The Ancient City of Sela (Petra)

Israel’s neighbor, Edom, had two important cities: Bozrah and Sela. Sela is an ancient ruined city in Jordan, built into cliffs, located about 250 kilometers south of Amman. It’s hidden within a narrow canyon on the eastern side of the Arabah Valley. Petra is situated at a crossroads of the Middle East, where routes from Africa to Asia intersect with those from Europe to Arabia.

The original Hebrew word for “Sela” (סֶלַע) means “rock,” and its Greek equivalent is “Petra.” Modern-day Petra in Jordan is very likely the ancient Edomite capital of Sela. This city “dwells in the clefts of the rock,” surrounded by towering cliffs. Its entrance is a narrow canyon passage, about 1.5 kilometers long, known as “the Siq” (Snake Path). If you ride a horse through this narrow passage between the rock walls, there’s a section so narrow that you can touch both walls simultaneously. This passage is approximately 1.5 kilometers long, with cliffs reaching 100 to 150 feet high on either side; traversing it after a thunderstorm would be dangerous. As you reach the end of the passage, the view suddenly opens up to reveal a temple as large as St. Paul’s Cathedral, carved directly out of the stone with incredible artistry, truly breathtaking. The structures before your eyes resemble a grand cathedral, carved from red sandstone, situated in a huge circular open area among the mountains. There are a thousand temples there, all carved out of the rock, entirely surrounding this massive circular open space in the mountains.

Above these sites is a mountain, approximately two thousand feet high, with sheer cliffs rising sharply. This is Mount Seir, the ancient city of Sela. Its terrain is perilous and difficult to attack, but the Edomites, living in their mountaintop fortress, were incredibly proud, proclaiming: “No one can conquer us; not even God can pull us down.” However, the prophet Obadiah declared: “Though you soar like the eagle, though you build your nest among the stars, from there I will bring you down,” declares the LORD (Obadiah 1:4). The Edomites, contemptuous of God and believing they could fly high, were indeed brought down by Him, making them “the least among the nations, despised by everyone” (Obadiah 1:2). Today, the Edomites are extinct. Obadiah had long ago prophesied this fate for Edom.