"9" Wrongs Against Your Sibling (Obadiah)

On the NINTH day of Christmas Obadiah gives us 9 faults of Edom done against Israel. Obadiah is the shortest book in the Hebrew Bible, consisting of only 21 verses. It is a collection of judgement poems against Edom (also known as Esau - that’s important!) Edom is in the family line of Israel. They are two tribes but brothers if you go back far enough. Jacob (later known as Israel) steals Esau’s birthright by tricking their old and blind father. The tension between the brothers remains unresolved during their lifetimes, instead their descendants inhabit land next to each other and carry the bitterness with them. If only family therapy had been an option back then. Babylon invades Israel and Edom is complicit in their destruction and takeover. Obadiah says they aren’t only bystanders but active participants. And we get 9 actions that Edom has taken against Israel. 

The 9 faults are with their participation on the slaughter and violence done to their brother Jacob. They stand aside and watch, gloat over misfortune, rejoice at ruin, and boast in times of distress, they enter the gate after Babylon has, they join in on the calamity, they steal the goods, they stand at the crossing and cut off the escape of the refugees, and they hand over the survivors to Babylon as slaves. Edom treats their neighbor and their brother as nothing more than spoils of war. 

Here is where Obadiah becomes profound. In Hebrew, Edom (אֱדם) becomes Adam (אָדָם).  But Obadiah’s critique is not confined to Edom’s actions. If we shift the lens, Edom becomes Adam, symbolizing all of humanity’s capacity for betrayal and violence.Throughout history, Obadiah has been read by the Jewish people to understand how once can be “a brother” and still watch the downfall of another. It was used against Rome during Jesus’ time. It was used to talk about Christians when they rose to power. It can be used today. Where do we prey on the downfall of the vulnerable at the hands of empire? Where do we turn our sibling away who is escaping as a refugee from violence, whether political or climate? Where do we plunder the goods of those who have nothing left? We betray and hurt each other often. Edom’s pride is our pride. Edom’s violence is our violence. The policy we support is violence against our siblings. Our poor siblings, our LGBTQIA+ siblings, our siblings of color, our siblings of other faiths. Obadiah asks us, today, How can you gloat over the downfall of your brother? How can you swoop in and benefit from their destruction? How can you turn them away when they are in desperate need of your help? May we find the courage to respond different than our previous Edoms.

Let us challenge the status quo of empire and seek to liberate all from the exiles we have made for ourselves and others.