Joel
Joel in His Time
Each prophet had his own unique approach to his own special
message. Hosea's message was an application of his sad domestic trials, emphasizing God's jealous love; but Joel's message
was an interpretation of a national calamity—a plague of locusts and a drought—and emphasized God's glorious kingdom.
Joel may well have been the first of the writing prophets; he
probably ministered in Judah during the reign of King Joash (835-796 B.C.). You find the record in 2 Kings 11-12 and 2 Chronicles 22-24. Joash came to the throne at the age of seven, and Jehoiada the priest was his mentor. This
may explain whey Joel says nothing about the king, since Joash was learning the job.
Joel's major theme is the "day of the Lord" and the need for
God's people to be prepared. "Day of the Lord" is used in Scripture to refer to different periods when God sent judgment to
His people, but the main emphasis is on the future "day of the Lord" when the nations will be judged and Christ shall return
to set up His glorious kingdom.
Joel refers to three important events, each of which he calls
a "day of the Lord." He sees the plague of locusts as an immediate day of the Lord (Joel 1:1-20), the invasion of Judah by Assyria
as an imminent day of the Lord (2:1-27), and the final judgment of the world as the ultimate day of the Lord (2:27-3:21). In the first, the locusts are a metaphorical army; in the second, the locusts symbolize a
real army; in the third, the locusts aren't seen at all and the armies are very real and very dangerous.
Chapter One.
Watching the Day of
the Lord
Joel 1:1-2:27
If there had been newspapers in Joel's day, the headlines might
have read:
LOCUSTS
INVADE THE LAND! NATION FACES SEVERE ECONOMIC CRISIS
No End to Drought in Sight
A wise preacher or teacher will get the people's attention by
referring to something they're all concerned about. In this case, the people of Judah
were talking about the economic crisis, so the Lord led Joel to use that event as a the background for his messages. The people
didn't realize it, but they were watching the Day of the Lord unfold before their very eyes, and the Prophet Joel explained
it to them.
The name "Joel" means "the Lord is God." Like all true prophets,
Joel was commissioned to call the people back to the worship of the true God; and he did this by declaring "the word of the
Lord" (1:1; see Jer. 1:2; Ezek. 1:3; and the first verses of Hosea, Micah, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi). It was the
task of the priests to teach the people the Law, and it was the responsibility of the prophets to call the people back to
the Lord whenever they strayed from His Law. The prophets also interpreted historical events in the light of the Word of God
to help the people understand God's will for their lives. They were "forth-tellers" as well as "foretellers."
Joel wanted the people of Judah to understand what God was saying to them through the plague and the drought.
In our own times, the nations of the world are experiencing severe droughts and famines, frightening epidemics, unexpected
earthquakes, devastating floods, and other "natural disasters," all of which have greatly affected national and global economy;
yet very few people have asked, "What is God saying to us?" Joel wrote his book so the people would know what God was saying
through these critical events.
As you can see from the suggested outline of Joel's book, the
prophet announced "the Day of the Lord" and applied it to three events: the plague of locusts, the future invasion of the
Assyrians, and the distant judgment that the Lord would send on the whole world. In this chapter, we want to focus on the
first two applications of "the Day of the Lord."
1. The Immediate Day of the Lord (Joel 1:1-20)
When you're in a crisis, you'll hear all kinds of voices interpreting
what's going on and telling you what to do. The optimists will say, "This crisis isn't going to last. Be brave!" The pessimists
will sob, "It's going to get worse and there's no escape! We're done for!" The alarmists will see the enemy behind every tree,
and the scoffers will question the news reports and shrug their shoulders saying, "What difference does it make anyway?"
But Joel was a realist who looked at life from the standpoint
of the Word of the Lord. He addressed himself to five groups of citizens and gave them four admonitions from the Lord.
