3rd September 2024

3rd September 2024


Pray (ACts)


Read (Obadiah 1v1-21)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


I once read someone say that the Minor Prophets are usually the cleanest pages in anyone’s Bible. This wasn’t a comment about the content of the Minor Prophets, rather it was an observation that the average Christian doesn’t tend to read the Minor Prophets and thus those pages are free from greasy fingers or pencil marks. Perhaps this applies to you and so allow me to offer this gentle reminder of who the Minor Prophets are.


If you take your Bible and go to the back of the Old Testament you will find twelve books running from Hosea to Malachi. These are the “Minor Prophets” as opposed to Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel & Daniel who are often referred to as the “Major Prophets”. This isn’t to say that Isaiah and his three friends had a more important message in their five books, just that their books are much larger than the “Minor Prophets”.


Take Jeremiah for example - between the book of Jeremiah and the book of Lamentations the Prophet wrote fifty-seven chapters which is just ten less than all of the Minor Prophets put together. So the “Majors” wrote much more than the “Minors” but both are equally important for the one who loves the Lord. If we are ever tempted to ignore the “less important” parts of the Bible we would do well to remember Paul’s word to Timothy “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3v16-17).


The smallest of the Minor Prophets and the smallest book in the Old Testament is Obadiah which consists of just one chapter with twenty-one verses. By God’s grace we’ll consider Obadiah’s message over the month of September and perhaps this ancient word will encourage us to make the “clean pages” a little less pristine.


The book begins with the simple introduction “The vision of Obadiah.” (v1). Who was Obadiah? We aren’t sure. Obadiah means “the servant of the Lord” and there are around twelve individuals who bear the name Obadiah in the Old Testament. There is a tradition that links Obadiah with the reign of Ahab and the ministry of Elijah (1 Kings 18v3), whilst another tradition identifies Obadiah as an official in the days of Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17v7). Ultimately we can’t definitively identify Obadiah nor is there a unified consensus on when Obadiah received his vision. Some place Obadiah’s message during the rule of Jehoram from 852-841BC, while others argue that Obadiah was speaking in light of Nebuchadnezzar’s destruction of Jerusalem in 586BC.


We can debate all day long about Obadiah’s identity and historical setting but that would be to miss the point. Even in the midst of the uncertainty around this short book we will see that the Lord is certainly in charge of human history, He is certainly not blind to the actions of the nations and He will certainly bring His purposes to fruition. In our uncertain day and age Obadiah’s message is as relevant as ever. 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q80 What is required in the tenth commandment? The tenth commandment requireth full contentment with our own condition, with a right and charitable frame of spirit toward our neighbor, and all that is his.
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