city — one day to arrive (when no business can be transacted), at least one day for business, and one day to depart (also, when no business can be transacted).

“All kinds of guesses have been made about the description of Nineveh as ‘a city of three days’ journey’. Three days to cross it? Three days to go all round it? But since Jonah ‘began to enter into the city a day’s journey’, this might suggest that he needed a full day in each of the three great subdivisions of the city” (WJon).

Jon 3:4

ON THE FIRST DAY: That is, Jonah did not bother to observe social custom (see v 3n): he began his “business” the very day of his arrival.

FORTY MORE DAYS: Christ was “sign of Jonah” to a wicked and adulterous generation. After 40 years Jerusalem would be overthrown.

Periods of testing in Scripture were often 40 days long (cf Gen 7:17; Exo 24:18; 1Ki 19:8; Mat 4:2.

NINEVEH WILL BE OVERTURNED: The same Heb word (“haphak”, overthrown, destroyed) describes the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Gen 19:25. Possibly Jonah expected God to destroy Nineveh as He had overthrown Sodom and Gomorrah.

Jon 3:5

THE NINEVITES BELIEVED GOD. THEY DECLARED A FAST, AND ALL OF THEM, FROM THE GREATEST TO THE LEAST, PUT ON SACKCLOTH: “The people believed in God because of the message from God that Jonah had brought to them. Fasting and wearing sackcloth were signs of self-affliction that reflected an attitude of humility in the ANE (cf 2Sa 3:31,35; Isa 58:5; Dan 9:3). Sackcloth was what the poor and the slaves customarily wore. Thus wearing it depicted that the entire population viewed themselves as needy (of God’s mercy in this case) and slaves (of God in this case). This attitude and these actions marked all levels of the city’s population (ie, the chronologically old and young, and the socially high and low).

“Some commentators believe that two plagues that had ravaged Nineveh in 765 and 759 BC plus a total eclipse of the sun on June 15, 763 prepared the Ninevites for Jonah’s message (Hannah). The Ninevites may have viewed these phenomena as indications of divine anger… Some commentators have attributed the repentance of the Ninevites at least partially to Jonah’s previous experience in the great fish’s stomach. They base this on Jesus’ statement that Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites (Luke 11:30). They note that the Ninevites worshipped Dagon, which — according to some — was part man and part fish (Feinberg). They have also pointed out that the Assyrian fish goddess, Nosh, was the chief deity in Nineveh. Some of them have argued that Jonah came to the city as one sent by Nosh to proclaim the true God. However, the text of Jonah attributes the repentance of the Ninevites primarily to the message that God had given Jonah to proclaim. Whatever the Ninevites may have known about Jonah’s encounter with the fish, the text gives the credit to the word of the Lord, not to Jonah’s personal background” (Const).

“The transformation that took place was breathtaking in its magnitude and comprehensive character. But it is not unlikely that the impact of the message of such an extraordinary man as Jonah would be reinforced by the considerable reputation of those other notable prophets of the Lord, Elijah and Elisha. It may be, too, that Jonah’s campaign went on for all the forty day period which was Nineveh’s time of grace. However it happened, the transformation in those Ninevites far surpassed the effect produced by John the Baptist in Jewry, and of all the prophets there was none greater than he (Mat 11: 11). And after John the Baptist, Jesus was to hold up to the same people the example of this city’s repentance: ‘The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here’ (Mat 12: 41). The message of John was: ‘Yet forty YEARS and Jerusalem shall be overthrown!’ (AD 30-70). Those Ninevites changed their lives so dramatically because they were led by the good example of their ruler. What a lesson was held out here to Judah and Israel, with their sequence, rarely interrupted, of unworthy kings, so often downright wicked. The narrative here is careful to specify ‘the high and the low’, appropriately reversing the phrase: ‘both small and great’ (Jer 31: 34), this latter form being more usual because God has greater regard for the humble than for the proud” (WJon).

“God delights to do the impossible, and never more so than in turning men to Himself. Instead, then, of denying on the grounds of its ‘human’ impossibility the repentance that swept over Nineveh, let us see it as an evidence of divine power. For this, not the episode of the sea monster, is the greatest miracle in the book” (Gaebelein).

Jon 3:6

WHEN THE NEWS REACHED THE KING OF NINEVEH, HE ROSE FROM HIS THRONE, TOOK OFF HIS ROYAL ROBES, COVERED HIMSELF WITH SACKCLOTH AND SAT DOWN IN THE DUST: “There is something affecting in the picture of this Oriental monarch so swiftly casting aside such gorgeous robes and taking the place of the penitent. He had the virtue of not holding back in his approach to God” (Gaebelein).

Jon 3:7

DO NOT LET ANY MAN OR BEAST, HERD OR FLOCK, TASTE ANYTHING…: Not that the animals were regarded as capable of repentance, but that their treatment and actions reflected the spirit of their owners.

Jon 3:8

LET THEM GIVE UP THEIR EVIL WAYS AND THEIR VIOLENCE: “Clearly the Ninevites connected the impending judgment with their own conduct. They felt that by abandoning their wickedness they could obtain some mercy from God. The Heb word translated ‘violence’ (‘hamas’) refers to the overbearing attitude and conduct of someone who has attained power over others and misuses it (cf Gen 16:5). Assyrian soldiers were physically violent (Nah 3:1,3,4; cf 2Ki 18:33-35), but so were the Chaldeans (Hab 1:9; 2:8,17) and others who because of conquest could dominate others. Discrimination against minorities because they are less powerful manifests this sin. We must not forget the violence of our own times and society.

” ‘Violence, the arbitrary infringements of human rights, is a term that occurs in the OT prophets especially in connection with cities: urban conglomeration encourages scrambling over others, like caterpillars in a jar’ (Allen).

“This reference to violence recalls Gen 6:11,13. God had previously destroyed the world in Noah’s day because it was so violent. Now Jonah became the bearer of a message of judgment on another violent civilization” (Const).

Jon 3:9

WHO KNOWS? GOD MAY YET RELENT…: “Who can tell? Nearly two hundred years later Jeremiah could tell: ‘If that nation, against whom I have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent of the evil that I thought to do unto them’ (Jer 18:8). The words are almost a direct quotation of Jon 3:10.

“This problem of God’s ‘change of mind’ meets the reader of Holy Scripture not only here but in a variety of other situations… Clearly there is a paradox involved here. If God is omniscient and knows the end from the beginning — a timeless God — how is it possible for Him ‘to repent’ or ‘change His mind’? There are more examples of this than is commonly realised. Here are a few, to be going on with: Num 14:30-34; Acts 7:25 (cp RV) and Deu 9:24; 1Ki 20:42; 21:19,21; Isa 38:1 (Hezekiah did not die!); 2Sa 24:15,16 (plague stopped on first day!); Gen 2:17 (Adam and Eve did NOT die on that day!)…

“It is agreed that the concept of a God who ‘repents’ or ‘changes His purpose’ is one not readily acceded to by a mere human mind. But then, ‘ My ways are not your ways, neither are your thoughts My thoughts, saith the Lord’ (lsa 55:8). Then ought we not to stop trying to reconcile seeming contradictions in the ways of God? If Holy Scripture repeatedly talks about a God at work in this strange fashion, is it not because He wants His creatures to think of Him in this way? ‘You small beings can no more understand those things than you can understand or even guess at the processes behind Creation in Gen 1. What you are being told in the Word of Truth is what is best for you to believe, whether you can understand or reconcile or not’.