The elders and citizens in general: "Hear this!" (Joel 1:2-4) He addressed
the old men first for probably two reasons: they had long experience and could authenticate what he was saying, and they were
respected citizens in the land. With their support, Joel wasn't just a voice crying in the wilderness. They agreed with the
prophet that the nation faced a catastrophe of monumental proportion such as they had never seen before. It was something
people would tell to their children and grandchildren for years to come.
Joel used four different words to describe the plague (v. 4; see 2:25), and it's been suggested that they represent four stages in the life cycle of the locusts.
However, the words probably convey the idea of successive swarms of locusts invading the land, each swarm destroying what
the others had left behind. A swarm of locusts can devastate the vegetation of a countryside with amazing rapidity and thoroughness,
and nothing can stop them (Ex. 10:1-20).
To the drunkards: "Wake up and weep!" (Joel 1:5-7) Except for
pointing out the insincerity of some of the worshipers (2:12-13), drunkenness is the only sin that Joel actually names in his book. However, this was a serious
sin that the prophets often condemned (Hosea 7:5; Amos 4:1). Perhaps the drunkards represented all the careless people in the land whose only interest
was sinful pleasure.
These people had good reason to weep because there was no wine
and wouldn't be any more until the next season, if there was a next season. Because of the locusts and the drought, "the new
wine is dried up... the vine is dried up" (Joel 1:10,12). Keep in mind that bread and wine were staples in the Jewish diet, so that even the people
who didn't get drunk were affected by the loss.
Joel compared the locusts to an invading nation and to hungry
lions with sharp teeth (v. 6; see 2:2, 11). They attacked the vines and the fig trees, two things essential to Jewish life. Having one's
own vineyard and fig trees was a symbol of success and contentment in the East (2:22; Isa. 36:16; Amos 4:9; Ps. 105:33). Note how Joel uses the personal pronoun my as he speaks of the land and its vegetation, for
all of it belonged to the Lord, and He had a right to do with it whatever He pleased.
7b the farmers: "Despair and wail!" (Joel 1:8-12) Joel named some of the crops that had been ruined: the grain (wheat and barley),
the new wine, the oil, and the fruit from the pomegranate, palm, and apple trees. From season to season, the locusts ate whatever
was produced, and the drought kept the soil from producing anything more. In verses 18-20, Joel includes the flocks and herds and their pastures. All that the farmers could do was express their grief and lament
like an engaged girl whose fiance had died. It seemed a hopeless situation.
To the priests: "Call a fast!" (Joel 1:13-20) Not only were
the people in need, but so was the temple. Nobody could bring the proper sacrifices because no meal, wine, or animals were
available. Joel called the priests to lament and pray, including those who worked "the night shift" (Ps. 134:1).
The Jews were required to observe only one fast, and that was
on the annual Day of Atonement (Lev. 16:29, 31). But the religious leaders could call a fast whenever the people faced and emergency and needed
to humble themselves and seek God's face (Judges 20:26; 2 Chron. 20:3; Ezra 8:21; Neh. 9:1-3; Jer. 36:9).
This was such an emergency. "Gird yourself' (Joel 1:13) means "Put on sackcloth!" (See Jer. 4:8 and 6:26). It was time for the people to humble themselves and pray (2 Chron. 7:14).
In Joel 1:15-18, we have the lament of the nation, and in verses 19-20, the prayer of the prophet as he interceded for the nation. The lament is a vivid description
of the sad condition of the land, the crops, the flocks, and the herds; for "the Day of the Lord" had come to the nation.
The immediate reference is to the assault of the locusts and the devastating effects of the drought, but later, Joel uses
the phrase to describe the terrible "Day of the Lord" when the nations will be judged. God is the Lord of creation, and without
His blessing, nature cannot produce what we need for sustaining life (Pss. 65; 104:10-18, 21; 145:15). We should never pray lightly, "Give us this day our daily bread," for only God can sustain
life (Acts 17:25, 28).
"How the cattle moan!" (Joel 1:18, niv) This reminds us that all creation "groans
and labors" because of the bondage of sin in the world (Rom. 8:18-22; Gen. 3:17-19). Creation longs for that day when the Creator will return to earth and set it free from sin's
shackles, and then "the wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad... and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom like
the rose" (Isa. 35:1).
