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Joel Chapter One
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A SINGLE bomb devastates a city, and the world is
ushered into the nuclear age. A split atom...power and force such as we have
never seen.
At a launch site, rockets roar and a payload is thrust into space.
Discoveries dreamed of for centuries are ours as we begin to explore the edge of
the universe.
Volcanoes, earthquakes, tidal waves, hurricanes, and tornados unleash
uncontrollable and unstoppable force. And we can only avoid them and then pick
up the pieces.
Power, strength, might-we stand in awe at the natural and man-made display.
But these forces cannot touch the power of omnipotent God. Creator of galaxies,
atoms, and natural laws, the sovereign Lord rules all there is and ever will be.
How silly to live without him; how foolish to run and hide from him; how
ridiculous to disobey him. But we do. Since Eve, we have sought independence
from his control, as though we were gods and could control our destiny. And he
has allowed our rebellion. But soon the day of the Lord will come.
It is about this day that the prophet Joel speaks, and it is the theme of
his book. On this day God will judge all unrighteousness and disobedience-all
accounts will be settled and the crooked made straight.
We know very little about Joel-only that he was a prophet and the son of
Pethuel. He may have lived in Jerusalem because his audience was Judah, the
southern kingdom. Whoever he was, Joel speaks forthrightly and forcefully in
this short and powerful book. His message is one of foreboding and warning, but
it is also filled with hope. Joel states that our Creator, the omnipotent Judge,
is also merciful, and he wants to bless all those who trust him.
Joel began by describing a terrible plague of locusts that covers the land
and devours the crops. The devastation wrought by these creatures is but a
foretaste of the coming judgment of God, the "day of the LORD."
Joel, therefore, urges the people to turn from their sins and turn back to God.
Woven into this message of judgment and the need for repentance is an
affirmation of God's kindness and the blessings he promises for all who follow
him. In fact, "everyone who calls on the name of the LORD
will be saved" (2:32).
As you read Joel, catch his vision of the power and might of God and of
God's ultimate judgment of sin. Choose to follow, obey, and worship God alone as
your sovereign Lord.
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VITAL STATISTICS
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PURPOSE:
To warn Judah of God's impending judgment because of their sins, and to
urge them to turn back to God
AUTHOR:
Joel son of Pethuel
TO WHOM WRITTEN:
The people of Judah, the southern kingdom, and God's people everywhere
DATE WRITTEN:
Probably during the time Joel may have prophesied from about 835 to 796
B.C.
SETTING:
The people of Judah had become prosperous and complacent. Taking God
for granted, they had turned to self-centeredness, idolatry, and sin. Joel warned
them that this kind of life-style would inevitably bring down God's judgment.
KEY VERSES:
" 'Even now,' declares the LORD 'return to me with
all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning.' Rend your heart and not
your garments. Return to the LORD, your God, for he is
gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and relents
from sending calamity" (2:12, 13).
KEY PEOPLE:
Joel, the people of Judah
KEY PLACE:
Jerusalem
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THE BLUEPRINT
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1) The day of the locusts (1:1-2:27)
2) The day of the LORD (2:28-3:21)
The locust plague was only a foretaste of the
judgment to come in the day of the LORD. This is a
timeless call to repentance with the promise of blessing. Just as the people
faced the tragedy of their crops being destroyed, we too will face tragic
judgment if we live in sin. But God's grace is available to us both now and in
that coming day.
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MEGATHEMES
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THEME:
Punishment
EXPLANATION:
Like a destroyed army of locusts, God's punishment for sin is
overwhelming, dreadful, and unavoidable. When it comes, there will be no food,
no water, no protection, and no escape. The day for settling accounts with God
for how we have lived is fast approaching.
IMPORTANCE:
God is the one with whom we all must reckon-not nature, the economy, or
a foreign invader. We must pay attention to his message now, or we will face his
anger later.
THEME:
Forgiveness
EXPLANATION:
God stood ready to forgive and restore all those who would come to him
and turn away from sin. God wanted to shower his people with his love and
restore them to proper relationship with him.
IMPORTANCE:
Forgiveness comes by turning from sin and turning toward God. It is not
too late to receive God's forgiveness. God's greatest desire is for you to come
to him.
THEME:
Promise of the Holy Spirit
EXPLANATION:
Joel predicts the time when God will pour out his Holy Spirit on all
people. It will be the beginning of new and fresh worship of God by those who
believe in him, but also the beginning of judgment on all who reject him.
