Commentary on the Prophet Obadiah

^A for that reason they are called Edomites, that is, earthly, because he sold his birthright and slighted the honor that was owed to him from it, preferring instead one meal, and that of the most trivial kind. For this same reason, those descended from him were called Idumeans. The region of the Idumeans is also called Seir and Theman. It is called Seir because of the inhabitants, who are said to have been hairy, such as Esau was; for he was covered in hair everywhere, and *Seir* is rendered in Latin as an emission of hair, or hairy. There was also a mountain in the region by the name of Seir. It is called Theman, moreover, because it faces mostly toward the south. The south, furthermore, is *Theman* in the Hebrew tongue. Some think that it is called Theman for another reason also. They say that once there was a son of Esau named Eliphaz, and from this Eliphaz was born Theman, from whom the region received its name. These things regarding Idumea and its inhabitants are sufficient. But they perished for the following cause. When Jerusalem was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar and had fallen into extreme misery—for countless numbers were falling, slaughtered by the swords of the nations—hardly any retained their safety, save those who fled into the regions of the neighboring nations. Many of the Israelites went down into Idumea, which was adjacent to them, thinking that they would have compassion as brothers, and mindful of their kinship by blood, and that they would provide aid to the afflicted. But they, although ^B they ought to have pitied them as brothers, did not even admit them into their territory; rather, in the manner of brigands, they swarmed around the exits and borders of Idumea, and slaughtered those who were terrified and in despair, and by their inhumanity surpassed even the ferocity of the Babylonians. For they attacked those who were already lost, as I have said, mocking them and making the calamities of their own kin an occasion for a kind of festive joy. The Jews, therefore, were carried off as captives into Persia and Media at that time. But when God took pity on them after seventy weeks had passed, they returned to Judea and strove to rebuild the city itself and to raise up its temple anew. But the Idumeans, their brothers and neighbors, provoked by envy, wished to disturb and hinder such undertakings, gathering to themselves barbarians of like mind as neighbors, and indeed, they even engaged in battle. But they fell and perished in the Valley of Josaphat, with God fighting on behalf of the Israelites. And since the Idumeans had become more grievous than the foreigners, the people of Israel invaded their country and killed those who were in it, and searching through the clefts of the rocks, and caves, and recesses of the earth, or hiding places, they put to death all they found. ^{C D}

SINGLE CHAPTER

^A With these words he explains to us the goal and counsel of his whole prophecy—or rather, vision—and declares where it looks. For he seeks to confirm fully that this vision pertains to those who are about to attack Idumea with hostility. He strengthens the hearers in faith, and in every way seeks to persuade them that what is spoken will indeed come to pass, saying that the words are not his own, but rather God’s. He says, therefore, that he has heard a report from God concerning Idumea. And what is to be understood by this report, he immediately explains himself, adding that he had sent a "siege" unto the nations. By nations, understand those around Idumea. For against these, he says, he sent the siege, or blockade—that is, the containment—since the divine judgment necessarily compels them to suffer desolation. Or, in another way: he commanded the nations in the circuit of Idumea to make the siege, or blockade. He commanded it, not in an entirely manifest way, but as if stirring them up as God, and sharpening them against them; those who, persuaded by the divine command, almost crying out to one another, he says, "Arise, and let us rise up against her for battle." For they have joined with those from Israel who are ravaging Idumea and the surrounding nations.

Vers. 2-4. *Behold, I have made thee small among the nations: thou art exceeding dishonored. The pride of thy heart hath lifted thee up, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rocks, that exaltest thy habitation, saying in thy heart: Who shall bring me down to the ground? If thou shouldst be exalted as an eagle, and if thou shouldst set thy nest among the stars, from thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.*

^C III. He says that he has been made small ^D among the nations and dishonored because they would be altogether few in number if compared with the multitude of those attacking them. For very many, as I said, are those who are sharpened against them. Or he says they are few because the war has consumed them and reduced their race to a small number. The prophetic word demonstrates to us that they are puffed up with empty arrogance out of great dementia. For they thought they could not be conquered or captured by the enemy, not because of any strength they possessed or military skill, but because the terrain—harsh and difficult to ascend—would suffice to protect their safety. For there were mounds everywhere, and rocks hanging horribly from above, and rough hills, and high mountains. Why, then, he says, do you boastfully despise the arms of your enemies? Even if you have been allotted a region that is very trackless, elevated, and high—and even if you were an eagle, and had your nest as if in the air (the language is again hyperbolic), yet you will be pulled down from thence when God, who can do all things, draws you down; for nothing is impossible for Him.