It wasn't enough for the people to humble themselves and lament;
they also had to pray. This is what God required in His covenant with His people (2 Chron. 6:26-27; 7:12-15, see Deut. 28:23-24). Joel didn't ask God for anything; he simply told the Lord of the suffering of the land, the
beasts, and the people, knowing that God would do what was right. "The fire" (Joel 1:20) refers to the drought, which left the land looking like it had been burned.
Too often we drift along from day to day, taking our blessings
for granted, until God permits a natural calamity to occur and remind us of our total dependence on Him. When water is rationed
and food is scarce, and when prices for necessities escalate, then we discover the poverty of our artificial civilization
and our throwaway society. Suddenly, necessities become luxuries, and luxuries become burdens.
God didn't have to send great battalions to Judah to bring the people to their knees. All He needed was a swarm of little insects,
and they did the job. Sometimes He uses bacteria or viruses so tiny that you need a special microscope to see them. He is
the "Lord of hosts," the Lord of the armies of heaven and earth. He is "the Almighty" (v. 15) and none can stay His powerful hand.
2. The Imminent Day of the Lord (Joel 2:1-27)
Now that he had their attention, Joel told the people to stop
looking around at the locusts and to start looking ahead to the fulfillment of what the locust plague symbolized: the invasion
of a fierce army from the north (v. 20). Unless Joel had some other attack in mind, about which we know nothing, he was probably referring
to the Assyrian invasion, during the reign of King Hezekiah, which took place in 701 B.c. (Isa. 36-37). God allowed the Assyrians to ravage the land, but He miraculously delivered Jerusalem from being taken captive. The prophet gave the people three timely instructions.
"Blow the trumpet!" (Joel 2:1-11) This was real
war, so Joel commanded the watchmen to blow their trumpets and warn the people. The Jews used trumpets to call assemblies,
announce special events, mark religious festivals, and warn the people that war had been declared (Num. 10; Jer. 4:5; 6:1; Hosea 5:8). In this case, they blew the trumpet to announce war and to call a fast (Joel 2:15). Their weapons against the invading enemy would be repentance and prayer; the Lord would fight
for them.
Twice in this passage, Joel tells us that invasion is "the Day
of the Lord" (vv. 1, 11), meaning a very special period that God had planned and would direct. "The Lord thunders at
the head of His army" (v. 11, niv). It was God who brought the locusts of the
land and God would allow the Assyrians to invade the land (Isa. 7:17-25; 8:7). He would permit them to ravage Judah
just as the locusts had done, only the Assyrians would also abuse and kill people. "Woe to Assyria,
the rod of My anger and the staff in whose hand is My indignation. I will send him against an ungodly nation... to seize the
spoil, to take the prey, and to tread them down like mire in the streets" (Isa. 10:5-6).
In his vivid account of the invading army, Joel sees them coming
in great hordes, "like dawn spreading across the mountains" (Joel 2:2, niv). Once again, he uses the locusts to describe
the soldiers. Just as the locusts had destroyed everything edible before them, so the army would use a "scorched earth policy"
and devastate the towns and the land (Isa. 36:10; 37:11-13, 18). The locusts looked like miniature horses, but the Assyrians would ride real horses and conquer
the land.
The prophet makes it clear that the Lord will be in charge of
this invasion; this is His army fulfilling His Word (Joel 2:11). God can use even heathen nations to accomplish His purposes on this earth (Isa. 10:5-7; Jer. 25:9). The awesome cosmic disturbances described in Joel 2:10 are Joel's way of announcing that the Lord is in charge, for these signs accompany "the Day
of the Lord" (3:15; see Zeph. 1:14).
"Rend your hearts!" (Joel 2:12-17) Once again,
Joel called for a solemn assembly where God's people would repent of their sins and seek the Lord's help. The nation didn't
know when this invasion would occur, so the important thing was for them to turn to the Lord now. But they must be sincere.
