About Joel

Joel uses a locust plague to warn of the coming Day of the Lord while promising the outpouring of the Spirit.

Author: JoelWritten: c. 835-796 BCReading time: ~4 minVerses: 32
Day of the LordRepentanceSpiritJudgmentRestorationBlessing

King James Version

Joel 2

32 verses with commentary

The Day of the Lord

Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand; trumpet: or, cornet

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KJV Study Commentary

"Blow ye the trumpet in Zion" commands urgent alarm. The Hebrew shophar (ram's horn trumpet) served religious and military purposes. The command to "sound an alarm in my holy mountain" escalates urgency—this is emergency warning. "Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble" uses ragaz (quake/tremble) describing visceral fear before divine majesty. This trembling is proper response to Holy God (Ex...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

II. (1) **Blow ye the trumpet.—**The preaching of the prophet increases in its intensity. Behind the locusts, exemplified by them, there is a still more terrible visitation. He sees on the horizon a mustering of the nations hostile to his people, bent on destroying them. Let the priests stir up the people for a fast, and for the defence of their land by the trumpet. The locusts have done their sym...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**19. great shaking--**an earthquake: physical agitations after accompanying social and moral revolutions. Foretold also in Joe 3:16; (compare Hag 2:6, 7; Mt 24:7, 29; Re 16:18).

A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there hath not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations. of many: Heb. of generation and generation

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KJV Study Commentary

"A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness" uses Hebrew choshek (darkness), 'aphelah (gloominess), 'anan (cloud), and 'araphel (thick darkness/gloom)—four synonyms intensifying imagery. This echoes the ninth plague on Egypt (Exodus 10:21-23) and Sinai's theophany (Exodus 20:21, Deuteronomy 4:11), both manifestations of God's terrifying holiness. The phrase "as the ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(2) **The morning spread upon the mountains.—**The Hebrew word here used for morning is derived from a verb, *Shachar,* which has for one meaning “to be or become black,” for the second “to break forth” as light. From this latter signification is derived the word for morning—dawn; from the former comes the word “blackness,” which gives the name *Sihor* to the Nile (Isaiah 23:3). It seems according...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**20. fishes--**disturbed by the fleets which I will bring. **fowls, &c.--**frightened at the sight of so many men: an ideal picture. **mountains--**that is, the fortresses on the mountains. **steep places--**literally, "stairs" (So 2:14); steep terraces for vines on the sides of hills, to prevent the earth being washed down by the rains. **every wall--**of towns.

A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth: the land is as the garden of Eden before them, and behind them a desolate wilderness; yea, and nothing shall escape them.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>A fire devoureth before them; and behind them a flame burneth</strong> (Hebrew <em>lephanav akhelah esh ve'acharav telahev lehavah</em>, לְפָנָיו אָכְלָה אֵשׁ וְאַחֲרָיו תְּלַהֵט לֶהָבָה)—Joel describes the locust army using devastating fire imagery. The verb <em>akhal</em> (אָכַל, "devour") is the same word used for locusts eating crops (1:4), but here fire consumes. <em>Lehavah</em> (לֶה...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(3) **Before them . . . behind them.—**As with the locusts, so with the invading hosts of enemies: the country is found a paradise, and left a desert.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**21. every man's sword ... against his brother--**I will destroy them partly by My people's sword, partly by their swords being turned against one another (compare 2Ch 20:23).

The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses; and as horsemen, so shall they run.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>The appearance of them is as the appearance of horses</strong> (Hebrew <em>kemar'eh susim mar'ehu</em>, כְּמַרְאֵה סוּסִים מַרְאֵהוּ)—Joel transitions from fire imagery to military metaphor, describing the locust army's appearance as horse-like. The Hebrew <em>sus</em> (סוּס, "horse") primarily meant war-horse in ancient Israel, not work animals. Horses epitomized military power, speed, an...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(4) **As the appearance of horses.—**So also are locusts described in the Revelation: “And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle” (from this likeness the Italians call a locust cavalletta) . . . “and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots, of many horses running to battle” (Revelation 9:7; Revelation 9:9).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**22. plead--**a forensic term; because God in His inflictions acts on the principles of His own immutable justice, not by arbitrary impulse (Is 66:16; Jr 25:31). **blood ... hailstones, fire--**(Re 8:7; 16:21). The imagery is taken from the destruction of Sodom and the plagues of Egypt (compare Psa 11:6). Antiochus died by "pestilence" (2 Maccabees 9:5).

Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap, like the noise of a flame of fire that devoureth the stubble, as a strong people set in battle array.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Like the noise of chariots on the tops of mountains shall they leap</strong> (Hebrew <em>keqol markavot al-rashey heharim yeraqedun</em>, כְּקוֹל מַרְכָּבוֹת עַל־רָאשֵׁי הֶהָרִים יְרַקֵּדוּן)—Joel adds auditory imagery to the visual. <em>Qol</em> (קוֹל, "noise/sound") emphasizes the overwhelming cacophony of billions of locusts in flight and devouring. <em>markavah</em> (מַרְכָּבָה, "chari...
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Before their face the people shall be much pained: all faces shall gather blackness. blackness: Heb. pot

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Before their face the people shall be much pained</strong> (Hebrew <em>miphanav yachilu ammim</em>, מִפָּנָיו יָחִילוּ עַמִּים)—<em>chul</em> (חוּל, "be pained/writhe") describes intense anguish, like a woman in labor (Isaiah 13:8, 26:17). <em>Ammim</em> (עַמִּים, "peoples/nations") can mean both Israel and surrounding nations—everyone experiencing this judgment feels visceral fear and ang...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(6) **All faces shall gather blackness.—**There are different explanations of this Hebrew phrase, which expresses the result of terror. Some translate it “withdraw their ruddiness,” *i.e.,* grow pale; others, “draw into themselves their colour;” others, “contract a livid character.” The alternative rendering in the margin, “pot,” which is that of the LXX., the Vulg., and of Luther’s translation, i...
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They shall run like mighty men; they shall climb the wall like men of war; and they shall march every one on his ways, and they shall not break their ranks:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>They shall run like mighty men</strong> (Hebrew <em>kegibborim yerutsun</em>, כְּגִבֹּרִים יְרוּצוּן)—<em>gibbor</em> (גִּבּוֹר) means mighty warrior, champion, hero. The term describes military elite like David's "mighty men" (2 Samuel 23:8-39) and Gideon as "mighty man of valour" (Judges 6:12). Joel compares locusts to these elite warriors in speed and determination. <em>Ruts</em> (רוּץ,...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(7-9) **They shall run lite mighty men.—**The onward irresistible march of the invaders is graphically described by the illustration of the advance of locusts. They appear on the mountains which environ the city, they mount the walls, they rush through the streets, they enter the houses, they are in possession of Jerusalem. Dr. Thomson (*The Land and the Book,* p. 416) describes the movements of a...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

CHAPTER 39 Eze 39:1-29. Continuation of the Prophecy against Gog. 1. Repeated from Eze 38:3, to impress the prophecy more on the mind.

Neither shall one thrust another; they shall walk every one in his path: and when they fall upon the sword, they shall not be wounded. sword: or, dart

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Neither shall one thrust another</strong> (Hebrew <em>ve'ish achiv lo yidchaqun</em>, וְאִישׁ אָחִיו לֹא יִדְחָקוּן)—<em>dachaq</em> (דָּחַק, "thrust/push/crowd") describes jostling or shoving. Despite the massive swarm's density, individual locusts don't collide or impede each other. The phrase <em>ish achiv</em> ("each his brother") emphasizes this remarkable coordination—as though they'...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**2. leave but the sixth part of thee--**Margin, "strike thee with six plagues" (namely, pestilence, blood, overflowing rain, hailstones, fire, brimstone, Eze 38:22); or, "draw thee back with an hook of six teeth" (Eze 38:4), the six teeth being those six plagues. Rather, "lead thee about" [Ludovicus De Dieu and Septuagint]. As Antiochus was led (to his ruin) to leave Egypt for an expedition again...
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They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall, they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>They shall run to and fro in the city</strong> (Hebrew <em>ba'ir yashoquu</em>, בָּעִיר יָשֹׁקּוּ)—<em>shaqaq</em> (שָׁקַק, "run to and fro/rush/range") describes frantic, comprehensive movement throughout the city. <em>Ir</em> (עִיר, "city") represents humanity's ultimate defense—fortified settlements with walls, gates, and organized resistance. Yet even cities provide no refuge. The locu...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**3. bow--**in which the Scythians were most expert.

