Obadiah 19-21
English Standard Version

The Kingdom of the LORD
19 Those of the Negeb shall possess Mount Esau,
    and those of the Shephelah shall possess the land of the Philistines;
they shall possess the land of Ephraim and the land of Samaria,
    and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
20 The exiles of this host of the people of Israel
    shall possess the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath,
and the exiles of Jerusalem who are in Sepharad
    shall possess the cities of the Negeb.
21 Saviors shall go up to Mount Zion
    to rule Mount Esau,
    and the kingdom shall be the LORD's.

There is one final topic the LORD wants to discuss with those reading Obadiah's prophecies before the close of the book, and that is the coming Kingdom of the LORD that He is preparing for the righteous that belong to Him.  Last time we talked about the judgment that was being prepared for the unrighteous, but that is not the destiny of those whom the LORD has redeemed and saved and put His Spirit within.

The people of the South (the people of Judah, specifically those living in the wilderness south of Jerusalem) will be given Edom (the land near the Dead Sea.  The people of Shephelah (the Judean foothills in south-central Israel) will receive the lands of the Philistines as their inheritance (the portion of land between Israel and Judah that we now think of as "The Gaza Strip").  

The faithful Jews of the South will rebuild and repopulate the Land of Samaria (the northern kingdom that was judged severely so that they were nearly destroyed by the LORD's hand of judgment).  The tribe of Benjamin will posses the Trans-Jordan region of Gilead (what we call modern-day Jordan).  The exiles will return and possess all the Land of Canaan that was promised to them through Moses and Joshua.  The entirety of the land promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob will be filled with their descendants, and they will own all of it.

The LORD will reign from Mount Zion over all the territory of His people, and there will be no competing throne to His in all the Land, not even from Mount Esau.  This is the Messianic kingdom promised to the Jewish people throughout the Old Testament that would last 1,000 years.  This is not a promise to the Gentile believers (note how all the tribal names are given here and division of the Land is made according to what tribe the people belonged to).  Those outside the lineage of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob may have a place in this Kingdom too, for there is much more land that is mentioned here that is under the control of Messiah during the time of His Kingdom.  There is all of the kingdoms of Egypt and Assyria for instance that are outside the land promised to the Jews where we are told that God-fearing Gentiles will live and worship the LORD, but they will not live in the Land of Canaan.  We also see promises that all the kingdoms of the world come and pay tribute to the Messiah.  We'll see exactly how this plays out in the future when these events occur, but there is more than enough land for the LORD to give everything He promised to the people of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and for there to be more than enough room left for those who were brought into the family of God by Adoption.  They will receive an inheritance of their own but they will not rob the "natural born" children of their inheritance.

Obadiah 15-18
English Standard Version

The Day of the LORD Is Near
15 For the day of the LORD is near upon all the nations.
As you have done, it shall be done to you;
    your deeds shall return on your own head.
16 For as you have drunk on my holy mountain,
    so all the nations shall drink continually;
they shall drink and swallow,
    and shall be as though they had never been.
17 But in Mount Zion there shall be those who escape,
    and it shall be holy,
and the house of Jacob shall possess their own possessions.
18 The house of Jacob shall be a fire,
    and the house of Joseph a flame,
    and the house of Esau stubble;
they shall burn them and consume them,
    and there shall be no survivor for the house of Esau,
for the LORD has spoken.

The Day of the LORD usually refers to the day of judgment for the wicked in the distant future, but it can sometimes refer to any day of reckoning when the LORD's wrath is poured out on a people or individual (specifically Jesus on the cross).  This prophecy says that those who desired to destroy the people of God will themselves be destroyed.  Those who wished to take their land will have their land taken away from them.  Those who wished to defile the holy places and destroy the LORD's temple will have their holy places defiled and their temples and idols will be destroyed.

Those who belong to the LORD will be saved though.  They will be brought safely through the judgment on the Day of the LORD just like with Noah's Ark and Passover, and Purim.  The righteous will be saved and the wicked will be destroyed.  However, the rebellious and wicked of Israel will be destroyed.  Edom will be destroyed and be made a picture of the eternal judgment faced by all the wicked.  This is the judgment of the LORD.