It's easy to participate in a religious ceremony, tear your garments, and lament, but quite something else to humbly confess
your sins and bring to God a repentant heart (Matt. 15:8-9). "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart—these, O God,
You will not despise" (Ps. 51:17, nkjv).
The one thing that encourages us to repent and return to the
Lord is the character of God. Knowing that He is indeed "gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love (Joel 2:13, niv) ought to motivate us to seek His face. This
description of the attributes of God goes back to Moses' meeting with the Lord on Mt.
Sinai, when he interceded for the sinful nation of Israel (Ex. 34:6-7). You find echoes of it in Numbers 14:18 (another scene of Moses' intercession); Nehemiah 9:17; Psalms 86:15, 103:8, and 145:8; and Jonah 4:2. Such a gracious God would "turn and have pity" (Joel 2:14, niv). Note that Joel's concern was that the people
would once again have offerings to bring to the Lord, not just food on their tables.
But all the people must assemble and then turn to the Lord (vv. 15-17). This includes elders and children, nursing babies and priests, and even the newlyweds who
were not supposed to be disturbed during their first year of marriage, not even because of war (Deut. 24:5). The prophet even gave them a prayer to use (Joel 2:17) that presents two reasons why God should deliver them: (1) Israel's covenant privileges as God's heritage and (2) the glory of God's name
before the other nations. Moses used these same arguments when he pled for the people (Ex. 32:11-13; 33:12-23).
The Jews are indeed God's special treasure and heritage (Ex. 15:17; 19:5-6; Ps. 94:5; Jer. 2:7; 12:7-9). To Israel, He gave His laws, His covenants,
the temple and priesthood, a special land, and the promise that they would bless the whole world (Gen. 12:1-3; Rom. 9:1-5). From Israel
came the written Word of God and the gift of the Savior (John 4:22).
Israel was called to bear witness to the other nations that their God was the only true God. How could God
be glorified if His people were destroyed and the pagans could gleefully ask, "Where is their God?" (See Pss. 79:10 and 115:2; also Micah 7:10.) The nation had to choose between revival (getting right with God) or reproach (robbing God of glory).
"Believe his promises!" (Joel 2:18-27) Joel now looks
beyond the invasion to the time when God would heal His land and restore his blessings to His people. Just as He blew the
locusts into the depths of the Dead Sea and the Mediterranean Sea (eastern and western seas),
so He could drive the invading army out of the land. In one night, God killed 185,000 Assyrian soldiers, and Sennacherib went
home a defeated king (Isa. 37:36-38). The corpses must have created quite a stench before they were buried.
Some Bible scholars believe that Psalm 126 grew out of this event, for it describes a sudden and surprising deliverance that startled the
nation. (Judah's return from Babylonian
Captivity was neither sudden or surprising.) "The Lord hath done great things for us; whereof we are glad" (v.3) is echoed in Joel 2:21, "Be glad and rejoice; for the Lord will do great things." Both Joel 2:23-27 and Psalm 126:5-6 describe the restoration of the ravaged earth and the return of the harvests. This fulfilled
what Isaiah promised to King Hezekiah (Isa. 37:30).
Without the former rain (March-April) and the latter rain (October-November),
the land could not bear its crops; and one way God disciplined His people was to shut off the rain (Deut. 11:13-17). But the Lord promised to give such bumper crops that the harvest would more than compensate
for all the people lost during the locust plague and the drought. "I will repay you for the years the locusts have eaten"
(Joel 2:25, niv) is a word of promise to all who return to
the Lord with sincere and broken hearts.
"You cannot have back your time," said Charles Spurgeon, "but
there is a strange and wonderful way in which God can give back to you the wasted blessings, the unripened fruits of years
over which you mourned.... It is a pity that they should have been locust-eaten by your folly and negligence; but if they
have been so, be not hopeless concerning them."
And why will God do this for His deserving people? So that they
will praise His name and never again be shamed before the heathen. "Then you will know that I am in Israel, that I am the Lord your God, and that there is no other, never again will
my people be shamed" (v. 27, niv).
