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(A)The Lord has prepared his sword in heaven, and now it will strike Edom, those people whom he has condemned to destruction. His sword will be covered with their blood and fat, like the blood and fat of lambs and goats that are sacrificed. The Lord will offer this sacrifice in the city of Bozrah; he will make this a great slaughter in the land of Edom. The people will fall like wild oxen and young bulls, and the earth will be red with blood and covered with fat. This is the time when the Lord will rescue Zion and take vengeance on her enemies.

The rivers of Edom will turn into tar, and the soil will turn into sulfur. The whole country will burn like tar. 10 (B)It will burn day and night, and smoke will rise from it forever. The land will lie waste age after age, and no one will ever travel through it again. 11 Owls and ravens will take over the land. The Lord will make it a barren waste again, as it was before the creation. 12 There will be no king to rule the country, and the leaders will all be gone.[a] 13 Thorns and thistles will grow up in all the palaces and walled towns, and jackals and owls will live in them. 14 Wild animals will roam there, and demons will call to each other. The night monster[b] will come there looking for a place to rest. 15 Owls will build their nests, lay eggs, hatch their young, and care for them there. Vultures will gather there, one after another.

16 Search in the Lord's book of living creatures and read what it says. Not one of these creatures will be missing, and not one will be without its mate. The Lord has commanded it to be so; he himself will bring them together. 17 It is the Lord who will divide the land among them and give each of them a share. They will live in the land age after age, and it will belong to them forever.

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 34:12 Verse 12 in Hebrew begins with a word, the meaning of which is unclear.
  2. Isaiah 34:14 A female demon, believed to live in desolate places.

My sword(A) has drunk its fill in the heavens;
    see, it descends in judgment on Edom,(B)
    the people I have totally destroyed.(C)
The sword(D) of the Lord is bathed in blood,
    it is covered with fat—
the blood of lambs and goats,
    fat from the kidneys of rams.
For the Lord has a sacrifice(E) in Bozrah(F)
    and a great slaughter(G) in the land of Edom.
And the wild oxen(H) will fall with them,
    the bull calves and the great bulls.(I)
Their land will be drenched with blood,(J)
    and the dust will be soaked with fat.

For the Lord has a day(K) of vengeance,(L)
    a year of retribution,(M) to uphold Zion’s cause.
Edom’s streams will be turned into pitch,
    her dust into burning sulfur;(N)
    her land will become blazing pitch!
10 It will not be quenched(O) night or day;
    its smoke will rise forever.(P)
From generation to generation(Q) it will lie desolate;(R)
    no one will ever pass through it again.
11 The desert owl[a](S) and screech owl[b] will possess it;
    the great owl[c] and the raven(T) will nest there.
God will stretch out over Edom(U)
    the measuring line of chaos(V)
    and the plumb line(W) of desolation.
12 Her nobles will have nothing there to be called a kingdom,
    all her princes(X) will vanish(Y) away.
13 Thorns(Z) will overrun her citadels,
    nettles and brambles her strongholds.(AA)
She will become a haunt for jackals,(AB)
    a home for owls.(AC)
14 Desert creatures(AD) will meet with hyenas,(AE)
    and wild goats will bleat to each other;
there the night creatures(AF) will also lie down
    and find for themselves places of rest.
15 The owl will nest there and lay eggs,
    she will hatch them, and care for her young
    under the shadow of her wings;(AG)
there also the falcons(AH) will gather,
    each with its mate.

16 Look in the scroll(AI) of the Lord and read:

None of these will be missing,(AJ)
    not one will lack her mate.
For it is his mouth(AK) that has given the order,(AL)
    and his Spirit will gather them together.
17 He allots their portions;(AM)
    his hand distributes them by measure.
They will possess it forever
    and dwell there from generation to generation.(AN)

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Footnotes

  1. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.
  2. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.
  3. Isaiah 34:11 The precise identification of these birds is uncertain.

