Obadiah 1:14

Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress. STOOD IN THE CROSSWAY, TO CUT OFF THOSE OF HIS (Judah's). THAT DID ESCAPE. The Jews naturally fled by the crossways (Maurer translates, 'narrow mountain passes') well known to them, to escape to the desert, and through Edom to Egypt; but the Edomites stood ready to intercept the fugitives, and either kill or 'deliver them up' to the foe. NEITHER SHOULDEST THOU HAVE DELIVERED UP - or 'shut up' - i:e., intercept, prevent the escape of, so as to deliver them up. Thus Edom, from malicious looks, proceeded on to malicious words, and from words to deeds-deeds of covetousness, spoliation, and murder....

It follows, _And thou shouldest not stand on the going forth_. The word פרק _perek _signifies to break, to dissipate, to rend; hence פרק _perek_, as a noun, in Hebrew means rending and breaking. Therefore some take it metaphorically for a place where two ways meet, when one road is cut or divided into two. When the two meet then there is a going forth by two ways; hence they take פרק, _perek, _for such a place. But we may simply take it for the rending of the people. Though I am certainly pleased with the first explanation, yet I do not confine the word to that meaning; and I prefer the idea of going forth, as it harmonizes better with the context: Thou hast_stood _then _on the going forth; _and for what purpose? _To destroy those who had escaped, and to stop or to deliver up his remaining captives in the day of affliction. _In short, the Prophe

1-16 This prophecy is against Edom. Its destruction seems to have been typical, as their father Esau's rejection; and to refer to the destruction of the enemies of the gospel church. See the prediction of the success of that war; Edom shall be spoiled, and brought down. All the enemies of God's church shall be disappointed in the things they stay themselves on. God can easily lay those low who magnify and exalt themselves; and will do it. Carnal security ripens men for ruin, and makes the ruin worse when it comes. Treasures on earth cannot be so safely laid up but that thieves may break through and steal; it is therefore our wisdom to lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven. Those that make flesh their trust, arm it against themselves. The God of our covenant will never deceive us: but if we trust men with whom we join ourselves, it may prove to us a wound and dishonour. God will justl...

Verse Obadiah 1:14. _NEITHER SHOULDEST THOU HAVE STOOD IN THE CROSSWAY_] They are represented here as having stood in the _passes_ and _defiles_ to prevent the poor Jews from escaping from the Chaldeans. By _stopping these passes_, they threw the poor fugitives back into the teeth of their enemies. They had gone so far in this systematic cruelty as to deliver up the few that had taken refuge among them....

BUT THOU SHOULDEST NOT - , rather it means, and can only mean , “And look not (i. e., gaze not with pleasure) on the day of thy brother in the day of his becoming a stranger ; and rejoice not over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; and enlarge not thy mouth in the day of distress. Enter not into the gate of My people in the day of their calamity; look not, thou too, on his affliction in the day of his calamity; and lay not hands on his substance in the day of his calamity; And stand not on the crossway, to cut off his fugitives; and shut not up his remnants in the day of distress.” Throughout these three verses, Obadiah uses the future only. It is the voice of earnest, emphatic, dehortation and entreaty, not to do what would displease God, and what, if done, would be punished. He dehorts them from malicious rejoicing at their brother’s fall, first in look, then in wor...

NEITHER SHOULDEST THOU HAVE STOOD IN THE CROSSING,.... In a place where two or more roads met, to stop the Jews that fled, let them take which road they would: or, "in the breach" y; that is, of the walls of the city; TO CUT OFF THOSE OF HIS THAT DID ESCAPE; such of the Jews that escaped the sword of the Chaldeans in the city, and attempted, to get away through the breaches of the walls of it, or that took different roads to make their escape; these were intercepted and stopped by the Edomites, who posted themselves at these breaches, or at places where two or more ways met, and cut them off; so that those that escaped the sword of the enemy fell by theirs; which was exceeding barbarous and cruel: NEITHER SHOULDEST THOU HAVE DELIVERED UP THOSE OF HIS THAT DID REMAIN IN THE DAY OF THEIR DISTRESS; or "shut up" z; they shut them up in their houses, or stopped up all the avenues and ways b...

OBADIAH 1:1 B. THE DESERVED DOWNFALL OF EDOM. The prophet declares that interpretation of current events which Yahweh has revealed to him. Other nations are combining against Edom (Obadiah 1:1) and Yahweh will make their combination successful (Obadiah 1:2; the perfect tenses are prophetic). Edom has been confident in the inaccessibility of his mountainous land (Obadiah 1:3; see Intro. and read with VSS making high his habitation), but vainly does he build (his nest) on high (for the EAGLE, see on Jeremiah 4:13). This is no passing raid, for the work of the f

STOOD IN THE CROSSWAY. Referring to some antecedent event by Figure of speech _Hysteresis_ (App-6). CROSSWAY. fork of the roads, or. mountain pass....

The Cause of Edom's Destruction The scene changes. Another picture of violence and cruelty now rises before the prophet's eyes. He sees Jerusalem encompassed by enemies and overcome. Strangers carry away captive her forces, foreigners enter into her gates. And there, not only standing aside in unbrotherly neutrality, but exulting with malicious joy, speaking words of proud scorn, doing acts of robbery and wrong, are seen the Edomites. The two pictures, one of the past, the other of the future, he is commissioned to portray before the eyes of men, and to reveal the hidden link that binds them together in the relationship of cause and effect. Obadiah 1:10 contains a general statement of the sin and its punishment. In Obadiah 1:11 the prophet writes in the impassioned strain of a spectator and describes at lengt

_THE LORD CONDEMNS EDOM'S CRUELTY -- OBADIAH 1:10-14:_ God condemned Edom for violence done to Jacob. There was a physical relationship there and yet there was a great deal of hostility, especially from Edom toward Jacob. This is one of the reasons that motivated God to cut off Edom. Edom did nothing to help when "strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem." Edom took pleasure in the misfortunes of Jacob. When the inhabitants of Judah were carried into Babylon Edom celebrated the disaster. (2 Kings 25) God asked Edom, "Why did you celebrate when such a dreadful disaster struck your relatives? Why were you so pleased when everyone in Judah was suffering?" Edom did not stop with taking delight in the misfortune of Judah. God reminded them that they had personally been cruel to His people. Edom went through the cities of Juda