Joel 2
Charles Spurgeon · Citado em PreceptAustin
Joel 2
Spurgeon reminds us that "Behold is a word of wonder; it is intended to excite admiration. Wherever you see it hung out in Scripture, it is like an ancient sign-board, signifying that there are rich wares within, or like the hands which solid readers have observed in the margin of the older Puritanic books, drawing attention to something particularly worthy of observation." I would add, behold is like a divine highlighter, a divine underlining of an especially striking or important text. It says in effect "Listen up, all ye who would be wise in the ways of Jehovah!" Hinneh is translated in the Septuagint with the interjection idou (strictly speaking a command in the second person aorist imperative, middle voice) a demonstrative particle (used 1377 times in the Septuagint and NT) which is found especially in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke "and giving a peculiar vivacity to the style by bidding the reader or hearer to attend to what is said: "Behold! See! Lo!" (Thayer) The command is calling for urgent attention. Do this now! Don't delay! It could be loosely paraphrased "Pay attention!" or "Listen up!" to arouse attention and introduce a new and extraordinary fact of considerable importance. And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations - In Joel 2:17, they had asked that the reproach of the Gentiles against the Jews might be removed, and so it will be. The mouth of the godless Anti-Semitic cynics will be shut once and for all time! (Amen!) Note the important time phrase "never again," which means NEVER AGAIN! This has NEVER happened in the history of Israel or the Jewish people, who have been a reproach among the nations of the world for centuries! This is a promise that will be filled in the future when the Lord restores Israel to the Land and Messiah rules as King. In support of this interpretation we see that Joel 2:27 is a similar prophetic promise "My people will never be put to shame." and this passage is without question a prophecy that has not yet been fulfilled (see discussion of Joel 2:27). Here are 2 related prophecies in Ezekiel that speak of the cessation of reproach and both are clearly yet to be fulfilled on behalf of Israel in the future... Ezekiel 34:29 “I will establish for them a renowned planting place, and they will not again be victims of famine in the land, and they will not endure the insults of the nations anymore. Ezekiel 36:15-note “I will not let you hear insults from the nations anymore, nor will you bear disgrace from the peoples any longer, nor will you cause your nation to stumble any longer,” declares the Lord GOD.’” And so in our day (2018) Israel is still a reproach among the nations. The Jew has been hated and discriminated against by many nations even before Joel’s time to the present day. For example, on November 10, 1975, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution vilifying the Zionist Movement as “a form of racism or racial discrimination (see related resolutions),” on a 72 to 35 vote with 32 abstentions and 3 absences. The United States Ambassador, Daniel Moynihan, called the resolution an “obscene act.” He went on to say, “It was not Zionism that was condemned at the United Nations on Friday, it was Israel.” Israel’s reproach among the nations will be removed when Christ returns to set up His Millennial Kingdom on earth! You can be assured this will come to pass just as God has clearly decreed! The idyllic conditions described in Joel 2:19-27 must refer to the millennial period that follows the period of great tribulation. Joel 2:20 "But I will remove the northern army far from you, And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land, And its vanguard into the eastern sea, And its rear guard into the western sea. And its stench will arise and its foul smell will come up, For it has done great things." But I will remove Joe 2:2-11 1:4-6 Ex 10:19 the northern army far from you: Jer 1:14 And its vanguard into the eastern sea,: Eze 47:7,8,18 Zec 14:8 And its rear guard into the western sea: De 11:24 And its stench will arise: Eze 39:12-16 For it has done great things: 2Ki 8:13 ISRAEL'S INVADERS TOTALLY DECIMATED But I will remove the northern army far from you - While this northern army is not identified, it would appear to apply to all the armies that have invaded Israel from the North (Assyrians, Babylonians = Jer 1:14, Romans) but in the present context (specifically Joel 2:19 where no more