Obadiah 1:14 (WEB)

Passage

Don’t stand in the crossroads to cut off those of his who escape. Don’t deliver up those of his who remain in the day of distress.

Nearby Context

Obadiah 1:12 But don’t look down on your brother in the day of his disaster, and don’t rejoice over the children of Judah in the day of their destruction. Don’t speak proudly in the day of distress.

Obadiah 1:13 Don’t enter into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity. Don’t look down on their affliction in the day of their calamity, neither seize their wealth on the day of their calamity.

Obadiah 1:14 Don’t stand in the crossroads to cut off those of his who escape. Don’t deliver up those of his who remain in the day of distress.

Obadiah 1:15 For the day of Yahweh is near all the nations! As you have done, it will be done to you. Your deeds will return upon your own head.

Obadiah 1:16 For as you have drunk on my holy mountain, so will all the nations drink continually. Yes, they will drink, swallow down, and will be as though they had not been.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "stand", "crossroads", "escape", "deliver", "remain", and "distress". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "stand" and "crossroads", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "Don t enter into the gate of..." into verse 15's "For the day of Yahweh is near...", so "stand" and "crossroads" 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 "stand" and "crossroads" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.