ANCIENT EDOM AND MODERN ANTITYPE

41. What is the modern-day counterpart of the “land of Edom”?

⁴¹ Jehovah’s prophecy will likewise not fail in fulfillment upon the modern-day counterpart, the antitype, of the “land of Edom.” What is that antitype? It is Christendom. Just as the ancient Jewish nation and Jerusalem were used by Jehovah God in a typical way, to foreshadow things with regard to Christendom, so the brother nation of Edom was used by Him in a typical way. (1 Corinthians 10:6, 11; Colossians 2:16, 17) The people of Edom were fleshly descendants of Esau, who was nicknamed Edom (“Red”). Their national forefather was the older twin-brother of Jacob, who became surnamed Israel. Because of his being the firstborn of Isaac and Rebekah, Esau felt that he had a natural right to the birthright that his grandfather Abraham handed down.

42. What developments in connection with the birthright led to Esau’s feeling hatred for Jacob?

⁴² However, Jehovah God disregarded the natural right of a firstborn son, and, before the birth of the twins, he declared in favor of the second-born twin, Jacob (“Supplanter”). Even though this was the case, Esau treated the birthright in a profane way or with a lack of appreciation for spiritual things. In a time of fatigue and hunger, he was willing to sell this birthright to his appreciative brother Jacob for just one meal. Later on, when the time came for his father Isaac to bestow the Abrahamic blessing, Esau disregarded the oath with which he had sworn in order to validate the sale of his birthright and he made preparations to receive the birthright blessing, to which he was no longer entitled. It was only right that he was outwitted in this matter and the blessing went to the one to whom it rightly belonged according to God’s will, Jacob. But Esau felt that he had been unjustly supplanted, cheated. So, in hatred, he purposed to kill Jacob at the earliest convenience.​—Genesis 25:29 through 27:45; Hebrews 12:16, 17.

43. (a) In this matter, of whom did Jacob become a picture? (b) What about Esau?

⁴³ In these regards, Jacob became a picture of the heirs of the Abrahamic promise, the ones who became the spiritual “seed” of Abraham, namely, the anointed disciples of Jesus Christ, who is the principal one of the “seed” of Abraham. (Galatians 3:16-29) As regards the materialistic Esau, he became a type of the nation of natural Israel, who were fleshly descendants of Abraham and who thought that the Abrahamic blessing belonged naturally to them.

44. How did the natural, circumcised Israelites, as a whole, prove that they were indeed like Esau?

⁴⁴ However, these natural, circumcised Israelites failed to qualify for becoming the spiritual seed of Abraham. They rejected the main one of Abraham’s promised “seed,” namely, Jesus Christ, and had him killed and thereafter persecuted his faithful footstep followers. Only a small remnant of the natural Jews met the requirements and became part of the spiritual seed of Abraham. So the remaining needed members of the spiritual seed of Abraham have had to be taken from non-Jews who meet the qualifications. (Romans 2:28, 29; 11:1-29) Thus the majority of the Jewish nation made themselves like their distant uncle Esau or Edom.

45. How did those who were descendants of Esau or Edom come to manifest hostility toward their brother nation, the Israelites?

⁴⁵ Due to his profaneness or lack of spiritual appreciation, Esau was not in position to hand down the Abrahamic birthright to the nation that descended from him, the Esauites or Edomites. (Hebrews 12:15-17) These Edomites were the descendants of Esau by pagan, unbelieving wives. (Genesis 26:34, 35; 27:46; 28:6-9) Naturally they would have reason to think that they had been deprived of being the natural seed of Abraham with a right to the promised blessing, because of the action of their uncle Jacob or Israel. So they easily learned to harbor the hatred that their national ancestor Esau had felt toward Jacob, and this hatred manifested itself in hostility toward their brother nation, the Israelites. During the course of the centuries that followed, the Edomites or Idumeans were made to feel the disfavor of Jehovah God.​—Ezekiel 35:1-9; Malachi 1:2-4.

46. During the time of the Maccabees, how did the Edomites become amalgamated with the Jewish nation?

⁴⁶ During the period of the Maccabean rulers of the repatriated Jews in the land of Judah, the surviving Edomites were obliged to become Jewish proselytes. Approximately between the years 130-120 B.C.E. John Hyrcanus of the Maccabean line subjugated the Edomites and forced them to submit to circumcision as proselytes to Judaism. This accounts for the Jewish toleration of the rulership of the Edomite (Idumean) king, Herod the Great, and members of his royal family. (See Antiquities of the Jews, by Flavius Josephus, Book 13, chapter 9, paragraph 1; Book 15, chapter 7, paragraph 9.) In this way the Edomites (Idumeans) became amalgamated with the Jewish nation of the first century of our Common Era, which Jewish nation was used as a Bible type of Christendom.