reproach for Israel is definitely a future event) more likely refers to the armies of the nations who in the end times invade the land with their objective of obliterating Israel. (See Campaign of Armageddon and Arnold Fruchtenbaum's detailed proposed sequence of events). Some commentators see the northern army (a word used only here in the OT) as locusts, but that seems unlikely in view of the context, especially the immediate preceding context in which God makes a promise to Israel "I will never again make you a reproach among the nations." (Joel 2:19) Why would God then revert to the locust plague after He had just made mention of the nations in a context which clearly speaks of the last of the last days? That interpretation seems highly unlikely based on the rule of context which is king (see Keep Context King) in interpretation. In addition, the Hebrew for northern army is more literally "the northerner," which also would be a very unusual way to describe a swarm of locust (and Joel has not used any term like this where locusts were definitely implied). Finally, locust plagues have usually come from the South or Southeast, not from the North (there is a rare report of a swarm coming from the North = the plague of 1915 was from the northeast). Moody Bible Commentary - Along with blessing Israel, God will judge the northern army. The enemies of Israel most frequently came from the north, i.e., Assyria and Babylon. These northern enemies were presented as the final end-times enemy of Israel (cf. Ezek 38–39; Dan 11:40; Zech 14:2). Garrett adds that 'The Bible, however, provides extensive evidence that the term “northerner” refers to an enemy (human) army. In Isaiah an army from the north terrifies Jews and Gentiles alike in the Levant (Isa 14:31; 41:25). Zephaniah saw Yahweh stretching out his hand against Assyria in the north on the day of the Lord (Zeph 2:13). The Book of Zechariah describes the captives in Babylon as dwelling “in the land of the north” (Zech 2:6–7)." (NAC) Jamieson, F, B (written in 1800's, not dispensationalists!) on the northern army - The locust’s native country is not the north, but the south, the deserts of Arabia, Egypt, and Libya. Assyria and Babylon are the type and forerunner of all Israel’s foes (Rome, and the final Antichrist), from whom God will at last deliver His people, as He did from Sennacherib (2 Ki 19:35)....vanguard...and its rear guard - more applicable to a human army’s van and rear, than to locusts. ESV Study Bible note - The northerner may be the locusts, an invading army, or a final apocalyptic enemy of Israel. Arguments for the third option include: (1) reference to locusts as the “northerner” would be unusual, as they typically came from the south or the east; (2) Jeremiah and Ezekiel portray a great enemy coming from the north (see Jer. 1:14-15; 4:6; 6:1, 22-23; Ezek. 23:24; 26:7; 38:6, 15; 39:2); and (3) the words vanguard... rear guard (lit., “his face” and “his end”) show that destruction is complete and final. HCSB - Though some interpreters say it was an army of locusts, the language of the passage makes this view difficult. Almost every military invasion of Israel came from the north, so it would be hard to identify a specific army. The best approach is to interpret the enemy from the north as a reference to the end-time attack of the nations against God's people (Isa 34:1-7-note; Ezek 38; Da 11:36-45-note). The future invasion of Israel is described in several prophecies Joel 3:9; 12-note Proclaim this among the nations: Prepare a war; rouse the mighty men! Let all the soldiers draw near, let them come up! 12 Let the nations be aroused And come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat, For there I will sit to judge All the surrounding nations. Daniel 11:40-note “At the end time the king of the South will collide with him, and the king of the North will storm against him with chariots, with horsemen and with many ships; and he will enter countries, overflow them and pass through. Zechariah 14:2-note For I (GOD IS SOVEREIGNLY IN CONTROL) will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle, and the city will be captured, the houses plundered, the women ravished and half of the city exiled, but the rest of the people will not be cut off from the city. And I will drive it into a parched and desolate land - Possibly the Arabian desert (picture) or probably more likely the Negev (see parched and desolate picture of Negev) but one cannot be dogmatic. And its vanguard into the eastern