OBADIAH

Shortest of all the Old Testament books, Obadiah contains an oracle relating God’s future punishment of the land of Edom, a mountainous kingdom south of the Dead Sea. It’s important to remember the origin of this nation. The people of Edom were descendants of Esau while the people of Israel were from the line of Jacob. There had been many conflicts between the two groups, especially given their geographical locations. This book is hard to date. But see verses 1-9 and then read Jeremiah 49:7-22. Does this sound similar? It’s possible they were contemporaries?

JONAH

Before Assyria attacked and carried off the northern ten tribes of Israel, Jonah was appointed to go to Ninevah, the capital city of this powerful enemy. Unlike other books by prophets, this one does not contain records of prophetic teaching. Instead, it is a single narrative of a prophetic mission. Some critics see this as a parable and ridicule the historical elements. However, it’s interesting to note that Assyria during this period had weak kings, military setbacks, economic problems, riots, and a solar eclipse. That’s certainly enough to cause any group of people to consider repentance. In addition, there are Assyrian historical records that tell of regional and national periods of repentance. Finally, there have been stories of people who have survived long periods of time in sea creatures. What makes Jonah interesting are the occasional humor elements and the use of irony.