JOEL
The Minor Prophets:
Joel 1
JOEL (meaning " Jehovah is GOD," that is, worshipper of Jehovah-Jesus) seems to have belonged to Judah, as no reference occurs to Israel; whereas he speaks of Jerusalem, the Temple, the priests, and the ceremonies, as if he were intimately familiar with them (compare Joel 1:14 ; Joel 2:1 Joel 2:15 Joel 2:32 ; Joel 3:1 Joel 3:2 Joel 3:6 Joel 3:16 Joel 3:17 Joel 3:20 Joel 3:21 probably delivered in the early days of Joash 870-865 B.C.; for no reference is made in them to the Babylonian, Assyrian, or even the Syrian invasion; and the only enemies mentioned are the Philistines, Phoenicians, Edomites, and Egyptians. He must have lived during the divided kingdoms, but very early on. He predates Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel.
1 The word of the LORD (Jesus) said to Joel, son of Pethuel.
2 Here this, you leaders! Open your ears, all inhabitants of this land! Nothing like this has ever happened in your lifetime or in your ancestors' lifetime.
Is this a time like today? We must ask this question!
3 Tell your children about it. Have your children tell their children. Have your grandchildren tell their children.
4 What young locusts leave, mature locusts will eat. What mature locusts leave, adult locusts will eat. What adult locusts leave, grasshoppers will eat.
This verse states the subject on which he afterwards expands. Four species or stages of locusts, rather than four different insects, are meant (compare Leviticus 11:22 ). Literally, (1) the gnawing locust; (2) the swarming locust; (3) the licking locust; (4) the consuming locust; forming a climax to the most destructive kind. The last is often three inches long, and the two antennæ, each an inch long. The two hinder of its six feet are larger than the rest, adapting it for leaping. The first "kind" is that of the locust, having just emerged from the egg in spring, and without wings. The second is when at the end of spring, still in their first skin, the locusts put forth little ones without legs or wings. The third, when after their third casting of the old skin, they get small wings, which enable them to leap the better, but not to fly. Being unable to go away till their wings are matured, they devour all before them, grass, shrubs, and bark of trees: translated "rough caterpillars" ( Jeremiah 51:27 ). The fourth kind, the matured winged locusts Joel 2:25 they are enumerated in the reverse order, where the restoration of the devastations caused by them is promised. The Hebrews make the first species refer to Assyria and Babylon; the second species, to Medo-Persia; the third, to Greco- Macedonia and Antiochus Epiphanes; the fourth, to the Romans.(Jamieson)
5 Wake up and cry, you drunkards! Cry loudly, you winos! New wine has been taken away from you.
6 A strong nation attacked My land. It has too many soldiers to count. They have teeth like lions. They have fangs like grown lions.
7 They destroyed My grapevines. They ruined My fig trees. They stripped off what they could eat, threw the rest away, and left the branches bare.
8 Cry loudly like a virgin who is dressed in sackcloth, mourning for the man she was going to marry.
virgin . . . for the husband--A virgin betrothed was regarded as married ( Deuteronomy 22:23 , Matthew 1:19 ). The Hebrew for "husband" is "lord" or "possessor," the husband being considered the master of the wife in the East.
9 Grain offerings and wine offerings are no longer brought to the LORD (Jesus)'s Temple. The priests, the LORD (Jesus)'s servants, mourn.
10 Israel's fields are ruined, and the ground is dried up. The grain has been destroyed. The new wine has dried up. The olive oil has run out.
11 Be sad, you farmers! Cry loudly, you grape growers! Mourn for the wheat and the barley. The harvest is destroyed in the field.
12 The grapevines are dried up. The fig trees are withered. The pomegranate, palm, and apricot trees, as well as all the trees in the orchards, have died. Yes, the joy of these people has died too.
13 Put on your sackcloth and mourn, you priests. Cry loudly, you servants of the altar. Spend the night in sackcloth, you servants of My GOD (Elohim-The Family of God). Grain offerings and wine offerings are withheld from your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God)'s Temple.
