Edom 2 Esdras 6:7

2 Esdras 6:7 Then answered I and said, What shall be the parting asunder of the times? or when shall be the end of the first, and the beginning of it that followeth? 8 And he said unto me, From Abraham unto Isaac, when Jacob and Esau were borne of him, Jacob's hand held first the heel of Esau.9 For Esau is the end of the world, and Jacob is the beginning of it that followeth.

The above quotation from The Apocrypha teaches that the descendants of Esau will dominate the scene at the end of the age

Edom figures in several latter-day prophecies, such as Isaiah 34, Ezekiel 35, Obadiah and Psalm 83,

The end-time prophecies of Edom are often linked to the term ‘nations’,

Amos 9:11,12 which is quoted Acts 15:15-17

the latter-day Edom stands for those Arab nations surrounding Israel who are hostile to her and plot her annihilation. The latter-day revival of Edom in the recent emergence of several Arab nations concurrent with the return of the Jews to their land is one of the unmistakable signs of the times.

The fact that Israel has been outnumbered and ringed round by her enemies but never defeated is also taken as support for those Edom prophecies that speak, not of the defeat of Israel, but rather of the protection by God of His people

it seems certain that we are intended to read Obadiah's prophecy as a prophecy of the Last Days : Obad 1:15,17,21.

This Edomite enemy will be a member of an alliance: Obad 1:11. Edom is a member of the 10-nation Arab alliance described in Psa 83.

The controversy of the Last Days will concern God's holy mountain, mount Zion. There the enemies of Israel, including Edom, will rejoice over her: "Just as you drank on my holy hill...." (Obad 1:16).

And there also will God bring retribution upon these blasphemous enemies: Obad 1:15-17. This observation lends credibility to the idea that the last great conflict in and around Jerusalem -- a conflict which will bring on the literal Return of Christ -- will be a religious conflict, between two peoples desperately struggling to lay claim to the same "holy places".

At this point the prophecy dramatically changes tone. The people of Israel are saved from their adversity and are spiritually regenerated. They receive back the Land promised to their fathers, to its fullest extent, and the rescued and redeemed state of Israel becomes the nucleus of the Kingdom of God: "But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy... The house of Jacob will be a fire and the house of Joseph a flame; the house of Esau will be stubble, and they will set it on fire and consume it. There will be no survivors from the house of Esau... Deliverers will go up on Mount Zion to govern the mountains of Esau. And the kingdom will be the LORD's" (Obad 1:17,18,21).

In short, is Obad 1:19,20 being fulfilled right now, or do they await a future fulfillment?

The order of Obad 1:17-21 suggests an answer: First, there must come a deliverance to mount Zion (v 17), and not just a military victory such as in 1948 or 1967: "But on Mount Zion will be deliverance; it will be holy [or 'there shall be holiness': AV], and the house of Jacob will possess its inheritance."

And so this "deliverance" will of require "holiness" -- and for this there must be true repentance and forgiveness of sins. Only then will Israel -- ie, a renewed and glorified remnant of Israel -- go forth to possess all the lands promised to the fathers (cp Gen 15:18-21; Exo 23:23; Deu 1:7; 11:24; Jos 1:4; Psa 72:8), as detailed in Obad 1:19,20.

This last territorial expansion will never be set back or thwarted in any way. Why? Because "Deliverers ['saviours': AV] will go up on Mount Zion... and the kingdom will be the LORD's" (Obad 1:21).