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King James Version — 1611
In Plain English
Edom in the Clefts of the Rock
1The vision of Obadiah. Thus saith the Lord GOD concerning Edom; We have heard a rumour from the LORD, and an ambassador is sent among the heathen, Arise ye, and let us rise up against her in battle.
1The vision of Obadiah. This is what the Lord GOD says about Edom. We have heard a report from the LORD, and a messenger has been sent out among the nations, saying, "Get up! Let us march against her and fight!"
2Behold, I have made thee small among the heathen: thou art greatly despised.
2"Look, I have made you small among the nations; you are deeply despised.
3The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock, whose habitation is high; that saith in his heart, Who shall bring me down to the ground?
3The pride of your heart has fooled you, you who live in the cracks of the cliffs and make your home up high, you who say to yourself, 'Who could ever bring me down to the ground?'
4Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.
4Even if you soar like an eagle and build your nest among the stars, I will bring you down from there," says the LORD.
Stripped Bare and Betrayed by Allies
5If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough? if the grapegatherers came to thee, would they not leave some grapes?
5"If thieves came to you, if robbers broke in at night (oh, how completely you have been wiped out!), would they not steal only as much as they wanted? If grape-pickers came to you, would they not leave a few grapes behind?
6How are the things of Esau searched out! how are his hidden things sought up!
6But look how Esau's belongings have been ransacked! Look how his hidden treasures have been dug up!
7All the men of thy confederacy have brought thee even to the border: the men that were at peace with thee have deceived thee, and prevailed against thee; they that eat thy bread have laid a wound under thee: there is none understanding in him.
7All your allies have pushed you right out to your border. The men who were at peace with you have tricked you and overpowered you; those who eat your bread have set a trap beneath you. And there is no one in Edom who understands it.
8Shall I not in that day, saith the LORD, even destroy the wise men out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?
8On that day," says the LORD, "will I not wipe out the wise men of Edom, and all understanding from the mountain of Esau?
9And thy mighty men, O Teman, shall be dismayed, to the end that every one of the mount of Esau may be cut off by slaughter.
9Your strong warriors, Teman, will be filled with terror, so that everyone on the mountain of Esau will be cut down in the slaughter.
What Edom Did the Day Jerusalem Fell
10For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.
10Because of the violence you did to your brother Jacob, shame will cover you, and you will be cut off forever.
11In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.
11On the day you stood off to the side, on the day strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners marched through his gates and threw dice for Jerusalem, you were just like one of them.
12But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress.
12But you should not have stood staring on the day of your brother's misfortune, the day he became a stranger in his own land. You should not have cheered over the people of Judah on the day they were destroyed. You should not have bragged on the day of their trouble.
13Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;
13You should not have marched through the gate of my people on the day of their disaster. You should not have stood gloating over their suffering on the day of their disaster, and you should not have grabbed their goods on the day of their disaster.
14Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.
14You should not have waited at the crossroads to cut down those who were escaping, and you should not have handed over the survivors on the day of their trouble.
The Day of the LORD on All Nations
15For the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
15For the day of the LORD is near for all the nations. What you have done will be done to you; your deeds will come back on your own head.
16For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually, yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been.
16Just as you drank on my holy mountain, so all the nations will keep on drinking; they will drink and drink and swallow it all down, and they will be as if they had never existed.
17But upon mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions.
17But on Mount Zion there will be rescue, and it will be holy, and the family of Jacob will take back what belongs to them.
18And the house of Jacob shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, and they shall kindle in them, and devour them; and there shall not be any remaining of the house of Esau; for the LORD hath spoken it.
18The family of Jacob will be a fire, the family of Joseph a flame, and the family of Esau will be dry straw. They will set it burning and eat it up, and no one from the family of Esau will be left, for the LORD has said so.
Zion Restored and Esau's Mountain Judged
19And they of the south shall possess the mount of Esau; and they of the plain the Philistines: and they shall possess the fields of Ephraim, and the fields of Samaria: and Benjamin shall possess Gilead.
19People from the south will take over the mountain of Esau, and people from the lowlands will take the Philistines' land. They will take over the fields of Ephraim and the fields of Samaria, and Benjamin will take Gilead.
20And the captivity of this host of the children of Israel shall possess that of the Canaanites, even unto Zarephath; and the captivity of Jerusalem, which is in Sepharad, shall possess the cities of the south.
20The exiles of this army of the people of Israel will take the land of the Canaanites as far as Zarephath, and the exiles from Jerusalem who are in Sepharad will take the towns of the south.
21And saviours shall come up on mount Zion to judge the mount of Esau; and the kingdom shall be the LORD’s.
21Rescuers will go up on Mount Zion to rule over the mountain of Esau, and the kingdom will belong to the LORD.