Vers. 5, 6. *If thieves had come in to thee, or robbers by night, where wouldst thou have been cast away? Would they not have stolen what was sufficient for themselves? And if grape-gatherers had entered in to thee...*

would they not have left a gleaning cluster? How has Esau been searched out, and his hidden things taken?

IV. We have already said that they searched even the crevices of the mountains, the caverns, and the fissures in the rocks, and the thickets, and slaughtered the Idumaeans who had joined the outsiders in attacking the Israelites, so that but few in total, or none at all, were able to escape. ^A The discourse therefore mocks them, and in a way plays with them, saying: If thou hadst experienced the incursion of brigands, and a race of thieves had come upon thee, would they not have been satisfied to take that which it was likely would suffice for them? And if some, like grape-gatherers, were stripping the vine, would the gleaning cluster have escaped the eye of those accustomed to vintage, however extremely prying they might be? But it was necessary for this to happen to them, and not ^B by their own will, because for those who steal, fear always counsels flight; and for them, slipping away secretly after seizing whatever lay ready to hand appears sufficient for their gratification. Furthermore, for those vintage-gathering, the abundance of leaves not removed is always a hindrance to searching, and it hides what can be hidden. But to thee, he says, O Esau—that is, O descendant of the blood of Esau, O Idumaean—it has happened to suffer worse things. For ^C thy hidden things have been discovered, and no one has escaped notice; indeed, flight has been of no use, nor has the very difficulty of the places.

VERS. 7-11. They have sent thee forth unto thy borders. All the men of thy covenant have stood against thee. Thy men of peace have prevailed against thee, they have laid snares under thee; there is no wisdom in him. In that day, saith the Lord, I will destroy the wise out of Idumaea, and understanding from the mount of Esau. And thy warriors from Teman shall be afraid, so that a man may be cut off from the mount of Esau ^D because of the slaughter and the impiety against thy brother Jacob. Shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off forever. From the day that thou stoodest against him, in the days when strangers were taking captive his power, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, thou also wast as one of them.

V. When the descendants of Esau had determined to hinder the Israelites from building the temple and walling up the holy city again, they entered into leagues of like-mindedness with the neighboring nations, as we have already explained. But after it happened that their own region was subdued by the military expedition of the Israelites, then those who were once sincere friends, and fellow conspirators, and comrades-in-arms became more burdensome than all the rest in fighting against them and laying them waste. The war therefore, he says, "has sent thee forth unto thy borders," not breaking into parts of thy region only, but by force and arms subduing the whole, and bringing it even to the very borders into desolation. "But they have stood against thee," he says, "and have fought against thee"—those whom, according to thy hope, it was altogether reasonable that thou shouldst even pity in thy suffering. "But they have placed snares under thee," from whom thou didst expect salvation. And in that, "And there is no intelligence in them," he calls the false prophets and sycophants wise and intelligent

those who are impostors, augurs, and those who disseminate false fables from the stars—who have reached such a point of nonsense that they foolishly suppose they can obtain foreknowledge of future events from such things. Those who were entangled in the worship of idols were exceedingly terrified by these things. The Edomites themselves, being afflicted with this disease more than others, when it was already being proclaimed that war was imminent, looked about to see the end of things; and assembling those skilled in these matters, they ordered them to report how the war would turn out for them. These, as was to be expected, prophesied victory for them, but they were exposed as liars, and because the art itself deceived them, they strayed from the truth; they were convicted of having no intelligence, the poor wretches having spoken what was utterly false. He further declared that the Temanites and the Idumeans themselves, though once bold, would become unwarlike and fearful, adding: "Thy warriors from Teman shall be terrified, that a man may be cut off from the mount of Esau," that is, until the Idumeans are destroyed, even to the last one. He therefore makes clear the cause of the calamity brought upon them in the slaughter and the impiety towards his brother. For because thou hast slain, he says, one near by blood according to kinship, that is, Jacob, or rather, those who are from Jacob, thou shalt be consumed in war, and shalt be utterly destroyed, full of shame and disgrace. And he warned with these words that they would suffer an inevitable fall and be oppressed by such horrific disasters: "And thou shalt be cut off forever." But in that, "from the day," he reminds them of the time when, as the Babylonians were capturing Judea and plundering the things therein, and were surrounding with a siege everything gathered from Jerusalem, they themselves would lie in wait for those fleeing and slaughter them, and in a way, they were acting as assistants to the foreigners, even though they were carrying off those of Jacob into captivity. They were caught, therefore, leaping with joy at the misfortunes of their brothers, and yielding little to the Babylonians in savagery. ^C