sea - Dead Sea And its rear guard into the western sea - Mediterranean Sea And its stench will arise and its foul smell will come up- Stench is the Hebrew word beosh (0922) (also in Isa 34:3, Amos 4:10 = context is a plaque by God on hard hearted Israel and number of bodies causes a stench) and means a odor (the Lxx of Joel 2:20 is sapria = rottenness, decayed matter, which translates Heb for maggot in Job 25:6!), all three uses referring to the odor of rotting corpses (both Israel's enemies in Joel 2:20, Israel's armies in Amos 4:10). The Hebrew word for foul smell is tsachanah (06709) which occurs only here in Scripture. And so the Hebrew word for stench is used by Isaiah in a passage describin the final battle of the nations against Israel (and God) and which Messiah wins "hands down!" So their slain will be thrown out, And their corpses will give off their stench, And the mountains will be drenched with their blood. (Isa 34:3-note) Layman's Bible Commentary - The locust invasion previously described by Joel gives more impact to what he writes here about the smell arising from a retreating army Chisholm - The carcasses' stench would permeate the air. As in Joel 2:1-11, the language, though alluding to a literal army (cf. Isa. 34:3; Amos 4:10), applies to locusts as well. Eyewitness accounts tell how dead locusts, having been driven into the sea and then washed ashore, gave out a foul odor (cf. Driver, The Books of Joel and Amos, pp. 62-3; Smith, The Book of the Twelve Prophets, 2:411). As noted in the Introduction, the designation northern army (lit., "northerner") suggests that a literal army is ultimately in view. (The Bible Knowledge Commentary) (Bolding added) For it has done great things - Variously translated as "the LORD has accomplished great things" (NET), "he has done great things," (ESV). This phrase is ambiguous (see NET Note below). The NET and NIV interpret this line as referring to the Lord, but it could refer to the invading army, as the NASB, AV, and RSV translate it. Jamieson, F, B on it has done great things - that is, because the invader hath haughtily magnified himself in his doings. Compare as to Sennacherib, 2 Ki 19:11–13, 22, 28. This is quite inapplicable to the locusts, who merely seek food, not self-glorification, in invading a country. NET Note - The Hebrew text does not have "the LORD." ("the LORD has accomplished great things" = NET). Two interpretations are possible. This clause may refer to the enemy described in the immediately preceding verses, in which case it would have a negative sense: "he has acted in a high-handed manner." Or it may refer to the LORD, in which case it would have a positive sense: "the LORD has acted in a marvelous manner." This is clearly the sense of the same expression in Joel 2:21, where in fact "the LORD" appears as the subject of the verb. (Net Notes Joel 2) Joel 2:21 Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad, for the LORD has done great things. Do not fear, O land Ge 15:1 Isa 41:10 54:4 Jer 30:9,10 Zep 3:16,17 Zec 8:15 rejoice and be glad: Ps 65:12,13 96:11,12 98:8 Isa 35:1 44:23 55:12 Ho 2:21 For the LORD has done great things: Joe 2:20 De 4:32 1Sa 12:16,24 Ps 71:19 126:1-3 Jer 33:3 THE LAND IS TO REJOICE AND BE GLAD Do not fear, O land, rejoice and be glad - These two commands to rejoice follow Israel's response to the commands to “Return to Me with all your heart...with fasting, weeping and mourning and rend your heart (Joel 2:12-13-note). In other words the instructions assume that repentance has taken place. The commands are first give to the personified Land, the Land of Israel, which had earlier mourned (Joel 1:10-note). And if the Land is "rejoicing," then certainly the people who inhabit that land will rejoice and be glad. In essence then the Land is a metonym for the people. Gladness and joy were the very things that had been cut off from the house of their God? (Joel 1:16-note) There are a number of OT prophecies with a similar call to not fear but rejoice... Isaiah 54:1,4 (Speaking of the future Millennial Kingdom) “Shout for joy, O barren one, you who have borne no child; Break forth into joyful shouting and cry aloud, you who have not travailed; For the sons of the desolate one will be more numerous Than the sons of the married woman,” says the LORD. ....