Obadiah

Saint Obadiah the Prophet (in Romanian Avdie) is the fourth of the twelve minor prophets of the Old Testament and the author of the shortest book of the Old Testament, of only one chapter. His name means "servant of the Lord." The Orthodox Church commemorates him on 19 November.

The synaxarion of the Church says that Obadiah came from the village of Betharam, near Shechem, and lived in the ninth century before Christ. He became the steward of the house of King Ahab, a king who served Baal. Obadiah, however, feared the Lord and served the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in secret. When Queen Jezebel began the persecution of the prophets of the Lord, Obadiah hid a hundred of them, fifty in each of two caves, and fed them with bread and water (3 Kingdoms 18:3-4). It was he also who met Elijah in the time of the drought, while searching with Ahab for grass for the animals, and carried the word that the prophet would come to the king (3 Kingdoms 18:7-16).

Tradition adds that Obadiah was the captain of fifty whom King Ahaziah sent to seize Elijah. Fire consumed the first two companies, and Obadiah, who fell on his knees and prayed, was spared with his men (4 Kingdoms 1:13-15). Seeing the miracle, he left the service at court and followed Elijah, and later received the gift of prophecy himself. He was buried in Samaria, which in Greek is called Sebaste.

Scholars take another view: they note that the book says nothing about its author except his name, and that Obadiah was a common name, with a dozen others in the Bible. Most date the book to shortly after the fall of Jerusalem in 587 before Christ, and some to a still later period. The Church keeps the tradition of the synaxarion, which places him in the ninth century.

The book has twenty-⁠one verses and is directed against Edom, neighbour and kinsman of Israel (the Edomites descended from Esau), who rejoiced at the misfortune of Judah and took part in the plunder. Obadiah announces that the pride of Edom, who dwells in the clefts of the rock, will be brought down: "Though you soar aloft like the eagle, from there I will bring you down, declares the Lord" (verse 4). The prophet then announces the "day of the Lord" for all nations and promises that on Mount Zion there will be deliverance and that "the kingdom shall be the Lord's" (verse 21). Orthodox interpretation sees in these words the announcement of the salvation of the nations and of the Saviour, who would come out of Zion.

The Orthodox Church commemorates Obadiah on 19 November. The Jewish tradition of the Talmud says he was a convert from Edom, a descendant of Eliphaz the friend of Job, and identifies him with Ahab's steward, but these are not accepted by all. In iconography he is shown as a grey-⁠haired old man with a rounded beard, holding a scroll with the words, "In that day, says the Lord, I will destroy the wise men out of Edom" (verse 8).