VERS. 12-14. "And do not look upon the day of thy brother in the day of strangers, and do not rejoice over the sons of Judah in the day of their destruction. And do not speak great things in the day of their affliction, nor enter into the gates of the peoples in the day of their labor. And do not thou look upon their congregation in the day of their destruction, nor take part against their power in the day of their destruction. Nor stand at their outlets to destroy those of them who are being saved. Nor shut up those who are fleeing from them in the day of tribulation." ^D

VI. He enumerates the crimes of the Idumeans once again, showing that they had become harsh and lacking in mercy. The discourse is framed as though God were calling out to those who were already striking and committing unworthy acts, and were reproaching them for the kind of sin they had committed. The "to look upon" means to laugh at and rejoice over brothers who are suffering, and to make the misfortunes of others a source and subject of pleasure, even though the divine Scripture says that one should not at all laugh at those who are suffering.

^A With those words, "And do not rejoice over," and what follows, the crimes of the Idumeans are enumerated again, demonstrating that they had become harsh and pitiless, and this toward their brothers. For he says, do not, like the Assyrians, hasten to the gates, not as one bringing helpful aid to brothers, but rather to devastate them. Do not allow the Synagogue, or congregation, to perish miserably through your contempt; nor should you further oppress those who were previously heavily burdened by evils. And do not be a snare to those who are fleeing, watching the exits and setting traps, so that no one may be able to look to their own safety, even if they escape the enemy’s sword. Everywhere the prophetic word accuses the inhumanity of the Idumeans, so that in turn the divine judgment may appear holy and blameless, with those who have committed such things being called to account in justice.

"For the day of the Lord is near upon all the nations. As you have done, so it shall be to you. Your retaliation shall be returned upon your own head. For just as you have drunk upon my holy mountain, all the nations shall drink wine. They shall drink, and shall go down, and shall be as though they were not. But on Mount Zion there shall be salvation, and it shall be holy."

^B VII. He again foretells the time of war, in which the nations allied with the Idumeans in the valley of Josaphat shall pay bitter penalties. He calls this day the "day of the Lord," for it was God who delivered those who had committed unholy outrages to the people of Israel. He affirms that they will pay the penalty by a just judgment when he says, "As you have done, so it shall be to you." For nature is so constituted that each person receives back what he gave, and an entirely equal reward is paid out for the things that have been committed by each. By those words, "as you have drunk," it is indicated, I think, the custom of victors who boasted insolently over the vanquished, celebrated festival days with drinking bouts, uttered joyful cries over the victory they had won, and behaved like drunkards. Therefore, he says, just as you mocked and insulted the people of Israel by drinking and leading ^C dancing crowds, and by making the calamities of your brothers an occasion for festival celebration, so all the nations shall drink and insult you; "and they shall go down against you," that is, they shall make an incursion into your region. "But you shall be reckoned among those who are not." For you shall perish in such a way that it will seem as if you had never even existed. The divinely inspired Scripture calls the Church "Mount Zion," for it is truly exalted and a watchtower. Moreover, it is holy, since it is the house and city of the most holy God.

Vers. 18, 19. "And the house of Jacob shall possess those who possessed them. And the house of Jacob shall be fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau shall be for stubble; and they shall be kindled against them, and they shall devour them. And there shall be no bringer of fire to the house of Esau, for the Lord"

^A has spoken. And they that are in the south shall inherit the mount of Esau; and they that are in the plain, the strangers. And they shall inherit the mount of Ephraim, and the field of Samaria, and Benjamin, and the land of Gilead.

