Obadiah 1:6 (DRB)

Passage

How have they searched Esau, how have they sought out his hidden things?

Nearby Context

Obadiah 1:4 Though thou be exalted as an eagle, and though thou set thy nest among the stars: thence will I bring thee down, saith the Lord.

Obadiah 1:5 If thieves had gone in to thee, if robbers by night, how wouldst thou have held thy peace? would they not have stolen till they had enough? if the grapegatherers had come in to thee, would they not have left thee at the least a cluster?

Obadiah 1:6 How have they searched Esau, how have they sought out his hidden things?

Obadiah 1:7 They have sent thee out even to the border: all the men of thy confederacy have deceived thee: the men of thy peace have prevailed against thee: they that eat with thee shall lay snares under thee: there is no wisdom in him.

Obadiah 1:8 Shall not I in that day, saith the Lord, destroy the wise out of Edom, and understanding out of the mount of Esau?

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "searched", "esau", "sought", "hidden", and "things". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "searched" and "esau", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 5's "If thieves had gone in to thee..." into verse 7's "They have sent thee out even to...", so "searched" and "esau" belong inside that flow. In Obadiah context, the local focus is covenant, worship, and faithfulness.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "searched" and "esau" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.