“Fear not, for you will not be put to shame; And do not feel humiliated, for you will not be disgraced; But you will forget the shame of your youth, And the reproach of your widowhood you will remember no more. Jeremiah 30:10-note (Jeremiah 30-33 has been called Israel's "The Book of Consolation" and is filled with God's promises for her future)‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant,’ declares the LORD, ‘And do not be dismayed, O Israel; For behold, I will save you from afar And your offspring from the land of their captivity. And Jacob will return and will be quiet and at ease, And no one will make him afraid. Zephaniah 3:16-note In that day (The Day of the LORD, the "good" side of the Day when Messiah reigns in Jerusalem in the Millennial Kingdom) it will be said to Jerusalem: “Do not be afraid, O Zion; Do not let your hands fall limp. 17 “The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. Zechariah 8:15 ) so I have again purposed in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Do not fear! Do not fear (03372)(yare) means to fear, to be afraid which ultimately is a reversal of the fear of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden after they sinned (Ge 3:10-note). This implies that the ones to whom these words are spoken have repented and returned to the LORD, which will in fact transpire in Israel in the last days. Duane Garrett observes that "In the Old Testament injunctions not to fear often come in speeches just before going to battle (e.g., Num 14:9; Isa 7:4). In Isaiah, however, the refrain “Do not fear” (using a Hebrew phrase identical or similar to that of Joel 2:21) is a signal that redemption has come. In Isa 40:9–11 the herald is to cry out to Zion, “Do not fear!” because Yahweh himself is coming to redeem and care for his people. In Isaiah 41 God reassures Israel that he has chosen them, reminds them that their God is no powerless idol, and tells them three times (Isa 41:10, 13, 14) not to fear. In 43:1 he tells Israel not to fear because he has called them by his own name, and in 43:5 he again reassures them that they need not fear because he will bring the people back from exile. In 44:2–3, much as in Joel 2:21–32, he encourages them not to fear because he will pour out water on the land and his Spirit on the people. In Isa 54:4 God tells Israel not to fear because he is about to remove their reproach among the nations. In short, the Book of Isaiah addresses many of the themes that appear in Joel, including the healing of the land, the triumph over their enemies, the end of Israel’s shame among the nations, the return from exile, and the gift of the Spirit. “Do not fear” is the refrain of reassurance that runs through them all. Joel’s command to the land not to fear similarly signals the promise of redemption. Warren
Joel 2
Spurgeon - Who can make the all-devouring locust restore his prey? No one, by wisdom or power, can recover what has been utterly destroyed. God alone can do for you what seems impossible. And here is the promise of his grace: “I will repay you for the years that the swarming locust ate.” By giving to his repentant people larger harvests than the land could naturally yield, God could give back to them, as it were, all they would have had if the locusts had never come. And God can restore our lives that have up to now been blighted and eaten up with the locust and sin, by giving us divine grace in the present and in the future. He can yet make it complete and blessed and useful to his praise and glory. It is a great wonder, but Jehovah is a God of wonders; and in the kingdom of his grace, miracles are common.....It will strike you at once that the locusts did not eat the years: the locusts ate the fruits of the years’ labor, the harvests of the fields; so that the meaning of the restoration of the years must be the restoration of those fruits and of those harvests which the locusts consumed. You cannot have back your time; 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. The fruits of wasted years may yet be yours.” Spurgeon - We cannot have back our time. But in a strange and wonderful way, God can give back to us the wasted blessings, the unripe fruits of years where we mourned. It is a great wonder, but Jehovah is a God of wonders; and in the kingdom of his grace, miracles are common. He dealt with them by way of wonders when he struck them and by way of wonders when he returned to them in his mercy. Spurgeon - “I will repay you for the years that the swarming locust ate, the young locust, the destroying locust, and the devouring locust—my great army that I sent against you.” The locust year was particularly a year of great disappointment. The people looked for a