Who were the Edomites in the Bible?

Understanding Genesis 25:23

The Edomites hold a unique place in biblical history as Israel's closest relatives and one of its most bitter enemies. Their story begins with twin brothers and ends with divine judgment — a narrative arc that spans the entire Old Testament and carries profound theological implications about family, jealousy, and the consequences of betrayal.

Origins: Esau and Jacob

The Edomites descended from Esau, the firstborn twin son of Isaac and Rebekah. Before the twins were born, God told Rebekah: 'Two nations are in your womb, and two peoples from within you will be separated; one people will be stronger than the other, and the older will serve the younger' (Genesis 25:23).

Esau emerged first, 'red, and his whole body was like a hairy garment; so they named him Esau' (Genesis 25:25). He later sold his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of red stew: 'He ate and drank, and then got up and left. So Esau despised his birthright' (Genesis 25:34). The name Edom means 'red,' connecting to both Esau's appearance and the red stew.

When Jacob deceived Isaac to receive the blessing intended for Esau, 'Esau held a grudge against Jacob because of the blessing his father had given him. He said to himself, The days of mourning for my father are near; then I will kill my brother Jacob' (Genesis 27:41). This fraternal hatred became the template for the relationship between their descendants.

Esau eventually settled in the mountainous region of Seir, south of the Dead Sea (Genesis 36:8). This rugged, elevated terrain — with peaks rising above 5,000 feet — became the homeland of the Edomites. The region's most famous city, Sela (later known as Petra), was carved into rose-red sandstone cliffs and was virtually impregnable.

Edom and Israel: A History of Hostility

When Israel traveled from Egypt toward the Promised Land, Moses sent messengers to the king of Edom requesting passage through their territory: 'Please let us pass through your country... We will travel along the King's Highway' (Numbers 20:17). Edom refused — and backed the refusal with military force: 'Edom came out against them with a large and powerful army. Since Edom refused to let them pass through their territory, Israel turned away from them' (Numbers 20:20-21).

This refusal was particularly bitter because Moses had appealed to family ties: 'This is what your brother Israel says' (Numbers 20:14). Edom rejected the brotherhood.

Despite Edom's hostility, God commanded Israel to show restraint: 'Do not despise an Edomite, for the Edomites are related to you' (Deuteronomy 23:7). This command recognized the blood connection even as it acknowledged the tension.

Throughout the monarchy period, Edom and Israel were frequently at war. David conquered Edom (2 Samuel 8:13-14), and Solomon controlled Edomite territory, using the port of Ezion Geber for trade (1 Kings 9:26). But Edom repeatedly revolted and regained independence. During the reign of Jehoram of Judah, 'Edom rebelled against Judah and set up its own king' (2 Kings 8:20).

Edom's Betrayal During Jerusalem's Fall

The defining moment in Edom's biblical history — and the event that triggered the harshest prophetic condemnation — was their behavior during the Babylonian destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BC.

When Nebuchadnezzar's army besieged and destroyed Jerusalem, the Edomites did not merely stand by — they actively participated in the destruction and humiliation of their brother nation:

'Remember, LORD, what the Edomites did on the day Jerusalem fell. Tear it down, they cried, tear it down to its foundations!' (Psalm 137:7).

The book of Obadiah — the shortest book in the Old Testament, just 21 verses — is entirely devoted to God's judgment on Edom for this betrayal:

'On the day you stood aloof while strangers carried off his wealth and foreigners entered his gates and cast lots for Jerusalem, you were like one of them. You should not gloat over your brother in the day of his misfortune, nor rejoice over the people of Judah in the day of their destruction, nor boast so much in the day of their trouble. You should not march through the gates of my people in the day of their disaster, nor gloat over them in their calamity in the day of their disaster, nor seize their wealth in the day of their disaster. You should not wait at the crossroads to cut down their fugitives, nor hand over their survivors in the day of their trouble' (Obadiah 11-14).

The repetition of 'you should not' hammers the indictment: Edom did not just fail to help — they looted, blocked escape routes, and handed fleeing Judeans over to the Babylonians. They turned their brother's worst day into an opportunity for profit and revenge.

Prophetic Judgment on Edom

Multiple prophets pronounced judgment on Edom:

Obadiah: 'The day of the LORD is near for all nations. As you have done, it will be done to you; your deeds will return upon your own head' (Obadiah 15). The principle of reciprocal justice: Edom's treatment of Judah would be visited upon Edom.

Jeremiah: 'I have stripped Esau bare; I have uncovered his hiding places, so that he cannot conceal himself' (Jeremiah 49:10). Edom's mountain fortresses, which gave them a false sense of security, would provide no refuge from God's judgment.

Ezekiel: 'Because you harbored an ancient hostility and delivered the Israelites over to the sword at the time of their calamity... I will fill your mountains with the slain' (Ezekiel 35:5, 8).

Malachi opens with God's declaration: 'Was not Esau Jacob's brother? Yet I have loved Jacob, but Esau I have hated. I have laid waste his hill country' (Malachi 1:2-3). Paul quotes this in Romans 9:13 to discuss God's sovereign election.

The End of the Edomites

Historically, the Edomites were gradually displaced from their traditional homeland by the Nabataeans (who built the famous city of Petra) during the fourth-third centuries BC. Displaced Edomites migrated into southern Judea, where they became known as Idumeans.

In 125 BC, the Hasmonean king John Hyrcanus I conquered the Idumeans and forced them to convert to Judaism. One Idumean family rose to extraordinary power: the family of Herod. Herod the Great — the king who tried to kill the infant Jesus (Matthew 2:16) — was an Idumean, a descendant of the Edomites. The ancient hostility between Esau and Jacob found its final biblical expression in an Edomite-descended king attempting to destroy the Messiah born from Jacob's line.

After the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70, the Idumeans/Edomites disappeared from history as a distinct people.

Theological Significance

Despising spiritual privilege has lasting consequences. Esau's contempt for his birthright (Genesis 25:34) established a pattern: the Edomites consistently rejected the spiritual significance of their connection to Abraham's covenant family. Hebrews 12:16-17 warns: 'See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son.'

Brotherhood does not guarantee loyalty. The Edomite-Israelite relationship is the Bible's starkest illustration that shared blood does not ensure shared loyalty. Betrayal by a brother cuts deeper than any enemy's attack.

God sees how nations treat His people in crisis. Edom's judgment was not for military conquest but for opportunistic cruelty during Judah's darkest hour. The standard is not merely 'do no harm' but 'do not exploit the vulnerable.'

Pride in security is misplaced. Obadiah 3-4: 'The pride of your heart has deceived you, you who live in the clefts of the rocks and make your home on the heights... Though you soar like the eagle and make your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down.' No fortress — geographic, military, or political — can protect against God's judgment.