“The sheet anchor is Jer 18:6-10. It is a Scripture to be believed, not explained away” (WJon).

Jon 3:10

HE… DID NOT BRING UPON THEM THE DESTRUCTION HE HAD THREATENED: Indeed, Nineveh did not experience overthrow until 612 BC, about 150 years later.

Jon 4:1

JONAH WAS GREATLY DISPLEASED AND BECAME ANGRY: Do we work for the repentance of “Nineveh”, or do we only hope and wait for its destruction?

This is the first clue since Jonah repented and went to Nineveh that his heart was still not completely right with God. One can do the will of God without doing it with the right attitude, and that is the focus of the remainder of the book. The repentance and good deeds of the Ninevites pleased God, but they displeased His representative. They made God happy, but they made Jonah angry.

“Jonah finds that the time-fuse does not work on the prophetic bomb he planted in Nineveh” (Allen). If Jonah was aware of Hosea and Amos’ prophecies, he would have known that Assyria would eventually invade and defeat Israel (Hos 11:5; Amos 5:27) — and for this reason alone would want to see the Assyrians punished or even destroyed before this could happen!

Jon 4:2

O LORD, IS THIS NOT WHAT I SAID WHEN I WAS STILL AT HOME? THAT IS WHY I WAS SO QUICK TO FLEE TO TARSHISH. I KNEW THAT YOU ARE A GRACIOUS AND COMPASSIONATE GOD, SLOW TO ANGER AND ABOUNDING IN LOVE, A GOD WHO RELENTS FROM SENDING CALAMITY: To his credit Jonah told God why he was angry (cf Jon 2:1). (Many believers try to hide their true feelings from God when they think God will not approve of those feelings.) Even though the prophet had been rebellious, he had a deep and intimate relationship with God.

Jonah’s motive in fleeing to Tarshish now becomes known. He was afraid that the Ninevites would repent and that God would be merciful to this ancient enemy of God’s people. By opposing the Israelites her enemies were also opposing Yahweh. This is why a godly man such as Jonah hated the Assyrians so much, and why the psalmists spoke so strongly against Israel’s enemies.

Jonah’s description of God goes back to Exo 34:6,7, a very ancient expression of God’s character (cf Num 14:18; Neh 9:17; Psa 86:15; 103:8; 145:8; Joel 2:13).

TARSHISH: Cp Jon 1:3. See Lesson, Tarshish.

Jon 4:3

NOW, O LORD, TAKE AWAY MY LIFE, FOR IT IS BETTER FOR ME TO DIE THAN TO LIVE: Jonah felt so angry that he asked God to take his life (cf Jon 1:12; 4:8,9). Elijah had previously made the same request (1Ki 19:4), but we must be careful not to read Elijah’s reasons into Jonah’s request. Both prophets obviously became extremely discouraged. Both evidently felt that what God had done through their ministries was different from what they wanted to see happen. Elijah had wanted to see a complete national revival, but Jonah had wanted to see judgment on Israel’s enemies. The sinfulness of people discouraged Elijah — whereas the goodness of God depressed Jonah. How could Jonah return to Israel and announce that God was not going to judge the nation that had been such an enemy of the godly for so long? God had to teach Elijah to view things from His perspective, and He proceeded to teach Jonah the same thing.

Jon 4:5

JONAH WENT OUT AND SAT DOWN AT A PLACE EAST OF THE CITY. THERE HE MADE HIMSELF A SHELTER, SAT IN ITS SHADE AND WAITED TO SEE WHAT WOULD HAPPEN TO THE CITY: “In high dudgeon he went out of the city (on its east side because there was high ground, and on the west Calah abutted on the wide fast-flowing Tigris). There he built himself a booth, of the sort he had made in early days at Jerusalem at the Feast of Tabernacles; and there he would discipline his impatient soul with patience. Perhaps, after all, his remonstration to the angel would bring thunderbolts from heaven, something comparable to Sodom’s grim fate and would ‘turn Nineveh to ashes, condemning it with an overthrow.’ What a satisfaction it would be to himself and to his countrymen to see a politically-inflated Nineveh wiped out!” (WJon).

Jonah chose his “ringside” seat and waited, hopefully, for the heaven-sent destruction of the great city. But… nothing happened! Do we — sometimes — wait eagerly for what will NOT happen… because we misunderstand the character of God, or His prophetic timetable?

Jon 4:6

THE LORD GOD PROVIDED A VINE AND MADE IT GROW UP OVER JONAH TO GIVE SHADE FOR HIS HEAD TO EASE HIS DISCOMFORT, AND JONAH WAS VERY HAPPY ABOUT THE VINE: God continued to manifest compassion for Jonah by providing him with a shading plant that relieved the discomfort of the blistering Mesopotamian sun. This is the only time that we read that Jonah was happy, and it was because he was physically comfortable.

“And as he sat there, waiting and expectant, and feeling the growing heat of the day more and more, he noted that already the stem of a fast-growing gourd plant, rather like a vine but with more foliage, was climbing up and over his booth. He marked with amazement the rapidity of its development. What a blessing this added shelter was to save him from the exhausting heat of a fierce mid-day sun.

“All that day and all that night Jonah camped out there, comfortable and expectant. But still nothing happened” (WJon).

Jon 4:7

AT DAWN THE NEXT DAY GOD PROVIDED A WORM, WHICH CHEWED THE VINE SO THAT IT WITHERED: God had previously provided the greatest of all creatures — the great fish — to teach Jonah a lesson; now He provided the smallest of creatures — a lowly worm!

“Next day, the angel of the Lord went into action. A plague of caterpillars appeared on the gourd, as if from nowhere. These greedily devastated all that rich vegetation. Then, as the day wore on, a hot, hot wind blew up from the desert with vehement intensity. There was no escaping the fierce heat of scorching sun and blasting wind combined. It was worse than being in an oven.

“And Jonah groaned aloud in his misery. Now he had an added reason for wishing himself dead” (WJon).

Jon 4:8

A SCORCHING EAST WIND: “During the period of a sirocco the temperature rises steeply, sometimes even climbing during the night, and it remains high, about 16-22 degrees Fahrenheit above the average… at times every scrap of moisture seems to have been extracted from the air, so that one has the curious feeling that one’s skin has been drawn much tighter than usual. Sirocco days are peculiarly trying to the temper and tend to make even the mildest people irritable and fretful and to snap at one another for apparently no reason at all” (Baly).

HE WANTED TO DIE…: Why did he not seek shelter back in the city? Probably because he still held out hope that God would yet send fire from heaven and consume all of Nineveh, and it wouldn’t do to be there when that divine judgment came!

Jon 4:9

Jonah: an example of misplaced mercy.

“Even if feeling is aroused, we are aware of the feeling and its tendencies. We can choose whether we encourage the feeling or thrust it from the mind by something more worthy. Sometimes men say with Jonah, ‘I do well to be angry’, when they are aware that they are not doing well at all. Often they exaggerate a grievance knowing that they are exaggerating. They can control such matters if they will” (PrPr).

“Human nature has not changed. These examples were written for our learning that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. When we find that we disagree with someone and we feel anger welling up within us, it should tell us to stop and examine ourselves. Do we do well to be angry? We usually can convince ourselves like Jonah did that ‘we do well to be angry’ but we might be surprised to find that we are wrong to be so angry. If we are in the right, there is no need to be angry. Instead of being angry, we should feel pity and compassion for our opponent who is wrong. Since we are in the right and they are wrong, they need our help, not our anger. If it should turn out that we are in the wrong, how foolish to have been both angry and wrong!” (BL).

