1Joel declareth the destruction of the fruits of the earth by noxious insects, 8and by a long drought. 14He recommendeth a solemn fasting with prayer to deprecate these judgments.
1THE word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
2Hear this, ye 1old men, and give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land. Hath 2this been in your days, or even in the days of your 3fathers?
1 Those who have the government in Judah and have experience of things and times. See Exod. 3:16; Lev. 4:15, with the annotations. Or plainly: ye old ones, namely, in years, who have experienced more than younger ones, or those who are middle aged.
2 Do you know, or remember such a plague as is related in the sequel?
3 In Exod. 10:4, 5, 6, 14, 15 there is likewise related of a grievous plague of grasshoppers upon the Egyptians, but the famine did not continue so long, nor were there so many kinds of such destroying vermin as here in the land of Judah, the one after the other; however the people’s hardness of heart was so great, that they were little sensible of it unto conversion; which is the reason that God seeks to stir them up by this prophet in a manner as follows.
34Tell ye your children of it, and let your children tell their children, and their children 5another generation.
4 Compare Exod. 10:2; Psalm 78:4, 6.
5 That is, to the succeeding generation, or to their posterity.
4That which the 6palmerworm hath left hath the locust eaten; and that which the locust hath left hath the cankerworma eaten; and that which the cankerworm hath left hath the caterpiller eaten.
6 Hebr. the remnant of the palmerworm; and so in the sequel. At what time this terrible and long continuing plague of these insects, accompanied with an excessive drought, happened to Judah, is uncertain. Some refer it to the time of Elijah and Elisha, or when Joram reigned in Israel and Jehoshaphat in Judah. See 1 Kings 17:1, etc.; 2 Kings 4:38. Others compare it with Jer. 14:1. Likewise Amos 1:2; 4:6, 7, 8, 9, etc. Some conceive that by these harmful creatures are figuratively understood the Assyrians and Chaldeans, by whom the land would be extremely laid waste. The prophet does indeed speak sometimes in past and present time, and sometimes in the future. See verse 15; Joel 2:1, etc., because this plague lasted for some years, Joel 2:25. Yet some do hold, that this was a judgment to come, and that the prophet prophetically speaks of it as present.
a hopping locust
5Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the new wine; for 7it is cut off from your mouth.
7 In regard that the vine was utterly consumed by the aforesaid vermin, as follows in verse 7. Compare Amos 4:9.
6For a 8nation is come up upon my land, strong, and without number, whose 9teeth are the teeth of a lion, and he hath the cheek teeth of a great lion.
8 Understand the countless multitude of the aforesaid vermin, which God, being greatly provoked by the sins of His people, would cause to come upon His own holy land, being improperly called a people or nation. See Joel 2:2, and compare Prov. 30:25, 26, and see the annotations there. Of Canaan, that God calls His land, see Hosea 9:3, with the annotation. Likewise Joel 2:18.
9 This signifies of the creatures’ greediness, voracity and strength. Compare Rev. 9:8, 9, 10.
710He hath laid 11my vine waste, and 12barked my fig tree: he hath made it clean bare, and cast it away; the branches thereof are made 13white.
10 That aforesaid nation, that is, those devouring creatures.
11 Compare Hosea 2:8. God speaks thus to show that He does not spare also His own creatures and gifts while punishing the sins of men.
12 That is, it fades away, comes to nothing. Or, fungus. Other, peeling, making bare, so that skin or peel is eaten off, whereby the fig tree becomes as bare, uncovered and pale. Compare Isa. 24:7.
13 Or, pallid; as on the contrary the succulent branches are green and pleasant.
8 ¶ 14Lament like a virgin girded with 15sackcloth for the 16husband of her youth.
14 O Jerusalem.
15 See Gen. 37 on verse 34.
16 That is, her bridegroom, or young man (as some think), who died while she was betrothed to him, or soon afterward; that is, mourn bitterly. Compare Mal. 2:14, 15.
9The 17meat offering and the drink offering is cut off from the house of the LORD; the priests, the LORD’S ministers, 18mourn.
17 See Exod. 29:40; Lev. 2 on verse 1; Num. 15:5, 7, 10; 28:7. The sense is: that very few of such offerings were brought to the house of the Lord, because of the scarcity of meat and drink. Also verse 13.
18 Since the service of God was neglected, thereby they had scarcity of maintenance.
10The field is wasted, the land mourneth; for the corn is wasted: the new wine is 19dried up, the oil 20languisheth.
19 The vines being scorched and withered. Other, ashamed, as not being able to show forth any good fruit; figuratively spoken.
