A car is on your tail, driving dangerously close to you on the freeway for what seems like forever. You feel pressured to speed up and break the law. Finally, the lane next to you opens up and the car rushes into it. The driver speeds away recklessly. Further down the road, you see that same car again. Only this time, it’s parked on the shoulder. A police officer talks to the driver through the window.
How do you react? It would be understandable if you had an extreme sense of satisfaction. Joy, even. The driver got what was coming to him. It’s poetic justice, a natural consequence for his kamikaze antics.
But this kind of gloating is exactly the kind of behavior about which Obadiah warned the Edomites. Edom and Israel had a contentious history; they were two nations that descended from twin brothers, Esau and Jacob. Given their common ancestry, you would think Edom and Israel would be more connected and gracious to one another. In fact, it was the opposite. They were constantly fighting — much like their ancestral brothers. Obadiah tells the people of Edom to resist their inclination to gloat or rejoice in Israel’s disastrous reality no matter much Israel deserves to be punished.
The truth is, every person is made in the image of God. Even those in this world who are callous or cruel. Are you reveling in the destruction of others? Or are you using these opportunities to show compassion, grace, and forgiveness?
Dear Lord, give us your love for those who seem unworthy or too far gone. Help us not to give in to the desire to gloat in their misfortunes, but instead to pray for them. Help us see all people as made in your image. Amen.
Go Deeper — Is there someone in your life who you’d really like to see self-destruct? Start praying for this person! No one is exempt from God’s love or forgiveness.
Photo Credit: Raechel Romero