As never before, our lands today need healing. They are polluted
by the shedding of innocent blood and the exploiting of both resources and people. We can claim God's promise in 2 Chronicles 7:14 because we are "His people."
Chapter Two.
Expecting the Day
of the Lord
Joel 2:28-3:21
Joel's message to Judah
(and to us) is reaching its conclusion. He has described the immediate "Day of the Lord," the terrible plague of the locusts.
This led to a description of the imminent "Day of the Lord," the impending invasion of the northern army. All that remains
is for him to describe the ultimate "Day of the Lord" when God will judge all the nations of the earth. "For the Day of the
Lord is near upon all the heathen" (Obad. 15).
Joel describes a sequence of events relating to this "great
and terrible Day of the Lord" (Joel 2:31), what will happen before that day, during that day, and after that day.
1. Before That Day: The Spirit Poured
Out (Joel 2:28-32)
In the Hebrew Scriptures, these five verses form chapter 3 of
Joel's prophecy; and chapter 4 in the Hebrew Scriptures is chapter 3 in the English Bible. The Jewish scholars who arranged
the Old Testament Scriptures evidently thought that this paragraph was important enough to warrant a chapter by itself. However,
now that we have a completed Bible, this important passage must be studied both in its Jewish context and in the context of
the New Testament church.
The Jewish context. The "afterward" in 2:28 refers to the events described in 2:18-27 when the Lord heals the nation after the Assyrian invasion. However, it doesn't necessarily mean immediately afterward, for
many centuries passed before the Spirit was poured out. When Peter quoted this verse in his sermon on the Day of Pentecost,
the Holy Spirit led him to interpret "afterward" to mean "in the last days" (Acts 2:17).
"The last days" began with the ministry of Christ on earth (Heb. 1:2) and will conclude with "the Day of the Lord," that period of worldwide judgment that is also
called "the Tribulation" (Matt. 24:21,29) and "the time of Jacob's trouble" (Jer. 30:7). Many students of prophecy think that this special time is detailed in Revelation 6-19, climaxing with the return of Christ to earth to deliver Israel and establish His kingdom (Isa. 2:2-5; Zech. 12-14; Rev. 19:11-20:6).
Joel promised that before the "Day of the Lord" begins, there
will be a remarkable outpouring of the Holy Spirit accompanied by signs in the heavens and on the earth. During the Old Testament
era, the Holy Spirit was given only to special people who had special jobs to do, like Moses and the prophets (Num. 11:17), the judges (Judges 3:10; 6:34; 11:29), and great men like David (1 Sam. 16:13). But the promise God gave through Joel declared that the Spirit will come upon "all flesh,"
which includes men and women, young and old, Jew and Gentile. "And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of
the Lord shall be saved" (Joel 2:32, nkjv; see Acts 2:39).
The church context. In Acts 2, Peter did not say that Joel's prophecy was being fulfilled. He said that the same Holy Spirit Joel wrote about ("this is
that") had now come and was empowering the believers to praise God in various languages understood by the Jews who were assembled
in Jerusalem from many parts of the Roman Empire (Act 2:5-12). In his prophecy, Joel promised "wonders in the heavens, and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.... The
sun... turned into darkness, and the moon into blood" (Joel 2:30-31), but there is no record that any of these things occurred at Pentecost. The miracle that fascinated the crowd was the miracle
of the tongues, not remarkable signs of nature.
Furthermore, Joel's promise included a much wider audience than
the one Peter addressed at Pentecost. Peter's audience was made up of men (Acts 2:22, 29) who were either Jews or Gentile proselytes to Judaism (v. 10-11). The Gentiles didn't enter into the blessing of the Spirit until Cornelius and his family and
friends were converted (Acts 10-11). Peter used Joel's prophecy to declare that the promised Spirit had come and this was why the
believers, men and women (1:14), were praising God in such an ecstatic manner. Peter was answering the accusation that the
believers were drunk (2:13-16) and backing up his defense from the Scriptures.
