(5) Mid-fourth century BC. A few scholars locate the prophecies considerably later to a context when Judah was under the rule of the Persians, perhaps near the time of Malachi or Nehemiah. Some associate the attack on Edom predicted in Obad 1–10 with the Nabatean Arab invasion of Edom. Others dehistoricize the book, interpreting “Edom” as a code word for the enemies of Israel in general. Ehud Ben Zvi argues that the target audience consists of a small group of highly educated literati in the Achaemenid