The Lord's Judgment on Edom

(A)This is what the Lord Almighty said about Edom: “Have the people of Edom lost their good judgment? Can their advisers no longer tell them what to do? Has all their wisdom disappeared? People of Dedan, turn and run! Hide! I am going to destroy Esau's descendants because the time has come for me to punish them. When people pick grapes, they leave a few on the vines, and when robbers come at night, they take only what they want. 10 But I[a] have stripped Esau's descendants completely and uncovered their hiding places, so that they can no longer hide. All the people of Edom are destroyed. Not one of them is left. 11 Leave your orphans with me, and I will take care of them. Your widows can depend on me.

12 “If even those who did not deserve to be punished had to drink from the cup of punishment, do you think that you will go unpunished? No, you must drink from the cup! 13 I myself have sworn that the city of Bozrah will become a horrifying sight and a desert; people will make fun of it and use its name as a curse. All the nearby villages will be in ruins forever. I, the Lord, have spoken.”

14 I said, “Edom, I have received a message from the Lord. He has sent a messenger to tell the nations to assemble their armies and to get ready to attack you. 15 The Lord is going to make you weak, and no one will respect you. 16 Your pride has deceived you. No one fears you as much as you think they do. You live on the rocky cliffs, high on top of the mountain; but even though you live as high up as an eagle, the Lord will bring you down. The Lord has spoken.”

17 The Lord said, “The destruction that will come on Edom will be so terrible that everyone who passes by will be shocked and terrified. 18 (B)The same thing will happen to Edom that happened to Sodom and Gomorrah, when they and the nearby towns were destroyed. No one will ever live there again. I, the Lord, have spoken. 19 (C)Like a lion coming out of the thick woods along the Jordan River up to the green pasture land, I will come and make the Edomites run away suddenly from their country. Then the leader I choose will rule the nation. Who can be compared to me? Who would dare challenge me? What ruler could oppose me? 20 So listen to the plan that I have made against the people of Edom, and to what I intend to do to the people of the city of Teman. Even their children will be dragged off, and everyone will be horrified. 21 When Edom falls, there will be such a noise that the entire earth will shake, and the cries of alarm will be heard as far away as the Gulf of Aqaba. 22 The enemy will attack Bozrah like an eagle swooping down with outspread wings. On that day Edom's soldiers will be as frightened as a woman in labor.”

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 49:10 they leave a few … they take only what they want. 10 But I; or they leave nothing … they take everything. 10 And so I.

A Message About Edom(A)(B)

Concerning Edom:(C)

This is what the Lord Almighty says:

“Is there no longer wisdom in Teman?(D)
    Has counsel perished from the prudent?
    Has their wisdom decayed?
Turn and flee, hide in deep caves,(E)
    you who live in Dedan,(F)
for I will bring disaster on Esau
    at the time when I punish him.
If grape pickers came to you,
    would they not leave a few grapes?
If thieves came during the night,
    would they not steal only as much as they wanted?
10 But I will strip Esau bare;
    I will uncover his hiding places,(G)
    so that he cannot conceal himself.
His armed men are destroyed,
    also his allies and neighbors,
    so there is no one(H) to say,
11 ‘Leave your fatherless children;(I) I will keep them alive.
    Your widows(J) too can depend on me.’”

12 This is what the Lord says: “If those who do not deserve to drink the cup(K) must drink it, why should you go unpunished?(L) You will not go unpunished, but must drink it. 13 I swear(M) by myself,” declares the Lord, “that Bozrah(N) will become a ruin and a curse,[a] an object of horror(O) and reproach;(P) and all its towns will be in ruins forever.”(Q)

14 I have heard a message from the Lord;
    an envoy was sent to the nations to say,
“Assemble yourselves to attack it!
    Rise up for battle!”

15 “Now I will make you small among the nations,
    despised by mankind.
16 The terror you inspire
    and the pride(R) of your heart have deceived you,
you who live in the clefts of the rocks,(S)
    who occupy the heights of the hill.
Though you build your nest(T) as high as the eagle’s,
    from there I will bring you down,”
declares the Lord.
17 “Edom will become an object of horror;(U)
    all who pass by will be appalled and will scoff
    because of all its wounds.(V)
18 As Sodom(W) and Gomorrah(X) were overthrown,
    along with their neighboring towns,”
says the Lord,
“so no one will live there;
    no people will dwell(Y) in it.

