Obadiah 1:1-14

God will punish Edom's people

1 This is the vision that Obadiah saw.

The Almighty Lord says this about Edom.

We have heard a message from the Lord.

Someone has taken a message to the nations to say,

‘Get ready to attack Edom!’

2 The Lord says to Edom,

‘Listen to me! I will make you very weak.

All the other nations will think that you are useless.

3 You are proud that you are very strong.

But you deceive yourselves.

You live among the high rocks

where no enemy can attack you.

Your home is high up in the mountains.

You think to yourselves,

“Nobody can reach us and pull us down!”

4 You might try to fly high in the sky like an eagle.

You might even try to make your home among the stars.

But I would bring you down from there!’

That is what the Lord says.

5 ‘If robbers came to rob you in the night,

they would only take the things that they wanted.

If people came to pick your grapes at harvest time,

they would leave some fruit for the poor people.

But it will be terrible for you!

6 Esau's people will lose everything!

Nothing will remain.

Your enemies will take all your valuable things,

even if you hide them!

7 Even the nations who have been your friends

will chase you out of your own country.

Nations who have agreed to help you will deceive you.

They will take away your power.

People that you trusted as your friends

will suddenly catch you in a trap.’

8 The Lord says,

‘At that time, I will destroy the wise men of Edom.

Yes, I will remove the clever men from Esau's mountain!

9 Brave soldiers from Teman will be very afraid.

All the descendants of Esau who live in the mountains will die.

Edom's people helped Judah's enemy

10 You were cruel to Jacob's descendants.

They were your brothers but you killed them.

Because of that, you will become very ashamed.

You will come to a final end.

11 A foreign army attacked Jerusalem and they went into the city.

They threw dice to decide what valuable things they would take.

You stood and watched while this happened.

You did nothing to help your brothers.

Instead, you were as bad as the foreign enemy.

12 When your brothers were in great trouble,

that should not have made you happy.

You should not have laughed at Judah's people

when their enemy was destroying them.

You should not have boasted

when you saw that they were suffering.

13 When my people were in great trouble,

you should not have gone in through the gates of their city.

You should not have been happy

to see that they were suffering.

When they were in great trouble,

you should not have taken their valuable things for yourselves.

14 You waited beside the road from the city.

You attacked people who were trying to escape.

You caught people who were running away.

You gave them back to their enemies.

You should not have done that to my people

when they were in great trouble.