14 Schedule a time to fast! Call for an assembly! Gather the leaders and everyone who lives in the land. Bring them to the Temple of the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God), and cry to the LORD (Jesus) for help.
15 This will be a terrible day! The day of the LORD (Jesus) is near, and it will come like destruction from the Almighty(Shaddai).
16 Food disappears right before our eyes. Happiness and rejoicing disappear from our GOD (Elohim-The Family of God)'s Temple.
17 Seeds shrivel up in their shells. Storehouses are destroyed. Barns are ruined. The grain has dried up.
18 The animals groan. Herds of cattle wander around confused. There's no pasture for them. Even flocks of sheep are suffering.
19 O LORD (Jesus), I cry to you for help! Fire has burned up the open pastures. Flames have burned up all the trees in the orchards.
20 Even wild animals long for you. Streams run dry. Fire has burned up the open pastures.
Joel 2
The Coming Tribulation:
1 Blow the shofar(trumpet) in Zion. Sound the alarm on My holy mountain. Everyone who lives in the land should tremble, because the day of the LORD (Jesus) is coming. Certainly, it is near.
2 It is a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and overcast skies. A large and mighty army will spread over the mountains like the dawn. Nothing like this has ever happened. Nothing like this will ever happen again. Matthew 24
3 In front of this army a fire burns. Behind it flames are blazing. In front of it the land is like the garden of Eden. Behind it the land is like a barren desert. Nothing escapes it!
5 Look at them as they leap along the mountaintops! Listen to the noise they make -- like the rumbling of chariots, like the roar of a fire sweeping across a field, or like a mighty army moving into battle.
6 Fear grips all the people; every face grows pale with fright.
7 The attackers march like warriors and scale city walls like trained soldiers. Straight forward they march, never breaking rank.
8 They do not crowd one another. They keep in their own lines. Even when they break through the defenses, they do not break their ranks.
9 They run to and fro in the city, They run on the wall; They climb into the houses, They enter at the windows like a thief.
10 The earth quakes before them, The heavens tremble; The sun and moon grow dark, And the stars diminish their brightness. ( Matthew 24:29 )
11 The LORD (Jesus) shouts out orders to His army. His forces are very large. The troops that carry out His commands are mighty. The day of the LORD (Jesus) is extremely terrifying. Who can endure it?
12 "But even now," saith the LORD (Jesus), "return to me with all your heart-- with fasting, crying, and mourning."
13 Tear your hearts, not your clothes. Return to the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God). For He is merciful and compassionate, patient, and always ready to forgive and to change His plans about disaster and is eager not to punish you.
14 Who knows? He may reconsider and change his plan and leave a blessing for you. Then you could give grain offerings and wine offerings to the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God).
15 Blow the shofar(horn) in Zion. Schedule a time to fast. Call for an assembly.
16 Gather the people. Prepare them for a holy meeting. Assemble the leaders. Gather the children, even the nursing infants. Grooms leave their rooms. Brides leave their chambers.
17 The priests who serve the LORD (Jesus) cry between the altar and the entrance to the Temple. They say, "Spare your people, O LORD (Jesus). Don't let the people who belong to you become a disgrace. Don't let the nations ridicule them. Why should people ask, 'Where is their GOD (Elohim-The Family of God)?'"
18 Then the LORD (Jesus) became concerned about his land, and he had pity on his people.
19 The LORD (Jesus) said to his people: I am going to send grain, new wine, and olive oil to you. You will be satisfied with them. I will no longer make you a disgrace among the nations.
20 I will remove these armies from the north and send them far away. I will drive them back into the parched wastelands, where they will die. Those in the rear will go into the Dead Sea; those at the front will go into the Mediterranean. A foul odor will rise from the dead bodies. They will stink." He has done great things!
The King of the North (Germany) defeated by God
21 Don't be afraid, my people! Be glad now and rejoice because the LORD (Jesus) has done great things!
22 Wild animals, do not be afraid. The pastures in the wilderness have turned green. The trees have produced their fruit. There are plenty of figs and grapes.
23 People of Zion, be glad and find joy in the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God). The LORD (Jesus) has given you the Teacher of Righteousness. He has sent the autumn rain and the spring rain as before.
