October 25, 2025 - Obadiah 1:3 - "Pride's Fatal Delusion"

Obadiah 1:3

"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?"

“The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee.” Here the prophet speaks the Word of the LORD against Edom, the descendants of Esau, who were lifted up in their own hearts and trusted in their own strength. They dwelt in the clefts of the rock, their habitation was high, and they said within themselves, “Who shall bring me down to the ground?” But the LORD answers with holy authority, “Though thou exalt thyself as the eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars, thence will I bring thee down” (v.4). The pride of man cannot stand before the sovereignty of God.

Edom is a picture of the natural man—strong, confident, self-sufficient, and deceived. The pride of the heart blinds the sinner to his true condition before God. Esau despised his birthright; he sought the blessing by his own will and works, but the blessing was given to Jacob according to God’s eternal purpose. “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated” (Romans 9:13). This is the testimony of Divine sovereignty. The LORD will have mercy on whom He will have mercy. "Salvation is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy" (Romans 9:16).

Edom’s sin was not merely against Israel; it was against the LORD Himself. When Israel was afflicted, Edom stood aloof; when the enemy invaded Jerusalem, Edom rejoiced in her calamity. The LORD saw it all and said, “Thou shouldest not have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction” (v. 12). Every proud act, every boastful thought, every trust in self is rebellion against the LORD’s Christ. For Christ is the True Israel of God, and to oppose His people is to oppose Him.

The pride of the heart says, “I will ascend; I will be like the Most High" (Isaiah 14:14). But God says, "For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted" (Luke 14:11). Pride always deceives. It promises strength but brings ruin. It seeks to rise but falls into judgment. “When thou shalt make thyself small, thou shalt be greatly despised.” The wisdom of this world is foolishness with God. The strongholds of Edom’s mountains could not protect them, for “the day of the LORD is near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee” (v.15).

Yet in this word of judgment, the LORD reveals His Righteousness and His Grace. For while Edom is brought down, Zion is lifted up. “Upon Mount Zion shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall possess their possessions" (v.17). The LORD will not forsake His chosen. The kingdoms of this world shall become the kingdoms of our LORD and of His Christ. The proud are cast down, but the humble are exalted.

Christ Jesus, the True Jacob, humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. He took not the mountain stronghold of Edom, but the hill of Calvary. There, He bore the wrath due to the sins of His people. The judgment that fell upon Edom is the judgment that fell upon Christ in the stead of His elect. "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).

Now the redeemed look not to their own strength but to His finished work. Their confidence is not in the clefts of the rock of their own making, but in the Rock of Ages that was cleft for them. Pride is slain at the foot of the cross. Grace reigns through Righteousness unto eternal life by Jesus Christ our LORD.

“The pride of thine heart hath deceived thee.” But the grace of God humbles and saves. The LORD brings down the lofty and exalts the lowly. Edom’s high places are made desolate, but Zion stands forever. The Deliverer shall come out of Zion, and the kingdom shall be the LORD’s. In Him alone is all our Hope, our Righteousness, and our Peace.

May we then take heed to the solemn warning of Edom’s fall, for the same deceit still lurks in every human heart. Pride whispers false security, persuading us that strength, wisdom, or privilege can make us stand apart from the need of Grace. Yet the higher man exalts himself, the deeper he will fall. True safety lies only in humility before God—in casting down every lofty thought and resting wholly in the Righteousness and Mercy of Christ. May the LORD teach us to walk low before His throne, that we may find in His condescending grace the Refuge which no mountain of pride can ever provide. To Christ be the glory forever.