Extract
Authorship:
Obadiah, “the servant of the Lord,” is a common name in the Old Testament. Although the exact identity of the prophet is hard to determine, there are indications he ministered in Judah, the southern kingdom (Obadiah 12,17).
Date:
Obadiah preached during a time of national disaster (Obadiah 11). Conservatives disagree as to whether Obadiah is the earliest of the Minor Prophets, ministering during the reign of Jehoram (848-841 BC) or later after Judah’s fall to Babylon (586 BC). Babylon’s invasion easily explains the extent of the devastation to Judah, but a battle in which Edom may have participated referred to in 2 Chron. 21:16-17 is more likely the historical context. Statements indicating that the northern kingdom had not yet fallen (Obadiah 19) and Jer. 49:9-10,14-16,22 apparently quoting Obad. 1-6,9 would also suggest Obadiah’s early date. Dating Obadiah to about 848 BC would make him the first of all the writing prophets.
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