Jon 4:10

YOU HAVE BEEN CONCERNED ABOUT THIS VINE…: God had invested much work in Nineveh and had been responsible for its growth. This is why it was legitimate at the most elementary level for God to feel compassion for its people. Jonah’s compassion extended only to a plant but not to people. God’s compassion extended not only to plants and animals but also to people. The 120,000 people that God cited (v 11) as the special objects of His compassion included those who for various reasons could not care for themselves (babies, the mentally incompetent, etc).

Jon 4:11

God has no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather than the wicked turn and repent: Eze 18:23,32. God is no respecter of persons: Act 10:34.

“Indeed, there is more to it than that, Jonah. Why don’t you learn from the parable of your own gourd? Just as it sheltered you, so the strength of Nineveh sheltered your people by holding in check the perennial threat from Syria. But your gourd withered away and became useless to you. Learn also from this part of the parable. This repentance is only a flash in the pan. It won’t last. Very soon, they will forget Jehovah and the judgment He can bring, and they will turn back to their violence and wickedness and to their false gods. And THEN both Israel and Judah will feel the blast of Assyrian heat. There will come an ambitious brutal monarch called Sennacherib who will resent the respect his forefathers were constrained to show to the God of Israel. He will challenge Jehovah with the might of his national god Ashur, and will bring against the tribes of Jacob the worst ferocity Assyria can muster. You have seen, Jonah, what Heaven’s compassion has done for Nineveh in your time. But live to the end of this century, and you will see that God is not mocked” (WJon).

Jon 1:1

See Lesson, Prophet, the.

See Lesson, Minor prophets, and their messages.

Jonah was a native of Gath-hepher, in region of Galilee, near Nazareth (2Ki 14:25; Jos 19:13; cp Joh 1:46; 7:52) — the boyhood home of Jesus!

JONAH: The name Jonah ( = Dove) suggests the Holy Spirit, and the beginning of a New Creation (Gen 8: 8).

Jonah: a type of nation of Israel: First given task by God: take gospel to Gentiles. Ran away from task. Then thrown into “sea” (Isa 57:20, and submerged. Raised up third day (Hos 6:2). 2nd chance to witness to Gentiles (Tes 50:321).

In Jonah, four things were prepared by the Lord: a great fish (Jon 1:17); a gourd (Jon 4:6); a worm (Jon 4:7); and an east wind (Jon 4:8). (From sea, plant life, dry land, and the unseen elements: God may use all things in His plan.)

AMITTAI: Sig “truth”; cp Heb emeth.

Jon 1:2

GO TO THE GREAT CITY OF NINEVEH AND PREACH AGAINST IT: In sending Jonah to Nineveh, God is turning to the Gentiles and offering them the way of salvation through repentance. Maybe this was part of the reason for Jonah’s reticence, given that even many years later, Peter, who had been with the Lord, had to be persuaded by a vision (Acts 10). Jonah also knew just how embarrassing it would be for his own people if a Gentile city repented. This, presumably, is what God intended, that they might be shamed into repentance themselves.

NINEVEH: Nineveh, the capital of the Assyrian Empire, stood on the eastern bank of the Tigris River. It had walls 100 feet high and 50 feet thick, and the main one, punctuated by 15 gates, was over seven and one half miles long. The total population was probably about 600,000 including the people who lived in the suburbs outside the city walls (cf Jon 4:11). The residents were idolaters and worshipped Ashur and Ishtar, the chief male and female deities, as did almost all the Assyrians. Assyria was a threat to Israel’s security (cf Hos 11:5; Amos 5:27). This is one reason Jonah refused to go to Nineveh. He feared the people might repent and that God would refrain from punishing Israel’s enemy.

Jon 1:3

BUT JONAH RAN AWAY FROM THE LORD: At one time or another, all of us seek to avoid unpleasant duties, even to the point of running away from God! Examples of prophetic reluctance: Exo 4:10; Jer 1:6; Eze 3:14; Jon 1:3; 1Ki 19:10; Luk 5:8,10; 9:59; 18:23; Act 13:13; 18:9. Ct Isa 6:8. An officer in an army may resign the commission of his president or king, but an ambassador of the LORD is on a different basis. His service is for life, and he may not repudiate it without the danger of incurring God’s discipline.

Jonah “ran the wrong way”! Georgia Tech played the University of California in the 1929 Rose Bowl. In the game a player recovered a fumble, but became confused and ran the wrong way. A teammate tackled him just before he would have scored a touchdown against his own team. At halftime all of the players went into the dressing room and sat down, wondering what the coach would say. This young man sat by himself; put a towel over his head, and cried.

When the team was ready to go back onto the field for the second half, the coach stunned the team when he announced that the same players who had started the first half would start the second. All of the players left the dressing room except this young man. He would not budge. The coach looked back as he called him again, and saw that his cheeks were wet with tears. The player said, “Coach, I can’t do it. I’ve ruined you. I’ve disgraced the University of California. I can’t face that crowd in the stadium again.”

Then the coach put his hand on the player’s shoulder and said, “Get up and go back in. The game is only half over.”

TARSHISH (Psa 48:7) was a son of Javan (Gen 10:4); it is a name which came to ref to the Phoenicians, a sea-faring and trading people (hence such refs as Jon 1:3; Eze 27:12; 1Ki 9:26; 10:22; 2Ch 9:21). That Tarshish repr a latter-day power is evident both here and in Eze 38:13 (where it appears as an ally of Sheba and Dedan). In Isa 23 — a prophecy concerning Tyre, there is plainly a strong link with “the daughter of Tarshish” and “the ships of Tarshish” (vv 1,6,10,14) — this leads to the reasonable conclusion that Tarshish is another name for Tyre. (The proposed identification of Tarshish with England merely on the basis that the latter is — or rather was — a significant sea power is extremely tenuous at best.) See Lesson, Tarshish.

HE WENT DOWN TO JOPPA: “But why did Jonah not go to Tyre or Zidon, the two great sea-ports of that era and country? Both were nearer to Zebulun [Jonah’s home] than Joppa was. The explanation must be that Jonah ‘went down’ from the temple at Jerusalem, where the LORD appeared unto him, to the nearest seaport” (WJon).

PAYING THE FARE: “Jonah’s case is unique in the Scriptures; he is the only one of whom it is recorded that he paid his fare. God commanded Jonah to go eastward to Nineveh, but thinking that he could evade his responsibilities, he boarded a ship going in the opposite direction — westward to Tarshish. He was disobedient and went in the reverse direction, backwards not forwards. By so doing he got himself into dire trouble and moreover he paid for it. He would have lost his life if God had not intervened and saved him. When we go in the opposite direction to that which God has commanded us — that is, when we go in the way of sin — then we pay the fare. God has paid our fare unto His Kingdom and glory; the price of redemption has been paid, even with the ‘precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot’ (1Pe 1:19). He has called us to travel in the way of righteousness unto His Kingdom; how unwise then to spurn His offer and go in the opposite direction, in the way of sin unto death. We cannot presume that, like Jonah, we shall be saved from our folly; if we persist in the way of sin we shall surely ‘pay the fare’ (S Thomas, Xd 113:258).

Jonah subjected himself to dangers that Israel and the entire ANE viewed as directly under divine control when he launched out on the sea. The sea to them was the embodiment of the chaotic forces that humans could not control or tame (cf Psa 24:2; 33:7; 65:7; 74:13; 77:19; 89:9; 114:3,5; Isa 27:1; 51:10; 63:11; Jer 5:22; 31:35; etc).