When it comes to Israel,
"the last days" (or "latter times") will involve both tribulation and exaltation (Isa. 2:1-5; Micah 4:1-5), a time of trouble followed by a time of triumph and glory. As far as the church is concerned,
"the last days" involve "perilous times" of satanic opposition in the world and apostasy in the church (1 Tim. 4:1-5; 2 Tim. 3:1-8; 2 Peter 3:1-9; 1 John 2:18-23; Jude 18-19). Many Christians believe that during those trying "last days," the Lord will send a great moving
of his Spirit, and many sinners will turn to the Savior before the awful "Day of the Lord" is ushered in.
Certainly the church today needs a new filling of the Spirit
of God. Apart from the ministry of the Spirit, believers can't witness with power (Acts 1:8), understand the Scriptures (John 16:13), glorify Christ (v. 14), pray in the will of God (Rom. 8:26-27), or develop Christian character (Gal. 5:22-23). We need to be praying for revival, a deeper working of the Spirit in His people, leading to
confession of sin, repentance, forgiveness, and unity.
2. During the Day: Judgment Poured
Out (Joel 3:1-16)
The phrase "bring again the captivity" (3:1) means "reverse the fortunes" or "restore the fortunes" (niv).
Because of the judgments set during the "Day of the Lord," Israel's situation
in the world will be dramatically changed, and God will deal justly with the nations of the world for the way they have treated
His people Israel. Joel gives three important
announcements.
"Nations, prepare for judgment!" (Joel 3:1-8) This great
battle will take place in the Valley of Jehoshaphat
(vv. 2, 12), a site mentioned nowhere else in Scripture. In verse 14, it's called "the valley of decision," referring to God's decision (decree) to punish the nations.
Since the name "Jehoshaphat" means "the Lord judges," the name "Valley of Jehoshaphat" might well be symbolic, but some students believe it refers to the Plain
of Esdraelon where the "battle of Armageddon" will be fought (Rev. 16:16).
Joel lists some of the sins that the Gentiles have committed
against the Jews: scattering them among the nations; selling them into slavery; treating them like cheap merchandise for which
people cast lots; plundering the land of its wealth; and taking what belonged to the Lord and using it for their own gods.
Of course, many of the tragic experiences that came to the Jewish people were disciplines from God because they had violated
His covenant, but the Gentile nations went beyond discipline to exploitation. Jeremiah said to the Babylonians, "[Y]ou rejoice
and are glad, you who pillage my inheritance, because you frolic like a heifer threshing grain and neigh like stallions" (Jer. 50:11, niv).
It's worth noting that God refers to the Jews as "My people"
and to the land as "My land." The wealth is "My silver and My gold." Even though the Jews have not obeyed the covenant or
sought to please the Lord, He has not abandoned them. Even when they rejected their Messiah, God was merciful to them. He
has preserved them as a nation and will one day come to their aid and defeat their enemies.
"Nations, prepare for war!" (Joel 3:9-15) This passage
describes what is generally called "the battle of Armageddon," when the armies of the nations unite against the Lord and His
Christ (Ps. 2:1-3) and gather to destroy Jerusalem
(Joel 3:16; Zech. 12-14).
Joel compares the battle to the harvesting of grain and grapes,
when God will defeat the enemy as easily as a farmer wields a sickle or plucks grapes and crushes them to make wine (Joel 3:13). You will find a similar image in Revelation 14:14-20 when god reaps "the harvest of the earth" and "the vine of the earth" and crushes armies like
clusters of grapes.
Frightening signs from the Lord will accompany this battle (Joel 3:15; see 2:10, 30-31), signs that Jesus mentioned in His prophetic discourse on the Mount of Olives (Matt. 24:29-31; Mark 13:19-27; Luke 21:25-28). Jesus taught that these signs would prepare the way for His personal coming to earth when
He will defeat Israel's enemies, cleanse His people, and establish His kingdom (Zech. 12-14; Rev. 19:11ff).
