This time a nation is punished for a crime that was not against Israel. Instead, it was a crime against Edom—a nation that Israel did not like.
God was making clear that he was unhappy with the surrounding nations, but not just because of how these surrounding nations gave Israel a rough time. It is not as if God’s anger is aroused only when his own people suffer at the hands of others. Yes, that indeed provokes him to anger and we can take comfort in that, but it is not as if God is concerned only for his covenant people. It is important that we as God’s people remember this. Our God indeed is deeply concerned about us—but that does not mean he could not care less about what happens to others who do not even acknowledge him.
Why did God establish his covenant with Abraham and bless him? Ultimately so that in him all the nations of the earth (not just Israel) would be blessed. In specially blessing Abraham, God had his eye on all the nations of the world. In blessing us today too, God also has his eye on our neighbours—that we serve as a blessing for them. After all, everyone in this world is his creature. True, he chose his own in this world, but that does not mean that he could not care less about what happens to others.
1 Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Moab, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because he burned to lime the bones of the king of Edom.