What is the significance of Edom in the Bible?

Answer

Edom was an ancient kingdom mainly associated with Esau and his descendants in the Bible. As descendants of Abraham, the Edomites were related to the Israelites, but they did not always act as brothers.

Situated on the east side of the Arabah and extending down to the Dead Sea, Edom was initially inhabited by the Horites, who were later displaced by Esau’s descendants (M. G. Easton, Easton’s Bible Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers, 1893, entry for Edom). Several verses in the Bible identify the hill country of Seir with Edom, indicating that Seir and Edom should be considered as one entity in terms of their respective geographical locations (Bruce Crew, “Did Edom’s Territories Extend West of Wadi Arabah?” Bible and Spade 15:1, 2002, p. 4). Interestingly, the name Edom means “red,” a connection easily made with Esau, who traded his birthright for red stew and thus acquired the name Edom «and Esau said to Jacob, Feed me, I pray thee, with that same red pottage; for I am faint: therefore was his name called Edom. », (Genesis 25:30). Despite the association with Esau, many scholars suggest that the kingdom of Edom was linked with red even before Esau’s time due to the red cliffs in the region (W. Ewing, “Edom; Edomites,” Bible Study Tools, 1915, www.biblestudytools.com/encyclopedias/isbe/edom-edomites.html, accessed 3-29-20). Bozrah and Petra (or Sela) were prominent cities in Edom, with Bozrah serving as the capital and central city of the kingdom.

The nation of Edom predated the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt, and the Lord instructed the Israelites not to take the land from the Edomites as they journeyed through, as He had given the land to Esau (Deuteronomy 2:1-5).

When Moses and the Israelites requested permission to pass through the land of Edom on their journey out of Egypt, they were denied passage by the Edomite king (Numbers 20:14-21). Subsequently, Edom is portrayed as an adversary of Israel in the Bible, and the two nations engaged in frequent conflicts.

Both Saul and David battled against the Edomites, with David prevailing over them and subjecting them to forced labor (1 Samuel 14:47-48;2 Samuel 8:13-14). During Jehoram’s reign, Edom rebelled against Judah and established their own independent king (2 Kings 8:20-22). The Edomites remained a source of trouble for the Israelites and even pillaged Judah following its conquest by the Babylonians (Ezekiel 25:12-14). Due to Edom’s transgressions in attacking Judah and rejoicing in Israel’s downfall during the Babylonian Captivity, the Lord pronounced judgment on Edom (Jeremiah 49:7-22). God decreed that Edom would become a desolate land, inhabited solely by wild animals (Malachi 1:2-5). This prophecy began to unfold when the Nabateans displaced Edom from their territory (Craig Blaising, “Malachi,” Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament, ed. by J. Walvoord and R. Zuck, David C. Cook, 1983. p. 1,576). God justly dealt with the Edomites because of their actions and attitude toward Israel.

The book of Obadiah focuses specifically on Edom’s judgment. The Edomites were arrogant, as stated: «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 1:3), violent (verse 10), and apathetic to the destruction of Israel (verse 11), and God promised a reckoning. After the Edomites were driven from their land by the Nabateans, they migrated to the southern part of Israel and became known as Idumeans. Much later in biblical history, Herod the Great, an Idumean, appears on the scene. It was Herod who tried to kill the infant Jesus in Bethlehem—through Herod, the rebellion of Edom continued.

In AD 70, the Idumeans joined the Israelites in their revolt against Rome, and they were wiped out when Jerusalem was destroyed. At that point, the descendants of Esau disappeared from human history, just as God had said. Although once a mighty kingdom among the red cliffs of its land, Edom was destroyed for its sin. It is the restored Israel who will one day possess the land of Edom and the “mountains of Esau” in the millennial kingdom of Christ (Obadiah 1:19-21).