Jon 1:4

THE SHIP THREATENED TO BREAK UP: The LXX has sw as in Luke 8: 23: the storm on the sea of Galilee.

Jon 1:5

ALL THE SAILORS WERE AFRAID AND EACH CRIED OUT TO HIS OWN GOD: “They were a mixed lot, these seafaring men, as ships’ crews usually are. So there was hardly a deity known to the superstitions of the Middle East who was not assailed with desperate prayers and promises, interspersed with all the purple oaths that belonged to their trade” (WJon).

AND THEY THREW THE CARGO INTO THE SEA TO LIGHTEN THE SHIP: Their willingness to throw their cargo into the sea illustrates the extreme danger they faced (cf Acts 27:18-20).

JONAH HAD GONE BELOW DECK, WHERE HE LAY DOWN AND FELL INTO A DEEP SLEEP: Jonah’s ability to sleep under such conditions seems very unusual. The same Heb word (“radam”) describes Sisera’s deep sleep that his exhaustion produced (Jdg 4:21) and the deep sleep that God put Adam and Abram under (Gen 2:21; 15:12).

“Jonah didn’t like what God told him to do. As there was no use complaining or saying ‘NO!’, Jonah decided to run away and hide from the LORD instead. He caught a ship going in the opposite direction from where God wanted him to go and went into the bottom of the ship and fell asleep. If anywhere was going to be safe from the eyes of God, this was going to be it. Jonah was far from the place he should have been, in the middle of the sea, in the bottom of a boat and asleep. It had about the same amount of impact on God as a child standing in the middle of a room with his eyes shut, shouting, ‘You can’t see me!’ But God knew exactly where Jonah was, and He sent a storm to prove it.

“Jonah was about to learn a lesson. He thought God couldn’t see him in the middle of the sea, in the bottom of the boat with his eyes shut. But then he was thrown overboard and swallowed by the fish.

“Now he was hidden by God, and he knew that God knew where he was. God had hidden Jonah better than he could hide himself. He was in the middle of the ocean, at the bottom of the sea, inside a fish and in total darkness. From there Jonah learned that God can see everything, everywhere and that He hears prayer from even the remotest and most well hidden of places.

“The lesson is that no matter how well hidden we are, no matter how many curtains we pull and how many doors we shut and lock, God sees us, and He knows everything we do. But if we repent and turn back to God He will hear our prayer from where ever we happen to be” (RP).

Jon 1:6

GET UP AND CALL ON YOUR GOD! MAYBE HE WILL TAKE NOTICE OF US, AND WE WILL NOT PERISH: Jonah should have been praying instead of sleeping in view of the imminent danger that he and his companions faced (cf Luke 22:39-46). The normal reaction to danger, even among pagans, is to seek divine intervention, but this is precisely what Jonah wanted to avoid.

Jon 1:7

THEY CAST LOTS AND THE LOT FELL ON JONAH: It appears to have been common among the heathen to cast lots to determine who was responsible for some catastrophe (cf John 19:24). Saul resorted to this when he could not get a direct response from the Lord (cf 1Sa 14:36-42). Casting lots was a divinely prescribed method of learning God’s will in Israel (eg, Lev 16:8-10; Num 26:55,56; 33:54; 34:13; 36:2,3; Josh 14:2; 15:1; 16:1; etc). However, as practiced by pagans, it was a superstitious practice. In this case God overruled and gave the sailors the correct answer to their request (cp Prov 16:33).

Jon 1:8

Vv 8-10: “So, now, without hesitation, he told his story, not at first in a succinct tidy fashion, for he found himself bombarded by a torrent of questions. There was no hint of bullying in these, but only a tone of respect. His story about being a prophet of Jehovah, worshipped at the world-famous temple in Jerusalem, was accepted at its face value. And when he told of his refusal of the Lord’s commission to proclaim impending doom against Nineveh they were aghast. No wonder they were involved now in such a storm at sea as beggared all past experience. ‘Why, why hast thou done this?’ They couldn’t understand such an attitude as his. These simple-minded pagans, hearing the truth of Jehovah for the first time, judged Jonah’s behaviour to be that of a lunatic. They now saw everything clearly. With a disobedient prophet on board, no wonder the God who made the earth AND THE SEA was angry. The shrieking of the wind and the violence of the waves, as high as their mast, were now explained” (WJon).

Jon 1:12

“PICK ME UP AND THROW ME INTO THE SEA,” HE REPLIED: Then he came to a heroic decision. If there must be a price paid for his willfulness, let it not be paid by these good fellows who shared none of his blame.

One man offers his life, so that other men (even Gentiles!) may be saved!

Jon 1:14

DO NOT HOLD US ACCOUNTABLE FOR KILLING AN INNOCENT MAN: This has the same phrase as was used about Jesus (Mat 27:4). Those men, like Pilate, were reluctant to send an “innocent” man to his death.

Jon 1:15

Vv 15,16: “The effect of this propitiatory sacrifice had those hard-bitten seamen speechless with awe. The wind suddenly dropped. One moment there was a venomous howling and shrieking of the wind through the rigging. The next, complete stillness and the silence of a sea at rest. Never had they known the like of it. All at once, the sea and the waves were no longer roaring (sw Luk 21: 25).

“Their reaction to this deafening silence of God was instinctive. The captain spoke for them all: ‘Boys, let’s hold a prayer meeting, to thank Jehovah that He has brought us through, and to pray for Jonah, that headstrong, yet selfless, Hebrew.’ So, again fearing a great fear, with bowed heads they gave thanks for their survival and made solemn declaration that, once on land again, they would find their way to Jerusalem and there offer to Jehovah a sacrifice of thanksgiving” (WJon).

Jon 1:16

THEY OFFERED A SACRIFICE TO THE LORD AND MADE VOWS TO HIM: Quite an incidental to this story, it seems, is that the people on the boat turned from their own gods (v 5) to worship the true God (vv 15,16), having seen the way he had dealt with Jonah, and His power over the elements.

Jon 1:17

THE LORD PROVIDED A GREAT FISH TO SWALLOW JONAH: “The identity of the great fish remains a mystery since the only record of what it was is in this story, and that description is general. The text does not say that God created this fish out of nothing (ex nihilo) nor does what the fish did require such an explanation. We know of many types of fish capable of swallowing a human being whole. (Two examples are the sperm whale and the whale shark.) Occasionally today we hear of someone who has lived for several days in a fish or in some other large animal and has emerged alive (See Harrison 907,908, or KD 1:398 for several such instances). Some Bible students have faulted some commentators for documenting instances of large fish swallowing people who have survived, as if such suggestions slight God’s power. They do not necessarily. Some interpreters believe that Jonah’s repentance is a type of the repentance of the Jewish remnant that will occur prior to the beginning of the Millennium (eg, Pentecost 328; Feinberg 28,29). Notwithstanding, Jonah’s experience has been one of the favorite targets of unbelievers in the miraculous who claim that this story is preposterous (cf Mat 12:39,40).

“Significantly God saved Jonah’s life by using a fish rather than in a more conventional method such as providing a piece of wood that he could cling to. Thus this method of deliverance must have some special significance. The Jews were familiar with the mythical sea monster (Ugaritic ‘lotan’, Heb “Leviathan”) that symbolized both the uncontrollable chaos of the sea and the chaotic forces that only Yahweh could manage (cf Psa 74:13,14; 104:26). The Hebrews did not believe that ‘Leviathan’ really existed any more than we believe in Santa Claus. Yet the figure was familiar to them, and they knew what it represented. For Jonah to relate his experience of deliverance in his cultural ancient Near Eastern context would have impressed his hearers that a great God had sent him to them. It is probably for this reason that God chose to save Jonah by using a great fish.

