Navi

Ovadiah HaNavi

עובדיה הנביא

The God-fearing steward of Achav's palace who hid a hundred prophets from Izevel, a convert from Edom who became the prophet of Edom's downfall.

YahrzeitNot recorded

Biography

A Convert from Edom

Ovadiah HaNavi zy"a, the God-fearing steward of King Achav's palace who hid a hundred prophets from Izevel, was the navi chosen to foretell the downfall of Edom. He lived in the kingdom of Israel in the days of Achav son of Omri, one of the darkest times in the nation's history. Achav married Izevel, daughter of the king of Tzidon, served the Baal, and did more evil in Hashem's eyes than all the kings before him.

Chazal teach that Ovadiah was not born a Jew. Rebbi Meir taught that he was a ger (convert) from Edom, the nation descended from Esav. The Gemara applies to him a popular saying: the handle of the axe that cuts down the forest comes from the forest itself. From Edom's own sons came the prophet who would announce its judgment.

The Midrash sets Ovadiah beside the ancestor of his people, point by point. Esav was given a bris milah by his fathers and cast it away; Ovadiah was born without it and chose it for himself. Esav waited for the days of mourning for his father; Ovadiah fell on his face before Eliyahu, honoring a man who was not his father. Esav grew up between two tzaddikim, Yitzchak and Rivkah, and learned nothing from them. Ovadiah would live between two of the most wicked people Israel ever knew, and learn nothing from them either.

Tanach records neither his father's name nor the place of his birth. Ovadiah's own words, spoken years later to Eliyahu, sum up his life: your servant has feared Hashem from his youth.

Over the House of Achav

Ovadiah rose to become the one who was over the house, the steward of Achav's royal household. The Midrash describes him as an exceedingly wealthy man. In a palace given over to the Baal he remained a servant of Hashem, and the verse testifies that Ovadiah feared Hashem greatly.

The Gemara relates a conversation behind that verse. Achav once complained to his steward: when Yaakov worked for Lavan, Lavan's house was blessed for his sake, and when Yosef served in Egypt, his master's house was blessed for Yosef's sake. Why is my house not blessed? Perhaps you do not fear Heaven. A heavenly voice answered: Ovadiah fears Hashem greatly; it is the house of Achav that is not fit for blessing.

Rebbi Abba taught that the praise given to Ovadiah is greater than the praise given to Avraham Avinu. Of Avraham, after the Akeidah, the Torah says that he feared Hashem; of Ovadiah it says that he feared Hashem greatly.

His fear of Heaven was put to the test when Izevel set out to destroy the prophets of Hashem. While the queen's men hunted them down, the king's own steward took a hundred of them, hid them in caves, and kept them alive with bread and water. When a long drought had brought famine to the land and Eliyahu came back to face Achav in its third year, it was Ovadiah he met on the road, and Ovadiah who brought Achav to him.

The Vision Concerning Edom

Rav Yitzchak taught that Ovadiah merited prophecy because he hid the hundred prophets. The man who risked his life to keep Hashem's prophets alive became a navi himself, and his words were written down for all generations among the Twelve Prophets.

Sefer Ovadiah is a single chapter of twenty-one verses, the shortest book in Tanach, and all of it speaks of Edom. Your proud heart has deceived you, the prophet tells Edom, you who dwell in the clefts of the rock and say, who will bring me down? Even if you raise your nest like an eagle and set it among the stars, from there I will bring you down. Edom is judged above all for its cruelty to its brother Yaakov: it stood aside on the day strangers entered the gates of Yerushalayim, gloated over Yehudah's ruin, and cut off those who fled.

The vision ends with redemption. The house of Yaakov will be a fire, the house of Yosef a flame, and the house of Esav straw. Saviors will go up on Mount Tzion to judge the mountain of Esav, and the kingship will be Hashem's. The whole of Sefer Ovadiah is read as the haftarah of parshas Vayishlach, the parsha in which Yaakov meets Esav.

Why was Ovadiah, of all the prophets, sent to Edom? Chazal give two answers. Hashem said: let Ovadiah, who lived between Achav and Izevel and did not learn from their deeds, come and judge Esav, who lived between Yitzchak and Rivkah and did not learn from theirs. And because Ovadiah came from Edom itself, Hashem said: from them I will bring judgment upon them.

His Enduring Legacy

Ovadiah spent everything he had on the prophets. The Midrash relates that he gave his wealth to tzedakah to feed them, and when the famine came and his money ran out, he borrowed at interest from Yehoram son of Achav rather than let them go hungry. The Targum adds that he would not feed them from Achav's property, which had been taken by force.

He passed away with that debt unpaid. No date of his passing is recorded, and the place of his kever is not known with certainty. His widow cried out to Elisha HaNavi that the creditor was coming to take her two sons as slaves, and through the miracle of the jug of oil the debt was paid and the boys stayed free. The Midrash adds that when Yehu later shot Yehoram, the arrow struck between the arms he had stretched out to take interest.