47. In what ways has Christendom proved herself to be similar to Esau or Edom?

⁴⁷ Similar to Esau or Edom, Christendom has laid claim to the Abrahamic promise and considers itself to be the spiritual seed of Abraham, the heirs to the heavenly kingdom with Jesus Christ. According to their religious claims, the members of Christendom make themselves twin-brothers of those who are the real Christian heirs of God’s Messianic kingdom, the true disciples of Jesus the Messiah. Nevertheless, Christendom does not love these faithful spirit-anointed disciples of Christ. She hates them with a murderous hate. (1 John 3:12-15) Ever since the founding of Christendom in the fourth century C.E., she has persecuted those who are not imitation Christians. These follow Jesus’ words and example in being no part of this world, but Christendom has made herself a friend of this world by becoming a part of it. Therefore what the world hates, she hates. (1 John 2:15-17; John 15:19; 17:14, 16; James 4:4) By persecuting the true Christians, she imagines that she is rendering to God a sacred service.​—John 16:2.

48. Just like the Edomites at the time of Jerusalem’s destruction in 607 B.C.E., how did Christendom act toward spiritual Israel during World War I?

⁴⁸ Modern twentieth-century history testifies to this fact. During World War I the faithful remnant of spiritual Israel came to be hated by all the nations, just as Jesus Christ had foretold regarding his true footstep followers. (Matthew 24:9; 10:7-22) The reason for this world hatred was the fact that the anointed remnant proclaimed God’s Messianic kingdom as the rightful rule for all the earth, the only hope for all mankind. (Mark 13:10-13) During all the persecution and suffering upon the faithful remnant, Christendom did not express a word of sympathy for them. In fact, the documented evidence shows that Christendom’s religious clergy instigated this persecution upon these proclaimers of the “good news” of God’s Messianic kingdom. She rejoiced with the warring nations of Christendom over the suppression of these Kingdom proclaimers and the killing of their public witness work, just as the Edomites rejoiced with the Babylonians over the destruction of Jerusalem in 607 B.C.E.​—Revelation 11:7-10.

49, 50. (a) During World War II, how did Christendom further show that she had the spirit of ancient Edom? (b) In fulfillment of God’s word through Isaiah, what now faces the modern-day Edomites, the people of Christendom, as well as Judaism?

⁴⁹ Nursing her hatred of the remnant of spiritual Israelites who stood out as true Christians in contrast to her church members who engaged in bloodspilling in violent warfare, Christendom did not rejoice when the suppressed Kingdom witnesses were revived by God’s spirit in 1919 C.E. She did not rejoice at the spiritual paradise into which those restored spiritual Israelites were brought. (Isaiah 35:10) During World War II of 1939-1945 C.E., which broke out within her own borders, Christendom again stirred up religious persecution and fiercely endeavored to wipe out the spiritual paradise of the remnant of spiritual Israel and their companion worshipers of Jehovah God. But all in vain! Jehovah’s Christian witnesses survived and came forth from the second world conflict with greater force of numbers than ever before. In view of such violent hatred on the part of Christendom toward His Christian witnesses, does Jehovah God have a “legal case over Zion”? Has His “year of retributions” arrived upon the modern-day Edomites, Jehovah’s “day of vengeance”?​—Isaiah 34:8.

⁵⁰ The answer is Yes! And so Christendom now faces desolation. Judaism faces the same thing!

1. (a) In the first century C.E., were the adherents to Judaism and the Edomites in agreement on their attitude toward Christianity? (b) Why are the Bible prophecies concerning Edom of interest to us today?

THE ancient nation of Edom (Idumea) was against the faithful worshipers of Jehovah God. Even in the days of the apostles of Jesus Christ, in the first century C.E., the staunch adherents to Judaism were one with the Edomites (Idumeans) in fighting against the newly begun Christianity. (Acts 4:25-28; 12:1-6) In the course of time the nation of Edom disappeared from the pages of history, but, for the major and complete fulfillment of Bible prophecy, that notorious nation has her modern counterpart. It is Christendom. So the Bible prophecies concerning Edom must today be understood from the standpoint of what befalls this modern-day counterpart.