Albert Barnes Commentary Obadiah 1:12-14

"But look not thou on the day of thy brother in the day of his disaster, and rejoice not over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither speak proudly in the day of distress. Enter not into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, look not thou on their affliction in the day of their calamity, neither lay ye [hands] on their substance in the day of their calamity. And stand thou not in the crossway, to cut off those of his that escape; and deliver not up those of his that remain in the day of distress." — Obadiah 1:12-14 (ASV)

But you should not—rather, it means, and can only mean, “And look not (that is, gaze not with pleasure) on the day of your brother in the day of his becoming a stranger; and rejoice not over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; and enlarge not your mouth in the day of distress. Enter not into the gate of My people in the day of their calamity; look not, you too, on his affliction in the day of his calamity; and lay not hands on his substance in the day of his calamity. And stand not on the crossway, to cut off his fugitives; and shut not up his remnants in the day of distress.”

Throughout these three verses, Obadiah uses the future tense only. It is the voice of earnest, emphatic warning and entreaty not to do what would displease God, and what, if done, would be punished. He warns them against malicious rejoicing at their brother’s fall: first in look, then in word, then in act, in covetous participation of the spoil, and lastly in murder. Malicious gazing on human calamity, forgetful of humanity’s common origin and common liability to misfortune, is the worst form of human hate. It was one of the indignities of the Cross: they gaze, they look with joy upon Me (Psalms 22:17). The rejoicing over them was doubtless, as among savages, accompanied with grimaces (Psalms 38:16). Then follow words of insult.

The enlarging of the mouth is uttering a tide of large words, here against the people of God; in Ezekiel, against Himself (Ezekiel 35:13): “Thus with your mouth you have enlarged against Me and have multiplied your words against Me. I have heard.”

Upon this, follows Edom’s coming yet closer, “entering the gate of God’s people” to share the conqueror’s triumphant gaze on his calamity. Then, the violent, busy, laying hands on the spoil, while others of them stood in cold blood, taking the “fork” where the ways parted, to intercept the fugitives before they were dispersed, or to shut them up with the enemy, driving them back on their pursuers.

The prophet beholds the whole course of sin and persecution, and warns them against it, in the order in which, if committed, they would commit it. Whoever would keep clear from the worst, must stop at the beginning. Still God’s warnings accompany him step by step. At each step, some might stop. The warning, although unheeded by most, might arrest the few.

At the worst, when the guilt had been contracted and the punishment had ensued, it was a warning for their posterity and for all thereafter.

Some of these things Edom certainly did, as the Psalmist prays (Psalms 137:7), “Remember, O Lord, to the children of Edom the day of Jerusalem, who said, Lay bare, lay bare, even to the foundation in her.” And Ezekiel (Ezekiel 35:5–6), alluding to this language of Obadiah, says, “because you have had a perpetual hatred, and have shed the blood of the children of Israel by the force of the sword in the time of their calamity, in the time that their iniquity had an end, therefore, as I live, says the Lord God, I will prepare you for blood, and blood shall pursue you; since you have not hated blood, even blood shall pursue you.” Violence, bloodshed, unrelenting, deadly hatred against the whole people, a longing for their extermination, had been inveterate characteristics of Esau. Joel and Amos had already denounced God’s judgments against them for two forms of this hatred: the murder of settlers in their own land or of those who were sold to them (Joel 3:19; Amos 1:6, 1:9, 1:11).

Obadiah warns them against yet a third form of this hatred: intercepting their fugitives in their escape from the more powerful enemy. “Stand not in the crossway.” Whoever puts himself in the situation to commit an old sin does, in fact, intend to renew it and, unless hindered from without, will certainly do it. Probably he will, through sin’s inherent power of growth, do worse.

Having again tasted blood, Ezekiel says that they sought to displace God’s people and remove God Himself (Ezekiel 35:10–11): “Because you have said, These two nations and these two countries shall be mine, and we will possess it, whereas the Lord was there, therefore, as I live, says the Lord God, I will even do according to your anger, and according to your envy, which you have used out of your hatred against them.”