Chazal hold his household in high esteem. Rav Mani taught that were it not for the merit of Ovadiah's wife, Israel would have been destroyed in that very hour. The Midrash on Mishlei counts her among the women of valor: she watched over the ways of her house and saved her sons from serving idols with Achav.

Ovadiah is counted among the forty-eight prophets who prophesied to Israel, and his own words were written down for all generations. Rebbe Elimelech of Lizhensk, in the Noam Elimelech, draws on him to teach that a power is broken by its own likeness, just as the convert from Edom was sent to judge Edom. The steward who kept a hundred prophets alive inside a wicked king's palace remains a model for every Jew who must serve Hashem with courage wherever he is placed.

Stories

A Hundred Prophets in Two Caves

When Izevel set out to kill the prophets of Hashem, the steward of her own husband's palace hid a hundred of them and fed them through the famine.

Izevel, the queen of Israel, set out to wipe out the prophets of Hashem, and one after another they were hunted down and killed. In the very palace where the order was given, the king's steward, Ovadiah, quietly gathered a hundred of the prophets and hid them away.

He did not put them all in one place. He hid fifty men in one cave and fifty in another. Rebbi Elazar taught that Ovadiah learned this from Yaakov Avinu, who divided his camp in two before meeting Esav, saying: if Esav strikes one camp, the other will escape. Rav Abbahu explained more simply that no cave could hold more than fifty.

Then he kept them alive with bread and water, through a famine so severe that the king himself went searching the land for grass for his horses. The Midrash relates that Ovadiah spent his whole fortune feeding them. When it ran out, he borrowed, even at interest from Achav's own son, rather than let them go hungry. The Targum adds that he would not feed them from the king's property, since it had been gathered by force; the bread of Hashem's prophets had to be clean.

He did all this at the risk of his life, as he later reminded Eliyahu: surely my lord has been told what I did when Izevel killed the prophets of Hashem, how I hid a hundred of them, fifty to a cave, and fed them bread and water. Rav Yitzchak taught that for this kindness Ovadiah merited to become a navi himself.

Source: Melachim I 18:2–5, 13 with Rashi on 18:4; Gemara, Sanhedrin 39b (Talmud Bavli); Midrash Shemos Rabbah 31:4; Targum Yonasan on Melachim II 4:1. English: The JPS Tanakh (Gender-Sensitive Edition); The Metsudah Tanach; The William Davidson Talmud (Koren–Steinsaltz); The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022).

Practical lessonFeed someone quietly

Ovadiah's kindness was hidden in caves, and no one thanked him in public. This week, support someone's Torah or avodas Hashem without being seen. Leave groceries for a kollel family, pay for a sefer a bochur cannot afford, or send a meal to a new mother without signing your name. If money is tight, give time instead: cover a shift so a friend can make his shiur. Let the kindness stay hidden, and notice how it feels to give with no audience but Hashem.

Meeting Eliyahu on the Road

Sent by Achav to search for grass in the famine, Ovadiah met Eliyahu on the road and found the courage to carry the prophet's message to the king.

The drought was in its third year, and the famine in Shomron was severe. Achav called Ovadiah and said: go through the land to every spring and every stream; perhaps we will find grass to keep the horses and mules alive. The king and his steward divided the land between them, and each set out alone in his own direction.

As Ovadiah walked, Eliyahu suddenly stood before him. Ovadiah recognized him and fell on his face: is it you, my lord Eliyahu? It is I, Eliyahu answered. Go, tell your master: Eliyahu is here.

Ovadiah was afraid. What sin have I done, he asked, that you hand your servant over to Achav to be killed? There is no nation or kingdom where my master has not searched for you. When I leave you, the spirit of Hashem will carry you off to a place I do not know, and when Achav comes and cannot find you, he will kill me. And your servant has feared Hashem from his youth. Has my lord not been told how I hid a hundred of Hashem's prophets?

Eliyahu gave him his word: as Hashem of Hosts lives, before Whom I stand, today I will appear before him. Ovadiah went and told Achav, and Achav came out to meet Eliyahu, the meeting that led to the great gathering on Mount Carmel. The Midrash notes how Ovadiah fell on his face before Eliyahu, honoring a man who was not his father, while Esav, the ancestor of his people, waited for his own father's death.

Source: Melachim I 18:1–19; Midrash Aggadas Bereishis 59:4. English: The JPS Tanakh (Gender-Sensitive Edition); Aggadat Bereshit (Sefaria Community Translation).

Practical lessonSay the fear, then go

Ovadiah did not pretend to be fearless. He told Eliyahu exactly what frightened him, heard his promise, and then went. This week, think of one right thing you have been avoiding because it scares you: a hard phone call, an apology, standing up for someone at work. Say the fear out loud to someone you trust, or to Hashem in your own words before Shemoneh Esrei. Then take the first step today, while the promise is still fresh.

The Jug of Oil for Ovadiah's Sons

After Ovadiah passed away in debt for the prophets' sake, his widow cried out to Elisha, and a single jug of oil saved her sons.

Ovadiah passed away, and the debt he had taken on to feed the prophets remained. Rashi teaches that the creditor was Yehoram son of Achav, who had lent the money at interest, and now he was coming to take Ovadiah's two sons as slaves.

