Contemplative Bible Reading

Obadiah 1:15-16 (NLT)

1:15 “The day is near when I, the Lord, will judge all godless nations! As you have done to Israel, so it will be done to you. All your evil deeds will fall back on your own heads. 16 Just as you swallowed up my people on my holy mountain, so you and the surrounding nations will swallow the punishment I pour out. Yes, you will drink and stagger and disappear from history.

God is speaking to the people of Edom through the prophet Obadiah. The people of Edom crushed the people of Israel. They crushed them too much and enjoyed the killing too much. Edom will be punished.

The punishment of Edom will be such that it will disappear from history.

Ever visit Edom? Did you see Edom in the recent Olympics? Will Edom be in the coming World Cup of football? E-who?

Israel exists. Many folks hate the nation of Israel and want to crush it. Nevertheless, Israel exists. Hmm. Perhaps that fella’ Obadiah knew something. Perhaps he repeated the words God told him and, well, there you have it. It is written in some dusty old scroll or whatever they wrote words on. Those words and ink and paper or whatever survived a few thousand years and here we are. What was written has happened.

The world is complicated and complex and all sorts of things that make it all difficult to understand. I get a headache on those occasions when I try to figure it out. How could all this happen? How could those writings survive? How could what was written come to pass? As I said, I get a headache when I think about it.

Please God, help me in my unbelief.