The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>The earth shall quake before them</strong> (Hebrew <em>lephanav ra'ashah erets</em>, לְפָנָיו רָעֲשָׁה אֶרֶץ)—<em>ra'ash</em> (רָעַשׁ, "quake/shake/tremble") describes earthquakes and theophany. <em>Erets</em> (אֶרֶץ, "earth/land") shakes before the approaching army. This language echoes Sinai's theophany: "the whole mount quaked greatly" (Exodus 19:18). The earth quaking signifies divine ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(10) **The earth shall quake before them.—**Some commentators call this description “a specimen of the highly-wrought hyperbolical features of Hebrew poetry,” but it is the presence and judgment, the voice of the Lord in the thunder, which causes this trepidation. The signs in the heavens will be manifested at the judgment day.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

4-5. (Compare Eze 39:17-20). **upon the mountains of Israel--**The scene of Israel's preservation shall be that of the ungodly foe's destruction.

And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?

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KJV Study Commentary

"And the LORD shall utter his voice before his army: for his camp is very great: for he is strong that executeth his word: for the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; and who can abide it?" This verse presents God as commanding general leading His army. The Hebrew chayil (army/host) can describe military forces or angelic beings. Here, both may apply—God commands locust swarms like militar...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(11) **His army.**—“In every stage of their existence these locusts give a most impressive view of the power of God to punish a wicked world” (*The Land and the Book,* p. 417).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

4-5. (Compare Eze 39:17-20). **upon the mountains of Israel--**The scene of Israel's preservation shall be that of the ungodly foe's destruction.

Return to the Lord

Therefore also now, saith the LORD, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:

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KJV Study Commentary

After describing devastating judgment (chapter 1) and the approaching Day of the LORD (2:1-11), God issues one of Scripture's most gracious calls to repentance. The Hebrew conjunction ve-gam-attah ("Therefore also now") indicates that despite impending judgment, opportunity for mercy remains. The source is emphatic: ne'um-Yahweh ("says the LORD")—this isn't human wishful thinking but divine invita...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(12) **Saith the Lord.—**The word *saith* is here no common word in the Hebrew. It implies an authoritative and most weighty utterance, as in Psalm 110:1, “The Lord *said* unto my Lord.” “The word is used in almost every instance of the immediate utterance of God Himself; more rarely of that of the prophet or inspired organ of the Divine revelations” (Perowne, *Commentary on the Psalms,* vol. ii.,...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**6. carelessly--**in self-confident security. **the isles--**Those dwelling in maritime regions, who had helped Gog with fleets and troops, shall be visited with the fire of God's wrath in their own lands.

And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.

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KJV Study Commentary

Joel makes explicit what repentance requires: "And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the LORD your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil." The Hebrew <em>veqir'u levavkhem ve'al-bigdeikhem veshuvu el-YHWH Eloheikhem ki-channun verachum hu erekh appayim verav-chesed venicham al-hara'ah</em> (וְקִרְעוּ לְבַבְכֶם ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(13) **Repenteth him of the evil—***i.e.,* in the sense that of His own will He would not the death of a sinner. The judgments of God, like His mercies, are conditional. As the “Lord repented (*i.e.,* grieved) that He had made Saul king over Israel,” and revoked the appointment, so now He repenteth Him of the evil which will fall on His people if impenitent. If they will repent, it may be He will ...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**7. not let them pollute my holy name--**by their sins bringing down judgments which made the heathen think that I was unable or unwilling to save My people.

Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?

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KJV Study Commentary

"Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the LORD your God?" After commanding repentance (vv. 12-13), Joel introduces uncertainty: "Who knoweth?" This isn't doubt about God's character but recognition of human inability to manipulate or predict divine response. God isn't vending machine dispensing blessings for relig...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(14) **Even a meat offering.**—The returning favour of the Lord will enable the daily sacrifices to be restored, which had failed through the visitation (Joel 1:9).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**8. it is come ... it is done--**The prediction of the salvation of My people, and the ruin of their enemy, is come to pass--is done: expressing that the event foretold is as certain as if it were already accomplished.

Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly:

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KJV Study Commentary

"Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly" repeats the commands from 2:1 and 1:14, but context shifts. Previously Joel warned of judgment; now he calls to repentance. The trumpet announces not just danger but summons to corporate response. "Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders" requires comprehensive participation. "Gather the children, and tho...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(15, 16) **Sanctify a fast.—**The prophet renews, therefore, his summons to the priests to proclaim a day of humiliation, on which all, without distinction of age or circumstances, are to be required to present themselves before the Lord. There was no room for the plea, “I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.”

