The main charge against Edom is the violence committed against his brother Jacob. In the ancient Near East, violence against a close brother was a horrible crime and always a big shock. Israel and Edom were neighbours who had ties of kinship.¹ They should have respected one another instead of fighting. All of Edom’s activities are described as violence against God’s people, a relentless cruelty born of hatred.² People filled with hate breathe out violence (Psalm 27:12). The Hebrew noun translated as violence denotes both moral wrong and overt physical brutality, both of which had characterized Edom’s relationship with Israel.³ Esau’s hatred of Jacob (Genesis 27:40–41) was seen in Edom’s continued hostility to Israel.