19 “Like a lion(Z) coming up from Jordan’s thickets(AA)
    to a rich pastureland,
I will chase Edom from its land in an instant.
    Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this?
Who is like(AB) me and who can challenge me?(AC)
    And what shepherd(AD) can stand against me?”

20 Therefore, hear what the Lord has planned against Edom,(AE)
    what he has purposed(AF) against those who live in Teman:(AG)
The young of the flock(AH) will be dragged away;
    their pasture will be appalled at their fate.(AI)
21 At the sound of their fall the earth will tremble;(AJ)
    their cry(AK) will resound to the Red Sea.[b]
22 Look! An eagle will soar and swoop(AL) down,
    spreading its wings over Bozrah.(AM)
In that day the hearts of Edom’s warriors(AN)
    will be like the heart of a woman in labor.(AO)

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Footnotes

  1. Jeremiah 49:13 That is, its name will be used in cursing (see 29:22); or, others will see that it is cursed.
  2. Jeremiah 49:21 Or the Sea of Reeds

Prophecy against Edom

12 (A)The Sovereign Lord said, “The people of Edom took cruel revenge on Judah, and that revenge has brought lasting guilt on Edom. 13 Now I announce that I will punish Edom and kill every person and animal there. I will make it a wasteland, from the city of Teman to the city of Dedan, and the people will be killed in battle. 14 My people Israel will take revenge on Edom for me, and they will make Edom feel my furious anger. Edom will know what it means to be the object of my revenge.” The Sovereign Lord has spoken.

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A Prophecy Against Edom

12 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: ‘Because Edom(A) took revenge on Judah and became very guilty by doing so, 13 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I will stretch out my hand(B) against Edom and kill both man and beast.(C) I will lay it waste, and from Teman(D) to Dedan(E) they will fall by the sword.(F) 14 I will take vengeance on Edom by the hand of my people Israel, and they will deal with Edom in accordance with my anger(G) and my wrath; they will know my vengeance, declares the Sovereign Lord.’”(H)

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Edom

11 (A)The Lord says, “The people of Edom have sinned again and again, and for this I will certainly punish them. They hunted down their relatives,[a] the Israelites, and showed them no mercy. Their anger had no limits, and they never let it die. 12 So I will send fire upon the city of Teman and burn down the fortresses of Bozrah.”

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Footnotes

  1. Amos 1:11 The Israelites were descended from Jacob, who was the brother of Esau, the ancestor of the Edomites.

11 This is what the Lord says:

“For three sins of Edom,(A)
    even for four, I will not relent.
Because he pursued his brother with a sword(B)
    and slaughtered the women of the land,
because his anger raged continually
    and his fury flamed unchecked,(C)
12 I will send fire on Teman(D)
    that will consume the fortresses of Bozrah.(E)

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This is the prophecy of Obadiah—what the Sovereign Lord said about the nation of Edom.

The Lord Will Punish Edom

The Lord has sent his messenger to the nations,
    and we have heard his message:
    “Get ready! Let us go to war against Edom!”
The Lord says to Edom,
    “I will make you weak;
    everyone will despise you.
Your pride has deceived you.
Your capital is a fortress of solid rock;
    your home is high in the mountains,
and so you say to yourself,
    ‘Who can ever pull me down?’
Even though you make your home
    as high as an eagle's nest,
    so that it seems to be among the stars,
yet I will pull you down.

“When thieves come at night,
    they take only what they want.
When people gather grapes,
    they always leave a few.
But your enemies have wiped you out completely.
Descendants of Esau, your treasures have been looted.
Your allies have deceived you;
    they have driven you from your country.
People who were at peace with you have now conquered you.
    Those friends who ate with you have laid a trap for you;
    they say of you, ‘Where is all that cleverness he had?’

“On the day I punish Edom,
    I will destroy their clever men
    and wipe out all their wisdom.
The fighting men of Teman will be terrified,
    and every soldier in Edom will be killed.