Joel 3:10 commands the nations to arm for battle, even to the point of turning farm tools into weapons,
but Isaiah 2:4 and Micah 4:3 describe a different scene: "they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears
into pruning hooks" (Isa. 2:4). But Isaiah and Micah are describing the future kingdom, when people will learn war no more
and no longer need weapons; while Joel is describing the battle that ushers in that peaceful kingdom.
"Nations, prepare for defeat!" (Joel 3:16) The name "Armageddon"
is found only in Revelation 16:16, referring to the Plain of Esdraelon where many major battles
were fought in Old Testament times. Revelation 16:13-16 informs us that Satan, through his demonic powers, gathers the armies of the nations to fight
against God at Jerusalem. But the invasion will fail, because
Jesus will return in power and slaughter the enemy, turning the whole "battle" into a supper of flesh for the scavengers of
the earth (19:17-19).
Like a fierce lion, God will "roar out of Zion" and conquer the enemy (see Amos 1:2, Hosea 11:10-11). When the Lamb becomes a Lion, the nations had better tremble (Rev. 5:5). The lost nations of the earth will perish when He utters His voice in judgment, but to His
own people the Lord will be a refuge and a stronghold. "Come, My people, enter your chambers, and shut your doors behind you;
hide yourself as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation is past. For behold, the Lord comes out of His place
to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity" (Isa. 26:20-21, nkjv).
A Jewish proverb says, "No misfortune avoids a Jew." No people
have suffered more at the hands of their fellow men than have the Jews. Pharaoh tried to drown the Jews, but instead, his
own army was drowned by God (Ex. 14-15). Balaam tried to curse the Jews, but God turned the curse into a blessing (Num. 22:25; Deut. 23:5; Neh. 13:2). The Assyrians and Babylonians captured the Jews and put them in exile, but both of those great
kingdoms are no more, while the Jews are still with us. Haman tried to exterminate the Jews, but he and his sons ended up
hanging on the gallows (the Book of Esther). Nebuchadnezzar put three Jews into a fiery furnace, only to discover that their
God was with them and was able to deliver them (Dan. 3).
My friend, the late Dr. Jacob Gartenhaus, gifted missionary
to his own people, used to say, "We Jews are waterproof and fireproof; God has blessed us so that nobody can successfully
curse us, and we shall be here long after our enemies have perished." God knows what the nations have done to the Jews, and
He will one day settle accounts. Meanwhile, believers must pray for the peace of Jerusalem
(Ps. 122:6) and lovingly witness to them in word and deed that Jesus is indeed their Messiah and Lord.
3. After That Day: Blessing Poured
Out (Joel 3:17-21)
Everything will change when the King comes back and begins His
reign! Joel promises a holy city, a restored land, a cleansed people, and a glorious King.
A holy city (Joel 3:17). When Solomon
dedicated the temple, the glory of the Lord came down and filled the building (1 Kings 8:10-11; 2 Chron. 5:11-14). Mount Zion,
on which Jerusalem was built and the temple stood, was a very
special place to the Jews because it was the place God chose for His own dwelling (Pss. 48; 87; 132:13). When the Babylonians destroyed the temple, the Jews prayed for the time when their temple
would be restored and God's glory would return. "For God will save Zion, and will build the
cities of Judah: that they may dwell there,
and have it in possession" (69:35).
Today, the Jewish people have no temple on Mount Zion; instead, a mosque stands there.
But God promises that He will restore Zion and dwell there
in all His glory. "For the Lord shall comfort Zion: He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness
like Eden, and her desert like the Garden of the Lord; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice
of melody" (Isa. 51:3). The prophets anticipate that great day when "sorrow and mourning shall flee away" (v. 11) and God will once again dwell with His people (see Isa. 12; 33:20-24; 35; 52; Jer. 31; Micah 4; Zech. 1).
