Obadiah 1:9

9 And thy valiant men of the south shall be afraid, that man may be cut off from the mount of Esau.

Obadiah 1:9 Meaning and Commentary

Obadiah 1:9

And thy mighty [men], O Teman, shall be dismayed
Teman was one part of the country of Edom, so called from Teman, a son of Eliphaz, and grandson of Esau, ( Genesis 36:11 ) ; and which it seems had been famous for men of might and courage: it abounded with brave officers, and courageous soldiers, who should now be quite dispirited, and have no heart to go out against the enemy; and, instead of defending their country, should throw away their arms, and run away in a fright. The Targum and Vulgate Latin version render it,

``thy mighty men that inhabit the south;''
or are on the south, the southern part of Edom, and so lay farthest off from the Chaldeans, who came from the north; yet these should be at once intimidated upon the rumour of their approach and invasion: to the end that even one of the mount of Esau may be cut by slaughter;
that so there might be none to resist and stop the enemy, or defend their country; but that all might fall by the sword of the enemy, and none be left, even every mighty man, as Jarchi interprets it, through the greatness of the slaughter that should be made.

Obadiah 1:9 In-Context

7 They have sent thee out even to the border: all the men of thy confederacy have deceived thee: the men of thy peace have prevailed against thee: they that eat with thee shall lay snares under thee: there is no wisdom in him.
8 Shall not I in that day, saith the Lord, destroy the wise out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?
9 And thy valiant men of the south shall be afraid, that man may be cut off from the mount of Esau.
10 For the slaughter, and for the iniquity against thy brother Jacob, confusion shall cover thee, and thou shalt perish for ever.
11 In the day when thou stoodest against him, when strangers carried away his army captive, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem: thou also wast as one of them.
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