20 As the trees are said to be weak, sick, ill, when they fail and do not bear.
11Be ye ashamed, O 21ye husbandmen; howl, O ye vinedressers, for the 22wheat and for the barley; because the harvest of the field is perished.
21 Or, be ashamed ye husbandmen, howl ye vinedressers.
22 This refers to the husbandmen, as the following verse vine has regard to the vinedressers.
12The vine is 23dried up, and the fig tree languisheth; the pomegranate tree, the palm tree also, and the apple tree, even all the trees of the field, are withered: because 24joy is 25withered away from the sons of men.
23 Or, ashamed, as verse 10.
24 Which men used to show in the time of a good harvest. See Psalm 4:7; Isa. 16:10; Jer. 48:33; Hosea 9:1, with the annotation.
25 Or, ashamed among, etc., as at the beginning of this verse. That is, as the matters stand with the land, so it is also with the heart of men, all is but sadness, meagerness and confusion. Joy and gladness dare not show the face, as it were, since all the land is being filled with mourning.
1326Gird yourselves, and lament, ye priests: howl, ye ministers of the altar: come, lie all night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God: for the 27meat offering and the drink offering is withholden from the house of your God.
26 Namely, with sacks, as a sign of mourning, as verse 8, and here in the next words.
27 As verse 9.
14 ¶ 28Sanctifyb ye a fast, call a 29solemn assembly, gather the 30elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the LORD your God, and cry unto the LORD,
28 That is, preparing yourselves by a holy exercise of this heavy judgment of God, thus appoint and set apart a certain time, wherein ye may solemnly meet, and abstaining from meat and drink, humbling your selves both outwardly and inwardly before the LORD, publicly professing and acknowledging your repentance, and submissively asking from Him mercy and forgiveness. Joel 2:12, 15.
b Joel 2:15.
29 See Lev. 23 on verse 36.
30 That is, rulers. See on verse 2.
1531Alas for the day! for thec32day of the LORD is 33at hand, and as a destruction from the 34Almighty shall it come.
31 These and the following words to the end of this chapter are taken by some to be a form or pattern (prescribed to the people of God by the prophet) of a penitent lamentation to be made unto God about the aforesaid heavy punishment, adding only to the end of the former verse the words saying. Others hold them to be the words of the prophet himself, taking up this lamentation before the people, that by his example they may be awakened and stirred up to the serious consideration of this judgment of God; both in a good sense.
c Isa. 13:6.
32 That is, the appointed time, wherein the Lord will punish His people. Likewise Joel 2:1, 2. See Psalm 37 on verse 13; Ezek. 30:2.
33 Some do gather from these words that the judgment, mentioned before, was yet to come or drawing near. Compare Joel 2:1, etc. Others think that this has respect to an other judgment to come, which would be more heavy yet than the present, by reason of the people’s senselessness and impenitence under the fearful plague of all these devouring, loathsome creatures and grievous drought.
34 Who has all power and sufficient ability to do well or to punish, so that none shall be able to avoid or prevent His day. See of the Hebrew word schaddai, Gen. 17 on verse 1 and compare Isa. 13:6.
16Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the 35house of our God?
35 In regard that there were no more thank offerings brought in or offered, from which it may be gathered that by meat, before mentioned, there may be understood, not only common food, but also especially the offering or oblations themselves. Compare Mal. 1:7, 12, and see Lev. 3:11; Ezek. 44:7, with the annotation.
17The 36seed is rotten under their clods, the 37garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered.
36 The seed, which was sown, is spoiled in the ground, through the great heat, the want of seasonable rain, or other damages.
37 Wherein the treasures, that is the fruits of the land (as Jer. 41:8, etc.), are want to be laid up and kept, the storehouses, granaries, etc. They are empty and bare, the prophet implies.
18How do the 38beasts groan! 39the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the 40flocks of sheep are made desolate.
38 For want of fodder; figuratively spoken, as verse 20: cry also unto thee.
39 Or, How are the herds of cattle perplexed, or astonished, amazed! Understand this of the herds of large cattle.
40 The smaller kind of cattle.
19O LORD, to thee will I cry: for the 41fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.
41 That is, the severe heat and drought, or the foresaid plague, and the fire of God’s wrath. See Job 15:30, 34, with the annotations. Also in the sequel.
2042The beasts of the field 43cry also unto thee: for the 44rivers of waters are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness.
42 Hebr. beasts of the field cryeth, that is, each beast, etc.
43 See of the Hebrew word Psalm 42 on verse 1 and compare Job 38:41; Psalm 147:9; Jonah 3:8, with the annotations.
44 Or, water pools, water ditches.