harvest. In fact, they seemed to see it spring up, and then it was devoured before their eyes. Even so, the ungodly person—the one who has no faith in Christ—is often charmed with the prospect of a happiness that he never reaches. A little more and he will be content. He gets a little more. And this increases his thirst for yet another drink from the golden cup. Run as we may, when the heart shoots with its far-reaching bow, still the arrows are beyond us. The student must know a little more. The ambitious must climb a little higher up the ladder of honor, and then he will be at ease. He learns, he reaches the honor, but the ease is still as distant as ever—perhaps it is even further off. Lost years can never be restored literally. Time once past is gone forever. Let no one make any mistake about this or trifle with the present moment under any notion that the flying hour will ever wing its way back to him. So the meaning of the restoration of the years must be the restoration of those fruits and of those harvests the locusts consumed. We cannot have back our time. But in a strange and wonderful way, God can give back to us the wasted blessings, the unripe fruits of years where we mourned. It is a pity that they should have been eaten by our folly and negligence. But if they have been so, we should not be hopeless concerning them. Jesus said to the man with the demon-possessed son, “‘If you can’? Everything is possible for the one who believes” (Mk 9:23). There is a power that is beyond all things and can work great marvels. Who can make the all-devouring locust restore his prey? No one, by wisdom or power, can recover what has been utterly destroyed. God alone can do for you what seems impossible. And here is the promise of his grace: “I will repay you for the years that the swarming locust ate.” By giving to his repentant people larger harvests than the land could naturally yield, God could give back to them, as it were, all they would have had if the locusts had never come. And God can restore our lives that have up to now been blighted and eaten up with the locust and sin, by giving us divine grace in the present and in the future. He can yet make it complete and blessed and useful to his praise and glory. It is a great wonder, but Jehovah is a God of wonders; and in the kingdom of his grace, miracles are common. F B
Joel 2
Spurgeon - “You will have plenty to eat and be satisfied. You will praise the name of the Lord your God, who has dealt wondrously with you. My people will never again be put to shame.” The nation of Israel had grievously gone astray, and therefore they were visited by a remarkable chastisement. An unusual plague of locusts devoured all the fruit of the field, and the people were vexed with a severe famine. The day of the Lord was terrible, and none of them could endure it. The prophet Joel was commissioned to exhort them to repentance; and if, indeed, they listened to his earnest entreaties, their later history was bright with mercy. By God’s good hand on them, they were brought to repentance; they wept and cried to God. And then the same God, who with his left hand had been wonderful in chastisement, was, with his right hand, equally wonderful in blessing and enriching them. He loaded their floors with wheat, made their baskets overflow with wine and oil, and restored to them the years the locust had eaten so that they ate in plenty and were satisfied and praised the name of the Lord, who had dealt wondrously with them. He dealt with them by way of wonders when he struck them and by way of wonders when he returned to them in his mercy. Joel 2:27 "Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am the LORD your God, And there is no other; And My people will never be put to shame. I am in the midst of Israel: Joe 3:17 Lev 26:11,12 De 23:14 Ps 46:5 68:18 Isa 12:6 Eze 37:26-28 Zep 3:17 2Co 6:16 Rev 21:3 that I am the LORD your God Isa 45:5,18,21,22 53:6 Eze 39:22,28 And My people will never be put to shame.: Joe 2:26 1Pe 2:6 THERE IS NO OTHER GOD! Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel - This same truth is echoed in the last words in Ezekiel "The LORD is there" (Jehovah Shammah) (Ezekiel 48:35) Other prophets foresaw this glorious day Ezekiel 37:26-28-note “I will make a covenant of peace with them; it will be an everlasting covenant with them. And I will place them and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in their midst forever. 27 “My dwelling place also will be with them; and I will be their God, and they will be My people. 