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

9-10. The burning of the foe's weapons implies that nothing belonging to them should be left to pollute the land. The seven years (seven being the sacred number) spent on this work, implies the completeness of the cleansing, and the people's zeal for purity. How different from the ancient Israelites, who left not merely the arms, but the heathen themselves, to remain among them [Fairbairn], (Jud 1...
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Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders</strong> (Hebrew <em>qibetsu-am qaddeshu qahal qibetsu zeqenim</em>)—this triple summons establishes comprehensive corporate participation. The verb <em>qabats</em> (קָבַץ, "gather") denotes intentional assembly, not casual meeting. <em>Qadash</em> (קָדַשׁ, "sanctify") means to set apart as holy—this gathering isn't social b...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

9-10. The burning of the foe's weapons implies that nothing belonging to them should be left to pollute the land. The seven years (seven being the sacred number) spent on this work, implies the completeness of the cleansing, and the people's zeal for purity. How different from the ancient Israelites, who left not merely the arms, but the heathen themselves, to remain among them [Fairbairn], (Jud 1...
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Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God? rule over: or, use a byword against

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KJV Study Commentary

"Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?" This verse describes priestly intercession at a specific location—between the porch (temple entrance) and the altar (where sacr...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(17) **That the heathen should rule over them.—**All mention of the locusts is dropped. The lesser calamity is swallowed up in the apprehension of the greater.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**11. place ... of graves--**Gog found only a grave where he had expected the spoils of conquest. **valley--**So vast were to be the masses that nothing but a deep valley would suffice for their corpses. **the passengers on the east of the sea--**those travelling on the high road, east of the Dead Sea, from Syria to Petra and Egypt. The publicity of the road would cause many to observe God's j...
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Then will the LORD be jealous for his land, and pity his people.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Then will the LORD be jealous for his land</strong> (Hebrew <em>vayeqanne YHWH le'artso</em>, וַיְקַנֵּא יְהוָה לְאַרְצוֹ)—the verb <em>qana</em> (קָנָא) means to be jealous, zealous, or passionate. This is divine jealousy, not petty human envy, but holy zeal for God's own possession. The land belongs to Yahweh (Leviticus 25:23: "the land is mine"); Israel were tenants, not owners. God's j...
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Yea, the LORD will answer and say unto his people, Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil, and ye shall be satisfied therewith: and I will no more make you a reproach among the heathen:

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Yea, the LORD will answer and say unto his people, Behold, I will send you corn, and wine, and oil</strong>—God's response to repentant prayer is immediate and generous. The triple promise of <em>dagan</em> (דָּגָן, grain/corn), <em>tirosh</em> (תִּירוֹשׁ, new wine), and <em>yitshar</em> (יִצְהָר, fresh oil) represents comprehensive agricultural restoration. These three staples formed the ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(19) **I will no more make you.—**The reply of the Lord is directed to remove the fear that by reason of the destruction of the fruits of the land the people would be at the mercy of the invading nations.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**13. I ... glorified--**in destroying the foe (Eze 28:22).

But I will remove far off from you the northern army, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate, with his face toward the east sea, and his hinder part toward the utmost sea, and his stink shall come up, and his ill savour shall come up, because he hath done great things. hath: Heb. hath magnified to do

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>But I will remove far off from you the northern army</strong> (Hebrew <em>ve'et-hatsephone archiq me'aleikhem</em>)—God promises to drive away "the northern one." While this immediately refers to the locust swarm (which often came from the north), it prophetically points to future military invasions. Babylon, Assyria, and other enemies attacked Israel from the north (Jeremiah 1:14-15, 4:6,...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(20) **The northern army.—**Literally, *him of the north.* “This is an exception to the usual direction of the flight of locusts” (Stanley, *Jewish Church*)*,* but it may be literally applied to the Assyrian hordes, whom the Jews generally spoke of as dwelling in the north. In Jeremiah 1:13 the symbolical caldron is represented as pouring its contents (the Chaldæan army) southwards from the face o...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**14. with the passengers--**The men employed continually in the burying were to be helped by those happening to pass by; all were to combine. **after the end of seven months shall they search--**to see if the work was complete [Munster].

Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the LORD will do great things. will: Heb. hath magnified to do

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice</strong> (Hebrew <em>al-tir'i adamah gili vesimchi</em>)—after addressing people (2:12-17) and announcing God's response (2:18-20), Joel now speaks to the land itself. The personification continues from 1:10 where "the land mourneth." The command <em>al-tir'i</em> (אַל־תִּירְאִי, "fear not") addresses the land as feminine, fitting Hebrew grammar where ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(21) **Fear not, O land** . . .—The sentence of the reversal of judgment has gone forth, and all nature—animate and inanimate, rational and irrational—which had been included in the curse is summoned to rejoice in the blessing vouchsafed by the Lord.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

15. First "all the people of the land" engaged in the burying for seven months; then special men were employed, at the end of the seven months, to search for any still left unburied. The passers-by helped them by setting up a mark near any such bones, in order to keep others from being defiled by casually touching them, and that the buriers might come and remove them. Denoting the minute care to p...
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Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field</strong> (Hebrew <em>al-tir'u behemot saday</em>)—continuing the personification, Joel addresses animals. The locust plague devastated pastures, leaving livestock starving (1:18, 20). Now God promises restoration even for animals. The phrase <em>behemot saday</em> (בְּהֵמוֹת שָׂדָי, beasts/cattle of the field) includes domesticated livestock and wild a...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

16. A city in the neighborhood was to receive the name Hamonah, "multitude," to commemorate the overthrow of the multitudes of the foe [Henderson]. The multitude of the slain shall give a name to the city of Jerusalem after the land shall have been cleansed [Grotius]. Jerusalem shall be famed as the conqueror of multitudes.

Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for he hath given you the former rain moderately, and he will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. the former rain moderately: or, a teacher of righteousness moderately: Heb. according to righteousness

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God</strong> (Hebrew <em>uvnei-Tsiyyon gilu vesimchu baYHWH Eloheikhem</em>)—after addressing land (v. 21) and animals (v. 22), Joel turns to people. The phrase "children of Zion" designates covenant community members, those identified with Jerusalem, God's dwelling place. The dual command <em>gilu vesimchu</em> (גִּילוּ וְשִׂ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(23) **Ye children of Zion**—*i.e.,* they were called upon to manifest their rejoicings in the place where the trumpet had been sounded for the proclamation of the fast. **The former rain moderately.**—St. Paul adduces the gift of the rain as a witness to the people of Lystra of the existence and beneficence of God, who “gave us rain from heaven, filling our hearts with food and gladness.” The pos...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

17. (Re 19:17). **sacrifice--**Anciently worshippers feasted on the sacrifices. The birds and beasts of prey are invited to the sacrificial feast provided by God (compare Is 18:6; 34:6; Zep 1:7; Mr 9:49). Here this sacrifice holds only a subordinate place in the picture, and so is put last. Not only shall their bones lie long unburied, but they shall be stripped of the flesh by beasts and birds ...
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And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the fats shall overflow with wine and oil.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And the floors shall be full of wheat</strong> (Hebrew <em>umale'u hagaranot bar</em>, וּמָלְאוּ הַגֳּרָנוֹת בָּר)—the threshing floors (<em>goren</em>, גֹּרֶן) where harvested grain was separated from chaff will overflow with <em>bar</em> (בָּר, grain/wheat). The verb <em>male</em> (מָלֵא, to be full/filled) indicates complete, abundant filling—not partial recovery but overflowing blessin...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**18. rams ... lambs ... goats--**By these various animal victims used in sacrifices are meant various ranks of men, princes, generals, and soldiers (compare Is 34:6). **fatlings of Bashan--**ungodly men of might (Psa 22:12). Bashan, beyond Jordan, was famed for its fat cattle. Fat implies prosperity which often makes men refractory towards God (De 32:14, 15).

And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you.

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KJV Study Commentary

God promises restoration: "And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpiller, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you." The Hebrew <em>veshillamti lakhem et-hashanim asher akhal ha'arbeh hayeleq vehechasil vehagazzam chayli hagadol asher shillachti bakhem</em> (וְשִׁלַּמְתִּי לָכֶם אֶת־הַשָּׁנִים אֲשֶׁר אָכַל הָאַרְבֶּה הַיֶּלֶק וְ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(25) **I will restore to you the years—***i.e.,* the years which would have been necessary in the ordinary course of nature for the land to recover from the ravages of the “great army.”

And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied</strong> (Hebrew <em>va'akhaltem akhol vesavo'a</em>, וַאֲכַלְתֶּם אָכוֹל וְשָׂבוֹעַ)—God promises abundant provision after devastating famine. The infinitive absolute construction (<em>akhol</em> before the finite verb) intensifies the meaning: "you shall surely eat." The verb <em>sava</em> (שָׂבַע, "be satisfied") means complete satiation, the...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**20. my table--**the field of battle on the mountains of Israel (Eze 38:8, 20). **chariots--**that is, charioteers.