IMPORTANCE:
God is in control. Justice and restoration are in his hands. The Holy
Spirit confirms God's love for us just as he did for the first Christians (Acts
2). We must be faithful to God and place our lives under the guidance and power
of his Holy Spirit.
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(1) The day of the locusts
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1) Who did the word of the LORD
come to, who did Joel tell to hear, who did Joel tell to listen, what did Joel question them about, who were they to tell about this great
happening, who were their children to tell it to, who were their children to tell it to, what have the great locusts eaten, what have the young locusts eaten, and what have other locusts eaten?
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Joel was a prophet to the nation of Judah,
also known as the southern kingdom. The book does not mention when Joel lived,
but many believe that he prophesied during the reign of King Joash (835-796
B.C.). But the date of Joel's book is not so important as its timeless message:
sin brings God's judgment; yet with God's justice there is also great mercy.
God urged parents to pass their history down to their children, telling over
and over the important lessons they learned. One of the greatest gifts you can
give younger people is your life's story to help them repeat your successes and
avoid your mistakes.
A locust plague can be as devastating as an invading army. Locusts gather in
swarms too great to number (1:6) and fly several feet above the ground, seeming
to darken the sun as they pass by (2:2). When they land, they devour almost
every piece of vegetation (1:7-12), covering and entering everything in their
path (2:9).
Joel's detailed description has caused many to believe that he was referring
to an actual locust plague that had come or was about to come upon the land.
Another view is that the locusts symbolize an invading army. Both may be
foreseen. The locusts represent devastation, and Joel's point was that God would
punish the people because of their sin. Joel calls this judgment the "day of the
LORD".
2) Who does Joel tell to wake up and weep, for what reason does Joel tell them all to
wail, who has invaded God's land, what does Joel compare its teeth to, what does Joel compare its fangs to, what has it laid waste, what has it ruined, and what has it done to their bark leaving
their branches white?
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The people's physical and moral senses were
dulled, making them oblivious to sin. Joel called them to awaken from their
complacency and admit their sins before it was to late. Otherwise, everything
would be destroyed, even the grapes that caused their drunkenness. Our times of
peace and prosperity can lull us to sleep. We must never let material abundance
hinder our spiritual readiness.
3) In what way does Joel tell them to mourn, what has been cut off from the house of the LORD, who is in mourning, because the fields are ruined and the ground
dried up, what is destroyed, what is dried up, and what fails?
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Far worse than the locust plague was the
condition of the people's spiritual lives. The very worship of God was being
compromised. Joel instructs the citizenry to mourn like an engaged virgin whose
intended husband was taken from her before the wedding. How great would be her
tragedy and sorrow! So also the people of Judah and Jerusalem should weep over
the loss of vital religious experience through the devastation of the land. The
loss of agricultural produce meant the early cessation of the meal (grain) and drink offerings. The cutting off of them should have been a warning to the
people of their grave condition.
The observances of these offerings had degenerated in Joel's day into mere
routine ritual (cf. Hosea 6:6; Amos 4:4-5). Still worse, the Israelites had made
these times an occasion for drunkenness (Hosea 2:5; Amos 2:8). Therefore, as he
had warned, God had taken away the privilege of offering that which symbolized
purity of devotion. The cutting off of the sacrifices were a severe step of
chastisement, though it should also have warned the people of their grave
condition.
Joel notes that the priests, the ministers of the Lord, were mourning. The
once productive fields were utterly laid waste (cf. Micah 2:4), and the very
ground grieved like the priests (cf. Amos 1:2). Grain (wheat after threshing),
wine (the freshly squeezed fruit), and oil (the fresh juice of the olive) were
all considered objects of God's blessing. These were being withdrawn as
punishment for their sins (Hosea 2:8-13). (taken from The NIV Bible Commentary,
Zondervan Publishers)
4) Why does Joel tell the farmers to despair,
the vine growers to wail, and to grieve for the wheat and the barley, what has dried up, what has withered, what has happened to the pomegranate, the palm
and the apple tree-all the trees of the field, and what is withered away?
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Joel also calls on the farmers and vine
keepers to "despair" (cf. Job 6:20; Isaiah 1:29; 20:5) and to "wail" (cf. verse
5), lamenting the loss of the products of the field and of the vineyard and
orchard, which symbolized the blessings of the relationship between God and
Israel (see Psalm 80:8-15; Isaiah 5:21-6; Jeremiah 2:21; cf. Matthew 21:18-21,
28-46). Joel also mentions other trees that were not only important to the
economy but were symbols of spiritual nourishment, refreshment, joy, and
fruitfulness in the life of the believer (cf. Deuteronomy 8:6-10; Psalm 92:12;
Song of Psalms 2:3). (taken from The NIV Bible Commentary, Zondervan Publishers)
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A Call to Repentance
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5) For what reason does Joel tell the priests
to put on sack cloth and mourn, why does he tell those who minister before the
altar to wail, and why does he tell those who minister before
his God to spend the night in sackcloth?