“Here God controlled the traditionally uncontrollable to spare Jonah’s life. The God who is great enough to control it could control anything, and He used His power for a loving purpose. This is more remarkable since Jonah as God’s servant had rebelled against his Master. God’s method of deliverance therefore reveals both His great power and His gracious heart.

” ‘Men have been looking so hard at the great fish that they have failed to see the great God’ (GCM). ‘It is the greatness of Israel’s God that is the burden of the book’ (Allen)” (Const).

Jon 2:1

Vv 1-9: Jonah’s familiarity with the Psalms:

The prophecy of Obadiah is the shortest book in the OT. Briefly, it recounts how Edom is to be brought low (Obad 1:3-9,16), on account of its treachery against Israel in the day of Israel’s calamity (Obad 1:10-14). And it promises that “the day of the LORD” (Obad 1:15) will reveal God’s judgments upon all nations — at the same time that there will be salvation in Zion and Jerusalem for the faithful remnant (Obad 1:17-21).

The country of Edom (called Idumea in the NT) extended from the Dead Sea to the Red Sea, and was bounded on the east by the Arabian Desert and on the west by the land of Judah. It was a mountainous district with average elevation of about 2,000 feet. Its wild and rugged character is described in Obad 1:3,4.

This was the land occupied by Esau, the ancestor of the Edomites, after the death of his father Isaac (Gen 36:6-8). There his descendants, cousins to the Israelites, built cities literally in solid rock, in almost impregnable positions. They became rich by controlling and traveling the trade routes between Egypt and the East. Even in modern times, the ruins they left behind — as at Petra — stand as stark and magnificent testimonies to their power and achievements.

There is a long history of enmity between Edom and Israel, beginning with the bitter rivalry between the twins Esau and Jacob (Gen 25:19-34; 27:1-40; etc), and continuing all the way through the OT, until the time when Herod the Great, the hated Idumean (or Edomite), used his Roman connections to gain ascendancy over the Israel of Jesus’ day.

And the same enmity continues to our day, in the struggles between the Arabs — of Palestine and Jordan and Saudi Arabia — and the Israelis, over the ancestral lands which they both claim.

Outline

1. Judgment on Edom: Obad 1:1-14

a) Edom’s destruction announced: Obad 1:2-7 b) Edom’s destruction reaffirmed: Obad 1:8-14

2. The Day of the Lord: Obad 1:15-21

a) Judgment on the nations but deliverance for Zion: Obad 1:15-18 b) The Lord’s kingdom established: Obad 1:19-21

Initial Fulfillment(s)

Who is Obadiah? When, and in what circumstances, was the prophecy first given? There are no details about the prophet himself; “Obadiah” is a common name signifying “the servant of Yahweh”. And no time period is definitely specified in the prophecy itself.

Given the lack of a definitive date, several different times are possible as the initial context of Obadiah’s “burden” upon Edom:

(1) Judgments upon Edom for participating in a cowardly attack upon Israel in the days of David, when the king and his forces were occupied in Syria. This “stab in the back” — from a people who were near of kin to Israel (cp Deu 2:4,5; 23:7) — was swiftly answered by a punitive raid by David’s armies, led by Abishai (1Ch 8:12), Joab (1Ki 11:15,16; Psa 60 title) and David himself (2Sa 8:12-14).

(2) About 200 years later (c 860 BC) another “Arab” invasion of Judah was repelled by faithful king Jehoshaphat (2Ch 20). This confederacy included Edom along with Moab and Ammon.

(3) During the reign of Hezekiah (c 720 BC), the Edomites gave enthusiastic support to the irresistible Assyrian invasion, and were utterly callous in their treatment of the desperate refugees from Israel and Judah (cp Isa 21:11,12; 34:5-10; 63:1-6; Joel 3:19).

(4) And finally, the prophecy could be dated as late as 588 BC, when Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon devastated Jerusalem and its Temple, and once again men of Edom — like loathsome jackals or vultures — joined in to pick the bones of their cousins (cp Jer 49:7-22; Lam 4:21; Psa 137:7; Eze 25:12-14; 35:1-15). In favor especially of this possibility is Obad 1:16, which pictures Edom “drinking [from the holy vessels?] upon my [God’s] holy mountain” (cp Jer 25:15-26, esp v 21): So far as is known, none of the earlier attacks upon Israel in which Edom took part resulted in the actual capture of God’s temple mountain.

The Last Days Fulfillment

But even if we cannot be certain which of Edom’s many atrocities upon Israel provoked the tongue, and pen, of Obadiah — it seems certain that we are intended to read Obadiah’s prophecy as a Last Days prophecy as well: Obad 1:15,17,21.

Such language can only be absolutely fulfilled with the return of Christ and the establishment of God’s Kingdom. Seen as a Last Days preview, Obadiah’s words corroborate certain details of the general picture:

(a) This Edomite enemy will be a member of an alliance: Obad 1:11. Edom is a member of the 10-nation Arab alliance described in Psa 83.

(b) The controversy of the Last Days will concern God’s holy mountain, mount Zion. There the enemies of Israel, including Edom, will rejoice over her: “Just as you drank on my holy hill….” (Obad 1:16).

And there also will God bring retribution upon these blasphemous enemies: Obad 1:15-17. This observation lends credibility to the idea that the last great conflict in and around Jerusalem — a conflict which will bring on the literal Return of Christ — will be a religious conflict, between two peoples desperately struggling to lay claim to the same “holy places”.

(c) At this point the prophecy dramatically changes tone. The people of Israel are saved from their adversity and are spiritually regenerated. They receive back the Land promised to their fathers, to its fullest extent, and the rescued and redeemed state of Israel becomes the nucleus of the Kingdom of God: “But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy… The house of Jacob will be a fire and the house of Joseph a flame; the house of Esau will be stubble, and they will set it on fire and consume it. There will be no survivors from the house of Esau… Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the LORD’s” (Obad 1:17,18,21).

Territorial Expansion

Obad 1:19,20 go into detail as to which lands the redeemed people of Israel will recover and occupy:

• People from the Negev will occupy the mountains of Esau.
• People from the foothills will possess the land of the Philistines.
• They will occupy the fields of Ephraim and Samaria.
• Benjamin will possess Gilead.
• This company of Israelite exiles who are in Canaan will possess the land as far as Zarephath.
• The exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will possess the towns of the Negev.

Certain of these territories (ie, Samaria and Ephraim and part of Philistia) were conquered by modern Israel in 1967. [Will some of this territory be returned as a result of the current “Peace Process”?] Zarephath, in southern Lebanon, is increasingly coming under Israel’s influence since the incursions of 1982. But other territories (ie, Gilead and the mountains of Esau) remain today in Arab hands.

Will Israel, as presently constituted, conquer all these lands prior to the return of Christ? Or will Israel need to suffer a serious defeat, losing the very lands which it now possesses (together with its own sovereignty?) before a chastened remnant will repent and turn to God?

In short, is Obad 1:19,20 being fulfilled right now, or do they await a future fulfillment?

The order of Obad 1:17-21 suggests an answer: First, there must come a deliverance to mount Zion (v 17), and not just a military victory such as in 1948 or 1967: “But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy [or ‘there shall be holiness’: AV], and the house of Jacob will possess its inheritance.”

