Many previously great nations have been the subject of Bible prophecies. “For example, Edom was a strong nation located next to the Israelites in Palestine. The Edomites, as descendants of Esau, were related to the Israelites, but were idolatrous and treacherous, frequently warring with the Israelite nation. Their land was rugged and their capital city, Petra, had a seemingly impregnable position in the rocks of the mountains.” It was a rich trade center; and even today its ruined palaces, carved out of solid rock, are an imposing and magnificent testimony to human ingenuity.
This nation seemed unconquerable. Yet during the height of its power, the Scriptures (Ezekial 35:1-15; Jeremiah 49:16-22) predicted its ultimate overthrow. Edom was to be destroyed, and all of her inhabitants would disappear. The fulfillment of these prophecies seemed long in coming, because Edom and Petra remained prosperous, even for centuries after Christ. No one really knows the full story of their decline, but their land has been desolate for such a long time that the Edomites are now a people long forgotten. The prophecy of Edom has been fulfilled exactly as the Bible foretold.
From A Closer Look at the Evidence by Kleiss, November 26.
