Verse Lens · Expanded explanation

Obadiah 1:10 Explained in Context

Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.

Selected verse

Verse 10. For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.

King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions

Quick Meaning

Names violence against brother Jacob as the cause of Edom's shame and cutting off.

Read It With

  • Obadiah 1:10–14

Read verses 10–14 together. Verse 10 states the charge and penalty; verses 11–14 show how Edom's conduct escalated from aloofness and gloating to plunder and interception.

Why This Verse Appears Here

Only after dismantling Edom's defenses does the oracle name the central offense: concrete violence against a related and vulnerable people.

Read Obadiah 1:10–14 together

Why these verses belong together: Verse 10 states violence against brother Jacob, and verses 11–14 unfold the accusation through repeated day language and escalating actions.

Verse 10. For thy violence against thy brother Jacob shame shall cover thee, and thou shalt be cut off for ever.

Verse 11. In the day that thou stoodest on the other side, in the day that the strangers carried away captive his forces, and foreigners entered into his gates, and cast lots upon Jerusalem, even thou wast as one of them.

Verse 12. But thou shouldest not have looked on the day of thy brother in the day that he became a stranger; 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.

Verse 13. Thou shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked on their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity;

Verse 14. Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway, to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress.

Follow the Context

  1. Verse 10 names violence against brother Jacob as the cause of shame and cutting off.
  2. Verse 11 recalls Edom standing apart while foreigners entered Jerusalem, divided its goods, and carried away its resources or forces.
  3. Verse 12 prohibits or retrospectively condemns looking with satisfaction, rejoicing, and speaking proudly over Judah's distress.
  4. Verse 13 condemns entering the gate, gazing on affliction, and laying hands on possessions during calamity.
  5. Verse 14 condemns occupying the crossroads to cut down escapees and handing survivors over.

Phrase-by-Phrase Explanation

“violence against thy brother Jacob”

In plain language: Edom harmed the related people identified through Jacob.

This clause supplies the moral cause for the announced shame and cutting off.

Why it matters: Judgment is tied to concrete predatory conduct.

How certain? very strong

What This Verse Is Not Saying

Obadiah 1:10 does not make Jacob and Esau generic labels detached from the historical Edom-Judah brother relationship.

What Remains True

The oracle locates Edom's judgment in concrete violence against a related and vulnerable people.

How It Can Shape Life

  • Treat kinship and neighbor responsibility as reasons to protect people in calamity, never as opportunities for domination.

Teach It Back

Explain Obadiah 1:10's contribution to Obadiah 1:10–14: Names violence against brother Jacob as the cause of Edom's shame and cutting off. Include what the surrounding verses add, what remains uncertain, and what the verse does not authorize.

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Continue in Context

The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.

Read Obadiah 1:10–14 — Violence against Brother Jacob Is Exposed
Sources used for this Verse Lens

How certain is this explanation? strong

These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.

Biblical text

King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006

eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society

USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.

Supports: Exact reader-facing Scripture wording and complete verse coverage for this thought unit.

Exact location: Obadiah 1:10–14, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM corpus

Open source ↗

hebrew text and morphology

Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible: Obadiah

Open Scriptures

Open Scriptures, release 2.2

Supports: Hebrew forms, clause boundaries, repeated roots, names, and the base wording behind translation discussion.

Exact location: Open Scriptures MorphHB v.2.2 (commit 6a5db284c715c18b239422e57bb89684e6a19f00), wlc/Obad.xml, Masoretic words and morphology for 1:10–14

Open source ↗

translation and translator notes

NET Bible: Obadiah with translators' notes

Biblical Studies Press

Biblical Studies Press, 2006

Supports: Material translation, syntax, text, date, geography, and uncertainty notes for the unit.

Exact location: NET Bible Obadiah PDF, pp. 1723–1727, translation and notes on 1:10–14

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