The former oracle promised prolonged recurring trouble for Edom, but this one warns that the Arabians would suffer defeat soon.
21:13 "Arabia"describes the territory southeast of Edom, which was also in danger of Assyrian takeover. The Dedanite Arabian caravans would have to hide among the bushes because they were in danger from an enemy.
21:14-15 Other Arabians would provide sustenance for the refugees of war who would seek them out (cf. 16:2-3).
21:16-17 Within precisely a year, however, these Arabians would suffer destruction and their army would dissolve. There end would be due to the sovereign Lord, not to the force of opposing armies. The Lord Himself assured the prophet of this.
The place that refugees from advancing Gentile armies would seek security, Arabia, would soon prove insecure. Israel should not trust in this neighbor but in her Lord.
