Edom's Role in God's Plan for Israel in the Bible
Edom's Role in God's Plan for Israel
Edom, a nation descended from Esau, Jacob's twin brother, played a significant role in God's plan for Israel. The biblical account of Edom's origins is rooted in the story of Esau, who sold his birthright to Jacob for a meal of lentil pottage, earning him the name Edom, meaning "red" [1].
The Edomites inhabited a mountainous region southeast of Israel, known as Mount Seir, extending from the Dead Sea to the Gulf of Akabah [2]. Their history with Israel was marked by hostility and conflict, with Edom often rejoicing at Israel's misfortunes. The prophet Obadiah condemned Edom for its violence against Israel and its failure to show compassion to its "brother" [6].
In the biblical narrative, Edom's enmity towards Israel is seen as a manifestation of the deeper conflict between the descendants of Esau and Jacob. The prophets foretold Edom's downfall, with Obadiah predicting its destruction for its role in Israel's suffering [3]. Ezekiel also prophesied against Edom, declaring that God would take vengeance on Edom through Israel, demonstrating His wrath and anger [4].
The prophets viewed Edom as emblematic of Israel's enemies, representing the nations that opposed God's people. In Amos 9:12, Edom is seen as a symbol of the enemies of God and Israel, who would ultimately be subject to God's people in the time of restoration [5]. Similarly, Ezekiel 35:1-15 addresses Edom as a representation of Israel's enemies, declaring its downfall and the short-lived nature of its prosperity following Judah's demise [7].
The historical context of Edom's interactions with Israel is significant. During the Babylonian conquest of Judah, Edom rejoiced at Israel's fall and even participated in the looting of Jerusalem. This treachery was deeply resented by the Israelites, as reflected in Psalm 137:7. The prophets' condemnation of Edom was, in part, a response to this betrayal [8].
The biblical account of Edom serves as a reminder of God's sovereignty over nations and His commitment to His people. Edom's story is intertwined with Israel's, illustrating the complex relationships between nations and God's plan for His people. As Matthew Henry notes, Edom's destruction was seen as a type of the ultimate downfall of all enemies of God's people [9].
Sources
- Smith's Bible Dictionary “Smith's Bible Dictionary: Edom, Idumaea Or Idumea — (red). The name Edom was given to Esau, the first-born son of Isaac and twin brother of Jacob, when he sold his birthright to the latter for a meal of lentil pottage. The country which the Lord subsequently gave to Esau was hence called "the country of Edom," (Genesis 32:3) and his descendants were called Edomites. Edom was called Mount Seir and Idumea also. Edom was wholly a mountainous country. It embraced the narrow mountainous tract (about 100 miles long by 20 broad) extending along the eastern side of the Arabah from the northern end of ”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Edom — (1.) The name of Esau (q.v.), Gen. 25:30, "Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage [Heb. haadom, haadom, i.e., the red pottage, the red pottage'] ...Therefore was his name called Edom", i.e., Red. (2.) Idumea (Isa. 34:5, 6; Ezek. 35:15). "The field of Edom" (Gen. 32:3), "the land of Edom" (Gen. 36:16), was mountainous (Obad. 1:8, 9, 19, 21). It was called the land, or "the mountain of Seir," the rough hills on the east side of the Arabah. It extended from the head of the Gulf of Akabah, the Elanitic gulf, to the foot of the Dead Sea (1 Kings 9:26), an”
- Easton's Bible Dictionary “Easton's Bible Dictionary: Obadiah, Book of — Consists of one chapter, "concerning Edom," its impending doom (1:1-16), and the restoration of Israel (1:17-21). This is the shortest book of the Old Testament. There are on record the account of four captures of Jerusalem, (1) by Shishak in the reign of Rehoboam (1 Kings 14:25); (2) by the Philistines and Arabians in the reign of Jehoram (2 Chr. 21:16); (3) by Joash, the king of Israel, in the reign of Amaziah (2 Kings 14:13); and (4) by the Babylonians, when Jerusalem was taken and destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar (B.C. 586). Obadiah (1:11-14) speaks”
- Ezekiel “Ezekiel 25:14 (BSB) — I will take My vengeance on Edom by the hand of My people Israel, and they will deal with Edom according to My anger and wrath. Then they will know My vengeance, declares the Lord GOD.’”
- Amos (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Amos 9:12: 9:12 Edom (see 1:11) represents the enemies of God and of Israel (see Isa 34:5-6, 11; 63:1). In the time of restoration, God’s enemies are subject to his people and to God himself. • the nations I have called: God promised Abraham that he would be a blessing to all the people of the earth (Gen 12:2-3). God’s kingdom would embrace the outcasts and foreigners previously excluded (Isa 56; see Acts 8:27-39).”
- Amos (Presbyterian) “Jamieson, Fausset & Brown on Amos 1:11: Edom . . . did pursue his brother-- (Isa 34:5). The chief aggravation to Edom's violence against Israel was that they both came from the same parents, Isaac and Rebekah (compare Gen 25:24-26; Deu 23:7-8; Oba 1:10, Oba 1:12; Mal 1:2). cast off all pity--literally, "destroy compassions," that is, did suppress all the natural feeling of pity for a brother in distress. his wrath for ever--As Esau kept up his grudge against Jacob, for having twice supplanted him, namely, as to the birthright and the blessing (Gen 27:41), so Esau's posterity against Israel”
- Ezek (Protestant academic) “Tyndale House on Ezek 35:1: 35:1-15 This oracle is addressed to Edom, Israel’s neighbor to the southeast, here identified by its central mountain, Mount Seir. Edom was emblematic of all Israel’s enemies (e.g., in their rejoicing at Israel’s fall, 36:2; see also 25:12-14). The demise of Judah at the hands of the Babylonians might have given Edom room to thrive, but the Lord declared that this prosperity would be short-lived.”
- Jeremiah (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Jeremiah 49:7: The Edomites come next to receive their doom from God, by the mouth of Jeremiah: they also were old enemies to the Israel of God; but their day will come to be reckoned with, and it is now at hand, and is foretold, not only for warning to them, but for comfort to the Israel of God, whose afflictions were very much aggravated by their triumphs over them and joy in their calamity, Psa 137:7. Many of the expressions used in this prophecy concerning Edom are borrowed from the prophecy of Obadiah, which is concerning Edom; for, all the prophets being inspired by one ”
- Obadiah (Nonconformist/Puritan) “Matthew Henry on Obadiah 1 (introduction): Edom is the nation against which this prophecy is levelled, and which, some think, is put for all the enemies of Israel, that shall be brought down first or last. The rabbin by Edom understand Rome. Rome Christians they understand it of, and have an implacable enmity to it a such; but, if we understand it of Rome antichristian, we shall find the passages of it applicable enough. And though Edom was mortified in the times of the Maccabees, as it had been before by Jehoshaphat, yet its destruction seems to have been typical, as their father Esau's rejec”