24 The threshing floors will again be piled high with grain, and the presses will overflow with wine and olive oil.
25 Then I will repay you for the years that the mature locusts, the adult locusts, the grasshoppers, and the young locusts ate your crops. (They are the large army that I sent against you.)
26 You will have plenty to eat, and you will be full. You will praise the name of the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God), who has performed miracles for you. My people will never be ashamed again.
27 You will know that I Am in Israel. I Am the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God), and there is no other. My people will never be ashamed again.
28 After this, I will pour My Spirit on everyone. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams. Your young men will see visions.
Acts 2:17-21 Acts 21:9
"in the last days" ( Isaiah 2:2 ) under Messiah after the invasion and deliverance of Israel from the northern army. Having heretofore stated the outward blessings, he now raises their minds to the expectation of extraordinary spiritual blessings, which constitute the true restoration of God's people ( Isaiah 44:3 ). Fulfilled in earnest ( Acts 2:17 ) on Pentecost; among the Jews and the subsequent election of a people among the Gentiles; hereafter more fully at the restoration of Israel ( Isaiah 54:13 , Jeremiah 31:9 Jeremiah 31:34 , Ezekiel 39:29 , Zechariah 12:10 ) and the consequent conversion of the whole world ( Isaiah 2:2 , 11:9 , 66:18-23 , Micah 5:7 , Romans 11:12 Romans 11:15 ). As the Jews have been the seedmen of the elect Church gathered out of Jews and Gentiles, the first Gospel preachers being Jews from Jerusalem, so they shall be the harvest men of the coming world-wide Church, to be set up at Messiah's appearing. That the promise is not restricted to the first Pentecost appears from Peter's own words: "The promise is (not only) unto you and to your children, (but also) to all that are afar off (both in space and in time), even as many as the Lord our God shall call" ( Acts 2:39 ). So here "upon all flesh." (Jamieson)
29 In those days I will pour My Spirit on servants, on both men and women.
30 I will work miracles in the sky and on the earth: blood, fire, and clouds of smoke.
31 The sun will become dark, and the moon will become as red as blood before the terrifying day of the LORD (Jesus) comes."
32 Then whoever calls on the name of the LORD (Jesus) will be saved. Those who escape will be on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem. Among the survivors will be those whom the LORD (Jesus) calls, as the LORD (Jesus) has promised.
The promise began to be fulfilled on the day of Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was poured out, and it was continued in the converting grace and miraculous gifts conferred on both Jews and Gentiles. The judgments of God upon a sinful world, only go before the judgment of the world in the last day. Calling on God supposes knowledge of him, faith in him, desire toward him, dependence on him, and, as evidence of the sincerity of all this, conscientious obedience to him. Those only shall be delivered in the great day, who are now effectually called from sin to God, from self to Christ, from things below to things above. Matthew Henry
Joel 3
GOD'S VENGEANCE ON ISRAEL'S FOES: ARMAGEDDON:
1 In those days and at that time, I will bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem.
2 I will gather the armies of the world into the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will judge them for harming My people, for scattering My inheritance among the nations, and for dividing up My land.
Parallel to Zechariah 14:2 Zechariah 14:3 Zechariah 14:4 , where the "Mount of Olives" answers to the "Valley of Jehoshaphat" here. The latter is called "the valley of blessing" (Berachah) ( 2 Chronicles 20:26 ). It lies between Jerusalem and the Mount of Olives and has the Kedron flowing through it. As Jehoshaphat overthrew the confederate foes of Judah, namely, Ammon, Moab, &c. ( Psalms 83:6-8 ), in this valley, so God was to overthrow the Tyrians, Zidonians, Philistines, Edom, and Egypt, with a similar utter overthrow ( Joel 3:4 Joel 3:19 ). This has been long ago fulfilled; but the ultimate event shadowed forth herein is still future, when God shall specially interpose to destroy Jerusalem's last foes, of whom Tyre, Zidon, Edom, Egypt, and Philistia are the types. As "Jehoshaphat" means "the judgment of Jehovah," the valley of Jehoshaphat may be used as a general term for the theater of God's final judgments on Israel's foes, with an allusion to the judgment inflicted on them by Jehoshaphat. The definite mention of the Mount of Olives in Zechariah 14:4 , and the fact that this was the scene of the ascension, makes it likely the same shall be the scene of Christ's coming again: compare "this same Jesus . . . shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven" ( Acts 1:11 ). (Jamieson)