Jerusalem is called "the Holy City" at least eight times in
Scripture (Neh. 11:1, 18; Isa. 48:2 and 52:1; Dan. 9:24; Matt. 4:5 and 27:53; Rev. 11:2), and we will call it "the Holy City" today. Like every other city in this world, Jerusalem is inhabited by sinners who do sinful things. But the day will
come when Jerusalem shall be cleansed (Zech. 13:1) and truly become a holy city dedicated to the Lord. (Isa. 4:1-6).
A restored land (Joel 3:18-19). Over the
centuries, the land of Israel
had been ravaged by war, famines, droughts, and the invasions of marauding insects such as Joel wrote about in the first chapter
of his book, but there is coming a day when the land will be like the Garden of Eden for beauty and fruitfulness. "He will
make her deserts like Eden, her wastelands like the garden
of the Lord" (Isa. 51:3, niv).
In the first chapter of Joel's prophecy, the people were wailing
because they had no food, but that will not happen when God restores His people and their land. It will not only be a "land
of milk and honey," but it will have plenty of wine and water as well. The land
of Israel has always depended on the early and latter rains for water,
but God will give them fountains and a river to water the land.
Jerusalem is the only city of antiquity that wasn't built near a great river. Rome
had the Tiber; Nineveh was built near the Tigris and Babylon
on the Euphrates; and the great Egyptian cities were built near the Nile. But in the kingdom,
Jerusalem will have a river that proceeds from the temple
of God. "On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem, half
to the eastern sea [the Dead Sea] and half to the western sea [the Mediterranean], in summer and in winter" (Zech. 14:8, niv). You find this river and its special blessings described in Ezekiel 47.
In contrast to the land
of Israel, the lands of their enemies, Egypt
and Edom, will be desolate as a punishment
for the way they treated the Jewish people. This means that Egypt and Edom will have to depend on Israel
for the basic things of life, such as food and water.
A cleansed people (Joel 3:20-21a). What good
would it be to have a restored land if it were populated with a sinful people? God's people must be cleansed before they can
enter into the promised kingdom. God promises to cleanse His people of their sins, forgive them, and restore them to Himself.
"In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness" (Zech. 13:1).
The prophet Ezekiel describes this cleansing: "For I will take
you from among the nations, gather you out of all countries, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean
water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. I will give you
a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them" (Ezek. 36:24-27, nkjv).
Under Old Testament Law, the Jews could cleanse that which was
defiled by using water, fire, or blood. The priests were washed with water and sprinkled with blood when they were installed
in office (Lev. 8-9), and the healed lepers were likewise washed with water and sprinkled with blood (Lev. 14). The priests had to wash their hands and feet and keep ceremonially clean as they served in
the tabernacle (Ex. 30:17-21). If anything became defiled, it had to be purified with "the water of sprinkling" (Num. 19). Zechariah used this Old Testament truth to teach about the permanent internal cleansing that
would come when the people saw their Messiah and trusted Him (Zech. 12:10). They would experience a new birth and become a new people for the Lord.
A glorious King (Joel 3:21b). What a wonderful way to close a book: "The Lord dwells in Zion!" (niv) The Prophet Ezekiel watched as
the glory of God departed from the temple that was about to be destroyed (Ezek. 8:4; 9:3; 10:4, 18; 11:23), and then he saw that glory return to the new temple in the restored nation (43:1-5). He saw a new Jerusalem that had been given a new name: "Jehovah Shammah—the Lord is there" (48:30-35).
The prophecy of Joel begins with tragedy, the invasion of the
locusts, but it closes with triumph, the reign of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Jesus said to His disciples, "Assuredly
I say to you, that in the regeneration [the future kingdom], when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who
have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging [ruling over] the twelve tribes of Israel" (Matt. 19:28, nkjv).
May we never lose the wonder of His glorious kingdom!
'The kingdom of this word has become the kingdom of our Lord
and of His Christ, and He will reign for ever and ever" (Rev. 11:15, niv).
"Thy kingdom come!" (Matt. 6:10) "Even so, come, Lord Jesus!" (Rev. 22:20)