And so this “deliverance” will of necessity involve “holiness” — and for this there must be true repentance and forgiveness of sins. Only then will Israel — ie, a renewed and glorified remnant of Israel — go forth to possess all the lands promised to the fathers (cp Gen 15:18-21; Exo 23:23; Deu 1:7; 11:24; Jos 1:4; Psa 72:8), as detailed in Obad 1:19,20.

This last territorial expansion will never be set back or thwarted in any way. Why? Because “Deliverers [‘saviours’: AV] will go up on Mount Zion… and the kingdom will be the LORD’s” (Obad 1:21).

Oba 1:1

See Lesson, Prophet, the.

See Lesson, Minor prophets, and their messages.

There are similarities between Oba 1:1-6 and Jer 49:9,14-17 and between Oba 1:10-18 and Joel 1:15; 2:1,32; 3:3-4,17,19. There are also similarities between Oba 1:9,10,14,18,19 and Amos 1:2,6,11,12; 9:13. However, in all these instances it is really impossible to determine if Obadiah referred to the other prophets, if they referred to Obadiah.

Other prophecies against Edom: Psa 137; Joel 3:19; Lam 4:21,22.

VISION: Heb “hazon”, as in 1Sa 3:1; Isa 1:1; Nah 1:1. “The vision is to be sharply differentiated from common sight and things seen. It is the result of inspiration and is understood as having unique significance since it is given by God himself” (Watts).

OBADIAH: Nothing is known of this prophet personally; there are about a dozen “Obadiahs” in the OT — from Davidic to post-exilic times. And it is quite possible that this Obadiah is not one of them. It is even possible that “Obadiah” is not a proper name, but simply means “the servant of Yahweh”. Lack of personal information makes it difficult to establish the time period of this prophecy, leaving several reasonable possibilities (see Lesson, Obad, overview).

Oba 1:3

THE PRIDE OF YOUR HEART HAS DECEIVED YOU, YOU WHO LIVE IN THE CLEFTS OF THE ROCKS, AND MAKE YOUR HOME ON THE HEIGHTS, YOU WHO SAY TO YOURSELF, ‘WHO CAN BRING ME DOWN TO THE GROUND?’: “The Edomites lived in a rocky, reclusive region around a town that later became known as Petra. The Nabateans, the Arabians who later drove the Edomites out, actually carved this town out of solid rock. The habitation of the Edomites says much about them. They were self-reliant isolationists and fiercely independent. In some ways they were like the survivalists of our own day. They preferred to be by themselves. They distrusted others. They wanted to control their own destiny. They took refuge in a part of the wilderness from which they thought they could defend themselves against all enemies” (Const).

“Edom’s natural defenses were imposing. Its main centers of civilization were situated in a narrow ridge of mountainous land southeast of the Dead Sea… This ridge exceeded a height of 4,000 feet throughout its northern sector, and it rose in places to 5,700 feet in the south. Its height was rendered more inaccessible by the gorges radiating from it toward the Arabah on the west and the desert eastwards.

“In addition to these natural fortifications, Edom was strongly defended by a series of Iron Age fortresses, particularly on the eastern frontier where the land descended more gradually to the desert” (Armerding).

THE CLEFTS OF THE ROCKS: “Rock” is “Sela” — referring to the granite and sandstone that made up Mt Seir. Sela was also the name of an Edomite town (2Ki 14:7).

PRIDE: The outstanding mark of Edom’s national character was pride. The Heb word for pride (“zadon”) comes from a verb meaning to boil up (“zid”). It pictures pride being like water that boils up under pressure in a cooking pot. Similarly the proud person is like a bubble that thrusts itself up but is hollow. Interestingly, the same Heb word occurs three times in the account of Esau squandering his birthright (Gen 25:27-34).

Oba 1:4

THOUGH YOU SOAR LIKE THE EAGLE AND MAKE YOU NEST AMONG THE STARS, FROM THERE I WILL BRING YOU DOWN, DECLARES THE LORD: The God whom the Edomites thought they could disregard would visit and destroy them. God is higher than even the eagles. He is the One who formed the mountains in which the Edomites foolishly trusted for safety.

AND MAKE YOUR NEST AMONG THE STARS: Cp the same hyperbole in other prophecies: Jer 49:16; 51:53; Hab 2:9; Isa 14:12-15; Amo 9:2; Mat 24:29; Luk 21:25,26; Rev 6:12-17; 2Pe 3:10.

Oba 1:5

Vv 5,6: Thieves robbed houses and grape pickers stripped vineyards, yet both left a little behind that they did not carry off. However, Yahweh’s destruction of Edom would be so complete that nothing at all would remain of her (cf Jer 49:9,10,17-22). There would be no remnant of Edom left (in contrast to the remnant that Yahweh promised elsewhere to leave in Israel). Concealed treasures of all kinds, human as well as material, would not escape Yahweh’s omniscient eye.

Oba 1:7

ALL YOUR ALLIES WILL FORCE YOU TO THE BORDER; YOUR FRIENDS WILL DECEIVE AND OVERPOWER YOU; THOSE WHO EAT YOUR BREAD WILL SET A TRAP FOR YOU: The Edomites trusted in other nations for their security rather than in God. But the Lord would use the very objects of Edom’s trust to destroy them. He always uses the false gods that people rely on instead of Himself to do this. Allies in ungodliness turn out to be enemies eventually.

Edom’s allies would treacherously betray their friend. Thus Edom would not only deceive herself, but her trusted allies would also deceive her. They would do what in the ancient Near East was most despicable, namely break covenant with a covenant partner (Psa 55:20; Amos 1:9). Edom’s allies would prove to be the worst of enemies. They would fail to assist her in her hour of greatest need. Three parallel descriptions of covenant disloyalty in this verse picture the treachery as certain. Moreover this disloyalty would completely surprise the Edomites.

Edom was a weak country militarily, its small population and its limited agricultural wealth precluding powerful armed forces. Therefore its ability to attack Judah’s Negeb and help plunder Jerusalem had depended on its alliance with more powerful states, especially Babylon (Joel 3:19; Psa 137:7; Lam 4:21,22; Eze 25:12-14). Eventually it would be Babylon that would turn against Edom.

Oba 1:8

IN THAT DAY… WILL I NOT DESTROY…?: The reality, from a spiritual viewpoint, is that it is Yahweh — not Babylon (v 7) — who will destroy Edom! Babylon is only a tool in His hand (cp Isa 10:5,15; 14:5,6; Jer 51:20-24).

THE WISE MEN OF EDOM: God would destroy Edom’s famous wise men (1Ki 4:30; Job 1:1; 2:11; 4:1; Jer 49:7; Lam 4:21) and their understanding by allowing them to fail to detect the unfaithfulness of their allies (v 7) and to overestimate their own security (v 3).

Oba 1:9

TEMAN: Teman was a region in the north of Edom (cf Gen 36:10,11) and a prominent town in northern Edom near Sela (possibly modern Tawilan), but its name stands for the whole nation (by metonymy). The end of all this deception and destruction would be the total end of Edom.

Oba 1:10

BECAUSE OF THE VIOLENCE AGAINST YOUR BROTHER JACOB: If pride (vv 3,4) was Edom’s essential sin, violence was the supreme manifestation of that pride. They not only protected themselves, but they did wrong to others and rejoiced when they harmed others.

