Behold, I will make you small among the nations; you shall be utterly despised. The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rock, in your lofty dwelling, who say in your heart, “Who will bring me down to the ground?” Though you soar aloft like the eagle, though your nest is set among the stars, from there I will bring you down, declares the Lord. (Obadiah 2-4, ESV)

These words from the prophet are directed to the land of Edom, descendants of the man Esau.  What had Edom done to merit such a reprimand and promise of destruction?  It is a long story that began a long time before Obadiah conferred these words from the Lord.

Esau is the infamous twin brother of Jacob.  Although Esau was the elder (by a few minutes) to Jacob was promised the blessing of God (Genesis 25.23).  The Bible records that Esau was a “man’s man,” skillful and adept at all the stereotypical male characteristics including a decided lack of sensitivity and the familiar inability to value the intangibles of life.  Esau’s callousness was so complete that he sold his right to inherit his father’s estate to his younger brother for a dinner meal.  When Jacob added the insult of stealing the blessing of his father Isaac by deception, Esau purposed in his heart to kill his younger sibling. 

I don’t judge Esau and believe I would have felt the same way as he did, but one thing remained immutable: God’s promise to Jacob.  Rather than submit to God’s authority and to serve and support the brother whom God set apart, Esau became bitter in his heart toward his brother. That bitterness was exhibited by the descendents of Esau time and again. Edom refused to grant safe passage to the descendents of Jacob as they fled slavery in Egypt (Numbers 20.14ff); Edom waged war against the descendents of Esau’s nephew, Judah (2 Chronicles 28.17); Edom cheered at the destruction of Jerusalem (Psalm 137.7); Edom supported and gave aid to the conquerors of the descendents of Jacob (Ezekiel 35).

From our perspective, it would seem just for Edom to do what it did: to avenge the sorrow of the father of their nation (Genesis 27.34). The testimony of the Bible speaks against this, however, as God reserves for himself the right to recompense deeds and exact vengeance (Galatians 6.7-8; Romans 12.19-20). When Esau and his descendents chose to do what was right in their own estimation rather than submit to the blessing of God upon Jacob and to seek to support God’s work through their close relation, a chain of events commenced that resulted, in the end, in the desolation of Edom as it is to the day. In the beginning, things went awry. Generations later, the effect of choices in the beginning continued to be evident.

This is one of many Biblical examples of the impact of our choicess upon our own lives and the lives of our descendents. We ought to take warning to make decisions with not only own lives but also the lives of our children in mind. Additionally, we ought to question whether the choices made by those before us honored God. If they did not, we have the choice to repent and repair.  Edom had that option, but chose not to reverse the direction of its heading and plunged headlong into the consequence of its behaviors.

May it be said of the followers of Jesus that we pay attention to the beginning of things and seek to be obedient to God in all things for the sake of God’s Kingdom, our own lives, and the lives of our descendents.