Reasons for Edom's Punishment

10 “Because you robbed and killed
    your relatives,[a] the descendants of Jacob,
    you will be destroyed and dishonored forever.
11 You stood aside on that day
    when enemies broke down their gates.
You were as bad as those strangers
    who carried off Jerusalem's wealth
    and divided it among themselves.
12 You should not have gloated
    over the misfortune of your relatives in Judah.
You should not have been glad
    on the day of their ruin.
You should not have laughed at them
    in their distress.
13 You should not have entered the city of my people
    to gloat over their suffering
    and to seize their riches
    on the day of their disaster.
14 (A)You should not have stood at the crossroads
    to catch those trying to escape.
You should not have handed them over to the enemy
    on the day of their distress.

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Footnotes

  1. Obadiah 1:10 The Israelites were descended from Jacob, who was the brother of Esau, the ancestor of the Edomites.

Obadiah’s Vision(A)(B)

The vision(C) of Obadiah.

This is what the Sovereign Lord says about Edom(D)

We have heard a message from the Lord:
    An envoy(E) was sent to the nations to say,
“Rise, let us go against her for battle”(F)

“See, I will make you small(G) among the nations;
    you will be utterly despised.
The pride(H) of your heart has deceived you,
    you who live in the clefts of the rocks[a](I)
    and make your home on the heights,
you who say to yourself,
    ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’(J)
Though you soar like the eagle
    and make your nest(K) among the stars,
    from there I will bring you down,”(L)
declares the Lord.(M)
“If thieves came to you,
    if robbers in the night—
oh, what a disaster awaits you!—
    would they not steal only as much as they wanted?
If grape pickers came to you,
    would they not leave a few grapes?(N)
But how Esau will be ransacked,
    his hidden treasures pillaged!
All your allies(O) will force you to the border;
    your friends will deceive and overpower you;
those who eat your bread(P) will set a trap for you,[b]
    but you will not detect it.

“In that day,” declares the Lord,
    “will I not destroy(Q) the wise men of Edom,
    those of understanding in the mountains of Esau?
Your warriors, Teman,(R) will be terrified,
    and everyone in Esau’s mountains
    will be cut down in the slaughter.
10 Because of the violence(S) against your brother Jacob,(T)
    you will be covered with shame;
    you will be destroyed forever.(U)
11 On the day you stood aloof
    while strangers carried off his wealth
and foreigners entered his gates
    and cast lots(V) for Jerusalem,
    you were like one of them.(W)
12 You should not gloat(X) over your brother
    in the day of his misfortune,(Y)
nor rejoice(Z) over the people of Judah
    in the day of their destruction,(AA)
nor boast(AB) so much
    in the day of their trouble.(AC)
13 You should not march through the gates of my people
    in the day of their disaster,
nor gloat over them in their calamity(AD)
    in the day of their disaster,
nor seize their wealth
    in the day of their disaster.
14 You should not wait at the crossroads
    to cut down their fugitives,(AE)
nor hand over their survivors
    in the day of their trouble.

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Footnotes

  1. Obadiah 1:3 Or of Sela
  2. Obadiah 1:7 The meaning of the Hebrew for this clause is uncertain.

The Lord's Love for Israel

(A)The Lord says to his people, “I have always loved you.”

But they reply, “How have you shown your love for us?”

The Lord answers, “Esau and Jacob were brothers, but I have loved Jacob and his descendants, and have hated Esau and his descendants. I have devastated Esau's hill country and abandoned the land to jackals.”

If Esau's descendants, the Edomites, say, “Our towns have been destroyed, but we will rebuild them,” then the Lord will reply, “Let them rebuild—I will tear them down again. People will call them ‘The evil country’ and ‘The nation with whom the Lord is angry forever.’”

The people of Israel are going to see this with their own eyes, and they will say, “The Lord is mighty even outside the land of Israel!”

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Israel Doubts God’s Love

“I have loved(A) you,” says the Lord.

“But you ask,(B) ‘How have you loved us?’

“Was not Esau Jacob’s brother?” declares the Lord. “Yet I have loved Jacob,(C) but Esau I have hated,(D) and I have turned his hill country into a wasteland(E) and left his inheritance to the desert jackals.(F)

Edom(G) may say, “Though we have been crushed, we will rebuild(H) the ruins.”

But this is what the Lord Almighty says: “They may build, but I will demolish.(I) They will be called the Wicked Land, a people always under the wrath of the Lord.(J) You will see it with your own eyes and say, ‘Great(K) is the Lord—even beyond the borders of Israel!’(L)

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