SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 8/21/2015
6:58 PM
My Worship Time Focus: Judgment on
Edom
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Amos 1:11-12
Message of the
verses: “11 Thus says the LORD,
"For three transgressions of Edom and for four I will not revoke its
punishment, Because he pursued his brother with the sword, While he stifled his
compassion; His anger also tore continually, And he maintained his fury
forever. 12 “So I will send fire upon Teman And it will consume the citadels of
Bozrah."”
As we look at these different nations that Amos writes
about as far as bringing judgment on them they are very similar and we have
mentioned a couple of things that are similar.
The first is the statement “For three transgressions of Edom and for
four I will not revoke its punishment,” and this means continued reasons for
punishment on them. As far as when he
writes about brining fire on them this speaks of their judgment coming from the
Lord.
I we were living during the time when these nations were
getting their judgment we may think that it was very natural the way that the
judgments were coming to them, and not truly understand that it is coming from
the Lord which I believe is unlike what will happen during the Tribulation
period when people will understand that it is God bring the plagues upon the
world.
As far as Edom we know that Esau was the brother of Jacob
as they were twins and as mentioned before they even fought inside their mother’s
womb and when they were born Jacob was holding onto Esau’s heel and that is
what the name means, heel catcher. They
fought when they were younger as Jacob tricked Esau out of his birthright and
also the family blessing, and so Esau threatened to kill Jacob and so Jacob
left town and went to his mother’s relatives where his uncle Laban played some
tricks on him. Remember I said I believe
it is Biblical “what goes around comes around.”
Well it did for Jacob. However
before they were born God told Rebecca that He had chosen the younger son,
Jacob and even though both brothers had 12 offspring, Jacob’s children were
what made up the 12 tribes of Israel, a name that God would later give to
Jacob.
Dr. Wiersbe writes that the last time that the Bible
tells of the brothers getting together was at the funeral of their father and
we know that the buried their father, but they did not bury their bitterness
for each other as it continued until the Edomites were no more.
Dr. Wiersbe writes “The Edomites world not allow their
Jewish cousins to pass through their land during Israel’s march to Canaan (Num.
20:14-17). King Saul suppressed the Edomites
army (1 Samuel 14:47), and David conquered them (2 Samuel 8:14), but in the
days of King Jehoram, Edom revolted against Judah and won their freedom (2
Kings 8:16-22).”
We can see that Amos was condemning the Edomites because
of their hatred for the Jews “His anger also tore continually, And he
maintained his fury forever,” (Amos 1:11b).
It is not mentioned in the Bible when the Edomites aided the enemy by pursuing
the Jews with the sword. Perhaps it is
when the Babylonians were leading away some of the captured Jews. Obadiah mentions this in verses 10-14 “10 "Because
of violence to your brother Jacob, You will be covered with shame, And you will
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 gate And cast lots for Jerusalem- You too were as one of
them. 12 “Do not gloat
over your brother’s day, The day of his misfortune. And do not rejoice over the
sons of Judah In the day of their destruction; Yes, do not boast In the day of
their distress. 13 “Do not enter the gate of My people In the day of
their disaster. Yes, you, do not gloat over their calamity In the day of their
disaster. And do not loot their wealth In the day of their disaster. 14 “Do not
stand at the fork of the road To cut down their fugitives; And do not imprison
their survivors In the day of their distress.”
When we get to this prophet’s book we will see that it is short and that
it is about Edom.
Dr. Wiersbe concludes:
“Temen and Bozrah were strong cities that today don’t exist. The Edomites lived, ‘in the clefts of the
rock’ and had their ‘nest among the stars’ (Obad. 3-4), boasting that their fortresses’
were impregnable; but the Lord destroyed their nations so thoroughly that
nothing is left today except ruins. When
the Romans attacked Jerusalem in AD 70, they destroyed what was left of the
Edomite (Idumean) people, and Edom was no more.” Once again we see that the Word of God is
proved to be right.
8/21/2015 7:25 PM
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