28“And the nations will know that I am the LORD who sanctifies Israel, when My sanctuary is in their midst forever.”’” Zephaniah 3:15-note The LORD has taken away His judgments against you, He has cleared away your enemies. The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst; You will fear disaster no more. Zephaniah 3:17-note “The LORD your God is in your midst, A victorious warrior. He will exult over you with joy, He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy. You will know - The Hebrew verb yada speaks of intimate knowledge (e.g., it is used of a man "knowing" a woman) and is translated in the Septuagint with the verb epiginosko which speak of full knowledge, knowledge obtained by experience. Israel will know Jehovah is in their midst because He will literally be in their midst in the Millennium! Duane Garrett has an interesting comment on this section - The saying, “Then you will know that I am the LORD your God” or the like appears repeatedly in the exodus narrative (Ex 6:7; 7:17; 8:22; 11:7; 16:6, 8, 12). It implies that the Lord was about to do some mighty work that would teach the Israelites a lesson about his divine power. The phrase also appears in Nu 16:28, 30, where the earth opened up and swallowed the rebellious sons of Korah. By this the people “knew” that the Lord was God and that Moses was his spokesperson. Ezekiel used the formula about thirty times (e.g., Ezek 6:7; 7:4, 9; 11:10, 12), and it appears sporadically in other Old Testament books as well (e.g., 1 Ki 20:13, 28; Isa 49:23; 60:16; Jer 44:29; cf. also John 8:28). Keil and Delitzsch - They will learn thereby that Jehovah is present among His people, and the only true God, who does not suffer His people to be put to shame. The repetition of וְלֹא יֵבֹשׁוּ וגו, by which the promised grace is guaranteed to the people for all ages, serves as a rhetorical rounding off of the section (see at Joel 2:20). (Keil and Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament - Volume 10: The Minor Prophets) And that I am the LORD your God, and there is no other - Notice God's acknowledgement of His covenant communion with the redeemed remnant = "your God." There is no other - Other is 'od see below. Isaiah 45 echoes this great truth that there is only one TRUE God... Isaiah 45:5; “I am the LORD, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God. I will gird you, though you have not known Me; Isaiah 45:18 For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), “I am the LORD, and there is none else. Isaiah 45:21 “Declare and set forth your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has announced this from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me. Isaiah 45:22 “Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. (THIS IS THE VERSE THAT RESULTED IN THE SALVATION OF THE FAMOUS PREACHER CHARLES HADDON SPURGEON - SEE SPURGEON'S OWN TESTIMONY). And My people will never be put to shame - Notice the possessive "MY." He is referring in this context to His "Chosen People" the nation of Israel (specifically the repentant, redeemed remnant) and NOT to the Church. And just in case Israel did not see it (or believe it) in Joel 2:26, the Spirit inspires Joel to repeat this wonderful truth - NO SHAME, NO MORE! Charles Feinberg writes that Joel 2:26-27 "end with the same words because God would give fullest assurance of the truth stated. In Joel 2:26 it is used of temporal benefits; in Joel 2:27, of spiritual benefits. God is the sole and only necessary guarantee that all these will be accomplished." Will never be put to shame (0954) See preceding discussion of bosh. Other (05750)('od form verb 'ud = to repeat or do again) is an adverb meaning again, still, more, longer, also, yet, a going around, beside. 'Od is used frequently in Isaiah to signify there is no "other" God beside Jehovah (Isa 45:5, 6, 45:14, 18, 45:21, 22, 46:9, Dt 4:35, 39, Joel 2:27-note). Clearly God wants His people Israel and His children in the NT to know that He alone is God, lest we be prone to wander and be seduced by the false "gods" of this fallen world. Play My Deliverer is Coming by Rich Mullins - powerful! ESCHATOLOGICAL USES OF 'OD In Jeremiah 23:4 the Hebrew word 'od is used in an eschatological (prophetic) sense to describe a future promise given to Israel- "I will also raise up shepherds over them and they will tend them; and they will not be afraid any longer ('od) nor be terrified, nor will any be missing," declares the LORD." See multiple