4). YHWH's Judgment On Edom (Amos 1:11-12).
Philistia, Tyre and Edom were clearly joined together in a carefully organised slave-trading cartel, but note the growth in relative guilt as one follows the other. Philistia were at least not related to Israel, but Tyre was Israel's longstanding treaty partner, and Edom was Israel's brother!
“Thus says YHWH.
For three transgressions of Edom, yes, for four,
I will not turn away his punishment,
Because he pursued his brother with the sword,
And did cast off all pity,
And his anger tore perpetually,
And he kept his wrath for ever.
But I will send a fire on Teman,
And it will devour the palaces of Bozrah.”
So fourthly YHWH has spoken against Edom. We have already learned that Edom was the receiving market for Israelite slaves (Amos 1:6; Amos 1:9), which were then probably sold on. But in their case it was especially heinous because they had a special ‘blood' relationship with Judah/Israel in that they were their ‘brother' tribe (Esau (Edom) and Jacob had originally been brothers). The ‘pursuing his brother with the sword' and ‘casting off all pity' probably has this slave trade in mind. While Philistia and Tyre were garnering slaves from the west, Edom were incessantly doing it from the south with particular vindictiveness. Alternately these phrases may refer to their continual harassment of Judah and Israel whenever they were weak and vulnerable, something which resulted from their continuing hatred and unyielding enmity (see 1Sa 14:47; 2 Samuel 8:12-14; 1 Kings 11:14-25; 2 Kings 8:20-21; 2 Kings 14:7-10; 2 Kings 14:22). Either way it can be contrasted with the way in which Moses treated the Edomites when the Israelites first arrived from Egypt. He had treated them as brothers even when they had refused to let Israel pass along the King's Highway (Numbers 20:14-21; Numbers 21:4). Once again the lack of closing comments indicates that Edom is to be seen as joined with Philistia and Tyre within YHWH's sphere of judgment over this trade.
Their judgment too was to be one of fire, which would destroy Teman and devour the palaces of Bozrah. These two cities were probably especially involved in the slave trade, Bozrah on the King's Highway as the receiving centre and Teman, the southernmost major city of Edom, as the despatching centre. Bozrah's vaunted wealth would especially be targeted.