Pride was not the only reason God would humble Edom. The Edomites had also cursed the people whom God had purposed to bless, the Israelites (cf Gen 27:40,41; Exo 15:15; Num 20:14-21; Deu 2:4; Jdg 11:17,18; 1Sa 14:47,48; 2Sa 8:13,14; 1Ki 11:15,16; 1Ch 18:11-13; Psa 60). In doing this they had incurred God’s wrath (Gen 12:3). “Violence” (Heb “hamas”) includes both moral wrong and physical brutality. This violence was esp despicable since it was against Edom’s brother, Jacob, and his descendants. Consequently, great shame would cover Edom (cf v 2), and God would cut her off forever (cf v 9).

Oba 1:11

YOU STOOD ALOOF WHILE STRANGERS CARRIED OFF HIS WEALTH… YOU WERE LIKE ONE OF THEM: By contrast, “…the Israelites are always commanded in the law to preserve a friendly and brotherly attitude towards Edom (Deu 2:45); and in Deu 23:7 it is enjoined upon them not to abhor the Edomite, because he is their brother” (KD).

Oba 1:12

Vv 12,13: God reinforced the seriousness of the Edomites’ sin by condemning it in parallel terminology eight times (vv 12-14). Hostile attitudes more than physical violence were Edom’s sins against the Israelites on this occasion. Blood ties should have transcended even covenant ties. Edom’s allies would break covenant ties with her (v 7), but she had betrayed the ties of blood!

Oba 1:14

YOU SHOULD NOT WAIT AT THE CROSSROADS TO CUT DOWN THEIR FUGITIVES, NOR HAND OVER THEIR SURVIVORS IN THE DAY OF THEIR TROUBLE: Not just hatred, but also physical violence eventually came into play. As the Judahite fugitives from Jerusalem left the city (probably after the Babylonian overthrow), the Edomites met them at some fork in the road and slew them rather than helping them escape from the invader. Other Edomites imprisoned fleeing Judahites instead of giving them refuge.

For historical parallels, see the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar in 596 BC (2Ki 24:13-16; 25:4-17; 2Ch 36:18,20; cf Psa 137:7; Jer 9:26; 25:21; 27:3; 40:11; Eze 25:12; 32:29; 35:3-9,11-15; 36:2-7; Lam 1:17; 2:15-17; 4:21-22.

Oba 1:15

THE DAY OF THE LORD IS NEAR…: The future day in which God will reverse the fortunes of Israel and the nations (cf v 8; Joel 3:14; Mal 4:5; Zec 14:1; Mic 5:15). It will be the day when God establishes His rule in human affairs, namely when Jesus Christ returns to rule and reign on the earth. Obadiah said that day was approaching. As Edom and the other nations had done to Israel, so God would pay them back with precisely the same judgment (Lev 24:20; Deu 19:21).

FOR ALL NATIONS: In the future, “Edom” seems to be expanded to include “other nations” — perhaps esp the other Arab nations who acted as Edom did when Judah was under siege by the Babylonians (cp Jer 25:15-28; also cp James’ quotation of Amo 9:11,12 in Acts 15:15-17).

Oba 1:16

JUST AS YOU DRANK ON MY HOLY HILL: Edom had her “day” on the Lord’s holy mountain, Jerusalem, when she failed to help her brother, Israel. Likewise, all the nations would have their “day” dominating Jerusalem and the Jews (during the “times of the Gentiles”: Luke 21:24). Obadiah described these enemies as drinking there in celebration of their dominion over Israel (cf Exo 32:6; 1Sa 30:16).

THEY WILL DRINK AND DRINK AND BE AS IF THEY HAD NEVER BEEN: Though they would celebrate to the point of delirium, God would destroy them, and they would become as though they had never existed. They would drink the cup of His wrath (Psa 60:3; 75:8; Isa 51:22,23; Jer 25:15-18,28,29; 49:12,13; Hab 2:15,16; Rev 18:3-6).

ALL THE NATIONS: “Nations round about” (RSV), esp defining the Arab and Muslim nations surrounding Israel. See Lesson, Nations “round about”.

Oba 1:17

ON MOUNT ZION WILL BE DELIVERANCE: A remnant of those who fled from Jerusalem will return there (cp Isa 11, esp vv 10-16; 2:2-4; 27:12,13; etc).

THE HOUSE OF JACOB WILL POSSESS ITS INHERITANCE: Thus beginning to fulfill the promises made to their father Abraham (Gen 13:15,16).

Oba 1:18

THE HOUSE OF JACOB WILL BE A FIRE AND THE HOUSE OF JOSEPH A FLAME; THE HOUSE OF ESAU WILL BE STUBBLE, AND THEY WILL SET IT ON FIRE AND CONSUME IT: The Israelites would then consume the Edomites, as a fire burns up stubble (cf Exo 15:7; Isa 10:17; Joel 2:5; Zec 12:6; Mal 4:1; Mat 3:12; Luke 3:17). Fire is often a method of divine judgment in Scripture (Deu 28:24; 32:22).

Some passages, like v 18, speak of a military participation by Israel in the judgment of the nations just prior to the Millennium (cp Zec 9:13; 12:1-9; Mal 4:3), while others depict the Lord carrying out the judgment on behalf of His people (Joel 3:12; Zec 14:3-5). Perhaps both aspects are true, but at slightly different times.

THERE WILL BE NO SURVIVORS FROM THE HOUSE OF ESAU: There would be no Edomites left (cf vv 8,9; Num 24:18; Isa 11:13,14; Eze 25:13,14; Amos 9:12), though Israelites would escape from Jerusalem (v 17). [This may mean: ‘no Edomites as a NATION’ particularly.]

Oba 1:19

Vv 19,20: For detail of the occupations described, see Lesson, Obad, overview. These occupations are, in order, se, sw, north, and east of Israel.

THE MOUNTAINS OF ESAU: Cp v 21. Edom would not prevail over Israel, but Yahweh would prove to be sovereign (v 1). His kingdom would extend over the whole Promised Land, even the part that Israel’s enemies formerly occupied and the people who formerly opposed them.

PHILISTINES: See Lesson, Philistia in prophecy.

Oba 1:20

SEPHARAD: Of uncertain meaning. Some say it refers to Sardis in western Asia Minor, or to a district of southwest Media referred to by Sargon king of Assyria, where exiled Jews settled (cp 2KI 17:6). Others say it refers to Spain, and hence in modern times to the Sephardic Jews, the dark-skinned Jews mainly from Spain and North Africa (in contrast to Ashkenazi Jews, mainly from Germany and Poland). These Sephardic Jews, who have emigrated to Israel, have been sent mostly to the Negev (Tes 54:332).

Oba 1:21

DELIVERERS: Why is this word “deliverers/saviours” plural? There are two possible answers: (1) This is the scholarly “intensive plural” of OT Hebrew, which in this case should be translated: “the GREATEST of all Saviours”; and/or (2) Christ the one Saviour, along with all the glorified saints who will rule with him in the Kingdom of God (Dan 7:22,27; 12:3; Luk 22:30; Rev 2:26,27; 5:9,10; etc).

AND THE KINGDOM WILL BE THE LORD’S: “None of the prophets has a more exalted close than this… No man-ruled empire nor any nation of this world will endure forever. All will one day be merged into that eternal kingdom over which the Lord Jesus Christ will reign in solitary glory” (Gaebelein). See Psa 2:6-9; Isa 9:6,7; Dan 2:35,44; Zec 14:9; Luk 1:32,33; Rev 19:6.

