Since we do not know who the writer was, other than that his name was Obadiah, it is very difficult to date this book and to determine where it came from.
"This shortest book in the Old Testament, consisting of only twenty-one verses, bears the distinction of being the most difficult of all the prophecies to date."2
There are three clues concerning when the prophet wrote it: references to historical events in the book, the book's place in the Hebrew canon, and possible quotations or allusions to the writings of other Old Testament prophets.
First, Obadiah referred to a time in the apparently recent past when the Edomites had gloated over a successful invasion of Jerusalem (vv. 10-14, 16). There are at least seven occasions during the ministry of the writing prophets when we know Jerusalem experienced invasion and suffered a defeat. One of these must be the event he referred to.
1. During Rehoboam's reign (930-913 B.C.; 1 Kings 14:25-26; 2 Chron. 12:2-9)
2. During Jehoram's reign (853-841 B.C.; 2 Kings 8:20-22; 2 Chron. 21:8-10, 16-17; cf. Amos 1:6)
3. During Amaziah's reign (796-767; 2 Kings 14:13-14; 2 Chron. 25:23-24)
4. During Ahaz's reign (732-715 B.C.; 2 Chron. 28:16-18)
5. During Jehoiakim's reign (609-598 B.C.; 2 Kings 24:1-4; 2 Chron. 36:6-7)
6. During Jehoiachin's reign (598-597 B.C.; 2 Kings 24:10-16; 2 Chron. 36:10)
7. During Zedekiah's reign (597-586 B.C.; 2 Kings 25:3-7; 2 Chron. 36:15-20; cf. Lam. 4:21-22; Ps. 137:7)
Of these, the invasions that seem to fit Obadiah's description of the Edomites' behavior were the one in King Jehoram's reign and the destruction of Jerusalem by Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians in 586 B.C. Most scholars believe one of these instances is in view, and most believe the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 B.C. is.3The second most popular view is that the invasion of Jerusalem during Jehoahaz's reign is what Obadiah referred to.4This would make Obadiah a contemporary of Elijah and Elisha (cf. 2 Chron. 21:12-15).
The second clue to the date of Obadiah's prophecy is the place of the book in the Hebrew canon. The Minor Prophets are called "minor,"of course, because they are shorter than the Major Prophets. The Jews put all 12 of the Minor Prophets on one scroll for convenience sake and to keep them from getting lost. The order in which they appear in the Hebrew Bible is basically chronological, and this order continued in later translations of the Old Testament including English translations. This would lead us to conclude that the ancient Jews regarded Obadiah as one of the earlier prophetical books.5
"In the arrangement of The Twelve in the Hebrew Bible the chronological principle which seems to have determined the over-all order was as follows: (1) the prophets of the Assyrian period were placed first (Hosea to Nahum); (2) then followed those of the Babylonian period (Habakkuk and Zephaniah); (3) the series closed with the three prophets of the Persian period after the exile (Haggai, Zechariah and Malachi)."6
The third clue concerning the date of Obadiah is evidence that one prophet depended on another. There are similarities between Obadiah 1-6 and Jeremiah 49:9 and 14-17 and between Obadiah 10-18 and Joel 1:15; 2:1, 32; 3:3-4, 17, and 19. There are also similarities between Obadiah 9, 10, 14, 18, and 19 and Amos 1:2, 6, 11-12, and 9:13. However, in all these instances it is really impossible to determine if Obadiah referred to the other prophets, if they referred to Obadiah, if they all depended on another common source, of if the Holy Spirit simply led each prophet independently to express himself in similar terminology.
Unfortunately, none of these sources of information enables us to date the book certainly. All things considered, I tend to favor an early date for Obadiah, about 850 B.C. However, those who prefer a date shortly after 586 B.C. could be correct. Fortunately, discovering the correct date of this prophecy is not crucial to understanding it.
