The Pride of Thine Heart
Passage: Obadiah 1:1-9
Edom lived in rocky heights (Petra region).
Overview
'The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee, thou that dwellest in the clefts of the rock... Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle... thence will I bring thee down, saith the LORD.'
Going deeper
Pride gives false security. No height is beyond God's reach.
Key verses (KJV)
- Obadiah 1:3 The 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?
- Obadiah 1:4 Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.
From the commentaries
3. clefts of … rock—(So 2:14; Jer 48:28). The cities of Edom, and among them Petra (Hebrew, sela, meaning "rock," 2Ki 14:7, Margin), the capital, in the Wady Musa, consisted of houses mostly cut in the rocks.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown, Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory (1871)
Verse 3 The pride of thine heart - St. Jerome observes that all the southern part of Palestine, from Eleutheropolis to Petra and Aialath, was full of caverns hewn out of the rocks, and that the people had subterranean dwellings similar to ovens. Here they are said to dwell in the clefts of the rock, in reference to the caverns above mentioned. In these they conceived themselves to be safe, and thought that no power brought against them could dislodge them from those fastnesses. Some think that by סלע sela, rock, Petra, the capital of Idumea, is intended.
Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke's Commentary (1810-1826)
The Prophet now laughs to scorn the Idumeans, because they relied on their own fortresses, and thought themselves, according to the common saying, to be beyond the reach of darts; and hence they petulantly insulted the Israelites and despised God himself. The Prophet therefore says, that the Idumeans in vain felicitated themselves, for he shows that all they promised to themselves were mere delusions. The import of what is said then is, “Whence is this your security, that ye think that enemies can do you no harm? Yea, ye despise God as well as men; whence is this haughtiness? whence also is the great confidence with which ye are puffed up? Verily, it comes only from mere delusions. ...
John Calvin, John Calvin's Commentaries (16th century, Calvin Translation Society, 1840s-1850s)
Application
- Where does pride make you feel secure?
- What 'heights' do people trust in today?
- How does humility protect us?