The scribes and Pharisees wanted a sign from Jesus. True, they had seen his miracles; yet they asked for a definite sign, beyond any doubt, that he was the Messiah. But Jesus answered: “A wicked and adulterous generation asks for a miraculous sign! But none will be given it except the sign of the prophet Jonah” (Mat 12:39, NIV).

The events recorded in the book probably covered only a few months or years at the most. Jonah lived during Jeroboam II’s reign (793-753 BC).

Jesus Christ referred to Jonah as a historical person and to his experience as real (Mat 12:38-42; 16:4; Luke 11:29-32)

Jonah, outline:

1. Jonah flees his mission: Jon 1:1-17

a) Jonah’s commission and flight: Jon 1:1-3 b) A storm at sea: Jon 1:4-14 c) Cast overboard: Jon 1:15 – 2:1 d) Jonah’s prayer of thanksgiving: Jon 2:2-10

2. Jonah reluctantly fulfills his mission: Jon 3:1- 4:11

a) Jonah’s renewed commission and obedience: Jon 3:1-4 b) The Ninevites’ repentant appeal to the Lord: Jon 3:5-9 c) The Ninevites repentance acknowledged: Jon 3:10 – 4:4 d) Jonah’s complaint and rebuke: Jon 4:5-11

See Lesson, Jonah, sign of

---

Amo 8:2

A BASKET OF RIPE FRUIT: Apparently only one basket, where hundreds might have been expected. So this may be the firstfruit offerings to God. Or possibly an indication of a very poor harvest — if this is all there is! Or even yet, an indication that only a very small remnant — out of the whole nation — will be acceptable to God.

THE TIME IS RIPE FOR MY PEOPLE ISRAEL: Israel was ripe for a “harvest” too, but it would not be pleasant; it was a harvest of judgment!

Amo 8:3

THE SONGS IN THE TEMPLE WILL TURN TO WAILING: …When the only part of the Temple that shall be left will be the Western Wall, which will become the… “Wailing Wall”!

WAILING: Heb “hellilu”. Their “halleluyahs” have become howls (“hellilu”).

MANY, MANY BODIES — FLUNG EVERYWHERE: In keeping with the figure of speech, the dead bodies would be like so much rotten fruit, lying all about on the ground!

Cp the dead bodies that lie in the wide place of the great city (near the Wailing Wall?): Rev 11:8,9.

Amo 8:4

// Amo 5:11.

Amo 8:5

Vv 5,6: These oppressors were eager for the monthly festivals and the weekly Sabbaths to end so they could get back to work — cheating their fellow countrymen to make big profits. These holidays were days of rest and worship, but the Israelite workaholics did not enjoy them, though they observed them as good religious people. They were anxious to enslave the needy in their debt so they could control them and use them for their own selfish ends (cp Amo 2:6). “These people regarded cereals and human beings equally as stock for sale. Their practices were both dishonest and inhumane” (Anderson and Freedman). Merchandising was their priority, not worshipping. Profit was their god, and they willingly sacrificed more important things for it. People who focus intently on what they will do after worship is over do not engage in true worship or enter into the spirit of worship” (Const).

SKIMPING THE MEASURE, BOOSTING THE PRICE: Literally, “making the ephah small, and the shekel great”. The NIV is interpretive.

Amo 8:6

THE SWEEPINGS WITH THE WHEAT: The dust or chaff of the floors, mixed with the wheat, so as to dilute it.

Amo 8:7

THE LORD HAS SWORN: For the third time in this book Amos said that Yahweh took an oath (cp Amo 4:2; 6:8).

THE PRIDE OF JACOB: “The EXCELLENCY of Jacob”, that is, Yahweh Himself (cp, generally, 1Sa 15:29).

Amo 8:8

WILL NOT THE LAND TREMBLE FOR THIS…?: A ref to the great earthquake in the days of Uzziah (Amo 1:1)?

THE WHOLE LAND WILL RISE LIKE THE NILE; IT WILL BE STIRRED UP AND THEN SINK LIKE THE RIVER OF EGYPT: Cp Isa 8:7,8, where the Assyrian invasion is pictured as a great river overflowing its banks, flooding the land — rising and falling like the Nile in flood stage — and then passing thru, leaving only devastation in its wake.

Amo 8:9

I WILL MAKE THE SUN GO DOWN AT NOON AND DARKEN THE EARTH IN BROAD DAYLIGHT: On the day of judgment Yahweh would send darkness over the land. This may refer to an eclipse of the sun, or it may be a figurative description of the coming judgment as an unnaturally bad day. The figure of the sun going down at noon was particularly appropriate since Jeroboam’s reign was the zenith of Israel’s prosperity, power, and glory.

Amo 8:10

I WILL TURN YOUR RELIGIOUS FEASTS INTO MOURNING: The Passover feast is turned into mourning for the only-begotten Son (cp v 8: like Egypt; Luk 23:48).

“It was not only iniquity that aroused God’s anger, but also piety” (Abraham Heschel). Cp Amo 5:22-24.

Amo 8:11

A time when there is no prophetic vision in Israel. But this “silence” is broken briefly when Christ appears. And then the Holy Spirit is manifested, as a foretaste of powers of future world: Eph 1:13,14; Heb 6:4-6. But meanwhile, the sun will set on the prophets: Mic 3:6,7.

A FAMINE OF HEARING THE WORDS OF THE LORD: The Israelites had rejected the Lord’s words to them (Amo 2:11,12; 7:10-13), so He would not send them to them any longer (cp 1Sa 3:1; 28:6). This is a fearful prospect. If we do not listen to the Word of God, we may not be able to hear the Word of God (cp Luke 17:22; John 7:34). This does not mean that God would remove all copies of His Word from them but that when they sought a word of help, advice, or comfort from Him they would not get it.

“Most people have seen the horrible pictures of people who are starving to death. The bloated bellies and the pitiful faces are too much to bear. Yet, there is another famine that is equally tragic and much more widespread, and that is the famine for the word of God.

“The tragedy of this famine is that, unlike a natural famine which is often unavoidable because of climatic events such as drought or flooding, the famine for the word of God is completely manmade. If we use the analogy of the parable of the sower with the seed being the word of God, there are some places that are not being sown because of lack of preaching. How tragic that some will die never having heard the good news. On the other hand, some receive the seed in abundance, but like the lazy fool of Proverbs, he ‘buries his hand in the dish; he is too lazy to bring it back to his mouth.’ [Prov 26:15] What an incredible picture is brought to the mind: a person starving to death but too lazy of pick up the food that is right there in front of him. How many people do you know that profess to be Christians yet would have great difficulty telling you where in the Bible the book of Hebrews is? Could they even tell you if it was in the Old Testament or the New Testament? Could they even tell you if there was such a book in the Bible? Yet, there are few households in first world countries that don’t have a Bible somewhere in them” (KT).

Amo 8:12

MEN WILL STAGGER FROM SEA TO SEA… SEARCHING FOR THE WORD OF THE LORD: “They shall run to and fro” (RSV). Ct last days, Dan 12:4: Many run to and fro, knowledge increased.

Amo 8:13

Ct last days, Joel 2:28: HSp outpoured upon young and old alike.

Amo 8:14

THE SHAME OF SAMARIA: Heb “Ashima” (NIV mg). Amos described the prominent idol in Samaria as Samaria’s guilt or shame. One of the idols they worshipped in Samaria was Ashima (cf 2Ki 17:29,30), which Amos apparently alluded to here.

GOD (2nd): Heb “derek”, way, work, or power. Apparently, an epithet for the deity of Beersheba (MNIV 99).