3 They threw dice for My people. They traded boys for prostitutes. They sold girls so that they could buy wine to drink.
4 Now what do you have against Me, Tyre and Sidon and all the regions of Philistia? Are you paying Me back for something I have done? If you are paying Me back, I will quickly pay you back for what you have done.
5 You took My silver and My gold. You brought My finest treasures to your temples.
6 You sold the people of Judah and Jerusalem to the Greeks. That way you could send them far away from their land.
Greeks--literally, "Javanites," that is, the Ionians, a Greek colony on the coast of Asia Minor who were the first Greeks known to the Jews. The Greeks themselves, however, in their original descent came from Javan ( Genesis 10:2 Genesis 10:4 ). Probably the germ of Greek civilization in part came through the Jewish slaves imported into Greece from Phoenicia by traffickers. Ezekiel 27:13 mentions Javan and Tyre as trading in the persons of men. (Jamieson)
7 I am going to make them leave the place where you sold them. I will pay you back for what you have done.
8 I will sell your sons and daughters to the people of Judah. They will sell them to the people of Sheba, a nation that is far away." The LORD (Jesus) has spoken.
9 Announce this among the nations: Prepare yourselves for war. Wake up the warriors. Have all the warriors come near and attack.
10 Hammer your plows into swords and your pruning shears into spears. Weaklings should say that they are warriors.
on the contrary, "beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning hooks," when under Messiah's coming reign there shall be war no more ( Isaiah 2:4 , Hosea 2:18 , Micah 4:3 ).
11 Hurry from every direction, and gather there, all you nations. O LORD (Jesus), bring your soldiers.
12 Wake up, you nations. Come to the valley of Jehoshaphat. There I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations.
13 Cut them down like grain. The harvest is ripe. Stomp on them as you would stomp on grapes. The winepress is full. The vats overflow. The nations are very wicked.
14 There are many, many people in the valley of decision. The day of the LORD (Jesus) is near in the valley of decision.
15 The sun and the moon will turn dark. The stars will no longer shine.
16 The LORD (Jesus) will roar from Zion, and his voice will thunder from Jerusalem. The sky and the earth will shake. The LORD (Jesus) will be a refuge for his people. He will be a stronghold for the people of Israel.
17 You will know that I am the LORD (Jesus) your GOD (Elohim-The Family of God). I live on My holy mountain, Zion. Jerusalem will be holy. Foreigners will never invade it again.
18 On that day new wine will cover the mountains. Milk will flow on the hills. Water will flow in all the brooks of Judah. A spring will flow from the LORD (Jesus)'s temple. It will water the valley of Shittim.
19 Egypt will become a wasteland. Edom will become a barren desert. This is because the nations were cruel to Judah. They murdered innocent people in their land.
20 People will always live in Judah. People will live in Jerusalem from now on.
21 I will punish those who murder. The LORD (Jesus) lives in Zion!
-I will purge away from Judah the extreme guilt (represented by "blood," the shedding of which was the climax of her sin, Isaiah 1:15 ) which was for long not purged away, but visited with judgments ( Isaiah 4:4 ). Messiah saves from guilt, in order to save from punishment ( Matthew 1:21 ).
Here is a challenge to all the enemies of God's people. There is no escaping God's judgments; hardened sinners, in that day of wrath, shall be cut off from all comfort and joy. Most of the prophets foretell the same final victory of the church of God over all that oppose it. To the wicked it will be a terrible day, but to the righteous it will be a joyful day. What cause have those who possess an interest in Christ, to glory in their Strength and their Redeemer! The acceptable year of the Lord, a day of such great favour to some, will be a day of remarkable vengeance to others: let every one that is out of Christ awake, and flee from the wrath to come. Matthew Henry