[H] VIII. The foolish Idumean thought that he would have the house of Jacob as a possession, that is to say, those who are of the seed of Jacob; and he was even distributing the land, having laid it waste together with the Chaldeans. But, he says, the matter will be unexpectedly reversed for them. For they shall be a possession of those who are of Jacob; and they shall be consumed in such a way as stubble would be by a flame. For the house of Jacob shall be fire, ^B and the house of Joseph shall not yield to the powers of any flame. Therefore, they shall be utterly devoured, so that in the whole tribe or nation not one fire-bearer can be found. The discourse seems, consistently with the trope, to use the term "fire-bearer," for he named the house of Jacob fire, and the house of Joseph a flame. And the house of Jacob may be understood, quite reasonably, as those from Judah and Benjamin, while the houses of Joseph indeed are those in Samaria, that is to say, the ten tribes, whose kings were at times from Ephraim—for Manasseh and Ephraim were born of Joseph. In the phrase, "they shall inherit the mount of Esau," [this is what is meant]: When the Babylonians, having left their own country, went against Jerusalem, with Nebuchadnezzar rising up against them for battle, it necessarily came to pass that the entire land of the Jews was laid waste, and was brought to such a state of misery ^C as to be reduced to complete desolation and to appear stripped of its inhabitants. But when God, having had mercy and having loosed the bonds of the captivity, they were brought back again to their own land, He says that they would be so greatly expanded and would increase into such a populous multitude that they would also take possession of the regions of the neighboring nations, as Idumea—as is fitting—would be too narrow for them. And this would be a very clear sign of the blessing from God. "For they that are in the South," he says—that is, those to the south, for 'Ageb' [Negeb] is interpreted as south—"shall inherit the mount of Esau," that is, Idumea. For being to the south, those who shall inhabit the southern part of Judea will certainly take possession of the neighboring and bordering land. "And they that are in the Sephela," ^D that is, in the plain—and this part of the Jews' land is certainly more to the north—"shall inherit the strangers." By this word he indicates the Philistines, or Palestinians. Nevertheless, they shall also possess the mount of Ephraim, Samaria, Benjamin, and Gilead. These are the allotments which had been distributed to the tribes of Israel at various times, under the leadership of Joshua, the successor of Moses. Since they had been devastated by the hand of the Assyrians even before the arrival of Nebuchadnezzar, by the kings Phua [Pul] and Shalmaneser, he therefore predicts that these also shall be inhabited and shall escape their former desolation.

Verses 20, 21. And the beginning of this captivity for the children / of Israel, the land of the Canaanites even unto Zarephath, and the captivity of Jerusalem, even unto Ephrata. And the possessions/

^A shall possess the cities of the south. And those who are saved shall ascend from Mount Sion to punish the mount of Esau, and the kingdom shall be the Lord’s.

IX. By “transmigration” in this place he names the Israelites, that is, those who were translated from all of Judea into Babylon. He says that their principality shall be their lot and their possession, under their own hand and power; just as if someone were to speak of the principality and rule of someone as being under that very ruler and governor. There shall be, therefore, he says, for those who were once translated, the territory and lot of the land of the Canaanites. By this he understands Arabia, and ^B “even unto Zarepta,” which is of Sidonia, so that through this you may understand Phoenicia. It shall be extended, he says, “even unto Ephratha,” or, as other interpreters have set it forth, “even unto the Bosphorus,” that is, the regions furthest to the east, looking especially toward the south. They shall also subdue unto themselves, he says, the cities of Ageb, that is, of the south. By these words, India seems to be signified. For the Indians and their regions are especially in the south. It is as if one were to say, perhaps, that all things that look to the south, and to the north, and to the east, and to the west, shall be filled with them, and they shall possess every city and region simply. In the phrase, “and men shall ascend,” he summarizes ^C in a way the object of the prophecy. For the inhabitants of Sion, he says, having been saved by God, and having broken the bonds of servitude, shall in due time ascend and shall take vengeance upon the name of Esau. For they have warred, as I have said, against the Idumeans after the times of the captivity, and the God of all things has reigned over them, although he had long ago rejected them and had departed from Judea because of their apostasy. For they had served calves and golden heifers. But, having been merciful later and reconciled, ^D he reigned over them again.

OF OUR FATHER AMONG THE SAINTS CYRIL, ARCHBISHOP OF ALEXANDRIA, COMMENTARY ON THE PROPHET JONAH. PROOEMIUM.

^A 1. The glorious Jonah was by birth the son of Amathi, but he originated from Gath-Hepher; this was a small town or village of the land of the Jews, as is probable. He appears to have functioned in the office of prophesying at that time when his predecessors also did, I mean Osea, Amos, Micah, and the rest. It is to be known that he delivered very many oracles to the tribes of the Jews, and very often conveyed messages from God above, and clearly foretold things to come, although no written record of his prophecy exists besides this one. That he continued to foretell to the multitudes of the Jews the things which were to happen from time to time, the divinely inspired Scripture bears witness. For in the fourth Book of Kingdoms, the holy Writing speaks of King Jeroboam—not indeed of the first one, who was at the beginning, the son of Nabat, who caused Israel to sin, as it is written, by persuading them to worship the golden calves—but of the other one who reigned after many had passed, who was the son of Joas. Hear what things Jonah foretold: “This man restored the border of Israel from the entrance of Emath unto the sea of the desert, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which He spoke by the hand of His servant Jonah, the son of Amathi, the prophet; because the Lord looked upon the affliction of Israel, and He saved them by the hand of Jeroboam,”—that is, through the hand of Jeroboam, for the son of Joas waged war against the aliens, and recovered the cities of the land of the Jews which had been seized, and brought no small relief to the Israelites, God protecting them, although to the lot of calamity of all ^B they had most bitterly fallen. Wherefore