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Sackcloth is the clothing put on by mourners
at a funeral. Used here, it would be a sign of repentance.
6) What does Joel tell them to declare, what does he tell them to call, who does he tell them to summon to the house
of the LORD their God, and who does he tell them to cry out to?
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A fast was a period of time when no food was
eaten and people approached God with humility, sorrow for sin, and urgent
prayer. In the Old Testament, people often would fast during times of calamity
in order to focus their attention on God and to demonstrate their change of
heart and their true devotion (see, for example, Judges 20:26; 1Kings 21:27;
Ezra 8:21; Jonah 3:5). The sacred assembly was a public religious gathering
called so that everyone could repent and pray to God for mercy.
7) What did Joel say is near, and how will
that day come?
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The "day of the LORD is
a common phrase in the Old Testament and in the book of Joel (see 2:1, 11, 31;
3:14). It always refers to some extraordinary happening, whether a present event
(like a locust plague), an event in the near future (like the destruction of
Jerusalem or the defeat of enemy nations), or the final period of history when
God will defeat all forces of evil.
Even when the day of the Lord refers to a present
event, it also foreshadows the final day of the Lord. This final event of
history has two aspects to it: (1) the last judgment on all evil and sin and (2)
the final reward for faithful believers. Righteousness and truth will prevail,
but not before much suffering (Zechariah 14:1-3). If you trust the Lord, looking
toward this final day should give you hope, because then all who are faithful
will be united forever with God.
8) What did Joel say has been cut off before
their very eyes, what has been cut off from the house of God, where are the seeds shriveled, what is in ruin, for what reason has the granaries broken down,
what is moaning, why do the herds mill around, and who else is suffering?
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The need for penitence and prayer ought to
have been obvious from the terrible conditions. Their food had been cut off so
that there could be no feasts or offerings of gladness. Worst of all, this had
affected the worship in the house of "our God." The physical world too was a
shambles. The unfructified grains lay shriveled under their hoes, the barns were
desolate, and the granaries were trampled down. All the cattle were without
pasturage. (taken from The NIV Bible Commentary, Zondervan Publishers)
9) Who does Joel call to, what has devoured the open pastures, what has burned up all the trees of the field, who pants for the LORD,
what has dried up, and what has devoured the open pastures?
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As an example to the people, Joel breaks
forth in a cry to the Lord who alone could forgive and deliver. He again speaks
of the loss of pasturage as well as of the trees. What the locusts had not
destroyed, a severe summer's heat and drought ruined.
Likewise, the beasts of the field were longing for God. They had to seek
higher ground because of the loss of pasture and because the streams had dried
up. Joel intimates that they were more sensitive to the basic issues at hand by
their panting for God than were God's own people (cf. Isaiah 1:3). God's message
was plain. The barrenness of the land reflected the dryness and decay of the
hearts of the people. If their hearts remained unmoved and unrepentant, a worse
judgment loomed ahead. (taken from The NIV Bible Commentary, Zondervan
Publishers)
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Answers Joel Chapter One
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1) Joel son of Pethuel...his elders...all who live in the land...has anything like this ever happened in
their days
or in the days of their forefathers...their children...their children...the next generation...what the locust swarm has left...what the great locusts have left...what the young locusts have left
2) you drunkards...because the new wine has been snatched from their
lips...a nation powerful and without number...of a lion...of a lioness...the vines...the fig trees...stripped it off and thrown it away
3) like a virgin in sackcloth grieving for the
husband of her youth...grain offerings and drink offerings...the priests who minister before the LORD...the grain...the new wine...the oil
4) because the harvest of the field was
destroyed...the vine...the fig tree...they are dried upped...the joy of mankind
5) for the grain offerings and drink offerings are withheld from the house of
their God
6) a holy feast...a sacred assembly...the elders and all who live in the land...the LORD
7) the day of the LORD...like a destruction from the Almighty
8) the food...joy and gladness...beneath the clods...the storehouses...the grain has dried up...the cows...because they have no pasture...the flocks of sheep
9) you, O LORD...fire...flames...wild animals...the streams of water...fire
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Taken from The NIV Life Application Study
Bible, Zondervan Publishers
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