Obadiah 10-14
English Standard Version

Edom's Violence Against Jacob
10 Because of the violence done to your brother Jacob,
    shame shall cover you,
    and you shall be cut off forever.
11 On the day that you stood aloof,
    on the day that strangers carried off his wealth
and foreigners entered his gates
    and cast lots for Jerusalem,
    you were like one of them.
12 But do not gloat over the day of your brother
    in the day of his misfortune;
do not rejoice over the people of Judah
    in the day of their ruin;
do not boast
    in the day of distress.
13 Do not enter the gate of my people
    in the day of their calamity;
do not gloat over his disaster
    in the day of his calamity;
do not loot his wealth
    in the day of his calamity.
14 Do not stand at the crossroads
    to cut off his fugitives;
do not hand over his survivors
    in the day of distress.

Let's look more closely at the indictment against Edom.  They did nothing to defend Jacob's family (the people of Israel and Judah) when they were attacked.  They should have been allies because they were family, but, instead, Edom actively participated in helping the attackers.  They either stood by and allowed them to come in through their land in order to attack Israel and Judah, or they acted as bounty hunters and caught the escaping Israelites and turned them over to their enemies for profit.  They hoped that they would be allowed to divide the spoils with the enemy and take some of the covenant blessings for themselves.

The LORD tells the people of Edom not to try to steal the wealth of Judah or enter into the Land where they don't belong to try to take it for themselves.  They are to stop being bounty hunters and they are to stop giving aid to the enemy--instead they should be giving aid to the people of Judah.

Obadiah 1-9
English Standard Version

1 The vision of Obadiah.

Edom Will Be Humbled
Thus says the Lord GOD concerning Edom:
We have heard a report from the LORD,
    and a messenger has been sent among the nations:
“Rise up! Let us rise against her for battle!”
2 Behold, I will make you small among the nations;
    you shall be utterly despised.
3 The pride of your heart has deceived you,
    you who live in the clefts of the rock,
    in your lofty dwelling,
who say in your heart,
    “Who will bring me down to the ground?”
4 Though you soar aloft like the eagle,
    though your nest is set among the stars,
    from there I will bring you down,
declares the LORD.

5 If thieves came to you,
    if plunderers came by night--
    how you have been destroyed!--
    would they not steal only enough for themselves?
If grape gatherers came to you,
    would they not leave gleanings?
6 How Esau has been pillaged,
    his treasures sought out!
7 All your allies have driven you to your border;
    those at peace with you have deceived you;
they have prevailed against you;
    those who eat your bread have set a trap beneath you--
    you have no understanding.

8 Will I not on that day, declares the LORD,
    destroy the wise men out of Edom,
    and understanding out of Mount Esau?
9 And your mighty men shall be dismayed, O Teman,
    so that every man from Mount Esau will be cut off by slaughter.

Yesterday, we finished the book of Amos with a vision of the people being restored in the Messianic Kingdom.  Today, we start another of the Minor Prophets, Obadiah.  It's one of the shortest with the whole book being what we would call a single chapter (there are no chapter divisions, just verses). 

The LORD gives Obadiah a vision concerning the nation of Edom that it will be destroyed.  Though Edom (the descendants of Esau) desired to take the promises of the Abrahamic Covenant that belonged to Jacob--Land, Descendants, and the Messiah and His Eternal Kingdom--the LORD promises the opposite of this blessing (a curse) to them.  They will be considered small among the nations with almost no descendants to be counted.  They will be utterly despised where Israel will be exalted and honored among the nations.  Edom will be at war where Israel will be at peace.

Why will the LORD do these things?  Because they are proud like their father the devil.  They live in the cleft of the rocks (mountain fortresses), but these will not save them from the wrath of God that is coming.  They believe they are high and lifted up (like the arrogance of Lucifer before he fell), but great will be their fall.

Thieves come and steal everything, not thinking to only take what they need.  Those who come to rob the farmers of their crops take everything, not leaving the gleanings of the field so that the poor and indigent would have something.  They take everything--much more than they need.  This is how Edom has treated and thought of Israel  They wanted to steal from them what did not belong to them, but the LORD knew they would consume everything just like they had with the resources He had entrusted them with.  There is no coexistence with those who desire to destroy you and take (and squander) everything you have.  The LORD will cause the very things that Edom wanted to do to Israel to be done to Edom.  Its resources will be plundered and it will never again be the strong and powerful people it once was.

The LORD will destroy Edom's wealth, their "wisdom" and their warriors.  Everything they are proud of will be gone in an instant.  It will be like the chaff that the wind drives away or that the fire consumes.  All the men of their capital called Mount Seir or Mount Esau (which stands in stark contract to Mount Zion) will be killed by the sword.