uses in Jeremiah of 'od in descriptions of future prophecies related to Israel = Jer 23:7, Jer 30:8-note, Jer 31:4-5-note, Jer 31:12-note, Jer 31:23-note, Jer 31:29-note, Jer 31:34-note, Jer 31:40-note, Jer 32:15-note, Jer 33:12,13-note, Jer 33:24-note Other uses of 'od in the context of future prophecy - And never again will they learn war. Isaiah 2:4 “Yet there will be a tenth portion in it, And it will again be subject to burning, Like a terebinth or an oak Isaiah 6:13 Ephraim will be shattered, so that it is no longer a people Isa 7:8 "again choose Israel" = Isa 14:1; Ezek 36:15, 30, 37, "they will no longer be two nations and no longer be divided into two kingdoms" = Ezek 37:22, "They will no longer defile themselves with their idols" = Ezek 37:23; "I will not let My holy name be profaned anymore" = Ezek 39:7, 28; "I will not hide My face from them any longer for I will have poured out My Spirit on the house of Israel," = Ezek 39:29; Ezek 43:7, 45:8, Hos 2:16-17, And I will never again make you a reproach among the nations. Joel 2:19-note, 27, “Thus you will know that I am in the midst of Israel, And that I am the LORD your God, And there is no other; Joel 2:27-note Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, Dwelling in Zion, My holy mountain. So Jerusalem will be holy, And strangers will pass through it no more. Joel 3:17-note "I will also plant them on their land, And they will not again be rooted out from their land" = Amos 9:15, Micah 4:3, Zeph 3:15, "The LORD will possess Judah as His portion in the holy land, and will again choose Jerusalem." = Zech 2:12; "Thus says the LORD of hosts, 'Old men and old women will again sit in the streets of Jerusalem" = Zech 8:4, while the inhabitants of Jerusalem again dwell on their own sites in Jerusalem. Zech 12:6-note It will come about in that day,” declares the LORD of hosts, “that I will cut off the names of the idols from the land, and they will no longer be remembered; and I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land. Zech 13:2-note “And if anyone still prophesies, Zech 13:3-note "People will live in it, and there will no longer be a curse, for Jerusalem will dwell in security" = Zech 14:11-note And there will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the LORD of hosts in that day. - Zech 14:21-note Joel 2:28 "It will come about after this that I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and daughters will prophesy, Your old men will dream dreams, Your young men will see visions. That I will pour out My Spirit : Pr 1:23 Isa 32:15 44:3 Eze 39:29 Joh 7:39 Acts 2:16-18 on all mankind: Isa 40:5 49:6 Zec 12:10 Lu 3:6 Ac 2:2-4,33,39 10:44-47 Ac 11:15-18 15:7,8 daughters will prophesy: Isa 54:13 Ac 21:9 Ga 3:28 Your young men will see visions Ge 37:5-10 Nu 12:6 Jer 23:28 ESV "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions. NLT "Then, after doing all those things, I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your old men will dream dreams, and your young men will see visions. THE OUTPOURING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT UPON ISRAEL Note that you are reading a Jewish text, you will note that Joel 2:28-32 are in Joel 3 and Joel 3 in English translations is Joel 4 in the Hebrew original. NET Note explains that "Beginning with Joel 2:28, the verse numbers through Joel 3:21 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with Joel 2:28 ET = 3:1 HT, Joel 2:29 ET = 3:2 HT, Joel 2:30 ET = 3:3 HT, Joel 2:31 ET = 3:4 HT, Joel 2:32 ET = 3:5 HT, Joel 3:1 ET = 4:1 HT, etc., through Joel 3:21 ET = 4:21 HT. Thus Joel in the Hebrew Bible has 4 chapters, the 5 verses of ch. 3 being included at the end of ch. 2 in the English Bible." (Net Notes Joel 2) On Pentecost after being filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-3,4+), Peter delivers a sermon (beginning in Acts 2:14 and ending in Acts 2:38-40) to an audience of men of Judea and those who lived in Jerusalem and in Acts 2:16-21+ quotes from Joel 2:28-32. As a result of Peter's message on that same day about 3000 souls from this Jewish audience were born again. (Acts 2:41+) Below is Peter's quote from the book of Joel and it is fascinating (? coincidence) that these are the same 5 verses that the Hebrew Bible places in a separate chapter, Joel chapter 3 (as explained above). Acts 2:16-21 but this is what was spoken of through the prophet Joel: 17 ‘AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS,’ God says, (PETER NOW BEGINS QUOTING Joel 2:28) ‘THAT I WILL POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT ON ALL MANKIND; AND YOUR SONS AND YOUR DAUGHTERS SHALL PROPHESY, AND YOUR YOUNG MEN SHALL SEE VISIONS, AND YOUR OLD MEN SHALL DREAM DREAMS ; Comment: Note that the first phrase "‘AND IT SHALL BE IN THE LAST DAYS" is not from the book of Joel. This exact Greek phrase is found in the Septuagint version of Isaiah 2:2-commentary which is also a prophecy that deals with the "last days." It is interesting that Isaiah's passage is describing the beginning of the Messiah's earthly kingdom. Below are the actual Greek text from the Septuagint and from the New Testament to show that they are exactly the same words: ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις (Isaiah 2:2 Septuagint) ἔσται ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις, (Act 2:17 New Testament) 18 (PETER IS QUOTING Joel 2:29) EVEN ON MY BONDSLAVES, BOTH MEN AND WOMEN, I WILL IN THOSE DAYS POUR FORTH OF MY SPIRIT And they shall prophesy. 19 (PETER IS QUOTING Joel 2:30)‘AND I WILL GRANT WONDERS IN THE SKY ABOVE AND SIGNS ON THE EARTH BELOW, BLOOD, AND FIRE, AND VAPOR OF SMOKE. 20 (PETER IS QUOTING Joel 2:31)‘THE SUN WILL BE TURNED INTO DARKNESS AND THE MOON INTO BLOOD, BEFORE THE GREAT AND GLORIOUS DAY OF THE LORD SHALL COME. 21 (PETER IS QUOTING Joel 2:32) ‘AND IT SHALL BE THAT EVERYONE WHO CALLS ON THE NAME OF THE LORD WILL BE SAVED.’ Comment: Note that Peter is quoting from the Septuagint (Lxx) and not from the Hebrew text. In fact it is notable that the majority of the NT quotes (by various writers) of Old Testament Scriptures are taken from the Septuagint (Lxx), which certainly substantiates the authenticity and the usefulness of the Septuagint (Lxx) version which I fear many Bible students have largely neglected as an excellent source to supplement their study of the Old Testament Scriptures. For more on the Septuagint see these two excellent articles from Everett Harrison: (1) The Importance of the Septuagint for Biblical Studies, Part 1, Bibliotheca Sacra 112: 448 (1955): 344-355 (2) The Influence of the Septuagint on the NT Vocabulary Bibliotheca Sacra 113 (Jan. 1956) 37-45 John
Joel 2
Spurgeon - “Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved, for there will be an escape for those on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, as the Lord promised, among the survivors the Lord calls.” In the worst times that can ever happen, there is still salvation for people. When day turns to night and life becomes death, when the staff of life is broken and the hope of all has fled, there still remains in God, in the person of his dear Son, deliverance to all those who will call on the name of the Lord. We must call on the true God, not on an idol or an image or an impression of our minds. We must call on the living God—call on him who reveals himself in the Bible—call on him who reveals himself in the person of his dear Son. For whosoever will call on this God will be saved. This way of salvation—calling on the name of the Lord—glorifies God. He asks nothing of us but that we ask everything of him. We are the beggars and he is the benefactor. We are in trouble and he is our deliverer. All we have to do is trust him and beg of him. This is easy enough. This puts the matter into the hands of the Lord and takes it out of our hands. Even the Faintest Call - Faith's Checkbook - C H Spurgeon “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered.”—Joel 2:32 WHY do I not call on His name? Why do I run to this neighbor and that, when God is so near and will hear my faintest call? Why do I sit down, and devise schemes, and invent plans? Why not at once roll myself and my burden upon the Lord? Straight-forward is the best runner—why do I not run at once to the living God? In vain shall I look for deliverance anywhere else; but with God I shall find it; for here I have His royal shall to make it sure. I need not ask whether I may call on Him or not, for that word “&whosoever&” is a very wide and comprehensive one. Whosoever means me, for it means anybody and everybody who calls upon God. I will therefore follow the leading of the text, and at once call upon the glorious Lord who has made so large a promise. My case is urgent, and I do not see how I am to be delivered; but this is no business of mine. He who makes the promise will find out ways and means of keeping it. It is mine to obey His commands; it is not mine to direct His counsels. I am His servant, not His solicitor. I call upon Him, and He will deliver me.