Obadiah 1:19

And they of the south shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the plain the Philistines: and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim, and the fields of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead. AND THEY OF THE SOUTH - Hebrew, 'they of the Negeb.' SHALL POSSESS THE MOUNT OF ESAU. The Jews, who in the coming time are to occupy the south of Judea, shall possess, in addition to their own territory, the adjoining mountainous region of Edom. AND THEY OF THE PLAIN THE PHILISTINES. The Jews who shall occupy the low country (Hebrew, 'they of the Shepheelah') along the Mediterranean, south and southwest of Palestine, shall possess, in addition to their own territory, the land of "the Philistines," which runs as a long strip between the hills and the sea. AND THEY SHALL POSSESS THE FIELDS OF EPHRAIM, AND THE FIELDS OF SAMARIA - i:e., the rightful ow...

The Prophet proceeds with the same subject, — that God would not only gather the remnants of his people from the Babylonian exile, but would restore the exiles, that they might rule far and wide, and that their condition might be better than it was before: for the Prophet, as I think, directs the attention to the first blessing of God, which had been deposited in the hand of Abraham. God had promised to the posterity of Abraham the whole land from Euphrates to the sea. Now this land had never been possessed by the children of Abraham. This happened, as it is well known, through their sloth and ingratitude. David in his time enlarged the borders; but yet he only made those tributaries whom God had commanded to be destroyed. So this blessing had never been fulfilled, because the people put a hindrance in the way. The Prophet now, speaking of the restoration of the Church, tells the people,...

17-21 There should be deliverance and holiness at Jerusalem, and the house of Jacob would again occupy their possessions. Much of this prophecy was fulfilled when the Jews returned to their own land. But the salvation and holiness of the gospel, its spread, and the conversion of the Gentiles, seem also to be intended, especially the restoration of Israel, the destruction of antichrist, and the prosperous state of the church, to which all the prophets bear witness. When Christ is come, and not till then, shall the kingdom be the Lord's in the full sense of the term. As none that exalt themselves against the Lord shall prosper, and all shall be brought down; so none that wait upon the Lord, and put their trust in him, shall ever be dismayed. Blessed be the Divine Saviour and Judge on Mount Zion! His word shall be a savour of life unto life unto numbers, while it judges and condemns obstina...

Verse Obadiah 1:19. THEY OF _THE SOUTH_] The Jews who possessed the _southern_ part of _Palestine_, should render themselves masters of the mountains of Idumea which were contiguous to them. THEY OF _THE PLAIN_] From Eleutheropolis to the Mediterranean Sea. In this and the following verse the prophet shows the different districts which should be occupied by the Israelites after their return from Babylon. _THE FIELDS OF SAMARIA_] Alexander the Great gave Samaria to the Jews; and John Hyrcanus subdued the same country after his wars with the Syrians. See _Josephus_, contra. App. lib, ii., and Antiq. lib. xiii., c. 18. _BENJAMIN_ SHALL POSSESS _GILEAD._] _Edom_ lay to the _south_; the _Philistines_ to the _west; Ephraim_ to the north

AND THEY OF THE SOUTH SHALL POSSESS THE MOUNT OF ESAU - The Church was now hemmed in within Judah and Benjamin. They too were to go into captivity. The prophet looks beyond the captivity and the return, and tells how that original promise to Jacob Genesis 28:14 should be fulfilled; “Thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt break North to the West, and to the East, and to the North, and to the South; and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed. Hosea and Amos had, at this time, prophesied the final destruction of the kingdom of Israel. Obadiah describes Judah, as expanded to its former bounds including Edom and Philistia, and occupying the territory of the ten tribes. “The South” , i. e., they of the “hot” and “dry” country to the South of Judah bordering on Edom, “shall possess the mountains of Esau,” i. e., his

AND [THEY OF] THE SOUTH SHALL POSSESS THE LAND OF ESAU,.... That is, those Jews that shall dwell in the southern part of the land of Judea shall seize upon the country of Idumea, lying contiguous to them; they shall enlarge their border, and take that into their possession: AND [THEY OF] THE PLAIN THE PHILISTINES; or of Sephela, they that shall inhabit the plain, or champaign country of Judea, as the parts of Lydda, Emmaus, and Sharon, were; these shall possess the country of the Philistines, lying near unto them, as Azotus, Gaza, Ashkelon, Gath, and Ekron: AND THEY SHALL POSSESS THE FIELDS OF EPHRAIM, AND THE FIELDS OF SAMARIA; all the countries that the ten tribes inhabited, in the times of their idolatry, before their captivity, which the Jews shall now be restored unto: AND BENJAMIN [SHALL POSSESS] GILEAD; that tribe shall be so enlarged as to take in the country of Gilead, which...

OBADIAH 1:15 A, OBADIAH 1:16. THE JUDGMENT OF THE NATIONS. The Day of Yahweh approaches; Judah has already drunk her cup of suffering (_cf._ Jeremiah 25:15; Jeremiah 49:12), and now the other nations shall drink destruction. Mount Zion shall be a sanctuary, and the house of Jacob (here for Judah) shall recover what has been lost (Obadiah 1:17). Judah shall be joined by the restored northern kingdom (the house of Joseph), and together they shall utterly destroy the Edomites (Esau,...

THE SOUTH. the south [country], the Negeb. See note on Psalms 126:4. Compare Amos 9:12. THE PLAIN. the lowlands, the Shephelah [shall possess]. Compare Zephaniah 2:7. THEY. they [of the mountain], or [of the centre]. FIELDS. territory. AND BENJAMIN. and [they of] Benjamin....

The Restoration of Israel By an easy transition the prophet passes to the second and brighter part of his picture. The destruction of her enemies is accompanied by the restoration and salvation of Israel. There is however no sudden break between the two portions of the prophecy. The key-note of deliverance had already been struck in the earlier portion by the implied promise (Obadiah 1:16) that the punishment of Israel was not to be, like that of her enemies, continual. The tones of vengeance are heard still in the later portion, and are only lost at length in the final strain of victory, "The kingdom shall be the Lord's." Israel is to regain her former possessions (Obadiah 1:17), to overcome her ancient foes (Obadiah 1:18),

_THE DAY OF THE LORD IS NEAR-- OBADIAH 1:15-20:_ God reminded Edom of His law that you reap what you sow. "The day of the Lord" was near for all nations. It was time for Edom to pay in full for what she had done. God said, "As you have done, it shall be done to you; your deeds shall return on your own head." Other nations, in addition to Edom would feel the wrath of God. Especially Edom, but other nations also, would drink the cup of God's anger and wrath. Concerning those nations the Divine message was, it "shall be as though they had never been." God promised that His people would return from Babylonian captivity and "the house of Jacob shall possess their own possessions." It was prophesied that Judah would retake some of their lost territory. The Edomites were to be completely overthrown as a ruling power. "Israel will be a fire, and Edom will be straw going up in flam