His widow went to Elisha and cried out: your servant, my husband, is dead, and you know that he feared Hashem. The Targum fills in her words: you know how he hid a hundred prophets, fifty in each cave, and borrowed to feed them so as not to feed them from Achav's goods. Now the creditor has come to take my two sons.

What do you have in the house? Elisha asked. Nothing, she said, except a jug of oil. Borrow empty vessels from all your neighbors, he told her, and not too few. Then shut the door behind you and your sons and pour. She poured, and her sons brought vessel after vessel, until there were no vessels left; only then did the oil stop. Sell the oil, Elisha told her, pay the debt, and live on the rest.

Rav Mani taught that the merit of Ovadiah's wife protected all Israel at that time. The man who had fed the prophets of Hashem did not leave his family unprotected: in the end, a prophet of Hashem fed them.

Source: Melachim II 4:1–7; Rashi on Melachim II 4:1; Targum Yonasan on Melachim II 4:1; Midrash Tanchuma, Ki Sisa 5; Midrash Shemos Rabbah 31:4. English: The JPS Tanakh (Gender-Sensitive Edition); The Metsudah Tanach; Midrash Tanhuma-Yelammedenu, trans. Samuel A. Berman.

Practical lessonLook after a giver's family

Ovadiah gave everything for others, and after he was gone his family was left in need. Think of someone who gave much to your community and has since passed away: a rebbi, a gabbai, a neighbor who always helped. This week, reach out to the family. Call the widow, invite the children for a Shabbos meal, or tell them one thing their father did for you. Kindness returned to a giver's family keeps his chessed alive.

Teachings

Broken From Within

When Avraham sent Eliezer to find a wife for Yitzchak, he made him swear not to take a wife from the daughters of Canaan, but to go to Avraham's own land. The Noam Elimelech asks why Canaan needed mentioning at all; Avraham could simply have said, go to my family and take a wife from there. He answers with a principle: whatever a person wishes to break, he must break with its own likeness, from within. So we find with Ovadiah HaNavi, who prophesied against Edom. Chazal teach that he was a convert from Edom, and Hashem said: from them I will bring it upon them; the handle of the axe comes from the forest itself. This was Avraham's intention. Eliezer was himself a servant from Canaan, and Avraham wanted Canaan's power broken by one of its own.

Noam Elimelech, Bereishis, Vayeishev (on Bereishis 24:3–4 and 37:25)

Practical lessonTurn the trait around

The forest supplies the handle of the axe that cuts it. Many struggles can be met with the very strength hidden inside them. This week, name one trait that trips you up, such as stubbornness, impatience or a sharp tongue. Then find one place to use the same energy for good: stubbornness to keep a daily seder, impatience to hurry to a mitzvah, a sharp tongue to defend someone who is being put down. Use it once, on purpose, and see what changes.

Between Two Wicked People

Why was Ovadiah, of all the prophets, sent to speak against Edom? Rav Yitzchak taught that Hashem chose him for the contrast. Esav grew up in the home of Yitzchak and Rivkah, two tzaddikim, and did not learn from their deeds. Ovadiah lived and worked between Achav and Izevel, two of the most wicked people Israel ever knew, and did not learn from theirs. Let the one who stayed pure in the worst surroundings come and judge the one who stayed wicked in the best. The lesson cuts both ways. A holy home does not guarantee a holy person, and a corrupt place does not condemn one. Each person chooses whose deeds he will learn from.

Gemara, Sanhedrin 39b (on Ovadiah 1:1), brought by Rashi on Ovadiah 1:1

Practical lessonChoose whom you learn from

Ovadiah spent his days in Achav's palace and still chose his own path. Look at the places you spend most of your hours this week: the office, the group chat, the carpool. Notice one habit of speech or behavior there that you do not want to absorb, and decide quietly not to take it home. Then choose one person, near or far, whose deeds you do want to learn from, and copy one small thing they do.

No One Told Achav

The Midrash makes a startling observation. The generation of Achav served idols, yet they went out to war and won. Rav Shmuel bar Nachman explained that there were no informers among them. When Izevel sought to kill the prophets of Hashem and Ovadiah hid a hundred of them in caves, not one person went to Achav to say, Ovadiah has done such and such. The generation of Shaul HaMelech was different. When Shaul pursued Dovid, people ran to the king with reports about him, as Doeg the Edomite and the men of Zif did, and so they fell in battle. The Midrash continues that malicious speech drives the Shechinah away from the world, and kills three: the one who speaks it, the one who accepts it, and the one it is spoken about.

Midrash Devarim Rabbah 5:10, Shoftim (on Melachim I 18:13)

Practical lessonKeep the secret

A whole generation was protected because no one carried a report to the king. This week, when you hear something that could hurt someone if it were passed on, let it stop with you. If you feel the pull to share, say quietly, this is not mine to tell. And if someone brings you a report about another person, gently change the subject. One guarded conversation can protect more people than you know.

Seforim

Family & talmidim

Children: Two sons, saved from slavery by the miracle of the oil

Historical sources