John Trapp on Obadiah 1:11

Verſe 11. In the day that thou ſtoodeſt on the other ſide,] Over-anent; curiouſly cying, and maliciouſly promoting, by thy virulent tongue, and violent hands, the downfall of Iſrael. Nemo curioſus quin malevolus, ſaith an Ancient. Theſe Edomites fed their eyes with their brethrens miſeries, as with a pleaſant ſpectacle. At firſt perhaps, they were onely lookers on: but afterwards they ſtood againſt them in battel (when they ſaw them worſted) and took part with their enemies. See Eſth. 8.2. Pſal. 9.6. Eph. 6.11. The Samaritanes afterward ſerved them in like ſort, as Joſephus reporteth: eſpecially when Antiochus tormented the Jewes, they wrote to him to excuſe themſelves as no Jews; and (offering him their ſervice) baſely ſtiled him, Antiochus the mighty God.

In the day that the ſtrangers carried away captive, &c.] Edoms malice is here aggravated by the circumſtance of time they took to expreſſe it: viz. when Gods people were at worſt, and when their extreme miſery ſhould have moved pity. This was a Dog-like, Devil-like practiſe, to fall upon thoſe that are down before; to adde affliction to the afflicted, Pſal. 69.26. to puſh the wounded out of the Heard, as they ſay Deer do. Of ſuch barbarous and ſavage uſage David oft complaineth, and Job, and Jeremy, and Jeſus, Pſal. 22. ſuch ſhall one day cry out at Gods barre, as Joſephs brethren did, Gen. 42.21. and finde no mercy, Jam. 2.21. no more then cruell Haman did, Eſth. 7. it being juſt with God to ſet off all hearts from him, who had been ſo unreaſonably mercileſſe. This Job well knew, and therefore ſo ſtudiouſly purgeth himſelf of this hainous wickedneſſe, chap. 31.29. Auſonius alſo out of Pitaccus Mytelenaeus affirmeth him to bee a beaſt and worſe, that maketh himſelf merry in another mans miſery. The beaſtlieſt among bruit creatures, even ſwine, ſeem to be affected with the out-cries of their kind. Men onely, more bruitiſh then they, triumph in the calamities each of other, and are not moved with their out-cries, albeit as bitter as that of Hezekiah, Eſay 38.14. O Lord, I am oppreſſed, help me. This Solomon calleth oppreſſion of an high nature, Eccleſ. 4.1. See Pſal. 142.4.

and forreiners entred into his gates,] having taken the city: then did the Edomites ſet fire to the Temple, 2 Eſdr. chap. 4. verſ. 45. Citizens in a ſiege fortifie their gates, and defend them to the utmoſt; for if the gates bee gained, the city is loſt: as it was at Jeruſalem, and as it had like to have been at the city of Coccinum, in the Iſland of Lemnos, which the Turks had ſurprized on the ſudden, but that they were happily prevented by the courage of one Marulla, a maiden of that city, who ſeeing her father ſlain in the gate, took up the weapons that lay by him: and, like a fierce Amazon, notably revenged his death, deſperatly fighting in defence of her countrey,Turk. hiſt. 412 with thoſe few that were in the gate at the firſt, and ſo kept the Turks out, untill the reſt of the citizens, moved with the alarm, came to the gate.

and caſt lots upon Jeruſalem,] i. e. upon the plunder of Jeruſalem: according to the cuſtome of old ſouldiers, Num. 26.56. See this fulfilled, 2 King. 24. and 25. See allſo more of this practiſe, Nah. 3.10. Joel 3.3. and how grievous it is to the ingenious, hear Andromache, O foelix una ante alias Priameia virge, Hoſtilem ad tumulum,Virg. Aeneid. Lib. 3. Troiae ſub moenibus altis Juſſa mori, quae ſortitus non pertulit ullos, Nec victoris heri tetigit captiva cubile.

Even thou waſt as one of them.] The emphaſis lieth in the word Thou: as in that of Julius Caeſar, [non-Latin text not transcribed] vov [non-Latin text not transcribed]. Di[illegible: 1 letter] Caſſ. beholding Brutus among the Conſpiratours that took away his life: What? Thou my ſonne Brutus? Even Thou, brother Edom, whom we ſpared in our paſſage thorow the wilderneſſe; when we deſtroyed other Nations, Deut. 2. Thou, who haſt from David's dayes (for moſt part) been our vaſſall and tributary. Hierom applieth this to Heretikes; Mercer to that Arch-heretike Antichriſt, an utter oppoſite to Chriſt, yet a pretended friend (as was Iudas) a ſervant of Gods ſervants (if you'le beleeve him) but a moſt bloody perſecutour of the Church, in whoſe ruines he yet revelleth, and will do, till Chriſt ſhall puniſh him, with his ſore, and great, and ſtrong ſword, Eſay 27.1. and dung his vineyard with the fleſh of that wild-bore.