And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel</strong> (Hebrew <em>vidatem ki-veqerev Yisrael ani</em>, וִידַעְתֶּם כִּי־בְקֶרֶב יִשְׂרָאֵל אָנִי)—the verb <em>yada</em> (יָדַע, "to know") indicates experiential, relational knowledge, not mere intellectual awareness. Through restoration, Israel will know by experience that Yahweh dwells among them. The phrase <em>beqerev</em> (בְּקֶרֶ...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(27) **I am in the midst of Israel.—**This Divine assurance, similar to that with which the book ends, prepares the way for the spiritual blessings about to be announced.

The Promise of the Spirit

And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:

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KJV Study Commentary

Joel prophesies the Spirit's outpouring: "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions." The Hebrew <em>vehayah acharei-khen eshpokh et-ruchi al-kol-basar venibbe'u beneikhem uvnoteikhem ziqneikhem chalomot yachalomun bachureichem chezyonot yir'u...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(28) **I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh.—**Holy Scripture is itself the interpreter of this most weighty promise. St. Peter’s quotation and application of it in the Acts is its commentary. “Afterward “—LXX., after these things becomes in the apostle’s mouth—“in the last days”—*i.e.,* in the Christian dispensation, when, after the punishment of the Jews by the heathen, their king came—“my S...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**22. So the house of Israel shall know ... Lord--**by My interposition for them. So, too, the heathen shall be led to fear the name of the Lord (Psa 102:15).

And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit.

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KJV Study Commentary

The Spirit's outpouring extends even to the lowest social classes: "And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit." The Hebrew <em>vegam al-ha'avadim ve'al-hashfachot bayyamim hahem eshpokh et-ruchi</em> (וְגַם עַל־הָעֲבָדִים וְעַל־הַשְּׁפָחוֹת בַּיָּמִים הָהֵם אֶשְׁפּוֹךְ אֶת־רוּחִי) emphasizes that God's Spirit isn't reserved for elites but given to al...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(29) **And also** (better, *even*) **upon the servants. . . .**—The result of which promise, according to St. Peter’s interpretation, is “They shall prophesy.” “The promise is to you and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call” (Acts 2:39).

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**23. hid I my face--**(De 31:17; Is 59:2).

And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth</strong> (Hebrew <em>venatati mofetim bashamayim uva'arets</em>, וְנָתַתִּי מוֹפְתִים בַּשָּׁמַיִם וּבָאָרֶץ)—God promises cosmic signs accompanying the Day of the LORD. The verb <em>natan</em> (נָתַן, "give/set/place") indicates deliberate, sovereign action. <em>Mofetim</em> (מוֹפְתִים, "wonders/signs/portents") are supernatural disp...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(30, 31) **The sun** . . . **and the moon.—**These words, recalling some of the portents in the ancient history of the Jews (especially as instanced in some of the plagues of Egypt) are taken up by our Lord Himself, as ushering in the great day of judgment; and they are echoed again by St. John in the vision of the opening of the sixth seal: “For the great day of His wrath is come, and who shall b...
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The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

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KJV Study Commentary

<strong>The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood</strong> (Hebrew <em>hashemesh yehafekh lechoshekh vehayare'ach ledam</em>, הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ יֵהָפֵךְ לְחֹשֶׁךְ וְהַיָּרֵחַ לְדָם)—Joel describes cosmic catastrophe preceding the Day of the LORD. The verb <em>hafakh</em> (הָפַךְ, "be turned/changed") indicates transformation or reversal—these celestial bodies won't merely dim but fun...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**25. bring again the captivity--**restore from calamity to prosperity. **the whole house of Israel--**so "all Israel" (Ro 11:26). The restorations of Israel heretofore have been partial; there must be one yet future that is to be universal (Ho 1:11).

And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call.

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KJV Study Commentary

Joel provides the gospel invitation: "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the LORD shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the LORD hath said, and in the remnant whom the LORD shall call." The Hebrew <em>vehayah kol asher-yiqra beshem-YHWH yimmalet ki behar-Tziyyon uvirushalam tiheyeh feleitah ka'asher amar YHWH uvasseridim as...
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Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers

(32) **Deliverance.—**Or, perhaps better, *those that escape.* St. Paul quotes from this verse (Romans 10:13), transferring the reference to the Messianic advent, to prove the universality of the deliverance effected by our Lord, who abolished the difference between Jew and Greek. In His Church, the heavenly Jerusalem, freed from the persecutions and defilements of the world, there is salvation fo...
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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

**26. After that they have borne their shame--**the punishment of their sin: after they have become sensible of their guilt, and ashamed of it (Eze 20:43; 36:31).

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