Neither shouldest thou have rejoiced over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction; neither shouldest thou have spoken proudly in the day of distress. Obadiah 1:12 KJV
Do not rejoice over the sons of Judah In the day of their destruction; Yes, do not boast In the day of their distress. Obadiah 1:12 NASB
Having seen how an Edomite, Herod, treated an Israelite, take one step further along the chain of events. Notice now how Israelites treated a “brother Israelite.”
There were priests and scribes present at the cross. Even before the cross, they were instrumental in a mock trial, perjured testimony, cruel scourging and mockery. Spittle and bruises were the Lord’s portion from men who failed to show brotherly care. The priest, who was to have compassion on his fellow Jew, showed no compassion to the King of the Jews. You can only imagine what was involved in the summary statement the Spirit of God supplies when He tells us, “Many other things blasphemously spake they against Him” (Luke 22:65).
Skipping over what Gentiles inflicted upon Him in the praetorium (Matt 27:27), move now to Golgotha. Observe the passersby. They jeer and mock; imitating the suffering of the victim on the cross, they shake their heads. They hurl epithet after epithet at the figure suspended on the middle tree. Where is the pity? Where is the fellow feeling for a man Who is suffering? “I looked for some to take pity … I found none.”
The Lord Jesus, in Whom every human virtue was fine-tuned to its zenith and fulness, a Man of Sorrows marked by the deepest compassion, found no similar response in the hearts of men. Callous and cruel, they mocked His suffering. “Save Thyself … He trusted in God let Him deliver Him …” Hardened hearts of unbelief were experiencing a sense of vindication. They always suspected He was not genuine. Now, in apparent weakness, forsaken by His disciples and by God, they had proved Him wrong and had proven themselves right. Their lack of compassion would be especially grievous to a heart that was always filled with compassion.
Then there were the prisoners. They also “cast the same in His teeth.” He found no comforters at Calvary. Brotherly kindness and love were absent. In its place were hostility and bitterness, jubilation at His plight, and a sense of vindication in their own eyes.
If God was displeased with Edom, what must His attitude have been toward those even closer to the Lord Jesus as members of the same nation? And yet, Heaven was silent. Israelites mocked and scorned a fellow Israelite, did not show compassion, pity, or kindness, and exulted in His suffering. And Heaven was silent. Brotherly love was absent and replaced by hatred and hostility fueled by their father, the devil (John 8:41). Heaven was silent!
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Consider
Link Psalm 69 with the prophecy of Obadiah and with the events at the cross.
