Obadiah 1:1-4
Who Will Bring Me Down
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1This is the vision of Obadiah: This is what the Lord GOD says about Edom—We have heard a message from the LORD; an envoy has been sent among the nations to say, “Rise up, and let us go to battle against her!”—
2“Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you will be deeply despised.
3The pride of your heart has deceived you, O dwellers in the clefts of the rocks whose habitation is the heights, who say in your heart, ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’
4Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, even from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD.
Berean Standard Bible
Read aloud
Obadiah’s vision concerns Edom. A message from the LORD summons the nations to battle against her. The LORD says He will make Edom small and deeply despised.
Edom’s own view is very different. From homes high in the rocky clefts, the people ask, “Who can bring me down to the ground?” Their position seems secure, but the LORD says their proud hearts have deceived them.
His answer reaches beyond even those heights. Though they soar like an eagle or nest among the stars, He will bring them down. No place Edom can imagine is beyond His reach. The nation’s confidence has rested on what it can defend rather than on whether it can answer to God.
How We Know
Genesis 36:8–9 identifies Esau with Edom and places his descendants around Mount Seir. Edom is a particular people, related to Jacob’s family. Jeremiah 49:16 addresses the same people with a closely related warning about rocky heights, an eagle’s nest, and pride that has deceived the heart.
Questions
1 What does Obadiah say has deceived Edom?
AnswerThe pride of its heart. The problem is not only where Edom lives, but what Edom has concluded about that place.
2 Where does Edom live?
AnswerIn the clefts of the rocks and in the heights. The nation believes that its position makes it unreachable.
3 What question does Edom ask?
Answer“Who can bring me down to the ground?” It is a question asked from confidence, but God answers it as a challenge He will meet.
4 What can become a false source of safety in our family?
AnswerIt might be money, privacy, reputation, intelligence, or the ability to stay busy. Name it honestly. A shelter becomes dangerous when it convinces us we do not need correction.
What This Means for Us
Being good at something can make us slow to hear that we have done wrong. A strong reputation or an important role can have the same effect.
When someone offers correction, listen before listing your accomplishments or explaining why they should trust you. Ask whether the concern is true. The ability to succeed or defend yourself does not remove your need to answer honestly to God.
Prayer
Father, show us where pride has disguised itself as safety. Keep our strengths from becoming thrones, and make us willing to hear correction before we have to be brought down. Amen.